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==History==
The Royal Pakistan Air Force (RPAF) was formed in [[1947]] right after the [[Partition of India|Partition]] of the Subcontinent. The RPAF began with 2,332 personnel, a fleet of 24 [[Hawker Tempest|Tempest II]] fighter-bombers, 16 [[Hawker Typhoon]] fighters (also called Tempest I), two [[Handley Page Halifax|H.P.57 Halifax]] bombers, 2 [[Auster]] aircraft, twelve [[T-6 Texan|T-6G Harward]] trainers and ten [[De Havilland Tiger Moth|Tiger Moth]] [[biplanes]]. It also got eight [[C-47 Dakota]] cargo planes which it used to transport supplies to soldiers fighting in the [[Indo-Pakistani War of 1947|1947 War]] in [[Kashmir]] against [[India]]. It also started with 7 operational airbases scattered all over the provinces. The prefix Royal was removed when [[Pakistan]] became an [[Islamic Republic]] on [[23rd March]], [[1956]]. It has since been called Pakistan Air Force (PAF).
The [[1950s]] saw the PAF join the [[jet age]] with the purchase of British-made [[Supermarine Attacker|Attacker]] jets. While these jets were built for Naval Aviation, the PAF made full use of them in many land based operations. Initially, much of the PAF's equipment came from the [[United Kingdom]]. As the [[Cold War]] heated up, the government of Pakistan allied itself with the [[United States]] against India and its communist ally [[Soviet Union]]. As a result, they began receiving American defense equipment: notably the [[F-86 Sabre]] which would form the backbone of the PAF until the mid-'70s.
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