23.12.2011.

Marking the day of the SAF air force

The Day of the Air Force today was marked today by a ceremony in the Air Force HQ in Zemun.

On this occasion, Minister Sutanovac presented the decorations by the edict of the President of the Republic of Serbia Ministry to those members of the Mod and SAF - 25 gold and 25 silver medals for their commitment to military service. Furthermore, Lt. Col. Miodrag Ristic and Major Sasa Pantic, were awarded commemorative under the military authority of the Minister of Defence for the results in the international exercise held last summer in the Ukraine.

On the occasion of today's Air Force commander holidays Brigadier General Ranko Zivak was promoted to the rank of Major General.

The ceremony was attended by the new Serbian Army Chief of General Staff Lieutenant-General Ljubisa Dikovic, State Secretary at the Ministry of Defense and Assistant Ministers, the high officers of the Army of Serbia, representatives of the Command and Air Force units and numerous guests from the cultural and social life.

Minister Sutanovac openly expressed his pleasure at being able to witness a change of generations that is accompanied by smiles and is done in a friendly tone, the way everyone wanted it, unlike the case in previous times.

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This is also the result of hard work and HR planning, because these "shifts" are just a change of generations. Next year is the year dedicated to you, pilots, and we expect to realize a project which will show that Serbia as a country and not only its army are respected in the world - said the Minister at the beginning of his speech expressing his expectation that the air show "Batajnica 2012" would show how far we have come since the last air show where we will build trust and friendship with many countries that will participate in it.

The year behind us, as the minister pointed out, is the year marked with a fully professionalzied army for the first time.

- It is important to note that we are far from finishing reforms, because the Ministry of Defense and the Army of Serbia need constant improvement. This reform process will be a non-stop one, but we want to achieve the standards applied in the world- said the Minister explaining that today, when the military circles in the world all agree that we have reached the highest military standards that exist in the world.

According to him, even though the reforms do not depend solely on money but also on the desire of people to change and improve, when it comes to aviation, money is a major factor of reforming and modernizing it.

That has been our major problem, which is not going as smoothly as we wanted to, or the way the citizens of Serbia want to. I believe that in the year ahead we can create conditions to finally renew weapons and military equipment in aviation and I think the results you have shown with obsolete equipment is reason enough to renew the aviation equipment as soon as possible- said Minister of Defence to the gathered members of the Air Force.

Speaking about how specific the pilot’s profession is, the Minister said that he had had the opportunity to fly fighter planes two times in this life, and that was surely his most grueling experience, which made him understand the specific requirements of a pilot’s calling. He added that nobody in the system will be denied the benefits they rightfully deserve, but that they will have to do their best to keep their jobs.

Regarding the plans for next year, Sutanovac said that the reforms of the pension and health funds had started, which is perhaps a small step for those who are not in our system, but for us in the defense system it poses a great challenge. We strive to enrich the reforms in the Ministry of Defence, especially those services that are necessary - Sutanovac said, expressing hope that the reforms under way to find the resources to provide rehabilitation and assistance necessary.

- When bad things happened, the military was always there to help, with earthquakes, floods and water shortages. Therefore, it is still the most revered institution in Serbia, and we want it to be so in the future - said Sutanovac noting that the Serbian army, also, in certain parts of our country is a factor of economic stability.

Speaking about plans for next year, the minister singled out the expected completion of a major project of our military – completion of the civilian airport in Ladjevci, which is the most exclusive and most expensive project in the past two decades undertaken.

Thanks to the Minister of Defense Dragan Sutanovac, Serbian Army Chief of Staff Lieutenant-General Ljubisa Dikovic, their associates, remarking that with their presence in the Air Force HQ they expressed their support to the work of the Serbian Army, along with many gathered representatives of the defense system, and the city authorities, the commander Air Force, general Ranko Zivak , said that at the end of the calendar year this day is an opportunity to remember those who gave the most precious thing, their lives for the development of Air Force as well as to summarize the results and give recognition to people who have invested their efforts and energy, and achieved extraordinary results.

"The day of the air force branch, the centennial we are to mark in 2012, we meet happy and proud of the work we have done. This has been a rather difficult and exhausting year, but we will remember it for a number of important achievements. The units for air surveillance, reporting and guidance, in cooperation with aviation and missile fighter units under the command of the relevant operating center and in cooperation with the Agency for Air Traffic Control have managed to fulfill their primary task- the control and protection of the sovereignty and integrity of the airspace of the Republic of Serbia in peace. In the past we were no cases of violation of the sovereignty of air space but now the air space of Serbia is fully secure. We will do our best to keep it safe in the future as well, "said General Zivak.

Speaking of achievements in the field of training, Zivak mentioned the live shooting in the training ground of Sabla in Bulgaria as being the most complex and most important example of successful execution of their assigned tasks. "This is the second time we started this training cycle, and it is very important for a comprehensive and complete review of our model of training, and for our maintenance teams systems. Excellent results have been achieved as expected. It will surely go down in history as the first time when the pilot of MIG 29 made first air target shooting, "said SAF Air Force Commander adding that the shooting was important for members of the Serbian Army and Air Force vision, but also for all participants, and future generations of fighter pilots in order to have a clear perspective of their training.

"Such an important event was attended by the highest state and military leadership, including President of the Republic of Serbia, thus showing significant recognition and support during shooting. That day was I will cherish as being proud to be the commander of the Serbian Army Air Forces in the training grounds in Bulgaria ", underlined the General Zivak.

He said members of the Air Force helped wherever needed their help, and especially the involvement of fire-fighting in the vicinity of Kraljevo.

"Your prompt response while being engaged on airports in Nis, Ladjevci, Kragujevac and Batajnica, prevented a possible disaster, when a helicopter crew in one day made up fifty sorties and dropped a hundred tons of water," said General Zivak.

Raising the level of flight safety in 2011 year was our priority, and in the process of achieving it various activities were implemented. According to Zivak there were no threats to safety, while the number of flying crisis situation have been reduced to a minimum.

Speaking of the centenary celebration in 2012, the jubilee year, the Commander of the Air Force Commander said that the plan is that all of the 2012 was intended to be marked with dignity and to be the year of the air force.

For this jubilee a monograph will be made and in also the holding of a scientific conference on the theme "One hundred years of Serbian military aviation," after which a compilation of works will be published, which will remain for the generations to come. Part of the permanent exhibitions of the Museum of the Yugoslav Air Force will bring the citizens of Serbia thematic exhibitions from several cities in Serbia, but the most important activity, in the words of General Zivak will be a major international air show and aviation exhibition of arms and military equipment which will be held on 1st and 2nd September 2012 at the Batajnica airport.

Finally, addressing the General Zivak, with the desire to create favorable conditions for furnishing the new form of combat systems, all members of the visual appreciation for the work invested in the past year and congratulated their holiday - the day Air Force.

As part of the celebration of the day of the air force Din the gallery of the Air Force Command an exhibition entitled "The Army of Serbia in fine arts was organized. "