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This is my homage to the greatest and noblest warrior, and a true son of the soil on his birthday, that falls on 16th September
“A fighter pilot is an optimist. He believes he is the best, and he is determined to prove it every time he straps into the cockpit.” — Unknown
“A good commander shows valor not only in battle, but in inspiring others by his example.” Homer, Iliad
Pakistan Air Force, the finest institution of Pakistan, and indeed one of the most effective and lethal fighting organizations in the annals of aerial warfare has produced many outstanding fighter pilots and commanders in its glorious history. Some achieved eternal glory through great feats in war like Sarfraz Rafiqui, M.M Alam, Sajad Haider and recently Hasan Siddiqui and Noman Ali. Some have their names etched permanently in history books as great pioneering and visionary commanders like Air Marshals Asghar Khan and Noor Khan. These all have rightfully become the household names in Pakistan. There have also been others who made momentous contributions to making PAF what it is today, and always gave a good account of themselves both as flyers and commanders, but both wittingly and unwittingly remained beyond the glare of media attention, though regarded as something of a legend within the organization.
This article is in honor of one of those individuals, Air Marshal (retd) Javad Saeed, and is my personal tribute to one of the finest fighter pilots and leaders of PAF, based on my 40 years of association with that individual and through him, the institution.
I am fully aware that in writing this I am committing a big faux pas in Javad’s eyes. He is by temperament deeply antithetical to anything that even remotely smacks of self promotion. His warrior code regards any blowing of one’s trumpets as unbecoming a true soldier. But here for once, I am disregarding his sensitivities, and I have very good reasons for doing so. I think my unique relationship with Javad, and through him with PAF, that I regard as my extended family, have provided a rare glimpse into an extraordinary career from a vantage point which is not available to a mere outsider. I think in a national milieu where we as a nation are wont to worship false idols, I owe it to the nation and posterity to highlight the achievements of a genuine national hero, whose self-effacing qualities of character should not stand in the way of celebrating him. This is my way of saying, “Thank you for your service”.
But first a word about our relationship.
Air Marshal Javad Saeed (retd) is my younger brother, with just one year separating us. Therefore, we practically grew as twins, brothers as well as the closest of friends. I am also an aviation enthusiast, and was very excited when Javad joined PAF many decades back, thinking that I would get some thrilling first hand accounts of fighter flying, that l idealized like most boys. I hardly realized then that my wishes would be fulfilled beyond my wildest dreams and I would be a witness to the career of one of the finest fighter pilots and leader of men that PAF has ever produced.
From his days in PAF college Sargodah to his stint as an Air Marshal, I saw Javad growing from a young cadet to a budding fighter pilot, to an officer and a gentleman, to a great commander and leader. It was a matter of great privilege and honor for me that during this journey, I came to know and befriend some of Javad’s colleagues, both juniors and seniors, in the institution and got an opportunity to observe the ethos of this finest Pakistani institution as closely as it is possible for a civilian outsider.
So whatever I am saying here is not only based on the information in the public domain, but also on first person accounts and observations, gathered from my years of association through Javad with the PAF. To borrow a phrase made famous during the first Gulf War, I was in a way “embedded with the PAF” all these years. I still to this day cherish the memories of times when I used to visit Javad at an operational PAF base, be it Sargodah or Kamra, or Masroor, and got to see the fighter jet flying from close quarters. Especially memorable were the days in those memorable “dabas”, the fabricated trailer like homes that Americans left behind from their early days of F-16 program in Pakistan. Spending time with a bunch of hotshot F-16 fighter pilots, all of them young and bachelors, was very educational and exciting, and it was impossible not to get swept up in their infectious energy. There, I got a first hand knowledge of the ethos of fighter pilot’s world in the PAF, which it is impossible to explain to anyone who has not observed it first hand. I cannot help a chuckle whenever I see any drama or movie trying to capture the essence of it. You might as well try to pin a jelly to the wall!
As I began to gather my thoughts and memories for writing this, I asked myself: how could I sum up Javad’s career with brevity and accuracy? Being not a PAF professional myself - only an amateur - and not initiated into the subtleties of a highly technical field, it would have been presumptuous on my part to venture an opinion. Here I must defer to the opinion of professionals, and luckily I got one from Javad's fellow PAF officer. He summed it up in these words: “Javad is one of those exceptionally rare figures in any air force—anywhere in the world—who embodies the unique combination of exceptional pilot, commander, leader, and visionary. While history offers examples of individuals excelling in each of these qualities separately, it is their convergence in a single person that makes him truly extraordinary.” I can only add to that the qualities of humanity and nobility of character.
