at Pleso on 9 December 2016 was attended by the President of the Republic, Kolinda Grabar Kitarovi\u0107, the Envoy of the Prime Minister and of the Deputy Prime Minister and Defence Minister of the Republic of Croatia, State Secretary for Defence Zdravko Jakop, the Chief of the General Staff of the Croatian Armed Forces, General Mirko \u0160undov, the representatives of the units of of the Ministry of Defence and of the Croatian Armed forces, the representatives of the associations from the Homeland War, of the diplomatic and military diplomatic corps, the former commanders and members ad the families of the fallen members of the Croatian Air Force and Air Defence. <\/p>\n
“The 25th anniversary reminds us of the early days of the service and of its operation in the Homeland War but also reflects the tradition of the air force and the aeronautic science potentials in Croatia\u201c, said the President, who congratulated the members of the Croatian Air Force and Air Defence on the anniversary and recalled its important role during the Homeland War,\u00a0 paying the tribute to its fallen members.
The Croatian Air Force is the guard of the national sovereignty\u00a0 and a participant in international operations, providing support to Croatian citizens as well as to foreign countries hit by natural disasters and crises.
Recalling the Homeland War, State Secretary for Defence Zdravko Jakop gave credit to the members of the Croatian Air Force for successfully defending Croatia despite very limited assets, armed with firm resolution.
Today, the Croatian Air Force and Air Defence as a technologically sophisticated service, requires constant investment into modernisation and maintenance alike
The investment into defence and security is a long-term investment and a guarantee of the economic and other aspects of security.\u00a0
The Ministry of Defence is determined to set the framework for enhanced security capabilities, as testified by the increased defence budget following an extended lean period.
\u201cWe are convinced that keeping the combat air force component constitutes a national interest and believe to achieve a national consensus regarding the decision defining its future in the Croatian Air Force\u201c said State Secretary\u00a0 Jakop.
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Reminding of the quality education and training model for pilots, air technicians and aircraft\u00a0 marshalling officers administered in Croatia and respected internationally, the Chief of the General Staff of the Croatian Armed Forces, General Mirko \u0160undov emphasised that investing into the personnel and its education and training is necessary to keep the air force tradition. \u201cThe competences of the members of the Croatian Air Force and Air Defence are demonstrated in the international co-operation activities and operation within NATO architecture. What is most important is the 24-hour observation of the national airspace, instilling confidence in the Croatian citizens\u201c.
General \u0160undov welcomed the successful provision of the OH-58D Kiowa Warrior helicopters and expressed hope in continued equipment with western-produced weapon systems towards a modernised air force.
\u00a0“There will be few militaries and few air forces which have seen so much history over a 25- year span”, said the Commander of the Croatian Air Force and Air Defence, Brigadier General Miroslav Kova\u010d, and underlined the new post-war challenges for the Croatian Air Force and Air Defence, \u201cwhich went through a series of reorganisations resulting in a modern service, fully capable of fulfillling its tasks and missions defined in the Constitution and laws. Systematic observation\u00a0 and protection of airspace\u00a0 the helicopter airlift, aerial firefighting, the support to the Coast Guard the support to the training of other services of the Croatian Armed Forces,\u00a0 the home tasks, including the support to the civilian institutions, and the participation in peace support operations are the main determinants of the Croatian Air Force and Air Defence today and the starting __of its future development\u201c.
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The ceremony was concluded with the presentation of decorations, promotions and awards to the meriting members of the Croatian Air Force and Air Defence, and with the visit of the tactical display of the aircraft operated at the apron of the 93rd Air Base.<\/p>\n[nggallery id=2227]\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
The central ceremony marking the 25th Annivesary of the Croatian Air Force and Air Defence, held in the Barracks “Pukovnik Marko \u017divkovi\u0107”<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4698,"featured_media":35970,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[117],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-11708","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-press-releases"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n