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Columbus Mabika Herald Reporter
The Air Force of Zimbabwe will continue to work with available resources in its quest to fulfil its constitutional mandate of defending the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Zimbabwe.
In an interview yesterday at Manyame Air Base ahead of Zimbabwe Defence Forces Day commemorations Commander of AFZ Air Marshal Elson Moyo, said it was time the AFZ stopped whining about resources in the delivery of duty.
Defence Forces Day will be commemorated next week.
“The general economic outlook in the country has not changed much, we continue to operate in a constrained environment because of a shoe-string budget and the effects of economic sanctions,” he said.
“However, we are not going to waste time mourning. Instead, we will continue with the spirit of resilience, hard work, innovation, resourcefulness and strict optimal utilisation of the resources at our disposal. This approach has enabled us to rise above our challenges in the past and successfully meet our constitutional obligations.”
“When I took office in 2017, I was very much alive to the challenges ahead and the guidance from the President and Commander-in-Chief of the Zimbabwe Defence Forces that the nation would no longer mourn over the economic sanctions imposed on Zimbabwe and the resultant restrictions on maintenance and recovery of equipment and air assets.”
Air Marshal Moyo said failure to meet set targets and implementation of directives was a serious affront to the AFZ vision and the thrust of the new dispensation and challenged members of the force to discharge their duties diligently.
Heavy investment in research and development complimented by partnerships with local industries had paved way new solutions which has seen recovery of many planes that had been grounded for long.
“With the support of the Commander Zimbabwe Defence Forces, the Air Force of Zimbabwe embarked on a major aircraft and equipment recovery programme. Today the AFZ has the capacity to repair our equipment and also to develop own systems using local expertise following heavy investment in research and development,” he said.
“The AFZ got a chance to showcase some of the outcomes of the aircraft recovery programme at the Wings Parade held at Josiah Tungamirai Air Force Base, where all the aircraft types from all the flying squadrons were airborne to execute a mass fly past.”
He said the AFZ was a step closer step towards the attainment of the vision to have “a small, well equipped, robust and hard-hitting air force capable of effectively defending Zimbabwe’s airspace with a well trained workforce.
“However, equipment is only one of the key success factors and on its own it will not guarantee attainment of the vision without the support of highly trained and capable personnel.
“In this regard, the Air Force of Zimbabwe has enhanced training and retraining programmes at the flying squadrons and all our training schools,” he said.
Air Marshal Moyo said technological developments have impacted all the sectors with the military being no exception.
Commenting on national polices, he said the AFZ will to support the National Development Strategy One and Vision 2030.
“In addition to guaranteeing a peaceful and conducive environment for economic development, the Air Force of Zimbabwe has contributed to the attainment of Vision 2030 through a number of activities such as border patrol operations along the Zimbabwe-South Africa border to curb smuggling.
“The AFZ also plays a part in national economic activity as we are involved in agricultural activities such as cattle ranching, horticulture and maize production in our farms with plans also include venturing into the commercial production of medicinal cannabis as part of the force’s self-reliance initiatives and also to ease pressure on the national budget,” he said.
On conditions of service, he said the AFZ will continue to engage with Government on improvements in salaries, accommodation and housing.
Online Reporter