As A Fighter Pilot
Javad’s prowess as a fighter pilot is part of the inner lore of the institution, known to all who have served with and under him. He was not only part of the elite F-16 group, crème de la creme of the PAF, but also regarded as one of the best within this group. He topped,F-16 conversion course, arguably the toughest course for fighter pilots in the PAF. Interestingly and tellingly Javad’s course included some exceptional pilots such as late Air Cmdr Raja Rizwan, who embraced martyrdom in Air Chief Mushif Ali Mir’s tragic plane crash. Here, I would share a personal story related to that course that throws a sidelight on the extremely unassuming nature of Javad. I clearly remember when Javad returned home after six months of that grueling course; it was through a friend, quite by accident, that I discovered he had finished at the very top of his course. When I asked why he hadn’t shared such a remarkable achievement, he brushed it aside with a quiet, ‘Not a big deal.’ That was Javad in essence—unpretentious and unfailingly humble.
F-16 conversion graduation: top winner
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Throughout his period of active flying, Javad continued to hold a formidable reputation among his peers as the “best of the best”. His prowess in 1 v 1 F-16 combat was simply considered unmatched. One scintillating proof of it came during an exercise with an American Top Gun instructor from its feared aggressor squadron, when the US Aircraft carrier came for exercise to Karachi. An American instructor who was flying F-18 hornet and came out on top against some of the more experienced pilots in the Pakistani squadron, was pitched against then flight lieutenant Javad, a relatively rookie pilot in the squadron and was so thoroughly beaten in repeated one vs one engagements that he gave his patch to Javad as a token of recognition. When I asked Javad about it, he characteristically brushed it off by saying “I was flying a better machine”
Javad quickly established the same fierce reputation when he got deputed to a Turkish F-16 squadron on an exchange posting. In the words of one of his squadron mates that I met in Atlanta, USA, none of the Turkish pilots came even close to gaining advantage over him in 1 v 1 dogfights, let alone getting a kill!
No wonder PAF reposed huge trust in Javad’s abilities on F-16, and no matter which platform he would be currently engaged with, he was immediately called for operational flying on F-16 when the need arose, as it happened during Kargil conflict, and post Kargil Atlantis shoot down incident, or during operation sentinel in a standoff with India.
And it is not just a matter of a single platform. Javad showed similar excellence on both the Chinese and French platforms . He is one of the select few who have served as flight commander operations,the most challenging appointment for a fighter pilot, in both an F-16 and Mirage squadrons. There is an interesting story from his early days as flight commander(ops) in a Mirage squadron, when in a fashion reminiscent of Tom Cruise maverick movie, he went one vs one against squadron pilots to prove that he is worthy of its command, and not merely a one platform ace. Here I quote from one of the finest Mirage pilots in the history of PAF, late Wing Commander Chighri: “There is only one Mirage pilot who could go toe to toe with me in air combat, and that was Javad”.
What made Javad such a redoubtable fighter pilot in air combat? I can only quote from one of the most eminent F-16 operators in PAF, who served as both an ACS(o) and DCSo): “Javad flies with absolutely no fear, and icy nerves. A lethal combination of aggression and cool”. In the words of his F-16 instructor and senior from 11 squadron, whom I had the honor of meeting when he was doing his war course in Alabama, USA, “Javad is natural, he almost plays chess in the air, especially the way he uses F-16 airborne radar”
As A Commander
It is one thing to be a great fighter pilot, it is another to be able to lead and inspire men and get the best out of them. Javad always led from the front and no challenge was too daunting for him. A case in point is his serving as flight commander operations not once but thrice in operational fighter squadrons. As all professionals know, even one round as flight commander operations is enough to test the limits of human endurance and guts, let alone three. His code of soldierly honor would not let him say no to any responsibility assigned to him by his beloved PAF, no matter how onerous.
The greatest proof and his greatest test as a commander came when as the officer commanding, 9th (MR) squadron, the Griffins, the most prestigious unit of the PAF, he was the very first to lead the kinetic operations from the front in an extremely trying security environments, when not only army but Americans were watching over the shoulder of PAF to judge how it would deliver, especially after tiff with an army during Kargil. The odds could not be higher, and Javad came off with flying colors, leading his unit from the front.
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To have served as Flight Commander (Ops) of the 11th (MR) F-16 Squadron and OC of the Griffins would have crowned most careers, but he went on to collect even greater honors in command.
When PAF started participating in international exercises abroad after a long hiatus, Javad led his squadron to participate in the most challenging exercise that PAF had engaged in till then, the famous Anatolian Eagle exercise in Turkey in 2004. Ever since, participating in Anatolian Eagle features regularly in PAF’s engagements with international Air Forces. Javad leading Griffins first broke the ground on that.
The most famous and arguably the most challenging air warfare exercise is Red Flag in Nevada, United States. Again it fell to Javad’s lot to lead the Pakistani contingent in that exercise for the first time. Not only the exercise itself, but a ferrying across the continent to the United States was a challenge in itself.
