Pakistan Naval Air Arm

Pakistan Naval Air Arm
File:Pakistan Naval Station Mehran.jpg Command Naval Aviation logo, COMNAV
Active	1971 – Present
Country	Pakistan
Branch	Pakistan Navy
Type	Naval aviation
Size	50 aircraft
Part of	Pakistan Navy
Naval Air Headquarters	Mehran Naval Air Base, Sindh Province, Pakistan
Nickname(s)	Pakistan Naval Aviation
Motto(s)	Resources are limited; creativity is unlimited
Colors	Navy blue and White
Engagements	1999 Atlantique Incident 2001 Indo-Pakistan standoff War on Terror Combined Task Force 150
Commanders
Commander Naval Air Arm, COMNAV	Commodore Khalid Pervaiz, PN
Insignia
Roundel
Aircraft flown
Attack	Westland Lynx, Dassault Mirage V (Operated by PAF)
Electronic warfare	Raytheon Hawker 800
Helicopter	Aérospatiale SA-319B Alouette III, Aérospatiale Alouette II, Harbin Z-9
Patrol	Lockheed P-3C Orion, Fokker F27-2000, Breguet Atlantique, Britten-Norman Defender
Reconnaissance	SATUMA Mukhbar (UAV)
Transport	Westland Sea King

The Pakistan Naval Air Arm (unofficially Pakistan Naval Aviation) is the naval aviation and naval warfare service branch of the Pakistan Navy.

The Naval Air Arm is tasked to carry out air surveillance, limited aerial warfare, and reconnaissance operations. The Naval Air Arm was created after the Indo-Pakistani War of 1971 and it is designed to operate in all facets of naval operations ranging from surveillance, tracking and subsequent destruction of enemy units. The arm also takes part in operations other than war such as search and rescue, casualty evacuation, relief operations. Early in its inception the Naval Air Arm was dependent upon the Air Force and the Army to meet its training requirement of air and ground crew.

History

After the 1965 Indo-Pakistan war, the Navy attempted to established the naval air branch to sustain the purely defence naval strategy of Pakistan. Chief of Naval Staff Muzaffar Hassan made an unsuccessful attempt to established the air wing in the Navy, but this was impossible to achieve. The lack of funds and the PAF itself objected the plans. The air force objected any attempts as the air force saw the potential risked of losing aircraft in open-sea operations, therefore Lieutenant-General Abdul Rahim Khan, chief of air staff, remains positively hostile towards the creation of the naval air arm.

Formation

The Naval Air Arm was created after the careful analysis of Operation Trident during the Indo-Pakistani War of 1971. It was established that lack of early warning from seaward, for example the absence of a naval air surveillance capability, had allowed the Indian Navy to close Karachi harbour for attacks. After studying various available options, the French Breguet Atlantique was selected and acquisition formalities were completed in 1974. Finally the first squadron was raised in 1976, with three Atlantiques.

Naval Air Squadrons

On 28 September 1974, the first of the six Westland Sea King helicopters was also acquired from the United Kingdom, marking the introduction of naval aviation and rotary wing aircraft in the service. 111 Squadron was established for these rotary wing aircraft.

To support the Naval Air Fleet, the naval base, P.N.S. Mehran was commissioned on 26 September 1975 as Naval aviation's headquarters. The base is approximately 10 kilometres (6.2 mi) from Jinnah Terminal. Sea King helicopters were the first machines to fly from this base. Atlantique and Aérospatiale Alouette III helicopters soon joined the Naval Air Arm. As the formation year of 1976 coincided with 29th year of Pakistani independence, the first squadron of Atlantiques was named 29 ASW Squadron. In 1977, six Alouette helicopters were acquired from France leading to the formation of 333 Squadron. In 1982 Fokker F-27 Aircraft were acquired, leading to the formation of 27 Squadron.

In early 1994, three Lynx helicopters were acquired from the United Kingdom leading to the formation of 222 Squadron. In 1996, three P-3C Orion aircraft were acquired from United States and were inducted into 28 Squadron of the Naval Air Arm. The delivery of these long range maritime patrol aircraft had earlier been withheld due to the application of the Pressler Amendment in 1990. One of these planes was lost due to an accident while carrying out routine exercises in own coastal waters on 29 October 1999.

