Air Commodore Muhammad Mahmood Alam (Bengali: মহম্মদ মাহমুদ আলম; ur, ) 6 July 1935 – 18 March 2013) was a
Bengali
Bengali or Bengalee, or Bengalese may refer to:
*something of, from, or related to Bengal, a large region in South Asia
* Bengalis, an ethnic and linguistic group of the region
* Bengali language, the language they speak
** Bengali alphabet, the ...
fighter pilot officially credited by the
Pakistan Air Force
, "Be it deserts or seas; all lie under our wings" (traditional)
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with having downed four Indian jets in under a minute.
He was a
F-86 Sabre
The North American F-86 Sabre, sometimes called the Sabrejet, is a transonic jet fighter aircraft. Produced by North American Aviation, the Sabre is best known as the United States' first swept-wing fighter that could counter the swept-wing S ...
flying ace
A flying ace, fighter ace or air ace is a military aviator credited with shooting down five or more enemy aircraft during aerial combat. The exact number of aerial victories required to officially qualify as an ace is varied, but is usually co ...
as per Pakistan Air Force records. He was awarded the
Sitara-e-Jurat twice, the nation's third highest military award for his actions.
Early life
Alam born on 6 July 1935 to a family hailing from
Calcutta
Kolkata (, or , ; also known as Calcutta , the official name until 2001) is the capital of the Indian state of West Bengal, on the eastern bank of the Hooghly River west of the border with Bangladesh. It is the primary business, comm ...
,
British India
The provinces of India, earlier presidencies of British India and still earlier, presidency towns, were the administrative divisions of British governance on the Indian subcontinent. Collectively, they have been called British India. In one ...
. Born and raised in
Bengal
Bengal ( ; bn, বাংলা/বঙ্গ, translit=Bānglā/Bôngô, ) is a geopolitical, cultural and historical region in South Asia, specifically in the eastern part of the Indian subcontinent at the apex of the Bay of Bengal, predom ...
, Alam was a fluent
Bengali
Bengali or Bengalee, or Bengalese may refer to:
*something of, from, or related to Bengal, a large region in South Asia
* Bengalis, an ethnic and linguistic group of the region
* Bengali language, the language they speak
** Bengali alphabet, the ...
speaker, it being his mother tongue. He was of mixed heritage: his maternal line was of
Bengali
Bengali or Bengalee, or Bengalese may refer to:
*something of, from, or related to Bengal, a large region in South Asia
* Bengalis, an ethnic and linguistic group of the region
* Bengali language, the language they speak
** Bengali alphabet, the ...
origin and his paternal line was of
Bihari origin, having migrated from
Patna
Patna (
), historically known as Pataliputra, is the capital and largest city of the state of Bihar in India. According to the United Nations, as of 2018, Patna had a population of 2.35 million, making it the 19th largest city in India. ...
and later settled in the
Bengal
Bengal ( ; bn, বাংলা/বঙ্গ, translit=Bānglā/Bôngô, ) is a geopolitical, cultural and historical region in South Asia, specifically in the eastern part of the Indian subcontinent at the apex of the Bay of Bengal, predom ...
province of
British India
The provinces of India, earlier presidencies of British India and still earlier, presidency towns, were the administrative divisions of British governance on the Indian subcontinent. Collectively, they have been called British India. In one ...
for a long time.
His family migrated from
Calcutta
Kolkata (, or , ; also known as Calcutta , the official name until 2001) is the capital of the Indian state of West Bengal, on the eastern bank of the Hooghly River west of the border with Bangladesh. It is the primary business, comm ...
to
East Bengal
ur,
, common_name = East Bengal
, status = Province of the Dominion of Pakistan
, p1 = Bengal Presidency
, flag_p1 = Flag of British Bengal.svg
, s1 = Eas ...
(which later became
East Pakistan
East Pakistan was a Pakistani province established in 1955 by the One Unit Scheme, One Unit Policy, renaming the province as such from East Bengal, which, in modern times, is split between India and Bangladesh. Its land borders were with India ...
and then
Bangladesh
Bangladesh (}, ), officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by population, eighth-most populous country in the world, with a population exceeding 165 million pe ...
) following the creation of Pakistan in 1947.
