05.10.2018.
Minister Vulin: We are proud of courage of our pilots
Defence Minister Aleksandar Vulin and Lieutenant General Milan Mojsilović, Chief of General Staff of the Serbian Armed Forces, have attended today the final analysis of the international flight and tactical exercise BARS 2018 at the Air Force and Air Defence Command of the Serbian Armed Forces.
Brigadier General Željko Bilić, exercise director and commander of the 204th Air Brigade, in the presence of the Air Force and Air Defence Commander, Major General Duško Žarković, informed the minister of defence and the chief of General Staff that the exercise was successfully carried out and that it had achieved its goal.
Minister Vulin, in a conversation with the pilots who participated in the exercise, said that this exercise is the highest form of cooperation of the two air forces that showed how ready and capable they are.- We are proud of our pilots and courage they showed in the most difficult moments when they defended their country. Russian pilots had the honour to fly with Serbian pilots who defended Serbia in 1999 and I hope that they also had something to learn from us – Minister Vulin said.
He added that the expansion of the exercise was envisaged and that he would suggest to the Minister of Defence of the Russian Federation General of the Army, Sergei Kuzugetovich Shoigu, that the Mi 35 helicopters be included in the exercise next year.- We are proud of our friendship, we are proud of brotherhood of aviators of Serbia and Russia – Minister Vulin said, adding that Russian pilots are always welcome in Serbia, not because someone ordered it, but because the citizens of Serbia feel so.
Chief of General Staff General Mojsilović evaluated the exercise with the highest grade, pointing out that the exercise activities were an investment in improving the operational capabilities of the Serbian Armed Forces and thanked the pilots for achieving all the planned goals with the exercise. He particularly thanked the Russian pilots for sharing their knowledge and experience with our pilots and said that they are always welcome in our country.
Deputy Exercise Director Colonel Konstantin Surikov, during today’s meeting, thanked for the high mark of the exercise and pointed out that the Russian pilots highly evaluated the capabilities of the Serbian pilots, saying that he would expect to see Serbian pilots in Russia next year.
The fourth edition of the international flight and tactical exercise BARS 2018 that included members of the Air Force and Air Defence of the Serbian Armed Forces and their colleagues from the Aerospace Forces of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation, was held at the Batajnica airport. The flights took place in the airspace of the Republic of Serbia and were carried out by mixed crews in the planes of AF&AD of the Republic of Serbia.
