Shahid Lateef

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For the Hindi film director, writer, and producer, see Shaheed Latif.
HI(m), SI(m), Sbt

Shahid Latif
Birth nameShahid Latif
BornSahiwal
Allegiance Pakistan
Service/branch Pakistan Air Force
Years of service1971–2011
RankUS-O9 insignia.svg Air Marshal
Commands heldVice-Chief of Air Staff (VCAS)
DCAS Aerial Operations)
Project-Director, F-17 Thunder program
Military advisor to the UAE Air Force
Battles/warsIndo-Pakistani war of 1971
Soviet–Afghan War
2001 India Pakistan standoff
War in North-West Pakistan
AwardsCrescent of Excellence Hilal-e-Imtiaz.png Hilal-e-Imtiaz (military)
Sitara-i-Imtiaz Pakistan.svg Sitara-e-Imtiaz (military)
Sitara-e-Basalat Pakistan.svg Sitara-i-Basalat

Air Marshal Shahid Lateef (Urdu: شاہد لطیف; HI(m), SI(m), Sbt is a retired Pakistan Air Force three-star air marshal, geostrategist and military strategist, and political commentator. Lateef is from Pakistan city of Sahiwal.[1]

A veteran fighter pilot, Latif was commissioned in April, 1974 in the Pakistan Air Force (PAF), serving in influential staff appointments during his air force career. He completed an academic degree with top honours, and was awarded a Sword of Honour from the PAF Academy in Risalpur.[2][3] Lateef has performed duties as a fighter pilot in various squadrons of the PAF and was among the founders of the F-16 induction programme in the PAF.[2]

On March 24, 2017, Latif accused Nawaz Sharif of a "blasphemous speech" to Karachi's Hindu community.[4]

Biography[]

In 1970, Lateef was inducted in the in Risalpur, Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa, and participated in the war with India in 1971.[5] Graduated with BA degree in 1974, he stood at the top of his class in his alma mater and conferred with Sword of Honour.[5] He gained commission in 1974 in General Duties Pilot (GDP) branch.[5]

Air Force career[]

Due to his excellent performance on the Chinese F-6 aircraft, he moved on to the French Mirage at an early stage of his career.[3]

He was chosen in the group of the first six PAF Pilots to undergo F-16 conversion in the United States. Latif was the first pilot to ferry the F-16 from USA to Pakistan in 1982, and formed part of the pioneer team for training pilots in Pakistan on the F-16 weapon system. With these same pilots he flew numerous combat missions in defense of Pakistan during the Afghan war in the 1980s. He was sent to the United Arab Emirates where he was assigned the command of a Mirage squadron.[6] He was then chosen to command a fighter squadron, fighter wing and a fighter base in the PAF.[3] He has had numerous key staff appointments at the Air Headquarters including the JF-17 Project.[2]

He was to actively encouraged to the rank of Air vice Marshal, and was given the JF-17 Project; a programme that was not able to start due to difficulties, forcing the PAF to continue to operate obsolete equipment. Through his efforts, the JF-17 project finally came to life.[3] He served the Air Force of Pakistan from September, 1971 to April, 2006. In recognition of his services he was awarded the Hilal-i-Imtiaz (Military), Sitara-e-Imtiaz (Military) and Sitara-i-Basalat.[7]

Defense analyst[]

After retirement from the PAF, Lateef started a new career as a defense analyst and appeared on a number of talk shows and gave his expert analysis on geopolitical affairs.

Awards and decorations[]

Service Medals
Non-operational Military Awards
Hilal-e-Imtiaz (Crescent of Excellence)
Sitara-e-Imtiaz (Star of Excellence)
Sitara-i-Basalat (Star of Good Conduct)

See also[]

References[]

  1. ^ GNN Kay Sang with Air Marshal R. Shahid Latif, 21 Feb 2021, retrieved 2021-02-28
  2. ^ a b c https://lubpak.com/archives/1121
  3. ^ a b c d http://www.pakistanherald.com/profile/air-marshal-r-shahid-lateef-1314
  4. ^ Notice to Pakistani channel over remarks against PM Nawaz Sharif
  5. ^ a b c Baqi, Abdul (19 March 2009). "Air Marshal Shahid Lateef: What is the story?". LUBP release. LUBP release. Retrieved 24 April 2015.
  6. ^ APP. "Air Marshal Shahid Lateef appointed Vice Chief of Air Staff". Associate Press of Pakistan. Associate Press of Pakistan. Archived from the original on 2 April 2015. Retrieved 24 April 2015.
  7. ^ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2015-04-02. Retrieved 2015-03-19.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
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