Malawi Defence Force (MDF) Commander General Paul Velentino Phiri says they are recruiting top-performing students in the Malawi School Certificate of Education (MSCE) examinations to be trained as fighter pilots.
He made the remarks on the sidelines of inter-unit march and shooting competition at Choma Galley Range in Mzuzu last week.
Phiri said as part of combat support reforms in the MDF, they have transformed their airwing into an air force, which will see the recruitment of fighter pilots.
He said: “We used to have an air wing. Now we have an air force. But this time around, we are going to have fighters. You may have seen an advert that has been floated around.”
Velentino Phiri said they are looking for people who scored between six and 16 points in MSCE examinations.
“We want to send them to countries where they can pursue education to a degree level and come back as fighter pilots or engineers,” he said.
During the event, Cobbe Barracks of Zomba emerged winners of this year’s inter-unit march and shoot competition with 3 274 points after beating 13 other units from across the country. They won K6 million cash prize.
Armour regiment from Mvera Barracks of Dowa were on second position with 3 195 points while Moyale Barracks came third with 3 157 points.
Selected teams of soldiers from all barracks participated in the shooting contest. The Choma shooting ground was their last destination after walking 198 kilometres from Liwaladzi in Nkhotakota.