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These all are remarkable achievements in their own right, but as it turned out the providence was preparing him for even greater achievements as a leader and visionary by forging his character in the crucible of trying operational challenges as a field commander.
As a leader and visionary
As Javad’s career in the Air Force advanced, he rose to some of the most coveted and prestigious appointments—both in command and at the Air Headquarters. His record of service reads like a roll of honor: Officer Commanding Flying wing at Sargodha, Base Commander Sargodha, Assistant Chief of Staff (Operations), Air Officer Commanding Central Air Command, Deputy Chief of Air Staff (Operations), and Deputy Chief of Air Staff (Administration). More importantly what put a seal of immense confidence that PAF places in his abilities as a leader was the central and pivotal role he was assigned in the Air Headquarters during active operations- the very raison d'être of air force- that PAF was involved in during these challenging years as a part of war against terror. He was at the heart of directing the operations as Assistant Chief of Air Staff (ops) during operation Zarb-e-Azab. That chapter in the history of PAF is a saga of how nimbly and effectively PAF adapted to the requirements and constraints of asymmetric warfare through improvisation and out of box thinking. It is on this solid foundation of achievements in hard core operations that Javad developed his credentials as the foremost expert on asymmetric warfare in PAF.
Always for institutionalizing the lessons learned and experience gained, Javad played a leading role in setting up ACE (Air Power Center Of Excellence), when he was assigned to the task by then Air Chief Sohail Aman. It would be no exaggeration to say that it is ACE that played a pivotal role in Pakistan’s recent aerial victories, both in 2019, in the operation Swift Retort, and 2025, in the operation Bunyan al Marsoos. When ACE became famous after the operation Swift Retort (Both Noman Ali and Hasan Siddiqi were ace instructors), I remember asking Javad about the rationale for establishing another school of advanced flying in the presence of an existing similar school, the CCS (Combat Commanders School). Javad’s reply was based on an analogy from his favorite field apart from fighter flying- theoretical physics. He invoked an example of an Institute for advanced studies in Princeton, explaining that one needs a place for total creative freedom without the day to day pressures attendant upon tasks where one is being evaluated for career advancement. CCS is a mid career make or break course for PAF fighter pilots, and the pressure is enormous, so people tend to play conservative. ACE provides an ideal environment as a cutting edge R &D wing of the PAF to try new ideas and expand the horizons by exercising with the foreign air forces. The ideas and tactics developed here would then be implemented and practiced in the advanced career related courses like CCS, and down the line in fighter squadrons.
So by 2019 Javad had achieved everything that a top professional could dream of in the PAF. But all that was to be eclipsed by the fortuitous events of 27 Feb, 2019, the day that marked the crowning achievement of his already outstanding career. It is for the future historians and official chroniclers of PAF history to record what transpired on that fateful day, when PAF and IAF clashed for the first time after the war of 1971. Suffice it to say that it is well known in PAF circles about the significant and pivotal role Javad played in that operation. When I asked Javad about his role when we met in 2023 in the US when Javad was visiting for my daughter’s graduation, he very characteristically in a self effacing manner shrugged it off by saying that “it was a team work”. He added by saying that if one were to give credit to individuals for that historic achievement, then one must give it to late Air Marshals Asghar Khan, and Nur Khan who laid the foundations of this remarkable institution. “They instilled in us this notion that PAF would always fight outnumbered, so we have to do more with less. So the aggressive spirit was coded into the DNA of PAF from its earliest days,” he explained.
I once asked Javad who was his ideal in the PAF, as it is to a very large extent one’s role models that shape one’s notions of how one should conduct oneself. Without a moment’s hesitation, Javad said, “SL Sarfraz Rafiqui shaheed”. Javad got a bit teary eyed explaining why: “Lead from the front and put yourself at risk first before you ask it from men under your command. Country, service, duty. Nothing matters more”. This is the code of honor that guided Rafiqui and inspired Javad. Just do your bit quietly without any desire for self promotion or fame, all stuff no fluff, and always bear oneself with dignity. This is the mettle that the greatest warriors are made of from the times immemorial.
As A Human Being
I would close this by mentioning one trait of Javad that I value above all else: his humanity and humility. Just ask any person from the lower ranks - subaltern, batman, driver, cook- and you would hear nothing but the most sincere prayers coming from the heart. I would add a personal observation: when my mother passed away in 2018 when Javad was serving as Deputy Chief Of Staff (ops), a lot of people of all ranks came to pay their condolences. I observed that Javad treated a three star officer not any different from the way he would treat his driver who came from Sargodah; both received in the identical fashion in the same formal room and served in the same fashion.No affectation or condescension, just an inbred nobility of character that respects the basic dignity of every human soul.
It is for men like him that Iqbal wrote these timeless lines:
ہزاروں سال نرگس اپنی بے نوری پہ روتی ہے
بڑی مشکل سے ہوتا ہے چمن ميں ديدہ ور پيدا
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