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09 Ekim 2025 Perşembe

Mücahit Ünal

Captain Pilot, Poet, Writer, Electronic Engineer,

I was born on a rainy autumn evening in the early seventies, when the heat was fading away and the weather was beginning to cool, in the silence of a small Anatolian town.

I studied at Ankara Gazi Çiftlik High School until the second year of secondary school, finished the last year of middle school in Gökçeada High School, attended the first year of high school at Yalova Industrial Vocational High School, and completed my high school education at Kartal Technical High School, commuting daily from Yalova to Istanbul to the symphony of the ferry engines. When ferries were not running due to storms, I crossed the gulf by bus; this journey took four hours and yet I still made it to the first lesson. Interestingly, I never missed a day of school.

In 1990, I was accepted into the Air Force Academy, and in 1994, I graduated as a lieutenant with a bachelor’s degree in Electronics Engineering. That same year, I started at İzmir Çiğli Flight School. In 1996, after completing my training on SF260, T37, T38 aircraft, I graduated with honors as a pilot lieutenant. In 1997, I completed Combat Readiness Training on F-5 aircraft in Konya, and then completed F-16 flight training in Ankara. I was then assigned as a Pilot Lieutenant to the 152nd Squadron Command at the 5th Main Jet Base in Merzifon. I also took part in the establishment of the SEAD and Akıncı Squadrons.

In 2003, I was assigned to the 192nd Squadron Command, Panther Squadron, at the 9th Main Jet Base in Balıkesir. I served as Flight Safety Officer, Formation Leader, and Training Officer. During my service, I received seven ribbon badges, two Distinguished Service Awards, and numerous commendations. I logged approximately 3000 flight hours on the F-16. In 2010, after completing my service in the Air Force Command, I began working for a civilian airline company. I served in various positions such as F-16 Instructor Pilot, Test Pilot, Flight Safety Officer, Formation Leader, Training Officer, and CRM Instructor.

As a Captain Pilot, I started duty in 2014. Three of my books have received awards. I have published four poetry books titled "LOVE, ISTANBUL, LIFE, BREATH". In December 2022, I was awarded the "BEST WEBMASTER" by Medya Karga Team. On "May 20, 2023," I was awarded the "GOLDEN AUTHOR"; on "May 16, 2018," the "GOLDEN PEN"; and on "May 25, 2024," the "GOLDEN BOOK". I am fluent in English and programming languages, married, and a father of two children.

With Love...

    It was raining that evening, in the cooling solitude of a small Anatolian town, that I opened my eyes to the warmth of a smile. I lived my childhood running around Ankara, playing football on the grass, picking fruits from trees, tumbling in the mud, and breathing in the scent of its soil. My parents had started life long ago in poverty; they taught me the love of country, the value of sacrifice, patience, hard work, kindness, the importance of education and teaching, and how the power of love can overcome every challenge. Together with my parents, I experienced happiness and learned that poverty is not a deficiency, that the state and the nation matter, and that family is everything. These values were deeply instilled in me within the reality of a close-knit family.

I finished primary school at Atatürk Orman Çiftliği Primary School, a botanical wonder where every shade of green painted nature. On the upper floor of my school, there was a dormitory for girls. I learned that being an orphan is neither shameful nor weakness, and what it truly means to have parents and how valuable they are. I learned how much children need love and how the state should care for orphans and the elderly. These experiences became my inspiration in later years. I never forgot the stairs I climbed at my school, the train tracks I crossed. That’s why I often revisit the places I lived. From school, I learned the importance of greenery and the homeland, and from my teacher, I learned to distinguish right from wrong.

I completed middle school at Gazi Çiftlik High School. My school was located at one end of Ankara’s simple and orderly district of Gazi. Most of the time, I hitchhiked from the then-called "DÜÇ" State Production Farm to school. In the 1980s, when the concept of private schools and shuttles was not yet widespread, even though there were political tensions, everyone hitchhiked to school and I never heard of or experienced any negative incident. People were truly helpful and warmhearted. There was respect, there was love, there was dignity. I learned the importance of friendship from my surroundings.

I hope that this portal I have prepared for you will help us read some poetry. I already wish you pleasant reading. Surely, there are a few poems here for you as well.

Spend more time with your loved ones, don’t hurt them. Say kind words to your loved ones, your parents, your children. Please read them beautiful poems. Spend good times with your loved ones. The lines that remain in your life are actually only these happy ones. Life is a simple, sincere, heartfelt smile. One learns the importance of being human while living.

It is hard to be human; first, one must truly be human.

Stay with love.

Havalı Konuklar Programı: Konuk: Mücahit Ünal. Sunucu: Dr. Cengiz Mesut Bükeç.
"Love, Istanbul, Life, Breath"

Love »

  • Love
  • I want mothers not to cry anymore,
  • let them live without tears and smile.
  • Let black be beautiful eyes for them,
  • black hair, strands falling upon the chest!
  • Let there be photographs, taken as a family.
  • It’s not enough just to say “I am Turk,”
  • to truly be Turk,
  • you must be able to feel it.
  • Who knows? Perhaps it’s hidden in the painting on the canvas,
  • perhaps it’s hidden in the name on your necklace—who knows?
  • Sometimes a sigh, a separate breath that reaches your soul,
  • and sometimes madness—a golden cage in which you are trapped.

Istanbul »

  • Istanbul
  • When a person falls in love,
  • wings sprout,
  • they dive into dreams with love,
  • and fly and fly.
  • One day, a friend of mine
  • came to me and said:
  • “For the first time in my life
  • I bought a poetry book,
  • but it isn’t your book.”
  • “Don’t take it the wrong way.”
  • I hugged them and said:
  • “I am truly very happy.”
  • “You can’t know how valuable this is to me.”

Life »

  • Life
  • Just because no one loves,
  • should we give up loving!
  • Just because no one smiles,
  • should we give up smiling!
  • Yes, you’re right!
  • On life’s stony roads,
  • ascents are hard,
  • descents
  • —stumbling and falling—so easy.
  • So what!
  • Because we fell,
  • should we give up getting back up!
  • Even breath costs money now, my friend,
  • should we give up taking it!

I am very happy because we have lived the words of love penned here. To my dear spouse, who has devoted life to family and work; who builds friendship on respect and sacrifice, expects nothing in return, loves with passion, flies with passion, and does everything with passion...
Thank you for sharing these poems with everyone and for being a source of inspiration to those who love.

Müge Ünal

BREATH »

  • Breath
  • “A deep breath,
  • a peculiar smile
  • did not suffice for the excitement,
  • while waiting for the time that does not pass.”

  • If the bird feared height, it wouldn’t fly.
  • If it feared falling, it wouldn’t alight on the branches of oleaster trees.
  • If the rose feared being plucked, it wouldn’t open its buds.
  • If it feared withering, it wouldn’t unfurl its leaves.
  • If the sun feared setting, it wouldn’t rise to the morning.
  • If the river feared ending, it wouldn’t flow to the sea.
  • If the world feared stopping, it wouldn’t turn with love.

I am very happy that you have made the love written here something our family experiences. While all humanity shares things, we shared life. If I were born into this world again, I would want to live the same life with you once more. The love you have given me and our children, your respect for your work, your cheerfulness and loyalty to your friends, your pure heart and your love have been my inspiration.
Thank you so much, my dear spouse...

Mücahit Ünal