Colonel Pesian

Mohammad Taqi-Khan Pessian
President of Autonomous Government of Khorasan
In office 2 April 1921 – 3 October 1921
Preceded by	None
Succeeded by	Office abolished End of the Government, Khorasan Enjoy to Iran
Personal details
Born	1892 Ahar,Tabriz،Iran
Died	3 October 1921 Quchan, Iran

Colonel Mohammad Taqi-Khan Pessian (1892 – 3 October 1921) (also spelled as Pesyan and Pesseyan) was a popular military leader of Iran. He is also famously known as being the first Iranian to successfully pilot an aircraft.

Pessian was born into an aristocratic Azerbaijani family in Tabriz originating in the Caucasus. Pessian's family possessed strong military traditions, his uncle General Hamzeh Khan Pessian was a commander in the Persian Cossack Brigade, his cousins Heydar Qoli Khan Pessian – father of Iranian author and journalist, Mahtalad Pessian, and grandfather of Anglo-Iranian journalist and author, Cherry Mosteshar – Ali Qoli Khan Pessian, Gholam Reza Khan Pessian and he himself served in Gendarmerie.

In Tabriz Mohammad Taqi was educated in sciences, Persian, Arabic and foreign languages. In 1907 he left for Tehran to continue his education and entered military college in Germany where he became one of the first Iranians to learn to fly. After 5 years he took up the rank of Second Lieutenant in the Gendarmerie, within two years he was promoted to Captain. After that he held a variety of posts such as Second Commander in a battalion in Qazvin, served in Hamedan and Yazd and also was an instructor and interpreter at Gendarmerie school in Yusef Abad, Tehran. He was promoted to Major when World War I broke out.

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