Asghar Khan Asghar Khan ( ; b . January 17 , 1921 ) is a Pakistani veteran aviation historian , peace activist , and retired military figure — a three star rank air marshal — who served as the first native Chief of Air Staff of the Pakistan Air Force ( PAF ) from 1957 until resigning in 1965 prior to the start of the air operations of the PAF during the Indo - Pakistani War of 1965 . Initially commissioned in the Indian Army , Asghar Khan was drafted into Royal Air Force in 1940 , seeing actions in Burma Campaign and later acceded to United Kingdom where he graduated from RAF Staff College at UK Parliament constituency , completing his collegiate courses from Joint Service Defence College , and completed his post - graduate studies from Imperial Defence College . Upon return to British Indian Empire , Asghar Khan resumed his active duty with the Royal Air Force and opted for Pakistan following the Indian partition in 1947 , and settled in West - Pakistan . Asghar Khan became first commandant of Pakistan Air Force Academy in 1947 and was also the first to head the Directorate - General for Air Operations ( DGAO ) in 1950 . Finally in 1957 , Asghar Khan became the youngest to - date and the first native Air Force Commander - in - Chief of Pakistan Air Force . His tenure as air commander saw the extensive modernization of PAF , in terms of both technical and military equipment , but controversially he was not taken in confidence prior to launch of Operation " Gibraltar " by the president which led to his resignation . After retiring from air force , Asghar Khan became president of civilian national flag carrier , the Pakistan International Airlines ( PIA ) which he led until 1968 . In 1970 , Asghar Khan founded the secular party , the Tehrik - e - Istiqlal , but performed poorly in 1970 parliamentary elections . However in 1977 , the party significant gained momentum and participated with full force in 1977 parliamentary elections , although the party failed to grasp any support in the public as compared to democratic socialist , the Pakistan Peoples Party . He was designated a prisoner of conscience by Amnesty International , and conferred with the Gold Medal by the Human Rights Commission , and Jinnah Award Award by the Jinnah Society for the cause of democracy . After years of founding the Independence Movement , Asghar Khan merged his party with Pakistan Tehreek - e - Insaf , led by cricketer - turned politician Imran Khan , in January 2012 . Biography . Early life and world war II . Mohammad Asghar Khan was born in Jammu , British - held Kashmir in British Indian Empire on 17 January 1921 . His father , Brigadier Thakur Rahmatullah Khan , was a senior officer and colonel - commandant of the posted Brigade combat team of the British Army headquartered in Kashmir . He and all his brothers , except one , then joined the armed forces of Pakistan . After attending a military school , his family directed him at the Prince of Wales ' s Royal Indian Military College 1933 , and joined the Indian Military Academy in 1939 . Initially , Asghar Khan was an Indian Army officer , a Second Lieutenant in the Indian Army , starting his active duty from the Royal Deccan Horse in December 1940 . However this was short - lived , the Ministry of Defence drafted Asghar Khan in the newly established Royal Indian Air Force in 1940 , joining the No . 9 Squadron of the Indian Air Force . In 1944 , Asghar Khan assumed the command his unit and commanded the aerial missions of No . 9 Squadron in Burma . He took active participation in Burma Campaign 1944 – 1945 , directing and commanding aerial operations against the Imperial Japan on behest of the Great Britain . After World War II , the British government called Asghar Khan to United Kingdom where he joined the RAF Staff College at UK Parliament constituency , where he completed a staff course from there . Later , Asghar Khan joined the Joint Service Defence College where he gained B . Sc . in military ethics after submitting his thesis on actions involving the Joint Services . He conducted his post - graduate research and studies from Imperial Defence College where Asghar Khan was awarded Master in Military administration by the college faculty . Upon his return , Asghar Khan was most - senior officer in the Indian Air Force , although his career with Indian Air Force is not completely known , but it is well understood that Asghar Khan commanded the No . 