Frontier Works Organisation

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Frontier Works Organisation (FWO)
Active 1966-present
Country  Pakistan
Branch  Pakistan Army
Headquarters/garrison General Combatant Headquarters (GHQ)
Nickname(s) (FWO)
Anniversaries Defence Day
Equipment Engineering vehicles
Engagements Indo-Pakistani War of 1971
Operation Parakram
War in North-West Pakistan
Operation Restoration
Operation Rah-e-Nijat
Commanders
Directorate-General Officer (DGO) Major-General Muhammad Afzal
Engineer-in-Chief
Notable
commanders		 BGen Muhammad Sarfraz Lt Col Islam ul Haque
Aircraft flown
Transport Bell 206 Jet Ranger

The Frontier Works Organisation (Urdu: فرينٹير وركس اورگيناأزيشن; abbreviated as FWO), is an active-duty military administrative (non-combatant) staff corps, and one of the major science and technology commands of the Pakistan Army. Commissioned and established in 1966, the FWO is an administrative branch of the Pakistan Army that includes active duty officers and civilian scientists and engineers. Since its establishment it has been credited with the construction of bridges, roads, tunnels, airfields and dams in Pakistan, on the orders of the civilian government of Pakistan.

Its objectives include projects related to civil, construction, combat, structural, and military engineering and is commanded by Major-General afzal. The FWO led the design and construction of the Karakoram Highway. It builds civil and military infrastructure for the Government of Pakistan and the Pakistan Armed Forces.

Karakoram Highway Project

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Main article: Karakoram Highway

In the late 1960s, the Government of Pakistan and Government of China wished to construct a road link between Pakistan and the China. The task was assigned to the Pakistan Army. The army using its Corps of Engineers had already worked in 1959 in connecting Gilgit with Pakistan through the Indus Valley Road.

In the summer of 1966, a military organisation was created by the Pakistan Army Corps of Engineers for the construction of the 805-kilometre long Karakoram Highway Road (commonly called KKH).

The funding was provided by the Ministry of Communications which exercised their control over the project on behalf of government of Pakistan. Thus was born the organisation known as FWO which later on, in collaboration with the Chinese military engineers, undertook the gigantic task.

Projects with Pakistan Atomic Energy Commission

The FWO began working with the Pakistan Atomic Energy Commission (PAEC) in the December of 1985. The FWO completed the engineering design in 1986 and constructed the Uranium mining facility at Baghalchur in February 1987. The construction of Khushab Nuclear Complex began in somewhere in 1986, the FWO joined PAEC in 1987. The FWO started to established a Army Bridge Camp/Base Depot near at the Khushab, and has completed the project under one month.[1]

In 1986, the FWO constructed the nuclear dump waste management plant at the Baghalchur Facility under the code name, Baghalchur Project. The Baghalchur Project was completed in January 1989. The same year and month, the FWO was assigned to build an Excavation building at the Khushab Reactor, the work was completed in May 1989. In November, 1988, The FWO built the Additional Link Road under the codename "Phase- lV Base Depot Khushab". The project was completed in May 1991.

In October 1990, the FWO was assigned a task to constructed a Plutonium mining facility near at Punjab. The FWO completed the survey and feasibility studies which took three months.[1] FWO completed the construction of the mining facility in Thola Dagar, Punjab, under the codename Mining Operation in Tholadogar in October 1991.[1]

The last reported work with PAEC was on 25 May 1998 when FWO alongside another military unit Special Development Works (SDW), and the Pakistan Army Corps of Engineers (PACE), supervised the underground tunnels which were constructed by the SDW and FWO in the late 1980s.[2] The military scientists and engineers of the Corps of Engineers, FWO, and SDW were also present during the nuclear test at Kharan Desert, codename Chagai-II.

Work with Military Engineering Service and ERL

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Main articles: Military Engineering Service and Engineering Research Laboratories

In February 1982, the FWO performed its work with Pakistan Army's engineering corps, Military Engineering Services (MES). The project-director was military engineer then-Brigadier-General Zahid Ali Akbar. The FWO designed and constructed the road and a bridge to connect Kahuta to the Khan Research Laboratories (KRL) (then-known as Engineering Research Laboratories (ERL) under the codename "Road KAK Bridge to KRL". The work was done in September 1983.[3]

Military projects

The FWO, along with the Army Corps of Engineers, has designed and built army airfields, military airport, military bases, and other infrastructure for the Pakistan Armed Forces.

Pakistan Air Force

From January 1981 to April 2000, FWO completed twenty-nine military projects which includes Peshawar Runway, Recarpeting of PAF Base Mianwali, PAF Base Rafiqui, PAF Base Minhas, Murid Airbase, Risalpur Airbase, and the emergency repair of the Gilgit Airport. It constructed Gujranwala Air Field and Skardu Airport.[4]

Pakistan Army

From April 1986 till May 2000, the FWO participated with the Corps of Engineers and Military Engineering Services in thirty-seven projects.[5]

Pakistan Navy

FWO constructed military infrastructure for the Pakistan Navy, particularly the Gwadar port. In 1980, the contract was awarded to FWO to design, build, and construct the Gwadar International Airport. The work was done in 1984 and it was inaugurated the same year. In 1984, FWO installed the Generator Room at Gwadar and completed the construction of the taxiway at the PNS Mehran, the naval base of the Naval Air Arm in 1991. The same year, the FWO design and constructed the Kalmat Naval Base naval command office near Khor Kalmat.[6]

Civilian projects

The Gomal Zam Dam was constructed by the Frontier Works Organisation

The Frontier Works Organisation has been awarded contracts by Pakistan's Provisional as well as by Pakistan's Federal Government. During the 1970s, the FWO constructed twenty-seven projects for the National Highway Authority.[7] The FWO was awarded a contract by the Government of Balochistan in 1985 to construct the road, under the codename Road Liari Ormara Phase-I. The Balochistan Government continued to work with FWO and, from the period 1985 to 1992, the road project was completed.[8]

Objectives and focus

FWO has issued a code of ethics and objectives:[9]

  • Survey, soil investigation for roads, airfields, dams, bridges, tunnels and mining.
  • Technical planning including preparation/vetting of designs.
  • Preparation/conclusion of contracts.
  • Planning/procurement of stores, equipment and plant.
  • Coordination/supervision of works.
  • Quality control and monitoring of projects.
  • Financial management of projects including budgeting and costing.
  • Repair of equipment/plant.
  • Logistic support tol units in the form of bulk supplies of rations, petrol, oil and lubrications, construction materials, stores.
  • Medical support to all units including evacuation of casualties by helicopter and provision of facilities for major surgery and treatment of medical/dental cases.

See also

Notes

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.[dead link]
  2. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  3. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.[dead link]
  4. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.[dead link]
  5. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.[dead link]
  6. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.[dead link]
  7. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.[dead link]
  8. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.[dead link]
  9. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.

External links

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