Muhammad Masud Zafar was born in Gujranwala, Punjab, in British India to a prominent Punjabi family in 1927.
16 Facts About Zafar Masud
2.
Zafar Masud's father, Zafar Hussain, was an alumnus of Punjab University and served as a civil officer in the Indian Railways.
3.
In 1946, Zafar Masud graduated from Model High School and was commissioned into the Royal Indian Air Force to become a fighter pilot.
4.
When India was partitioned in 1947, Zafar Masud joined the newly created Pakistan Air Force.
5.
Zafar Masud did not participate in the first war with India in 1947 as he joined the air force faculty.
6.
Zafar Masud was tasked by Air Cdr-in-C, Air Marshal Asghar Khan, to organize, train, and lead an aerobatics team, the PAF Sherdils, of 16 F-86 Sabre jets that would set a world record, validating the PAF's place among the well-regarded air arms of the world.
7.
Zafar Masud flew against the Indian Air Force in Sargodha Sector with great courage and was regarded as an ace fighter for his ability in dogfight against the Indian pilots.
8.
Zafar Masud continued his role as a flight instructor with the Air Force and was appointed in the Air AHQ as Director-General of Air Operations.
9.
Zafar Masud was promoted to one star rank, Air Commodore, and was being speculated as a probable future air force chief once the retirement of Air Marshal Abdur Rahim Khan.
10.
In 1970, Air Cdre Zafar Masud was appointed as the Air Officer Commanding of Dacca airbase, East Pakistan.
11.
Air Cdre Zafar Masud was in clear view that situation was such that the army could not hold the ground of it, and had lobbied for supporting the Ahsan-Yakob Mission for resolving the peaceful solution.
12.
In March 1971, President Yahya Khan finally arrived in Dhaka and chaired a meeting at the Eastern Command HQ where Air Cdre Zafar Masud argued in favor of political solution, noting that "in the prevailing military imbalance, a semi-autonomous East Pakistan was far preferable to the certainty of a military defeat in the event that India decided to intervene".
13.
Zafar Masud handed over the air command to Air Cdre Inamul Haque Khan and arrived in Pakistan but was unable to hold the meeting with President Yahya which eventually led Zafar Masud disheartened and frustrated.
14.
Zafar Masud was married to a German national, Elizabeth, who worked as technician at Siemens Engineering in 1959; his wife died in 2019.
15.
Zafar Masud had one son, Salaar, who became a Software engineer.
16.
Zafar Masud died due to a cardiac arrest in PAF Hospital in Islamabad and is buried at PAF cemetery in Chaklala; the place of burial of his wife is in Karachi.