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Aerospace Command sorely needed: Major New Delhi, April 9 It will be a tri-service command, with the Air Force having the lead role as it is the force which would operate space-based assets being planned and inducted, he said. “As the geo-political environment changes, often unpredictably, and as we induct newer systems, it would be our endeavour to re-orient our minds and adapt our doctrines to keep pace,” he said. In his first official interaction with the media here, the new Air Chief said IAF would be looking to acquire a global status “as fast as” it can. The IAF already has a strategic reach that can take its aircraft “anywhere” in the world and a credible, more meaner and more potent air force shall be our endeavour, he added. The Air Chief also foresaw greater coordination in operations with the army and the navy, besides an increased role for the force in counter-insurgency operations. Air Chief Marshal Major also proudly declared that the IAF had achieved its lowest accident rate of 0.36 per cent in its 75-year history. Speaking about the delay in acquiring 126 multi-role combat aircraft (MRCA), he couldn't put a date when the order would be placed, adding that the induction of a fifth generation combat jet that is being jointly developed with Russia was more than a decade away. He added that the delay in acquiring the new combat jets would not have a "negative" impact on the IAF. "There are many elements that have to be factored in (after a new defence procurement policy was pronounced last year). Therefore, it is taking time," Air Chief Marshal Major said. Air Chief Marshal Major, the first helicopter pilot to command the air force said "any credible air force has to learn to fight with what it has". Admitting to gaps in the radar coverage over peninsular India, he said these were being plugged with new acquisitions and by integrating military and civilian systems. He also spoke of greater cohesiveness with the civil aviation sector by opening up more and more IAF airfields to domestic flights and by releasing some 15-20 pilots at regular intervals to enable them begin a "second career" with flag carrier Air India. “I have been handed a fine air force and I aim to take it further. In the next couple of years, I envisage an air force that is fully integrated into all facets of national growth.” Speaking about the strategic reach of the air force, he pointed out that the induction of the IL-78 midair refuelling aircraft had given the IAF's fighter aircraft the capability to "fly anywhere around the globe". The IAF, which currently flies six midair refuelling aircraft, is set to order another six. The IL-78 is used in tandem with the IAF's Sukhoi Su-30, Mirage-2000 and Jaguar fighter aircraft. On the question of interoperability, Air Chief Marshal Major said: "I will ensure that there is absolute synergy with the other two arms (of the defence forces) as also with the other agencies dealing with national security."
IAF agrees to release pilots for pvt airlines New Delhi, April 9 In a major gesture, the new Air Chief Fali Homi Major today announced that IAF would now release 15 to 20 pilots at regular intervals to join the civil flying stream. “We have signed a Memorandum of Understanding with Air India whereby we will be releasing 15 to 20 pilots at intervals to be absorbed in the national carrier,” he said here. His words come as a big relief to Air India, which faces a shortfall of 118 pilots. The government already has plans to merge the two national airlines into a single entity soon. The total number of additional aircraft in the next five years is estimated at 500 for which an additional 5,000 pilots would be required. Currently, 2,940 pilots are employed as against the requirement of 3,160 pilots, leaving a shortfall of around seven per cent. Unveiling the plans to release fighter, transport and helicopter pilots during his maiden interaction with the media, the Chief of Air Staff ruled out allowing IAF pilots to join private airlines. “It will be a second career for our pilots and the scheme would commence soon,” Major said. According to top IAF officials, the rank of the pilots, to be released, would range from Group Captains to Air Vice Marshals with experience of three to four thousand flying hours. Asked if their seniority would be protected on their conversion to civil stream, the Air Chief said that this would amount in second career though there was no specific protection of seniority. In the past IAF has stoutly resisted efforts by its pilots to leave the force for greener pastures in the civilian sector. Of an estimated 200-300 pilots who sought release, only a handful were allowed to leave.
— PTI
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