The squadron's history traces back to the No. 41 Light Communications Flight which was raised at PAF Base Peshawar on 23 June 1966. It flew one Beechcraft, one Aero commander and one T-6G Harvard carrying out light transportation and communication duties including freight, mail and transport of PAF personnel. The mid-1970s saw four new Cessna 172 inducted into the squadron. [4]
In 1985, the flight was re-established as the No. 41 VIP Light Communications Squadron and was shifted to PAF Base Nur Khan in 1988 where its offices were accommodated in mobile huts. In 1991, four Cessna-172 were purchased from the PIA. In October 1987, a government owned Piper Seneca-II was transferred from the Pakistan Atomic Energy Commission and added into the squadron's fleet. By 1993, the squadron started trials for the Harbin Y-12 which were successful with subsequent inductions of two Y-12s. In 1996, an MFI-17 was added to the squadron's fleet. In 1997, the squadron's offices were shifted to the HQ building of the No. 35 Wing.[4]
By 1999, the PAF had realized the performance limitations of the No. 41 Squadron's propeller driven fleet, particularly their operational reach which was limited to bases in Northern and Central Air Commands along with maintenance issues with the vintage aircraft. Resultantly the piston engine fleet started being replaced. 4 Embraer Phenom 100s and one Harbin Y-12 were inducted by 2010. In July 2021, two more Phenom-100E were ferried from the UAE which were augmented into the squadron's fleet. A Piper M600 ferried from the USA also joined the squadron in May 2022.[3]
In the COVID-19 pandemic, the unit flew several sorties transporting necessary equipment including protection gear for doctors and medical staff to various PAF bases.[3]
^ abcdeKhan, Farhat; Hashmi, Qadeer (2024). History of the Pakistan Air Force (2014-2023): The Next Generation Air Force (1st ed.). ISBN978-969-7518-01-2.
