Rashid Minhas


Rashid Minhas

Born(1951-02-17)17 February 1951
Died20 August 1971(1971-08-20) (aged 20)
Sujawal District, Sindh, Pakistan
Buried
Karachi, Sindh, Pakistan
Allegiance Pakistan
Service/branch Pakistan Air Force
Service years13 March 1971 – 20 August 1971
Rank Pilot officer
Service numberPak/5602
UnitNo. 2 Squadron
ConflictsBangladesh Liberation War 
Awards Nishan-e-Haider
Alma materSt Patrick's High School, Karachi
Website"Rashid Minhas (Shaheed)".

Pilot Officer Rashid Minhas NH (Urdu: راشد منہاس) was a Pakistani fighter pilot and the fifth recipient of Pakistan's highest military award, the Nishan-e-Haider. Minhas was the first and only officer from the Pakistan Air Force to receive the Nishan-e-Haider, and was also the youngest person and the shortest-serving officer to have received the award. During a routine training mission in August 1971, Minhas attempted to gain control of his jet trainer when his superior officer Flight Lieutenant Matiur Rahman BS took control over the plane to join the Bangladesh War of Independence but Minhas resisted his efforts to control the aircraft and crashed it in Sujawal District in Pakistan.