The United Arab Emirates’ advanced air force and commitment to air superiority will keep the nation, its economy and its people secure in the coming years, said the UAE’s top air force officer, Maj. Gen. Mohammed Bin Sweidan Saeed Al-Qamzi, speaking Nov. 10 at the 3rd Biennial Defense News Middle East Air Chiefs Conference, just before the Dubai air show.

“Airpower is essential. In fact, air power will prevent many future conflicts from ever starting because of potential aggressors’ fear that the conflict will be lost or that losses will be too great,” Al-Qamzi said. “We in the UAE have worked to achieve this air superiority by owning modern and lethal front-line fighters in the form of the F-16 Block 60 and the Mirage 2000-9.”

It’s not enough, though, to just have aviation assets, he said. New capabilities for surveillance, reconnaissance and collaboration will make it possible to take full advantage of those front-line fighters.

“Today, for our military forces to be relevant, they must be transformed to be able to apply a full array of capabilities across the entire spectrum of warfare — from war to peace, and everything in between,” Al-Qamzi said. “We should continue on our investment in technology and people to reach the level of connectivity, commonality and interoperability needed to be part in any coalition effort and to form a deterrent force against any threat.”

The military man also pays close attention to the commercial aviation sector in his home country.

“UAE invested billions of dollars in its aviation sector to turn the Emirates into a world aviation and logistic hub,” Al-Qamzi said. “This investment increases the number of passengers and the cargo capacity at our ports.”

He noted the Airbus A380 superjumbos that will soon join the Emirates fleet.

“Today our airlines [have] gained greater access to many destinations around the world and possess the most advanced and modern planes in the industry,” he said.

Return to news coverage