Former Pabna-3 MP Saiful Azam Suja dies

Saiful Azam Suja, a former lawmaker from Pabna-3 constituency, died due to old age complications on Sunday morning.

Suja, a retired air force officer, breathed his last around 10am, BNP chairperson's media wing member Shayrul Kabir Khan confirmed the matter.

As BNP candidate, Shayrul said Saiful Azam Suja took part in the fifth parliamentary election from Pabna-3 and achieved victory.

BNP secretary general Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir expressed his profound shock and sorrow at the death of the former lawmaker.

He was born in Khagarbaria village in Pabna in 1941.

After completing his secondary schooling in East Pakistan, he moved to West Pakistan and joined the Pakistan Air Force Academy in 1958. 

Azam entered service with the newly-formed Bangladesh Air Force after the independence of Bangladesh, serving as Director of Flight Safety and Director of Operations before being given command of the Dhaka Air Base and promoted to Group Captain in 1977. He retired in 1979 as Group Captain.

Saiful Azam has flown for four air forces (Bangladesh, Jordan, Iraq and Pakistan) at war, and has destroyed fighter planes of two different air forces (India and Israel).

As of 2012, he holds the record for shooting down more Israeli aircraft than any other, total 3. At 2001 US government rewarded him as "Living Eagle".