The graduation of the Afghan Air Force pilots comes as the Afghan national security forces are in critical need of close air support as the have had to tackle rising security issues in the past few months.
Maj. Gen. James Hecker presented the Afghan graduates with a plaque and certificate during the graduation ceremony on Friday.
The 81st Fighter Squadron is a stateside air advisor unit with a deployed mission where the Afghan pilots were trained to receive extensive knowledge and application of flying A-29B Super Tucanos.
Selected in August 2014 as a training location for the Afghan A-29 pilots and maintenance crews, the Moody Air Force base will host training for 30 Afghan pilots during the next four years.
The Afghan Air Force is expecting to receive 20 A-29 Super Tucano light air support aircraft which will replace the Mi-35 attack helicopters that reaches the end of its service life in January 2016.
The A-29 is a multi-role, fixed-wing aircraft that will provide the Afghan air force with an indigenous air-to-ground capability and aerial reconnaissance capabilities to support the country’s counterinsurgency operations.
Col. John Nichols, 14th Flying Training Wing of Columbus, Mississippi, and Lt. Col. Jeffrey Hogan, commander of the 81st Fighter Squadron, spoke at the graduation, according to Stars and Stripes newspaper.
“This is an amazing story,” said Nichols. “To graduate eight Afghan patriots to help build the future of Afghanistan is the first step in a monumental undertaking. They will help secure a stable and unified country.”
As Hogan addressed the crowd, he delivered part of his speech in the Afghans’ native tongue, expressing words of pride and encouragement for their future.
“For the next class, we want to make them even better than the first class,” said Hecker. “This class was just the first of many that will graduate from here.”
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