Georgia marks 31st anniversary of Air Force
The officials laid a wreath at the memorial for those fallen for Georgia's independence and continued the event by awarding meritorious military service members with medals. Photo via Defence Ministry
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Georgia is marking the 31st anniversary of the country’s Air Force today, celebrating the day in 1992 when Izani Tsertsvadze and Valeri Nakopia became the first pilots in independent Georgia to take off for a flight in two Su-25 ground attack aircraft.
Deputy Defence Minister Giorgi Khaindrava, Deputy Chief of the Defence Forces, Major General Joni Tatunashvili and Colonel Sergo Ninua, the Commander of Aviation and Air Defence addressed the event at the Alekseevka air base in Tbilisi.
The officials laid a wreath at the memorial for those fallen for Georgia's independence and continued the event by awarding meritorious military service members with medals.
After the official part of the event, the guests got acquainted with Air Force equipment.
The history of Georgian military aviation begins from the period of the first democratic republic of Georgia, when the first military aviation unit was formed by the decision of the then state legislature on August 20, 1918.
Prime Minister Irakli Garibashvili on Friday was hosted for a demonstration of drones carried out by a recently launched Georgian-Polish defence enterprise.
The renovation, rehabilitation and modernisation of the aviation park of the Georgian Defence Forces are “actively underway”, with an upgraded military aircraft Su-25 added to the aviation, the Defence Ministry said on Saturday.
Georgian minister of defence Juansher Burchuladze on Monday said the production of unmanned reconnaissance and combat aircraft in Georgia would begin by the end of this year.
Georgian Defence Forces have received six armoured vehicles produced locally by the State Military Scientific-Technical Centre ‘Delta’, the Defence Ministry announced on Monday.