Indian Air Force (IAF) Chief Marshal VR Chaudhari on Friday flew a sortie on Rafale aircraft as part of three aircraft combat training mission at Air Force Station Hasimara with his son Sqn Ldr Mihir V Chaudhari, informed IAF in a statement. "The sortie flown by CAS and his son is a continuation of the finest traditions of the IAF and underlines the importance accorded to grooming and preparing our young leaders for the challenges of the future," a statement by the IAF noted.

"CAS reviewed and appreciated the operational preparedness of the airbase and interacted with the personnel stationed there. He urged the personnel to continue their efforts in safeguarding the Nation's skies at all times," the statement added further.

Notably, Marshal VR Chaudhari was on a visit to IAF's Eastern AOR.

Last month, IAF Chief Marshal VR Chaudhari had stressed the need for upgradation and fine-tuning of the education and training pattern of military officers in view of the changing security dynamics.

"There has been a paradigm shift in the nature of security threats, and newer ways of pursuing strategic objectives are coming to life. These are also creating newer and unknown vulnerabilities. These challenging security dynamics will continue to pose tough choices and would require novel and innovative solutions," Marshal VR Chaudhari while in Gujarat to sign a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between his force and the Rashtriya Raksha University (RRU).

The IAF chief also noted that to prepare a military officer for a future war, technology, training and education are paramount.

"In such a scenario, there is an evolving need to upgrade and fine-tune our education and training pattern," the IAF chief said.

"We need to make a roadmap for strengthening training programmes and research, stimulating innovation and supporting incubation of emerging technologies, which calls for bringing military, academia and industry - the three critical pillars of national security - on the common platform," he added.