Be ready for action at very short notice, Indian Air Force chief tells officers

IAF Chief Marshal B S Dhanoa personally sends out letters to the entire force

Indian Air Force chief has asked its 12,000 officers to be prepared for operations at “very short notice.”

IAF Chief Marshal BS Dhanoa has sent out personal letters to the entire officer fraternity of the force in a first of its kind move from an IAF chief, according to officers. The letter signed March 30 has given rise to speculation over the current situation in regards to security and conditions in Kashmir and along the Pakistan-India border.



The letter covered various issues, however, the focus of attention was the written statement to be “prepared for operations with our present holdings, at a very short notice.”

“In the present scenario, there is an ever persistent sub-conventional threat,” he added. Dhanoa further told his officers that their “training needs to be focused towards this.”

The IAF chief asked officers to be professionals who are "combat-effective" and said that there was “no choice but to stay abreast of new technological advancements, both own as well as those of our adversaries. Only then will we come out with war-winning, out of the box solutions.”



The letter also discussed issues regarding sexual harassment and lack of professionalism. He wrote,  “In the recent past, there have been instances where lack of professionalism has shown the IAF in a poor light.” "We have been witness to a few instances of ‘favouritism’ in selection of officers for prime assignments and promotions,”saying that this was something they can't afford."

This article originally appeared on The Hindu.