On September 2, 1984, a military plane taking off from Afghanistan turned towards the Pakistan border instead of going to its scheduled destination.
The Soviet Union-made Antonov AN-26 aircraft, commanded by Colonel Haji Faqir Ahmed of the Afghan Air Force, crossed the border and landed at Miranshah airbase in North Waziristan.
But it was not just a military aircraft crossing the border and reaching Pakistan. This was an important event in the growing number of Afghan military officers who were moving to Pakistan to escape the war and the Afghan government, which was supported by the Soviet Union.
A special analysis report of the American intelligence agency CIA made public on March 23, 1979, shows that the process of rebellion and despair in the Afghan army had started even before the Soviet army reached Afghanistan at the end of that year.
Afghan army was under pressure
According to the report, the threat of armed rebellion was increasing before the Teraki government. The army's morale was breaking due to people being killed, soldiers' loyalty to their tribes and low hopes of victory.
According to Encyclopedia Britannica, the Afghan army was under immense pressure.
"The morale of the army was low and the recruited youth used to run away as soon as they got the chance. Due to this, the number of soldiers in the Afghan army, which was 1,05,000 in 1978, came down to about 20,000 to 30,000 by 1987."
In the January 21, 1980 issue of Time magazine, journalist David DeVos wrote that the number of Soviet troops present in Afghanistan had greatly exceeded the Afghan army.
80 cannon balls fired in one night
"Kabul's army once had more than one lakh soldiers. But due to the escape of a large number of soldiers, their number had reduced to less than 65,000."
In April 1985, William E. Smith of Time magazine wrote that during the fighting in the Khyber Pass, three soldiers of the Afghan army supported by the Soviet Union fled to Pakistan. But the Soviet army came to know about them.
"A Soviet Army armored vehicle waving the white flag approached Pakistan's border post at Torkham. The Soviet captain demanded in English the return of the three soldiers. The Afghan officer threatened in Urdu that if they were not returned, Pakistan would have to face 'many problems'."
"The vehicle went back to Afghanistan. But on the same night, 80 artillery shells were fired at the Pakistani post. There was intermittent shelling from tanks and cannons for two days. On the third day, Pakistan returned the three soldiers."
Growing uneasiness in Afghan Air Force
But Afghan army officers and pilots coming to Pakistan with their planes and helicopters were not just incidents of a few people escaping. This was a sign of increasing disorganization and falling morale in the army.
According to author Walter J. Boyne, former director of America's National Air and Space Museum, 10 aircraft of the Afghan Air Force diverted to Pakistan.
According to a CIA report later made public, at that time the Afghan Air Force was facing problems like desertion of officers and soldiers and weak morale.
That is, after the Soviet Union's military intervention in Afghanistan in 1979, AN-26 reaching Pakistan was neither the first nor the last such incident.
AN-26 was prepared in the 1960s
The AN-26 aircraft was designed by the Soviet Antonov Design Bureau in the 1960s. It was a strong cargo plane. But now it was extremely dangerous to fly it beyond Miranshah.
There was a new challenge before the Pakistan Air Force. The plane had reached Pakistan, but it had to be taken to a safe place. The difficulty was that Pakistani pilots had never flown this Russian-made aircraft before.
In an article published in Pakistan Air Force's magazine 'Second to None', Air Commodore Khalid Kamal has told how this aircraft was taken away from there the next day after the incident.
He wrote, "I was resting in the crew room. Then someone came and told me that our commanding officer, Wing Commander Ghafoor, was planning to take away the aircraft parked at Miranshah. It was a twin-engine light turboprop aircraft, which could be used for many types of tasks."
"At that time, I was a co-pilot of F-27 Fokker Friendship aircraft in No. 12 VIP Squadron. I was young and always looking for some exciting work. So I felt that this mission was right for me. I went straight to the commanding officer's office. There he was sitting with Squadron Leader Zulfiqar, the senior navigator. There were maps spread out on the table in front of them."
"I offered to go on this mission as a co-pilot. Both of them looked at me. Wing Commander Ghafoor said, 'Do you know what kind of mission this is? It is very dangerous and it can even take lives. The Russians will try to shoot down this plane as soon as it takes off from Miranshah. So think carefully before you decide to join this mission yourself.'"
"After my repeated requests, he allowed me to go with him as a co-pilot."
There was a fight between the pilots
Khalid Kamal wrote in his article 'Finest Hour: The Tale of AN-26' that the next morning he arrived with his night kit. Squadron Leader Khalid and Flight Lieutenant Naeem took him to Miranshah in a Beechcraft aircraft.
"On reaching Miranshah, we were welcomed by Pakistani Army officials. We wanted to see and understand the aircraft. But there was firing from across the border, so we were advised not to go near the aircraft. The aircraft was hidden by covering it with tree branches."
"We were taken to the officers' mess of the military unit. There we met the Afghan pilots who had come to Pakistan with the plane. Both were kept in a closed room."
"There we came to know that the Afghan captain of the plane had already sent his family to Pakistan. After this, he himself had come to Pakistan with the plane, so that he could seek political asylum here. His co-pilot was very angry with this decision and there was a constant quarrel between the two."
"There was a legitimate reason for the co-pilot's anger. If the captain had informed him about his plan earlier, he too could have sent his family to Pakistan."
Khalid Kamal wrote that after the preparations were completed, he asked the military officials to bring the Afghan captain to the plane. He could have helped them with pre-flight checks. The captain was told that he would accompany them to a city in Pakistan and help them during the flight.
"He was very happy to hear this and walked with us towards the plane with full enthusiasm. Seeing this, his co-pilot became even more enraged. We were escorted to the plane amidst security. After sitting in our seats, we asked the Afghan captain for help in starting the engine. He happily helped us."
"When we took the plane to the runway and got ready to take off, the captain was told that he would not be going with us. He became very angry when he heard this. Military officials had to force him off the plane."
According to Khalid Kamal, while landing from the plane, the Afghan captain changed the position of a switch on the flight engineer's panel. He did not notice this.
"The weather was clear and sunny. The hills of Miranshah looked very beautiful. After take off, we turned towards the east and started flying at a very low altitude inside the valley. The purpose of this was to avoid the Russian fighter planes monitoring the border. They were waiting for us to come into their sight."
Khalid Kamal says, "The danger was very big. We were afraid that Russian missiles might target us. At that time, Mirage fighter planes of Pakistan Air Force were flying above us in zigzags left and right. They were keeping their speed according to our plane and were with us to protect us from any action. Their presence had boosted our morale."
"Wing Commander Ghafoor had flown a similar aircraft during his deployment in Iraq. He was handling the aircraft with complete confidence and calmness."
"Squadron Leader Zulfiqar was helping us navigate the mountainous terrain. I was handling radio communications and maintaining air pressure inside the aircraft. At the same time, I was also enjoying this exciting mission."
"After reaching the training area at Mianwali, I contacted Mianwali tower. The air traffic controller asked about our destination. I replied that due to operational reasons I could not tell our destination."
"We continued towards PAF Base Masroor. There Wing Commander Ghafoor landed the aircraft in a very careful and professional manner."
Khalid Kamal writes, "When we were taking the plane towards the tarmac, we felt that some part of the plane was hitting the ground. It turned out that while the plane was landing, its ramp had opened and now it was dragging on the ground."
"The problem was caused by the same switch, the position of which was changed by the Afghan captain while deboarding the plane."
Later the colors and markings of Pakistan Air Force were installed on the aircraft. It was given J-754 registration. For some time it was used in the Pakistan Air Force, which also included No. 12 Squadron.
