On the occasion of the 90th Air Force Day celebrations, Air Chief Marshal V R Chaudhari announced that the central government has approved the creation of a new weapon system branch for the officers of the Indian Air Force. "It would save Rs 3,400 crore in flying training," said IAF Chief while speaking at Chandigarh on Saturday.
"This is the first time since Independence that a new operational branch is being created," he said.
He also announced that IAF is also planning on induction of women Agniveers starting next year.
Chaudhari said that the key to success in multidomain operations is to have flexible, robust and redundant command and control structures which will allow a joint force to dominate across domains.
"No single service can win a war on its own. Work is in progress to enhance jointness among the three services," he said.
A new pattern of combat uniforms for IAF personnel was also launched at the occasion.
The new branch will essentially man the specialised streams of surface-to-surface missiles, surface-to-air missiles, remotely piloted aircraft, and weapon system operators in twin and multi-crew aircraft, he said. "The creation of this branch would result in savings of more than Rs 3,400 crore due to reduced expenditure on flying training," he added.
Chaudhari inspected a ceremonial parade that was held at the air force station here Saturday morning to mark the IAF anniversary. It was followed by a march-past.
Air Officer Commanding-in-Chief, Western Air Command, Air Marshal Sreekumar Prabhakaran, senior officers from the three services and Ministry of Defence, and veterans, were among those present on the occasion.
The IAF chief noted that the advent of drones, swarm drones, hypersonic weapons, and space-based ISR systems has added a new dimension to warfighting.
Nearly 80 military aircraft and helicopters will participate later in the day in an Air Force Day fly-past at the Sukhna Lake complex here, an event which will be attended by President Droupadi Murmu and Defence Minister Rajnath Singh.
Chaudhari said that induction of air warriors into the IAF through the Agnipath scheme is a challenge, but also an opportunity to harness the potential of India's youth in the service of the nation.
"We have changed our operational training methodology to ensure that each Agniveer is equipped with the right skills and knowledge to start their career in the Air Force," he said, adding that in December the IAF will induct 3,000 'Agniveer Vayu' for their initial training.
The theme for this year's anniversary celebrations - IAF: Transforming for the Future -- is very apt and highlights the IAF's need to transform itself into a contemporary and future-ready force, he said.
"Modern armed forces have to be sufficiently self-reliant to ensure minimum disruptions... 'Make in India' is a step in the right direction," he said.
We have signed a contract for 83 LCA Mk 1A (light combat aircraft) and are fully committed to the development of LCA Mk-II and the AMCA (advanced medium combat aircraft), said the IAF chief.
It is for the first time that the IAF has decided to hold its annual Air Force Day parade and fly-past outside the Delhi-NCR.
(With inputs from PTI)
