Matiur Rahman (military pilot)

Flight Lieutenant Matiur Rahman Bir Sreshtho
Native name	মতিউর রহমান
Born	(1941-10-29)29 October 1941 Narsingdi, Bengal, British India
Died	20 August 1971(1971-08-20) (aged 29) Thatta, Sindh, Pakistan
Allegiance	Pakistan (until March 1971)  Bangladesh (from March 1971)
Service / branch	Pakistan Air Force (1963 – March 1971)  Bangladesh Air Force (March 1971 – 20 August 1971)
Years of service	1963–1971
Rank	Flight Lieutenant
Service number	PAK-4367
Unit	No. 2 Squadron
Battles / wars	Indo-Pakistani War of 1965 Bangladesh Liberation War †
Awards	Bir Sreshtho
Spouse(s)	Milly Rahman[1]

Flight Lieutenant Matiur Rahman BS (29 October 1941 – 20 August 1971) was a Bengali fighter pilot in the Pakistan Air Force from East Pakistan (now Bangladesh) and a recipient of Bir Sreshtho, Bangladesh's highest military award for his actions during the Bangladesh Liberation War.

He attempted to escape from West Pakistan and join the Bangladesh Liberation War in then East Pakistan by hijacking a Lockheed T-33 aircraft being flown by a 20-year-old newly commissioned Pilot Officer Rashid Minhas, who was conducting his second solo flight. Rahman stopped the aircraft on the runway, climbed into the cockpit and steered the aircraft toward the Indian border, but Minhas soon realized his intentions and fought against him through the mechanically linked controls. Minhas then released the canopy, and since he was not properly strapped in, Rahman was sucked out of the cockpit. Minhas then tried to recover the plane but it crashed since it was flying too low, killing him as well. For his support to the state of Bangladesh, Rahman was decorated by Bangladesh with the Bir Sreshtho award.^[2]