Ukraine is planning to merge its air force and air defence force into a single command after a meeting between senior defence ministry officials including Ukrainian defence minister Alexander Kuzmuk.
The services will be merged in three stages with completion set for 2010. The resulting service will be known simply as the air force. The defence ministry is believed to be considering four different prospective plans for the shape of the new air force.
The move is similar to that of neighbouring Russia, which merged its air defence force into the air force in the mid-1990s. Ukraine began moves toward a similar merger during the 1993-96 period but the plan was not completed.
The merger will proceed in parallel with the creation of a single system of air traffic control for civil and military flights and an integrated radar surveillance scheme.
Source: Flight International