By IANS,
Karachi : The Pakistan Navy is to acquire drones and spy planes, as also submarines as force multipliers to augment its capabilities, a top military commander has said.
Speaking Thursday at a ceremony here to induct a Fokker aircraft and commission the T-56 Engine Test Bench at the Pakistan Navy Aviation Base PNS Mehran, Admiral Noman Bashir described the induction of Z-9 helicopters, airborne early warning systems (AEWs), and unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) as force multipliers for the navy’s fleet of aircraft.
The T-56 engine powers the navy’s P-3C Orion maritime reconnaissance aircraft.
To enhance the navy’s “subsurface defence capabilities”, Bashir said a contract would soon be signed for the German-designed HDW Type-214 submarines.
Commander of Naval Aviation, Commodore Adnan Nazir, said the Fokker, being a versatile aircraft, would serve to augment the operational capabilities of the fleet.
The setting up of the T-56 Engine Test Bench was a step towards self-reliance as it would be used for overhauling and maintaining the P-3C aircraft, Dawn Friday quoted Nazir as saying.