Chief of Army Staff (Pakistan)

Chief of Army Staff of the Pakistan Army
COAS
Incumbent
Raheel Sharif
since 29 November 2013
Pakistan Army
Seat General Headquarters (Pakistan Army)
Nominator The Prime Minister
Appointer The President
Term length
3 years (renewable)
Precursor C-in-C of the Army
Formation 15 August 1947
First holder

General Frank Messervy as Commander- in-Chief of Army,

General Tikka Khan as Chief of Army Staff
Succession On basis of seniority, subjected to the decision of the Prime Minister of Pakistan or by the military ruler during military administration in the country
Deputy Chief of General Staff (Pakistan)
Salary According to Pakistani Military officer's Pay Scale (apex scale)

The Chief of Army Staff of Pakistan Army, (reporting name: COAS), is the four-star rank appointment in the Pakistan Army, held by the senior four-star rank officer appointed by the President of Pakistan, on a summary sent by the Prime Minister of Pakistan.[1] The Chief of Army Staff post has historically been vested with proportionately more powers[2] because of the recurrent military takeovers in the country. It is the highest and most prestigious four-star assignment, unless the four-star officer is appointed as the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee of the Pakistan Armed Forces. The appointment is in principle for three years subject to extensions granted by The President of Pakistan on recommendation from The Prime Minister of Pakistan.[3] The appointment is vested with complete operational, training and logistics commands unlike the pattern followed in Western Commands where the Chief of Army Staff is the training and logistics chief while operational command rests with the Ministry of Defense. The current Chief of Army Staff is General Raheel Sharif.[4] The COAS operates from Army Combatant General Headquarters (GHQ)[5] in Rawalpindi, the twin city of the capital Islamabad. General Tikka Khan is considered the first holder of the title 'COAS' as his predecessor Gen. Gul Hassan Khan was designated as Commander-in-Chief of the Army.

List of Chiefs of Army Staff

# Name Rank Photo Appointment Date Left Office Unit of Commission Decorations

Commander in Chief of Pakistan Army (C in C)[6]

1. Frank Messervy General 15 August 1947 10 February 1948 9th Hodson's Horse KCSI, KBE, CB, DSO
2. Douglas Gracey General 11 February 1948 16 January 1951 1st Gurkha Rifles KCB, KCIE, CBE, MC
3. Muhammad Ayub Khan Field Marshal 16 January 1951 26 October 1958 5 Punjab Regiment NPk, HPk, HJ, GCMG, MBE
4. Muhammad Musa General 27 October 1958 17 June 1966 1 (Royal) Frontier Force Regiment HPk, HJ, HQA, MBE
5. Muhammad Yahya Khan General 18 June 1966 20 December 1971 10 Baloch Regiment HPk, HJ, SPk
6. Gul Hassan Khan Lieutenant General 20 December 1971 3 March 1972 5 Horse SPk, SQA

Chief of Army Staff of Pakistan Army (COAS)

7. Tikka Khan General 3 March 1972 1 March 1976 12 Medium Regiment Artillery HJ, HQA, SPk
8. Muhammad Zia-ul-Haq General 1 March 1976 17 August 1988 Guides Cavalry
9. Mirza Aslam Beg General 17 August 1988 16 August 1991 Baloch Regiment NI(M), SBt
10. Asif Nawaz General 16 August 1991 8 January 1993 5 Punjab Regiment NI(M), SBt (Bar)
11. Abdul Waheed General 11 January 1993 12 January 1996 Frontier Force Regiment NI(M), SBt
12. Jehangir Karamat General 12 January 1996 6 October 1998 13th Lancers NI(M), TBt
13. Pervez Musharraf General 6 October 1998 28 November 2007 16 (SP) Fd Regt Arty NI(M), TBt
14. Ashfaq Parvez Kayani General 29 November 2007 29 November 2013 5 Baloch Regiment NI(M), HI
15. Raheel Sharif General 29 November 2013 Present 6 Frontier Force Regiment NI(M), HI

List of Army Vice Chiefs

The post of Vice Chiefs of Army Staff existed whenever the Chief of Army Staff was also the President of Pakistan.

No. Name Rank Photo Appointment Date Left Office Unit of Commission Decorations
1 Abdul Hamid Khan Lieutenant General 25 March 1969 20 December 1971 10 Baloch Regiment HQA, SPk
2 Mohammad Sawar Khan General 13 April 1980 23 March 1984 The First (SP) Medium Regiment Artillery (Frontier Force) NI(M)
3 Khalid Mahmud Arif General 22 March 1984 29 March 1987 11th Cavalry (Frontier Force) NI(M), SBt
4 Mirza Aslam Beg General 29 March 1987 17 August 1988 Baloch Regiment NI(M), SBt
5 Muhammad Yusaf Khan General 8 October 2001 6 October 2004 Guides Cavalry NI(M)
6 Ahsan Saleem Hayat General 7 October 2004 7 October 2007 Armoured Corps NI(M)

See also

References

  1. ↑ "Lt Gen Raheel appointed as new COAS, Lt Gen Rashad as CJCSC". The News. 27 November 2013. Retrieved 16 December 2013.
  2. ↑ "New Pakistan army chief takes command". news.yahoo.com. Retrieved 16 December 2013.
  3. ↑ "Will retire on November 29, Kayani confirms". The Express Tribune. 6 October 2013. Retrieved 16 December 2013.
  4. ↑ Menon, Meena (28 November 2013). "Raheel Sharif is new chief of Pakistan Army". The Hindu. Retrieved 16 December 2013.
  5. ↑ "Pakistan: Army and Paramilitary Forces". www.factba.se. Retrieved 16 December 2013.
  6. ↑ "The Army Chief's". www.pakistanarmy.gov.pk. Retrieved 16 December 2013.

External links