Pilot Officer Rashid Minhas or Rashid Minhas Shaheed, NH, (Urdu: راشد منہاس) (February 17, 1951–August 20, 1971) was a Pilot Officer in the Pakistan Air Force (PAF) during the 1971 Pakistan-India War.

Early Life and Education

Rashid Minhas belonged to a famous Minhas clan of Rajput. He was born in Karachi. From an early age, Minhas was fascinated with aviation history and technology. He used to collect different models of aircraft and jets. He studied from Saint Mary's Academy, Lalazar and completed his O and A levels at the age of 18. He then attended Karachi University where he studied Military history and Aviation history.

Death

Having joined the air force, he was commissioned on 13 March, 1971 in the 51st GD(P) Course; on August 20 of that year, he was getting ready to take off in a T-33 trainer in Karachi when a Bengali Instructor pilot, Flight Lieutenant Matiur Rahman, gained his way into the back of the plane. He had been reported to have been watching Minhas closely for many weeks for his being new, young and inexperienced. In mid-air, Rahman knocked Minhas out with the intention of defecting to India to join his compatriots in Bangladesh along with the plane.

In mid-flight Minhas regained consciousness, and realized that his plane was being hijacked. He desperately communicated to the PAF Masroor Base at 11:30AM, about his hijacking by Rahman. After a tussle between the two pilots, the plane crashed. The precise cause of the plane crash is unknown, except that it was the result of the struggle between Minhas and Rahman. The crash site of the T-33 was later found 40 km from the Indian border.

Other Accomplishments

Rashid is best remembered for his act of valor and bravery in the face of treachery when he denied a fellow pilot from defecting to India, but he was also well known to his commandants and fellow officer's for his intelligence and Alpha grade record. He completed his O levels at the age of 16 with A grades in all of his subjects. After enrolling in the Air Force, he passed out of the PAF Academy with 3rd position and was awarded the Sword of Honor for his performance. Once during his training sessions at the Kamra Airbase he was in a test flight when his T-33 started leaking oil and he was instructed to eject and save himself, but Minhas decided that he would not let the plane crash and then very carefully he managed to land the plane back on the airbase. This act of bravery did not go unnoticed and he was given a letter of recognition by his commandant. Rashid was a brilliant student and a brave soldier, and he proved it many times on and off the battlefield.

Legacy

Minhas was posthumously awarded Pakistan's top military honour, the Nishan-E-Haider, and became the youngest man and the only member of the Pakistan Air Force to win the award. He also became a national hero. The Pakistan Air Force base at Kamra has been renamed in his honour. In Karachi he was honored by the naming of a main street, Rashid Minhas Road (Urdu:شاہراہ راشد منہاس ), after him. He is one of the most prominent and honored pilots in Pakistan. He has been honored by the Pakistani Media and numerous documentary dramas and films have been made on him.

On the other hand, Flight Lieutenant Matiur Rahman is given a parallel treatment in Bangladesh and where he was awarded Bangladesh 's highest award, the Bir Sreshtho, and also has an air base named for him.

Recipients of Nishan-e-Haider نشان حیدر  in Pakistan

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