It was in
East Pakistan
East Pakistan was a Pakistani province established in 1955 by the One Unit Scheme, One Unit Policy, renaming the province as such from East Bengal, which, in modern times, is split between India and Bangladesh. Its land borders were with India ...
where Alam completed his secondary education, graduating from the Government High School in
Dhaka
Dhaka ( or ; bn, ঢাকা, Ḍhākā, ), formerly known as Dacca, is the capital and largest city of Bangladesh, as well as the world's largest Bengali-speaking city. It is the eighth largest and sixth most densely populated city ...
in 1951. He joined the then Royal Pakistani Air Force (now
Pakistan Air Force
, "Be it deserts or seas; all lie under our wings" (traditional)
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) in 1952, being commissioned on 2 October 1953.
[Iconic war veteran MM Alam passes away](_blank)
The News International
''The News International'', published in broadsheet size, is one of the largest English language newspapers in Pakistan. It is published daily from Karachi, Lahore and Rawalpindi/Islamabad. An overseas edition is published from London that cat ...
. Retrieved on 19 March 2013. Alam's brothers are
M. Shahid Alam, an economist and a professor at
Northeastern University
Northeastern University (NU) is a private research university with its main campus in Boston. Established in 1898, the university offers undergraduate and graduate programs on its main campus as well as satellite campuses in Charlotte, North C ...
,
[Cihan Aksan, ''State of Nature'']
On Islam: An Interview with M. Shahid Alam
/ref> and M. Sajjad Alam, who was a particle physicist at SUNY Albany.
His family moved to West Pakistan
West Pakistan ( ur, , translit=Mag̱ẖribī Pākistān, ; bn, পশ্চিম পাকিস্তান, translit=Pôścim Pakistan) was one of the two Provincial exclaves created during the One Unit Scheme in 1955 in Pakistan. It was ...
in 1971, after the liberation of Bangladesh
Bangladesh (}, ), officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by population, eighth-most populous country in the world, with a population exceeding 165 million pe ...
. Being the eldest of his 11 siblings, Alam did not marry as he had to assume the responsibilities of the upbringing of his family. Some of his younger brothers became distinguished in various academic careers.
Service with the Pakistan Air Force
Indo-Pakistani War of 1965
During the Indo-Pakistani War of 1965
The Indo-Pakistani War of 1965 or the Second Kashmir War was a culmination of skirmishes that took place between April 1965 and September 1965 between Pakistan and India. The conflict began following Pakistan's Operation Gibraltar, which was d ...
, Alam claimed to have scored an "ace in a day" on 7 September 1965, with a total of 5 kills. His actions have placed him at the top of the hall of fame list at the Pakistan Air Force
, "Be it deserts or seas; all lie under our wings" (traditional)
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(PAF) Museum in Karachi. During the war, he was posted at Sargodha
Sargodha (Punjabi and ur, ) is a city and capital of Sargodha Division, located in Punjab province, Pakistan. It is Pakistan's 12th largest city by population and one of the fastest-growing cities of the country. Sargodha is also known as ...
.
According to the PAF, in a single sortie on 7 September 1965, Alam downed five aircraft in less than a minute, establishing a world record. Regarding the last four, he stated: "Before we had completed more than about 270 degrees of turn, at around 12 degrees per second, all four Hunters had been shot down." In 1978, when he gave a speech at a Karachi university, he said that he saw a spiritual force coming from the sky.[30 Seconds Over Sargodha – The Making of a Myth: 1965 Indo-Pak Air War, Chapter 5](_blank)
, Bharat Rakshak
Bharat Rakshak ("Defenders of India") is a website devoted to discussing the Military of India. It was started and is run by military enthusiasts.
History
Bharat Rakshak was started in April 1997 by bringing together the individual websites of I ...
His claims have been contested by retired PAF Air Commodore Sajad S. Haider and the Indian Air Force, which denied losing five Hawker Hunter aircraft on the said day,[''Pakistan's Sabre Ace'' by Jon Guttman, Aviation History, Sept 1998.] Also, the fact that no verifiable gun camera
Gun cameras are cameras mounted on a gun, used to photograph or record from its perspective. They are typically used on the weapons of military aircraft and operate either when the gun is fired or at the operator's will. Gun cameras are used for ...
footage of his kills was ever made public by the Pakistani authorities, further casts doubt on his claim.
