Russia celebrates Air Force Day

    MOSCOW, August 12 (Itar-Tass) -- Russia celebrates the Day of the Air
Force on Friday.
    Russia's president made the decision to celebrate the day on August
29, 1997. Russian Air Force was established 99 years ago, on 12 August
1912. On that day, the military authority introduced aeronautical staff.
    Present-day Russian Air Force has aircrafts equipped with reliable
means of detecting the enemy and of fire control, improved navigation
equipment and missile weapons. The Russian Air Force is able to influence
major operations on land as well as in seas.
    Russia's Air Force Commander Colonel General Alexander Zelin said that
the Air Force continue to be part of the Armed Forces.
    "From December 1, I will be released from the responsible for
operational and strategic command of air and space defence" Zelin said.
"The whole system is structured to optimise management and to concentrate
the main forces and resources in the armed forces."
    Zelin also said that the Air Force organise a unified military and
training research centre with two branches for focused specialists not
only for the Air Force, but also for the Armed Forces as a whole. This
centre will be situated in Voronezh.