At the time of partition, Fuad Shahid Hussain, was among those few Muslim officers of the Indian Air Force who opted for Pakistan. He joined the number 5 Squadron of the Royal Pakistan Air Force (RPAF) formed on 15 August 1947 at Peshawar and equipped with Tempest aircraft. The squadron produced airmen of very high capability, and can rightly take pride in being a squadron of heroes. As a young fighter pilot, Hussain proved his true mettle and soon emerged as the pioneering aerobatic pilot of RPAF.
Born to a noble family of Lucknow, his father Shaikh Shahid Hussain Qadwai was a respected Taleqdar of Ghadia district in India. Hussain was the youngest in the family of six children. After receiving early education from reputable La Martiniere College, Lucknow, F S joined Royal Indian Air Force on 4 September 1944 in the Flying Branch as a promising young fighter pilot. After joining the RPAF he exhibited exceptional flying skills in his early career and was selected for a prestigious course at United Kingdom.
A Rare Honour
In April 1949, Flt Lt FS Hussain won first place in the Leconfield Central Gunnery School’s Pilot Attack Instructors’ Course. During his time in the UK he also set a commonwealth record in air-to-air shooting. The Central Gunnery School Commandant had this to say about him: “this officer who is a member of the RPAF, for combat flying is outstanding in every way. He achieved the finest result in the air ever experienced in the Central Gunnery School, Leconfield, England.”
Hussain also had a unique honour to perform solo aerobatics at the Coronation Ceremony of Queen Elizabeth II. His daredevil performance at the ceremony enthralled the large crowds and rendered them awe struck until the end of ceremony. After witnessing the heroics of young Hussain in aerobatics, Air Chief Marshal Lord Tedder, the then Royal Air Force Commander in Chief, said, “a generation of pilots is yet to be born, who will try to achieve the standards already perfected by Flt Lt F S Hussain of the RPAF.”
Heroic Performance at Home
At the national level, Hussain was a flying genius. As a young Flag Officer, he participated in the first aerial display of RPAF held on the first Pakistan Day in Lahore on 21 March 1948. He was the star of the show and stole the hearts of the young nation with his daredevil manoeuvres. It was the breathtaking, often heart stopping, recklessness with which he used to do a slow roll or an inverted run literally at treetop height. The aerobatic display included crazy flying on a Tiger Moth, formation flying on Harvard and a thrilling tail chase on 2 Tempests in which, as the number two, FS Hussain proved himself as an aerobatic maestro. He did not stop there – Hussain followed up a few months later with a solo aerobatic display in a Fury aircraft in honour of Shah of Iran on 12 March 1950 at Risalpur. The Shah, an amateur pilot himself, was so impressed with the polished manoeuvres executed incredibly close to ground that he directed his accompanying court poet to write a poem in Hussain’s praise.
While the RPAF as a whole continued to win public acclaim with its spectacular air displays, Hussain individually became a living legend in the years to follow, and low level and highly dangerous aerobatics became synonymous with his name. On 15 August 1950, an air display was held at Pakistan Air Force (PAF) Base Drigh Road – now Faisal Base – in aid of the RPAF Benevolent Fund. This stunning air display, the first of its kind at the then capital Karachi, was also witnessed by the Prime Minister and his cabinet along with 150,000 people. The entire crowd was mesmerised to see the flying genius in action. One of the best items of the air display was the amazing aerobatics by a Fury Fighter, piloted by Flight Lieutenant FS Hussain who dived at 450 miles per hour, rolled at precariously low altitude, and then climbed with his aircraft upside down.
Distinguished Career
In November 1951, Hussain took over as Number 5 Squadron Commander and on 12 February 1952 received the Perry Keene Inter-Squadron Armament Trophy from Air Vice Marshal LW Cannon. FS Hussain was also among the pioneering pilots who played a key role in the induction of PAF’s first jet aircraft, the Attacker. He was the commander of the team that was tasked to ferry three brand new Attackers from the UK to Pakistan. It was a great challenge, which Hussain accomplished with great professionalism. He then took over as the Number 11 Squadron Flight Commander and was soon considered an authority on the state-of-the-art modern fighter aircraft. As a master of Attackers, he played a pivotal role in operationalising the new system in record time. In 1952, while under his command, Number 11 Squadron formed PAF’s first aerobatic team with a curious name “The Paybills”. It also happened to be the call sign of the squadron.
Hussain once again shot to fame on 22 December 1956 when he enthralled the Karachi crowd with his trademark slow roll and inverted pull up at low level. The first Premier of the Peoples Republic of China, Zhao Enlai, who was on an official visit to Pakistan for the first time, witnessed these dazzling aerobatics. Enlai was so fascinated that he requested the President of Pakistan to meet Hussain in person to admire his heroics. On 2 Febraury 1958, a red-letter day in the history of PAF, for the first time ever a formation of 16 F-86 Sabres performed a loop during an air display held at Mauripur in honour of Afghanistan’s King Zahir Shah. Group Captain FS Hussain, being the OC Flying Wing of Mauripur, played an instrumental role in the orchestration of the great show. The famous Flight Magazine of UK published a special feature on the historic aerial display. In recognition of the great services rendered by Hussain, he was honoured with the prestigious command of PAF Mauripur Base in 1961. During his three-year command, the base excelled at all levels and proved its worth in 1965 War.
Although the list of achievements in the illustrious career of legendary FS Hussain is long, one thing is for sure that he would be remembered for one outstanding contribution made to the PAF – the honour of training a brigade of promising fighter pilots for the PAF. Great warriors like MM Alam, Alauddin, Yunus, Muniruddin, Sarfraz Rafiqui, Saif ul Azam, Bill Latif and many more learnt the art of fighter flying from Hussain. Later, they all emerged as the top class fighter pilots of the PAF during Indo-Pak wars. To them, Hussain was a mentor, a teacher and above all a great human. All of them held him in high esteem and always tried to mirror the maestro in their outstanding fighter flying careers. During the testing times in 1965 War, Hussain was a senior commander at the Air Headquaters (AHQ)and made valuable contributions to devising the air strategy against the enemy air force.
End of the Hero
Towards the end of his career, Air Commodore FS Hussain was serving as Assistant Chief of the Air Staff (Training) at AHQ. The legend breathed his last on 9 Apr 1969 at Peshawar. He was laid to rest at Lahore with full military honours and his funeral was attended by a large crowd representing various walks of life. The flying maestro departed, leaving behind his exploits in air displays and aerobatics engraved in PAF history.
He represented the first generation of PAF fighter pilots whose rich legacy has been emulated in spirit and action by the succeeding generation of PAF fighter pilots. The legacy of “Prince of Pilots” will continue to live in the hearts of the budding fighter pilots of the PAF for all times to come.
