By the consent of His Majesty Sultan Haji Hassanal Bolkiah Mu'izzaddin Waddaulah ibni Al-Marhum Sultan Haji Omar 'Ali Saifuddien Sa'adul Khairi Waddien, the Sultan and Yang Di-Pertuan of Brunei Darussalam, Brigadier General (U) Dato Seri Pahlawan Mohammad Sharif bin Dato Paduka Haji Ibrahim was appointed as Commander of the Royal Brunei Air Force on 28 August 2020.
Brigadier General (U) Dato Seri Pahlawan Mohammad Sharif joined the Royal Brunei Armed Forces (RBAF) in February 1993 and was later commissioned in February 1994 after completing Initial Officer Training at the Royal Air Force (RAF) College, Cranwell in the United Kingdom. He later became one of the first few qualified pilots on the CASA CN235 after completing basic flying training with the Royal Brunei Air Force (RBAirF) and multi-engine flying training at RAF Cranwell. In 1999 he completed the Flying Instructor's Course with the Republic of Singapore Air Force and returned to instruct on the CASA CN235 and the Pilatus PC7 MkII.
Career highlights include being the first Commanding Officer of the Officer Cadet School (OCS), Defence Academy, Programme Manager at the Centre of Science and Technology Research and Development (CSTRAD) and as the RBAF's first Defence Attaché in Washington D.C., USA. On return to Brunei he took up the post of Commander Operations Group, RBAirF and later Deputy Commander of RBAirF. On 19 March 2018, he took up the post of Director of Intelligence, Ministry of Defence and prior to taking up his current post he served as the Joint Force Commander of Royal Brunei Armed Forces on 19 April 2019.
Staff training has included the Royal New Zealand Air Force Junior Staff Course in 2001, the Joint Services Command and Staff College, Shrivenham, UK in 2008, the National Defence College in New Delhi, India in 2014 and the Higher Defence Course in Spain in 2016. During his time in Shrivenham and New Delhi, he took the opportunity to complete an MA in Defence Studies from King's College London and an MPhil in Defence and Strategic Studies from Madras University respectively.
He is married to Datin Noraidah binti Haji Ibrahim and they have two sons. He enjoys keeping fit by cycling and running.