Later years
In 1967, he was appointed Squadron Commander of the first squadron of Dassault Mirage III
The Dassault Mirage III () is a family of single/dual-seat, single-engine, fighter aircraft developed and manufactured by French aircraft company Dassault Aviation. It was the first Western European combat aircraft to exceed Mach 2 in horizont ...
fighters procured by the PAF. In 1982, he retired as an Air commodore and took up residence in Karachi
Karachi (; ur, ; ; ) is the most populous city in Pakistan and 12th most populous city in the world, with a population of over 20 million. It is situated at the southern tip of the country along the Arabian Sea coast. It is the former ...
.
Death
Alam was admitted to Pakistan Naval Station Shifa Hospital in Karachi where he died on 18 March 2013, aged 77. He was being treated for respiratory problems for 18 months. Alam's funeral prayer was performed at the PAF Base Masroor
PAF Base Masroor is the largest airbase operated by the Pakistan Air Force. It is located in the Mauripur area of Karachi, in the Sindh province.
The base was originally known as RPAF Station Mauripur and after 1956, as PAF Station Mauripur. ...
, where he served some of the significant years of his career. Alam was buried at the Shuhuda (Martyrs) Graveyard, located at PAF Masroor Airbase. Air Chief Marshal Tahir Rafique Butt, Sindh Governor Dr Ishratul Ebad, Air Chief Marshal (Ret.) Farooq Feroze Khan, Sindh corps commander Lt. Gen Ijaz Chaudhry, Pakistan Rangers (Sindh) Director-General Maj. Gen. Rizwan Akhtar, Base Commander PAF Base Masroor Air Commodore Usaid ur Rehman, many war veterans of the 1965 war and Alam's closest colleagues attended the funeral. One of the younger brothers of the deceased, Zubair Alam, was also present.
Memorials
M. M. Alam Road, a major road in Lahore
Lahore ( ; pnb, ; ur, ) is the second most populous city in Pakistan after Karachi and 26th most populous city in the world, with a population of over 13 million. It is the capital of the province of Punjab where it is the largest ...
, Punjab
Punjab (; Punjabi: پنجاب ; ਪੰਜਾਬ ; ; also romanised as ''Panjāb'' or ''Panj-Āb'') is a geopolitical, cultural, and historical region in South Asia, specifically in the northern part of the Indian subcontinent, comprising ...
, Pakistan
Pakistan ( ur, ), officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan ( ur, , label=none), is a country in South Asia. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of almost 24 ...
is named in honour of the flying ace
A flying ace, fighter ace or air ace is a military aviator credited with shooting down five or more enemy aircraft during aerial combat. The exact number of aerial victories required to officially qualify as an ace is varied, but is usually co ...
of Pakistan Air Force
, "Be it deserts or seas; all lie under our wings" (traditional)
, colours =
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, Air Commodore Muhammad Mahmood Alam, running from Main Market to Gulberg. The road runs parallel to famous Main Boulevard thus providing an alternate route and is a commercial hub with many restaurants, fashion boutiques, shopping malls, beauty saloons and décor stores. M.M. Alam Road hosts a variety of flamboyant restaurants in modern Lahore. On 20 March 2014, on account of his first death anniversary, the PAF Airbase Mianwali was renamed after him as PAF Base M.M. Alam.
Awards and Decorations
See also
* Aviators who became ace in a day
* 8-Pass Charlie
* Saiful Azam
* Manuel J. Fernandez
Notes
References
Further reading
History of PAF
– Government of Pakistan
The Government of Pakistan ( ur, , translit=hakúmat-e pákistán) abbreviated as GoP, is a federal government established by the Constitution of Pakistan as a constituted governing authority of the four provinces, two autonomous territorie ...
* "Laying the Sargodha Ghost to rest." ''Vayu Aerospace Review''. November 1985
{{DEFAULTSORT:Alam, Muhammad
1989 births
2013 deaths
Disputed flying aces
Pakistan Air Force officers
Pakistani flying aces
Pilots of the Indo-Pakistani War of 1965
Recipients of Sitara-e-Jurat
Military personnel from Karachi
Military personnel from Kolkata
Pakistani aviation record holders
People from Dhaka
Pakistani people of Bihari descent
Pakistani test pilots
Pakistani Muslims