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War heroes of 1965
USUS DeskSeptember 02, 2016
Since their independence from the British in 1947, Pakistan and India have clashed a number of times. The 1965 War wasn’t their first face-off; they had met, even if briefly, during 1947-1948 to claim Kashmir as their territory.

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Since their independence from the British in 1947, Pakistan and India have clashed a number of times. The 1965 War wasn’t their first face-off; they had met, even if briefly, during 1947-1948 to claim Kashmir as their territory. The two countries clashed again in September 1965 when India attacked Pakistan. Our military heroes defended their homeland heroically, leaving behind a horde of stories for us to be proud of.

Flight Lieutenant Imtiaz Ahmad Bhatti and Squadron Leader Sarfaraz Ahmad Rafiqui

PAF fighters claimed an early victory when pitted against the Indians on September 1, 1965, due to the valour of two men: Flight Lieuteanat Imtiaz Ahmad Bhatti and Squadron Leader Sarfaraz Ahmad Rafiqui.

Seeing the enemy aircraft attacking the army forces in Chamb area, the two pilots on an air patrol decided to intervene and stop them, marking it as the first air encounter of the historic war. Being heavily out-numbered did not bother them; professionals and courageous, they ended up taking down four Indian Vampire fighters. The display of power by these two F-86 Sabers was such that no Vampires were to be seen for the rest of the war.

Flight Lieuteanat Imtiaz Ahmad Bhatti’s feat is inspiring; his Sitara-i-Juraat justified for the determination and dedication with which he fought.

Squadron Leader Sarfaraz Ahmad Rafiqui was in command of three F-86 aircrafts in the strike against Halwara airfield on September 6. His guns stopped firing for some reason, but Rafiqui, unarmed as he was, refused to give up and continued instead to provide protection to his co-fighters while ordering his No. 2 to take over as leader. The aircraft was shot down. However, he did allow others to hit three more of the ten Hunter aircrafts, which had intercepted them. Given his exemplary leadership in each of his exploits, he has been honoured with Sitara-i-Jurat and Hilal-i-Jurat.

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