Muhammad Mahmood Alam

Air Commodore Muhammad Mahmood Alam SJ& Bar SI(M) (মহম্মদ মাহমুদ আলম; ; 6 July 1935 – 18 March 2013), popularly known as M. M. Alam, was a Pakistani fighter pilot and war hero, officially credited by the Pakistan Air Force with having downed five Indian fighter aircraft in under a minute and establishing a world record during the 1965 Indo-Pakistani War. He was a F-86 Sabre flying ace as per Pakistan Air Force records. He was awarded the Sitara-e-Jurat twice, the nation's third highest military award for his actions.

Early life
Alam was born on 6 July 1935 to an ethnic Muhajir Muslim family hailing from Calcutta, Bengal, British India. Born and raised in Bengal, Alam was a fluent Bengali speaker, it being his mother tongue. He was of mixed heritage: his maternal line was of Bengali origin and his paternal line was of Bihari origin, having migrated from Patna and later settled in the Bengal province of British India for a long time. His family migrated from Calcutta to East Bengal (which later became East Pakistan) following the creation of Pakistan in 1947.

It was in East Pakistan where Alam completed his secondary education, graduating from the Government High School in Dhaka in 1951. He joined the then Royal Pakistani Air Force (now Pakistan Air Force) in 1952, being commissioned on 2 October 1953. Alam's brothers are M. Shahid Alam, an economist and a professor at Northeastern University, and M. Sajjad Alam, who was a particle physicist at SUNY Albany.

His family moved to West Pakistan in 1971, after the Bangladesh Liberation War in erstwhile East Pakistan. Being the eldest of his 11 siblings, Alam did not marry as he had to assume the responsibilities of the upbringing of his family. Some of his younger brothers became distinguished in various academic careers.

Indo-Pakistani War of 1965


During the Indo-Pakistani War of 1965, Alam was posted at Sargodha with No. 11 Squadron PAF.

According to the PAF and eyewitness accounts, in a single sortie on 7 September 1965, Alam downed five aircraft in less than a minute, it was claimed that he had downed 7 Hunters, but 2 of which were 'probable' kills. Regarding his last four claims, Alam stated that while before he had completed "270 degrees of turn, at around 12 degrees per second ... four Hunters had been shot down." With five claims on 7 September, Alam also effectively claimed to have achieved "ace in a day" status, in world record time.

Alam's claims have been contested by retired PAF Air Commodore Sajad Haider, of which the context, is a rivalry between Alam and Haider. The Indian Air Force, denied losing five Hawker Hunter aircraft on 7 September. In a 2009 memoir, Haider wrote that it was "tactically and mathematically very difficult" to reconstruct the downing of "five Hunters in a hard ... 270-degree turn in 23 seconds." The fact that no verifiable gun camera footage of his kills was ever made public by the Pakistani authorities further casts doubt on his claim.

The action of 7 September 1965 resulted in Alam being placed at the top of a 'Hall of Fame' list at the Pakistan Air Force Museum in Karachi.

Later years
In 1967, he was appointed Squadron Commander of the first squadron of Dassault Mirage III fighters procured by the PAF. In 1982, he retired as an Air commodore and took up residence in Karachi. He was a good practicing Muslim in his later years. Occasionally, he would accept offers to speak at different Pakistani universities. He had a large collection of books and used to read many newspapers to stay informed. According to a major Pakistani newspaper, "Alam was a highly self-respecting man who led a life of utmost dignity and self-esteem. He was very candid and informal with trusted friends".

Death
Alam was admitted to Pakistan Naval Station PNS Shifa Hospital in Karachi where he died on 18 March 2013, aged 77. He was being treated for respiratory problems for 18 months. Alam's funeral prayer was performed at the PAF Base Masroor, where he served some of the significant years of his career. Alam was buried at the Shuhuda (Martyrs) Graveyard, located at PAF Masroor Airbase. Air Chief Marshal Tahir Rafique Butt, Sindh Governor Ishratul Ebad, Air Chief Marshal Farooq Feroze Khan, Sindh corps commander Lt. Gen Ijaz Chaudhry, Pakistan Rangers (Sindh) Director-General Maj. Gen. Rizwan Akhtar, Base Commander PAF Base Masroor Air Commodore Usaid ur Rehman, many war veterans of the 1965 war and Alam's closest colleagues attended the funeral. One of the younger brothers of the deceased, Zubair Alam, was also present.

Memorials
M. M. Alam Road, a major road in Lahore, Punjab, Pakistan is named in honour of the flying ace of Pakistan Air Force, Air Commodore Muhammad Mahmood Alam, running from Main Market to Gulberg. The road runs parallel to famous Main Boulevard thus providing an alternate route and is a commercial hub with many restaurants, fashion boutiques, shopping malls, beauty saloons and décor stores. M.M. Alam Road hosts a variety of flamboyant restaurants in modern Lahore.

On 20 March 2014, on account of his first death anniversary, the PAF Airbase Mianwali was renamed after him as PAF Base M.M. Alam.

Commemorative postage stamp
On 20 March 2014, Pakistan Post issued a commemorative postage stamp to honor him and his services to Pakistan.