9 Squadron of the Indian Air Force , in 1945 . Asghar Khan was also the first Indian Air Force officer to fly a jet fighter aircraft — a Gloster Meteor — whilst doing a fighter leader ' s course in UK in 1946 . Moving to Pakistan . Career with Pakistan Air Force . On 7 June 1947 , Asghar Khan joined the sub - committee led by RAF Air Vice Marshal Allan Perry - Keene to distribute the defence assets of undivided India between the proposed State of Pakistan . . After the partition of India on 14 August 1947 , Asghar Khan moved to newly established country Pakistan and , Prime minister Liaquat Ali Khan promoted Asghar Khan to the rank of Wing - Commander and appointed him the first commandant of the Pakistan Air Force Academy at Risalpur . He was among the most senior officers of the Pakistan Air Force so in 1949 , Asghar Khan became the first Officer commanding of the No . 1 " Stryker " Group based in Peshawar Air Force Base . In 1948 , Asghar Khan greeted founder of Pakistan and Governor - General Muhammad Ali Jinnah when Jinnah visited the Pakistan Air Force Academy . In 1950 , Asghar Khan assumed the directorship of the Directorate - General of the Air Operations ( DGAO ) . In 1955 , Asghar Khan was appointed as the Assistant Chief of the Air Staff in the Air Headquarters , directing the air administration and personnel department at the Air Headquarters . As Assistant Chief of the Air Staff , Asghar Khan established the major units and infrastructure including the Fighter Leaders School ( now Combat Commander ' s School ) , the Air Staff College and the College of Aeronautical Engineering at the Pakistan Air Force Academy . As assistant chief of the air staff , Asghar Khan also instituted the Inspectorate directorate for the air force and initiated the tradition of regular air staff presentations . Two of his brothers , Squadran Leader Khalid Khan and Pilot Officer Asif Khan were killed during service with the Pakistan Air Force . Commander - in - Chief . After the retirement of Air vice - marshal Arthur McDonald , Prime minister Huseyn Suhravardy approved the appointment of Asghar Khan as the commander - in - chief of Pakistan Air Force . In 23 July 1957 , Prime minister Suhrawardy upgraded AVM Asghar Khan to three - star rank air marshal , making him the first native Air Force Commander - in - chief , yet at the age of 36 , also the youngest to - date . After assuming the command of air force , Asghar Khan commanded the air force for next eight years where he took initiatives to modernize and expand the air force facilities , installations and equipment , as well as the fighter jets acquired from the United States . Asghar Khan also launched the fighter training programmes and combat course at the PAF to train fighter pilots in modern air warfare . His style of leading the air force often comes with criticisms by his junior officers , first alleging that Air Marshal Asghar Khan was inclined to be autocratic in his decision makings . His juniors noted that the Air Marshal would go out of his way to elicit a whole range of opinions before taking a decision , but once that decision was made by him , he would not tolerate any ifs and buts about its implementations . As for approving the appointments and selections process , Asghar Khan made no secret of his willingness to superseding the senior officers if that became unavoidable in ensuring that the best qualified officers needed to fill the key appointments , particularly in the combat units . During his long tenure , Air Marshal Asghar Khan gave commission to established air force bases , in Samungli , Sargodha , and the Peshawar . The time he was appointed as the commander - in - chief , Asghar Khan negotiated with the United States to provide the military equipment , fighter jets , on an indefinite basis . The combat units and fighter squadrons were quickly raised majority of which were equipped with the state - of - the - art F - 86 Sabres , and others with F - 104 Starfighter , B - 57 Canberra , C - 130 Hercules , T - 33 and the T - 37 Tweet aircraft . Presiding Pakistan International Airlines . After leaving air force , Asghar Khan was employed at the Ministry of Defence ( MoD ) and was appointed as the president of the national flag carriers , the Pakistan International Airlines ( PIA ) . At there , Asghar Khan learned to fly the commercial airline and obtained a Commercial pilot licence after passing the exam from Federal Aviation Administration of the United States . Asghar Khan introduced new uniforms for the air hostesses and stewards which earned words of admiration at domestic and international airports . During his tenure , PIA achieved lowest aircraft accident rate and highest net profit of Pakistan , and was a formidable competitor in the world airline business . His tenure as president is often reminded as " gold age of PIA " . Despite urging of the government to extend his tenure , Asghar Khan took retirement and left the MoD in order to start his political career in 1968 . Founding Independence Movement . After leaving the MoD , Asghar Khan gave vehement criticism and blamed President Ayub Khan and Foreign Minister Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto for the causes of the 1965 war with India , and later turn his criticism pointing straight towards General Yahya Khan for the 1971 war failure , which resulted in the breakup of Pakistan when Sheikh Mujibur Rehman ' s Awami League , which had won the election , had not been allowed to form a government . In protest , Asghar Khan relinquished awards of ' Hilal - i - Pakistan ' and ' Hilal - i - Quaid - i - Azam ' as a protest against repressive policies of Field Marshal Ayub Khan in January 1969 . In 1970 , Asghar Khan founded the Tehrik - e - Istiqlal , initially a centrist secular party . Asghar Khan criticized Bhutto on numerous occasions , holding him responsible for tyranny during the 1970 elections . However , Asghar Khan and his party failed to score any big hits during the 1970 parliamentary elections , initially failing to secure any seats in the parliament . During the Bangladesh Liberation War , Asghar Khan did support the East - Pakistan morally , alleging the West - Pakistan under Bhutto , of depriving East from their political and economical rights . He also demanded power to be handed over to the people of East Pakistan . In 1972 , after Bhutto was made president , Asghar Khan accused Bhutto for the break - up , later noting that : " We are living virtually under one party state . . . The outstanding feature is suppression . Activism in national politics . During Bhutto ' s rule from 1971 to 1977 , Air Marshal Asghar Khan played a major role in opposition to Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto . During the 1977 elections , Asghar Khan allied his party , the Tehreek - i - Istiqlal with the Pakistan National Alliance ( PNA ) against the People ' s Party . It was during this period he and his party faced frequent attacks by Pakistan Peoples Party supporters and from the brutal paramilitary Federal Security Force . He was imprisoned in Kot Lakhpat and Sahiwal prisons from March to June 1977 . He contested two seats , one from Karachi and the other from Abbotabad , despite alleged rigging by the ppp , Asghar Khan was elected by a huge margin from both seats . The PNA rejected the election results as rigged and launched a Nationwide agitation against the results . Asghar Khan resigned from both National Assembly seats as a mark of protest against massive rigging in the elections . Supporting the Martial law . While imprisoned , Asghar Khan wrote a much criticized letter to the leadership of Defence Forces , asking them to renounce their support for the " Illegal regime of Bhutto " , and asked the military leadership to " differentiate between a " lawful and an unlawful " command . . . and save Pakistan . " . This letter is considered by the historians as instrumental in encouraging the advent of the far - right Zia regime . However in television show , Asghar Khan strongly defended his letter as according to him " nowhere in the letter had he asked for the military to take over " , and he had written it in response to a news story that he had read in which a Major had shot a civilian showing him the " V sign " . After the overthrow of Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto ' s government by the Army in the summer of 1978 , Asghar Khan was offered a cabinet post by General Zia - ul - Haq , Asghar Khan refused to join the cabinet and also withdrew from the PNA after a growing split between the various parties . Political activism . After successfully calling for Bhutto ' s " judicial murder " , Asghar Khan decided to take on the far - right regime of General Zia - ul - Haq who announced to hold the general elections in 1979 . The Tehrik - e - Istiqlal became the most favorite party and benefited with large number of high profile civilian political