Wings of Duty

Wings of Duty — Page 6

Syed Muhammad Ahmad 6 before the infamous convention of the Ahrar which saw them enter Qadian and promise to destroy it brick by brick. The convention was held close to the Arya school which was near the railway line. Mr Chawla spent the second day of his stay tending to technical and logistical issues before making a test flight. He also met with Huzoor in his office and requested him to come and see the plane for himself. On 1 January at 11am Huzoor, accompanied by a group of khuddam and some elders of the community, went to see the airplane. I was 8 years old then and one of many enthusiastic spectators. As soon as Huzoor arrived, Mr Chawla made a short test flight and, after landing, he invited Huzoor to come up with him. But for the first flight, Huzoor chose his brother Sahibzada Mirza Bashir Ahmad ra and his eldest daughter Sahibzadi Nasira Begum. For the second flight he nominated his youngest brother Sahibzada Mirza Sharif Ahmad ra and second daughter Sahibzadi Amtul Qayoom. On the third flight, Huzoor went himself with Sahibzada Mirza Sharif Ahmad ra. During Huzoor’s flight the plane did not land after completing its circuit. Instead, it flew higher in an easterly direction and after a while it disappeared from view, causing a wave of anxiety to spread through