Saeedullah Khan

Saeedullah Khan^[a] (23 July 1926 – 26 January 2002) was a Pakistani former two-star rank air officer and among the pioneer officers of the Pakistan Air Force (PAF). He served as the Deputy Chief of the Air Staff from June 1972 to June 1973. In this role, he was one of the right-hand men of Chief of Air Staff Zafar Chaudhry, alongside Assistant Chief of Air Staff (Operations) Khaqan Abbasi and Director Air Intelligence Mufti.^[3][4]

Chief of Air StaffZafar Chaudhry

Preceded byKhyber Khan

Succeeded byChaudhary Rab Nawaz

Succeeded byEric G. Hall

Quick facts Air Vice MarshalTQA, 5th Deputy Chief of Air Staff Pakistan Air Force ...

Air Vice Marshal Saeedullah Khan TQA
سعید اللہ خان
Portrait, c. 1964
5th Deputy Chief of Air Staff Pakistan Air Force
In office 22 June 1972 – 29 June 1973
Chief of Air Staff	Zafar Chaudhry
Preceded by	Khyber Khan
Succeeded by	Chaudhary Rab Nawaz
Air Attaché to Embassy of Pakistan, Washington, D.C.
In office January 1970 – May 1972
Succeeded by	Eric G. Hall
Deputy Managing Director Pakistan International Airlines
In office 29 August 1969 – January 1970
Command and staff positions 11th Commandant PAF Academy In office February 1968 – 28 August 1969 Succeeded by Michael John O'Brian 5th Deputy Commandant PAF Staff College In office January 1964 – September 1964 Commander PAF Station Sargodha In office 12 January 1962[1] – December 1963 Preceded by Masroor Hosain Succeeded by Zafar Masud Commander No 33 Air Supply Wing In office May 1961 – 11 January 1962 Commander No 32 Fighter Ground Attack Wing In office 5 May 1958 – 24 October 1958 Commander No. 2 Squadron PAF In office 19 July 1956 – 10 April 1957 Commander No. 9 Squadron PAF In office September 1953 – December 1955
Personal details
Born	(1926-07-23)23 July 1926 Bhagalpur, British India
Died	26 January 2002(2002-01-26) (aged 75) Lahore, Pakistan
Relatives	Khalifa Mohammad Asadullah (father-in-law)
Education	Government College, Lahore No. 1 (I) SFTS RAF Central Flying School RAF Staff College, Andover[2]
Military service
Branch/service	Royal Indian Air Force (1945-1947)  Pakistan Air Force (1947-1973)
Years of service	1945–1973
Rank	Air Vice Marshal
Commands	PAF Academy Director Operations 1965 War PAF Station Sargodha No. 2 Squadron PAF No. 9 Squadron PAF
Battles/wars	World War II Indo-Pakistani War of 1947 Indo-Pakistani War of 1965 Air war operations
Awards	Tamgha-e-Quaid-e-Azam (1963)

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In the book, Flight of the Falcon, Sajad Haider wrote that Saeedullah Khan and Khaqan were involved in a witch-hunt against PAF officers, including Haider himself, attempting to implicate them in the Attock conspiracy at the behest of Zafar Chaudhry. According to Haider, he and other PAF officers discovered with "great awe and excitement" that President Zulfikar Ali Bhutto sacked Khan, Khaqan Abbasi, and Zafar Chaudhry from their duties due to allegations of intrigue and witch-hunting. Saeedullah and Khaqan were not allowed to attend their offices and were unceremoniously and prematurely retired when the PAF command changed under Bhutto. Haider further notes that Khan retired "into oblivion", playing the stock market with Hamid Qureshi, a 1965 War drop-out. Khan later worked for a rogue financial company involved in illicit financial dealings. Haider wrote that despite being financially honest, Saeedullah Khan was likely a victim of circumstances.^[5]

In July 1998, Saeedullah Khan was among 63 retired Pakistani, Indian, and Bengali armed forces personnel who signed an agreement urging Pakistan and India to refrain from developing nuclear weapons. Instead, they advocated for limiting nuclear research and development strictly to peaceful and beneficial purposes. They also called for Pakistan and India to resolve their disputes through peaceful means and address their real problems of poverty and backwardness, rather than wasting their scarce resources on acquiring means of destruction.^[6][7]

Air Chief Marshal Anwar Shamim recalled serving under Khan and said, "I learnt a lot especially from Group Captain Saeedullah Khan. He was well read, knowledgeable, and had excellent grasp of what the PAF needed for the future. He was firm and demanded hard work from his subordinates. He was a thorough gentleman and dedicated family man. He was a well-dressed officer and also appreciated those who dressed up well. In fact, he was what one would truly call an officer and gentleman."^[8]