The Pakistan Air Force plays a vital role in combating terrorism
WING COMMANDER HAROON KIRMANI, PAKISTAN AIR FORCE
Traditionally, a state’s armed forces are structured and trained to fight a well-defined adversary in a regular conflict, governed by the Law of Armed Conflict applicable to the belligerents. However, when terrorism from nonstate actors posed a threat to peace and stability in Pakistan, the Pakistan Air Force (PAF) undertook counterterrorism operations for the first time. Air operations by PAF against militants in Pakistan’s Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA) were first conducted in Operation Al-Mizan in 2004 on a limited scale. This operation continued for about three months. It was a new experience for PAF to engage targets on such difficult terrain, where terrorists’ hideouts and associated infrastructure presented a challenge. The lack of capabilities and experience in fighting irregular warfare was another major challenge for the Armed Forces in general, and PAF in particular.
After acknowledging these challenges and limitations, PAF carved out a strategy identifying the most essential capabilities required for successful and effective counterterrorism operations and embarked on an ambitious force-modernization plan. As a result of these efforts, PAF was able to equip itself with the required capabilities and train its personnel for undertaking these operations.
Leading up to January 2008, PAF operated in support of the Pakistan Army in South Waziristan. By this time, the enemy had become well-equipped, battle-hardened, well-funded and well-settled. The terrorists resorted to hit-and-run tactics, reducing their exposure time to security forces planning a counterattack. Response to the attack entirely depended on a force being immediately available. PAF fighter jets provided this capability to react quickly from operational bases, reaching anywhere in FATA within minutes, and engaging militants from high altitude with pinpoint precision. One such incident was the siege of Fort Ladha in South Waziristan. Ground forces called upon PAF to engage militants’ firing locations. Because of PAF’s timely action, the Pakistan Army was able to hold the fort with minimal losses. The militants suffered major casualties because of the lethal and precise blows delivered by PAF while assisting the ground forces in defending their positions.
In the same time frame, PAF undertook Operation Falcon Sweep to support the Pakistan Army’s various operations, such as Operation Rah-e-Haq in Swat and Operation Sher Dil in the Bajaur and Mohmand agencies. In 2009, the Pakistan Army, with the support of PAF, planned Operation Rah-e-Rast in Swat, code named Operation Burq by PAF. Capitalizing on its earlier experiences, PAF destroyed and neutralized a number of militants’ command centers, hideouts, training camps, ammunition dumps and routes to block their escape. After PAF’s successful preparatory strikes, the Army launched its operations that ended with a timely achievement of objectives and the defeat of terrorists.
In mid-October 2009, ahead of Operation Rah-e-Nijat, PAF engaged militants in South Waziristan on an unprecedented scale. PAF began softening up targets in South Waziristan to support subsequent operations of the Pakistan Army. The high ridges and slopes in valleys, which terrorists occupied and used to develop bunkers and pickets to ambush convoys, had to be cleared to ensure safe and swift movement of the troops. During the five-day initial phase, PAF destroyed more than 150 targets, engaging training centers, hideouts, ammunition depots, and command and control centers.
After Rah-e-Nijat, PAF continued its operations in support of the Pakistan Army — Operation Brekna in Mohmand, Operation Koh-e-Sufaid and Operation Azmara-e-Gharo in Kurram and Orakzai agencies. Numerous low-scale operations also were conducted in Khyber Agency. In Operation Brekna, the seizure of Walidad Top was a major event. Another noteworthy operation by ground troops was conquering Mira-Sar Top in a very short time.
In June 2014, the ongoing Operation Zarb-e-Azb became a symbol of will of Pakistan. Coordination between PAF and the Pakistan Army in this operation was a continuous process. PAF precision strikes paved the way for the Army to conduct kinetic operations with minimal losses, inflicting huge damage to the terrorists. As the operation reaches its concluding phase, terrorists have been driven out of their hideouts, killed and neutralized, and our country has emerged stronger and safer from the menace of terrorism.
These counterterrorism missions were the first of their kind and highlighted the importance of air power in these kinds of operations. PAF’s involvement in these operations and the results it achieved in driving terrorists out of Pakistan has been duly acknowledged. PAF’s professional and unflinching support to the land forces and law enforcement agencies will continue until the end state is achieved: comprehensively defeating the forces of evil and achieving peace and stability in Pakistan and the entire region.
A version of this story originally appeared in Hilal magazine, published by the Pakistan military’s Inter Services Public Relations.