figures including Navaz Sharif , Khurshid Kasur , Aitzaz Ahsan , Rashid Ahmad , Javed Hashmi , Akbar Bugti , Mushahid Hussain , Nadir Pervez , Gohar Ayub Khan , Zafar Ali Shah , Ahmed Raza Kasuri , Sher Afgan Niazi , Manzoor Wattoo , Syeda Abida Hussain , Syed Fakhar Imam and many others . All of these members left Asghar Khan under Navaz Sharif who founded the largest conservative party , the Pakistan Muslim League ( N ) . However , at the last moment , General Zia - ul - Haq indefinitely postponed the elections , ordering the arrests of Asghar Khan who remained under house arrest for more than five years . In 1983 , Asghar Khan decided to join the left - wing alliance , the Movement for Restoration of Democracy ( MRD ) led by Benazir Bhutto but he was detained by the government . He was kept under house arrest at his Abbotabad residence from 16 October 1979 to 2 October 1984 and was named a prisoner of conscience by Amnesty International . Public disapproval and declining . In 1986 , Asghar Khan left the MRD , as a result of which many of the Tehrik ' s members resigned in protest . Asghar Khan boycotted the non - partisan elections held in 1985 . However , Asghar Khan and his party took full part in 1988 parliamentary elections . But this time , he was accused by Pakistan Peoples Party for having called for Bhutto ' s death sentence and the martial law , which Asghar Khan himself failed to justify . His party members disintegrated and allied with conservative Nawaz Sharif , a major set back for his career . Asghar Khan ' s public rating plummeted and faced a complete annihilation and defeat in 1988 elections . He conceded his defeat but again contested in 1990 parliamentary elections from Lahore , Asghar Khan once again faced defeat . Briefly retiring from active politics in the late 1990s his party faced another one of its many splits . Since 1990 , Asghar Khan has not held a significant position in politics . Collapse and merging with Pakistan Movement for Justice . As he grew older , he handed over his small party to his equally capable son Omar Asghar Khan , who had for a while joined the military government of General Pervaiz Musharraf , and became minister of Ministry of Environment ( MoE ) . After his son ' s resignation from the cabinet , Omar Asghar Khan took over Tehrik - e - Istiqlal and subsequently merged it with assorted other Non - governmental organization and formed a new party called National Democratic Party , an event which caused another split in the party . Both Independence Movement and National Democratic Party suffered major shock and setback when Omar Asghar Khan was murdered in Karachi on 25 June 2001 prior to the elections . An inquiry into his death was ordered by the Sindh High Court and in spite of repeated requests , it was never started . In a historic press conference on 12 December 2011 , Asghar Khan announced his full support to Pakistan Tehreek - e - Insaf ( PTI ) and Imran Khan . He praised Imran Khan for his struggle and endorsed him as the only hope left for the survival of Pakistan . This endorsement came at a crucial time for Imran Khan , when many tainted politicians were joining his party . After announcing his party ' s support for PTI , Asghar Khan resigned as President of Tehreek - e - Istiqlal and left the future of his party in the hands of his workers . Contrary to many media reports , Asghar Khan never joined PTI . Peace activism . Besides political activism , Asghar Khan has been engaged in peace activism . On various occasion , Asghar Khan called for normalization of Indo - Pakistan relations . Asghar Khan also renounced the nuclear tests operations conducted by Pakistan , targeting Prime minister Nawaz Sharif move for making that move . In 2011 Asghar Khan maintained that : Asghar Khan also blamed Zulfikar Ali Bhutto for Balochistan conflict and the East - Pakistan war , terming it " inflexible attitude " of Bhutto . Commenting of his politicla collapse , Asghar Khan accused the civil society for his failure , and marked that : " the majority in Pakistan voted for the ( corrupt ) politicians , as they also wanted their job done by " hook or by crook " . Personal life . He has also authored 13 books , including " We ’ ve Learnt Nothing from History " , " Pakistan at the Crossroads " and " General in Politics " . Asghar Khan was married to Amina Shamsie in 1946 and they had four children , Nasreen , Shereen , Omar ( deceased ) and Ali Asghar Khan .