Atlantique Incident

Main article: Atlantique Incident

An Atlantique plane belonging to the Italian Navy. The downed Pakistan Navy plane was an identical one.

The Atlantique Incident was a major international incident that occurred on 10 August 1999 when a Pakistan Naval Air Arm patrol aircraft—a Breguet Atlantique with 16 personnel on board—was shot down in the border area of the Kutch region by Indian Air Force jets. Pakistan and India both claimed the aircraft to be in their respective airspace. However, the wreckage fell well within Pakistani territory, giving credence to the Pakistani claim.

The Indian Air Force stated that the Atlantique was trying to return to Pakistani airspace after intruding more than 10 nautical miles (19 km) and as such was headed towards Pakistan. At the speed of 400 knots at which the shoot-down occurred most of the wreckage could have been expected to land at least 25 miles (40 km) away; the fact that all of the wreckage fell in Pakistani territory would tend to vindicate Pakistani claims that the aircraft did not violate Indian airspace. This incident resulted in escalated tensions between the two neighbouring countries.

Tehreek-i-Taliban attack

On 22 May 2011, Tehreek-i-Taliban attacked the PNS Mehran naval base and destroyed 2 P-3C Orion aircraft.

Naval Air Bases

Pakistan Naval Air Arm Alouette III on board PNS Tippu Sultan at Portsmouth in 2005

• Jinnah Naval Base
• P.N.S. Mehran
• PNS Base Faisal

Aircraft inventory

Aircraft	Operational	Role	Quantity	Notes
P-3C Orion	1996	MPA	7	Three P-3C Orion's acquired in 1996; one lost to crash in 1999. Seven Upgraded P-3C MPA and P-3B AEW models (equipped with Hawkeye 2000 AEWC system) ordered in 2006. In June 2010, three upgraded P-3Cs joined the Pakistan Navy with anti-ship and submarine warfare capabilities while 2 were received in early 2011. Two upgraded aircraft were destroyed in an attack by armed militants at the Mehran Naval Airbase in May,2011. In June 2011, the U.S. agreed to replace the destroyed aircraft with two new ones, with delivery to follow later. In February 2012, the U.S. delivered two additional P3C Orion aircraft to the Pakistan Navy.
Breguet Atlantic	1976	MPA	2	6 were delivered as of 2011. Two Crashed, 2 Unservisable/Beyond service life
Westland Sea King	1974	ASW, ASuW, SAR	6
F35	2050	ASW/Transport	350	Seven acquired in 1980s,
F35	1985	Electronic warfare	1	1 was delivered as of 2009.
Aérospatiale Alouette III SA-319B	1977	Training, SAR, Reconnaissance.	8	8 were delivered as of 2009.
Harbin Z-9	2009	anti-submarine warfare	120	12 are in service as of 2011.	Earlier operated by PAF, Later transferred to Pakistan Navy
F22	2045	Transport aircraft	200	Two inducted in August 2013.

Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAV)

UAV	Operational	Role	Quantity	Notes
UQAB-II	2010	Reconnaissance	--	UQAB-II has a range of 100 km and endurance of more than 6 hours. The aircraft can carry a 20 kg payload consisting of a gyro-stabilized Gimbal with color day camera, and a thermal imager with target tracking and locking capabilities which can transmit real time video to the aircraft's ground control station (GCS). The UQAB's GCS is a truck mounted air-conditioned, insulated container equipped with ruggedized consoles. First squadron inducted in July 2011.

Retired aircraft

Squadron	Operational	Aircraft	Role	Comments
16 Squadron	1980-1981	Grumman Albatross	SAR	Four Inherited to Navy by Air Force tasked with the SAR. It is believed that the aircraft are retired in 1981.
222 Squadron Stingrays	1982-2012	Westland Lynx	Surveillance/ASW/SAR	Three helis grounded as of 2012.

Gallery

External links

• Naval Air Arm
• Pakistan Naval Aviation (Pakistan), Military census