Process on to procure new aircraft: F H Major

Shillong, Oct 10 (UNI) Air Officer Commanding-in-chief (Eastern Air Command) Air Marshal F H Major said the process to acquire new aircrafts to meet the national requirement has already started.

A large number of modern weapon systems have been identified, Air Marshal Major said and added that the process of procuring 126 Multirole Combat Aircraft (MCRA) and 80 MI-17 helicopters was already on.

However, the delivery of these new machines would take some time, he asserted.

''Phasing out of older aircrafts does not mean that the combat potential of the IAF has gone down and we are prepared to meet any kind of threat,'' Air Marshal Major told reporters at Eastern Air Command headquarters here today.

He added that the replacement of redundant military assets took place in almost all Air Forces in the world.

The EAC Chief also expressed concern over the decrease in number of fighter planes from the authorised strength of 39.5 squadrons to about 34.

On the security infrastructure, the AOC-in-C maintained all air force infrastructure are in a fine-tune.

''We are prepared to meet any kind of eventuality,'' he said.

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