London Wallpaper: George L. Singleton, Colonel, USAF, Ret on PAF and Z.A Bhutto

George said...

What came of the posting I did here yesterday, April 30, 2010, about the late Group Captain P. G. K. (Pete) Williamson, RAF, who was the UK Air Advisor to Pakistan in 1963-64?

Thanks and your response will be appreciated.

George L. Singleton, Colonel, USAF, Ret.

May 1, 2010 6:18 AM

George said...

After the U2 was shot down May 1, 1960 over the Soviet Union, the US and her then ally Pakistan had to turn to the RB-57 program for a replacement intelligence gathering air craft.

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1960_U-2_incident

In the May, 2010 issue of COLD WAR TIMES Magazine:

www.coldwar.org

is the first of 12 articles about my 18 month tour of duty 1963-65 as Commander, Detachment 2, 6937th Communications Group, the subordinate unit at our US Embassy then in Karachi to my higher headquarters the 6937th Communications Group at Badabur, near Peshawar.

1. During 1963-1965 Pakistan was a full fledged member of both CENTO, the Central Asia Treaty Organizational, successor to the old Baghdad Pact and of SEATO, the Southeast Asia Treaty Organization, which Pakistan belonged to largely because then East Pakistan was defined as in SE Asia while West Pakistan was defined as in Southwest Asia geopolitically speaking.

2. After the Soviet shoot down of Gary Powers and the U-2, President Eisenhower suspended U2 flights from and through Pakistan.

3. In lieu of the U2 the US and Paksitan used B-57Ds flown along the air borders of both the USSR and Communist China by the Pakistan Air Force. As these aircraft lacked the wing size to attain really high altitude to get a good look "over the horizon."
it was redesigning into the RB-57F with a larger wing structure came the RB-57F, with two being loaned to the Pakistani Air Force, free of charge, by the US in June, 1964. One such RF-57F intermittently was based at Maripur Pakistan Air Base in Karachi, where I did official USAF business routinely.

5. The RB-57F had a maximum altitude of 82,000 feet, had a specially pressurized bombay , to handle an intelligence equipment pod.

www.spyflight.co.uk/rb57.htm

www.joebaugher.com/usaf_bombers/b57_8.html

- Along with training a few PAF pilots to fly the high altitude RB-57F… the US plane contractor also brought to Texas two RAF pilots who were likewise trained to fly this aircraft wearing pressure suits, to augment the PAF pilots.

- The two RAF pilots flew very many but not all of the RB-57F high altitude missions.

- This all took place during a time of increasing tension when then Foreign Minister Mr. Bhutto was beating the drum with the Pakistani Army Chief of Staff toward the eventual 1965 India-Pakistan War, which I was there to observe the first half of 1965.

- Foreign Minister Bhutto tried to pressure the RAF Air Advisor (same as the US Air Attache) and the US Air Attache, as well as my commander at the 6937th Communications Group in Peshawar to make intelligence flights over Kashmir and India. Mr. Bhutto failed.

The purpose of this letter is to bring into clearer view the opinion I hold that the 1965 India-Pakistan War was incited by then Foreign Minister Mr. Bhutto as he agitated and did lead the start up that uncalled for war.

I hope this snap shot in time in 1964 and 1965 will be of use to military and civilian historians.

George L. Singleton, Colonel, USAF, Ret.
USA
GSingle556@aol.com

May 6, 2010 11:36 AM

George said...

The Internet site for the Pakistani Air Force blog has comments about me and the article I recently wrote for the DAILY TIMES of Pakistan. The longer article I wrote was in the COLD WAR TIMES Magazine on the Internet. Gary Powers, Jr. heads up the Cold War Museum in the DC area, which hosts and owns the COLD WAR TIMES Magazine,all of which is affilated with the Smithsonian Museum in DC. COLD

The COLD WAR TIMES Magazine on the Internet ran the lst of what will likely be 12 Quarterly articles about my experineces in Pakistan 1963-1965 as the then USAF Liaison Officer for the 6937th Communications Group at Badabur.

My observations (negative) about then Prime Minister Bhutto and still living today in Islamabad Air Chief Marshal Muhamnmad Ashgar Khan were based on first hand experiences myself as well as experiences/knowlege with and through the key officials cited who were both colleagues and friends of mine.

I had official duties involving what had been the old U-2 program, which became the RB-57F program, as well as involving communications intelligence support duties (logistics and operations). One of the two on loan to the Pakistan Air Force RB-57Fs was based out of Maripur Fighter Bomber base in Karachi, the other RB-57F flew out of the then Pakistani Air Force HQ field in Peshawar...that runway is where both the U-2 and later the RB-57F flew from. One RB-57F sometimes also flew out of Lahore on rotation.

The key to my articles was the fact that two RB-57F Royal Air Force pilots were trained in Ft. Worth, TX by the aircraft contractor to augment the PAF likewise trained in Texas RB-57F high altitute pilots.

Cold War communications intel and air sampling of nuclear test air born elements was the purpose and mission of the two RB-57Fs.

Air Chief Marshal Nuhr Khan was a very fine officer, too, and he inherited a Pakistani Air Force which was in top notch condition from Air Chief Marshal Ashgar Khan. Both Khans were friends and good colleagues and worked together very well. I personally knew Air Chief Marshal Ashgar Khan and condoled him in 2007 about the death of his late son who served in President Musharraf's cabinet for a time.

My duties as the USAF base in Badabur Liaison Officer required me to have good working relationships in Karachi with the Pakistani Foreign Affairs Ministry (where Mr. Bhutto was then the Foreign Minister); the Paksitani Ministry of Defense; Pakistan International Airline which by contracts I oversay moved some of our civilian and military personnel to and from the Peshawar area...as well as moved some of our air cargo needs. My liaison work included on site missions at Maripur Fighter Bomber Base; Drigg Road Air Field (Technical PAF Base); and the Karachi Civil Airport, etc.

Watch for future articles in the COLD WAR TIMES Magazine on line for more factual, historic background related to the 1965 India-Pakistan War, among other things. I will also in future articles blend in more recent current history which is frequently shared with me from inside Pakistan.

I am a retired USAF Colonel who did 6 years active duty and 25 years in the USAF Reserve. One of my last reserve assignments was as the augmentee (to be able to step into his job in event of war if he was sent forward) Assistant Chief of Staff for Combat Logistics and War Plans for HQ US Special Operations Command.

I am also retired from a 25 year US Civil Service career and before that was for a few years an international banking officer in New York City immediately after my 6 years regular USAF duty. Our international territory I worked included all of the Indian Subcontinent, which included West and East Pakistan, which today is Pakistan and Bangladesh.

Thanks for moving this posting over to your Pakistan Air Force blog so that it is readable there, too.

George Singleton

May 20, 2010 8:06 PM

Agha H Amin said...

dear george

your comments are immensely valuable

thanks for sharing

my father was garrison engineer drigh road air base from 1964 to 1968.he had graduated from US Army Engineer School Fort Belvoir in 1964.

he was incharge of the runway of drigh road where planes were tested.

London Wallpaper

Friday, May 21, 2010

George L. Singleton, Colonel, USAF, Ret on PAF and Z.A Bhutto

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