'We all touch the sky with glory':New Chief of Air Staff

Shortly after taking charge as the Chief of Air Staff, Air Chief Marshal Amar Preet Singh on Monday urged the top air warriors to enhance cohesion and jointness and said his focus would be to further boost combat capabilities of the force.Air Chief Marshal Singh, an accomplished fighter pilot with more than 5,000 hours of flying experience, succeeded incumbent Air Chief Marshal V R Chaudhari who retired after helming the force for two years.He was serving as the Vice Chief of the IAF before taking the charge of the top post.
Highlighting certain focus areas towards building a ‘Sashakt, Saksham and an Atmanirbhar’ (strong, capable and self-reliant) IAF, he urged the commanders to adopt a nurturing leadership and enhance cohesion and jointness.His emphasis on jointness with other services comes against the backdrop of the government’s plan to roll out the theaterisation initiative to bring greater synergy among the Army, the Navy and the Air Force.In his remarks, Air Chief Marshal Singh expressed “absolute faith” and confidence in the air warriors’ dedication towards maintaining IAF’s operational capability at an all-time high.
The Air Chief Marshal called for attention on the current uncertain geo-political situation and exhorted all air warriors to follow traditions of the great service and ensure that “we all touch the sky with glory”.As Chief of the Air Staff, Air Chief Marshal Singh’s priorities are expected to be procurement of new fighter fleets and carrying forward the force’s modernisation agenda in the face of evolving national security challenges including the dragging eastern Ladakh border row with China.Another important task for him would be to focus on the theaterisation plan as the government looks at rolling out the ambitious reform initiative.