KARACHI: “Our patience is a sign of maturity which should not be misunderstood by the enemy as we know how to respond to a misadventure,” Chief of the Air Staff Air Chief Marshal Sohail Aman has said.

He was speaking as the chief guest at the 106 Midshipmen Commissioning Term and 15th Short Service Commission Officers Course on Saturday at the Pakistan Naval Academy (PNA) PN Rehbar in which 70 officers completed the training. He was received at the academy by Chief of the Naval Staff Admiral Mohammad Zakaullah.

Pakistan, he said, was confronted with enormous challenges both on the internal and external fronts and the trying time had galvanised the forces into a battle-hardened military which was ready to respond to any challenge.

The chief of the air staff congratulated the passing out midshipmen and cadets with the advice to carry on the tradition of their predecessors with integrity and commitment. He asked them to keep pace with rapid technological advancements taking place in the domain of naval warfare.

He said it was heartening to see the Pakistan Navy training officers of friendly nations who would then serve as Pakistan’s ambassadors in their countries.

Earlier, PNA Commandant Commodore Adnan Ahmed said the commissioning team comprised 45 midshipmen, including one from Yemen, while two women were among the 25 cadets from the Short Service Commission batch who had completed their training.

Cadets from Bahrain, Jordan, the Maldives, Palestine, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Sri Lanka, Turkmenistan and Yemen were also undergoing training at the academy, he said.

Later, Air Chief Marshal Aman gave away prizes to winners.

Midshipman Imran was awarded the Sword of Honour for his overall best performance, while Midshipman Raja Mohammad Shaharyar won the Academy’s Dirk, Cadet Rabia Tabassum was awarded the Commandant Gold Medal, Cadet Moiz Ahmed bagged the Chairman Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee gold medal. Lt Sheharyar Jaffer and Cadet Adam Hashim from the Maldives received the Quaid-i-Azam’s Gold Medal and Chief of Naval Staff Gold Medal, respectively.

Published in Dawn, December 11th, 2016