Indian Air Force chief Air Chief Marshal Vivek Ram Chaudhari on Saturday announced the creation of a weapon systems branch for officers in the air force, the IAF’s first operational branch since Independence, with the new cadre manning four specialised streams — surface-to-surface missiles, surface-to-air missiles, remotely piloted aircraft and weapon system operators in twin and multi-crew aircraft.
The IAF chief made the announcement at the Air Force Day parade in Chandigarh.
“On this historic occasion, it is my privilege to announce that the government has approved the creation of a weapon systems branch for officers. This is the first time since Independence that a new operational branch is being created,” Chaudhari said.
The new branch will result in a saving of more than ₹3,400 crore due to reduced expenditure on flying training, he added.
It will unify all weapon systems operators of the IAF under a single entity for operational employment of all ground-based and specialist airborne weapons, air force officials said. The branch will induct specialised cadre officers for handling latest weapon systems, they said. The branch will have four sub-streams — flying, remote, intelligence and surface, the officials added.
The existing branches in the air force include the flying branch, engineers, administration, accounts, logistics, meteorology and education.
{{/usCountry}}The existing branches in the air force include the flying branch, engineers, administration, accounts, logistics, meteorology and education.
{{/usCountry}}With the creation of the weapon systems branch, operators of ground-based and specialist airborne weapon systems will come under one umbrella and “it will contribute immensely by enhancing the war fighting capability of the Indian Air Force”, the defence ministry said in a statement, calling the development a historic step for the IAF.
The creation of a weapon systems branch has been a long time coming, said Air Vice Marshal Manmohan Bahadur (retd), former additional director general, Centre for Air Power Studies.
“Weapon systems have become very sophisticated, requiring personnel with deep specialist knowledge to operate them. Ever since the Sukhoi-30s with the rear Weapon Systems Operator position and UAVs entered the IAF inventory, the demand for a specialist branch was felt,” he said.
It’s good that weapon specialists will have their own cadre ensuring good career progression and job satisfaction, Bahadur said. “The government must look into the creation of an IT cadre too as this niche field too requires a specialist classification for officers and airmen,” he added.
The air chief said the key to success in multi-domain operations is to have “flexible, robust and redundant command and control structures” which will allow a joint force to dominate across domains.
No single service can win a war on its own, he said, adding that work is in progress to “enhance jointness” among the three services.
The IAF chief noted that the advent of drones, swarm drones, hypersonic weapons, and space-based Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance (ISR )systems has added a new dimension to war fighting.
“To effectively handle the full spectrum, artificial intelligence is being used for a quicker decision making and analysis of big data. I am happy to report that several projects are well underway to utilise the potential of automation, data analytics, and artificial intelligence to transform our operational philosophy.”
Later in the day, nearly 80 military aircraft and helicopters participated in a fly-past at the Sukhna Lake complex in Chandigarh. President Droupadi Murmu and defence minister Rajnath Singh were among others who witnessed the spectacular event.
With PTI inputs