No external forces will be allowed to violate our territory: IAF chief

New Delhi, Oct 8 (IANS) Indian Air Force chief V.R. Chaudhari on Friday asserted that the force will not allow any external forces to violate the country's territory, even as he pitched for to lead further indigenisation to achieve self-reliance.

Addressing the force on the occasion of the 89th Air Force Day, Air Chief Marshal Chaudhari exhorted the Air Warriors that they must demonstrate to the nation that the country's territory will stay secure.

"When I look at the security scenario that we face today, I am acutely conscious that I have assumed command at a crucial time. We must demonstrate to the nation that external forces will not be allowed to violate our territory," he said.

He pledged to do all he can to provide the force with clear direction, good leadership, and the best resources that he can muster.

On behalf of all Air Warriors, he paid homage to fallen braves, who have made the supreme sacrifice in the line of duty. "Today, it is an occasion to renew our solemn pledge for preserving IAF's rich heritage and passing it on to the future generations," he said.

The IAF chief said that the last year had been quite challenging, yet extremely rewarding, and the prompt actions in response to developments in eastern Ladakh - where India and China have been in a standoff over the border dispute since May 2020 - were a testament of the IAF's combat readiness.

"Your accomplishments have been impressive and you have helped achieve significant progress in many areas. I want to thank each of you and your families for the sacrifices that you have made and continue to make, while serving in this glorious service. I will continue to rely on your skills, courage, determination and hard work in the years ahead," he said.

He said that the force's sacred duty is to protect nation's sovereignty and integrity at any cost. "... you are to do what it takes to ensure that we do not let the nation down," he said.

Noting the security environment in the region and beyond has been impacted by a complex interplay of geo-political forces, he said that moreover, the advent of new domains - over and above the traditional domains of land, sea and air - have resulted in a paradigm shift in the way military operations will be conducted.

In sync with the changing nature of war-fighting, ongoing capability enhancement in the Indian Air Force is aimed at providing the optimum means for employing air power and achieving desired effects across domains - swiftly and decisively, the IAF chief said.

He said that theme for this year's anniversary celebrations is being self-reliant and being capable.

Air Chief Marshal Chaudhari said that the force has been at the vanguard of indigenisation in domestic aerospace sector, and due to concerted efforts at all levels, a large number of low-tech, low-cost, and high-volume spares have been indigenised across all fleets.

The need of the hour is to reassess and realign with emerging trends, in order to gain from ongoing efforts towards greater self-reliance in high-tech items, he added.

"I am happy to report that several projects are well underway for harnessing the potential of automation, data analytics and artificial intelligence in order to transform the way we fight future wars," he said.

The IF chief stressed that force have to upgrade operational training methodology so that the young air warriors are equipped with the right skills and knowledge - for confident and audacious use in battle.

"In fact, I am of the view that while we are actively pursuing self-reliance in hardware, innovative thought has historically been our core strength and I look forward to skilful and creative employment of these capabilities through development of our own unique tactics and 'out-of-the-box' operational plans," he said.