Kim Jong Un, general secretary of the Workers' Party of Korea and president of the State Affairs of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea, on August 2 paid a congratulatory visit to a helicopter unit of the Air Force of the Korean People's Army (KPA) that performed a miracle of air rescue operation.

Lined up at the unit's maintenance ground with a national flag fluttering were the helicopters which were dispatched to the flooded areas to save the inhabitants.

All the officers and men, waiting for the glorious moment of greeting the respected Comrade Kim Jong Un at their unit, were filled with boundless reverence for the Supreme Commander, who with the warmest love for the people and the will to save their lives, organized and led the rescue operation for saving the people in the dangerous flooded area to bring about unprecedented miracles and attributes the credit for all of them to the soldiers.

When Kim Jong Un arrived, the service personnel of the air force burst into cheers of "Hurrah!" as a token of their highest tribute and glory to the great brilliant commander.

He received a salute from the commander of the KPA Air Force.

He paid tribute to the honorable colours of the KPA Air Force and the colours of the unit.

He was greeted by leading commanding officers of the Air Force and commanding officers of the unit.

Responding to the enthusiastic cheers, he extended warm greetings of encouragement to the reliable soldiers who glorified the name of the People's Air Force with their brilliant military feats in the emergency rescue operation for implementing the special order of the WPK Central Military Commission.

He was accompanied by Choe Ryong Hae, member of the Presidium of the Political Bureau of the WPK Central Committee, first vice-president of the State Affairs Commission of the DPRK and chairman of the Standing Committee of the Supreme People's Assembly, Pak Jong Chon, vice-chairman of the Central Military Commission of the WPK and secretary of the C.C., WPK, Kang Sun Nam, minister of National Defence of the DPRK, and Ri Yong Gil, chief of the General Staff of the KPA.

There took place a ceremony of awarding orders to the helicopter unit of the Air Force of the KPA that performed a distinguished military service in the sacred struggle for defending the people.

The national anthem of the DPRK was played.

Kim Jong Un made an encouraging speech.

Saying that he came to the unit on the road of returning from the site of repairing the flood damage, out of his desire to greatly boast of the pilots of the helicopter unit who performed matchless feats in protecting our God-like people without an equal in the world, he stressed that holding the grand commendation ceremony and making the whole army learn from them and the world know about them represent the extent of the feats of the pilots and the level of the appreciation of the Party and the country.

Saying that no casualties were made in Sinuiju area, which suffered the greatest flood damage caused by the record heavy rainfall and the rapid increase in water inflow in the basin of the Amnok River, and this fact cannot be expressed otherwise than miracle, he referred to the matchless combat efficiency of the service personnel of the air force who made a military achievement by bravely displaying specialty and perfection in carrying out their successive missions despite the then dangerous weather conditions.

Saying that another valuable and honorable record was made to go down in the history of distinguished military services of our heroic army, he expressed his heartfelt thanks to all the service personnel of the air force who protected the God-like people and firmly defended the people's trust in the Party and the government while flying despite heavy rains at the risk of their lives.

He said that he was also thankful that all the pilots were safe although one helicopter was forced to suddenly land in the rescue area during its mission.

He also extended warm thanks to the fighters of the sharpshooter brigade of the Navy, maritime guard formation of the Border Guards and the General Reconnaissance Bureau who had been involved in the rescue operation.

He said that the pilots of the helicopter unit proved what the soldiers and the well-prepared unit, to be followed by the entire army, should be through the actual war capability at the battlefield where they risked their lives, not a training ground for judgment.

He said that he was greatly pleased to find a genuine model unit, seeing the organized, professional and unhesitating combat actions of the soldiers who immediately conducted a rescue campaign in the unfamiliar flood-hit area at night braving stormy weather, true to the order of the Party Central Committee.

He specially appreciated the combat spirit and deep ideological and moral world of the unit commander who is able to stand in the van before shouting a command. Saying that the WPK needs such a field-, ability- and action-type commanding officer required by modern warfare as the commander, he added he was deeply moved to see him carrying out the successive and repeated missions of reconnaissance, rescue and search without any sign of getting tired on that day. It is a real miracle to save more than 4,200 people within a few hours with the helicopters that can not be said as big ones, totaling more than 5,000 people including those rescued by other units which carried out their rescue mission on the water, he stressed.

He highly appreciated it as the immortal exploit to be described with the expressions of heroic and miraculous one as it is the success greater than shooting down 10 or 100 enemy planes and as the feats to be added luster and go down in the history from its character as the campaign for defending the people.

Saying that our air force's route is the only one indicated by the Party and revolution although the wonders done by heaven are constantly changing and no milestone exists in the vast open sky, he noted that this is why the feats performed by our pilots are so honorable. He expressed belief that the pilots and all officers and men of the unit would as ever firmly defend the cause of the Party with ardent patriotism and heroic fighting spirit and reliably safeguard the security of the airspace sovereignty of the DPRK and the wellbeing of its people.

He stressed the need to step up the training revolution to thoroughly annihilate the enemies just as they were brave, skilled and unhesitating in the struggle for defending the people.

The enemies' rubbish media are spreading the false rumor that the human loss in the flood-hit areas of the DPRK is expected to be over 1,000 or 1,500 and that several helicopters involved in the rescue mission seem to have fallen, he said, adding that clear is the sinister purpose of those in Seoul keen on such smear campaign.

Noting that enemies remain unchanged, he bitterly censured the inveterate habits and despicable nature of the ROK scum running high fever in their vicious smear campaign to bring disgrace upon us and tarnish the image of the DPRK at any cost.

He declared conclusively that we would never give up the national defence for rehabilitation or people's standard of living and pay less attention to the people's standard of living for the national defence.

Referring to the future development direction of the air force, he affirmed that the People's Air Force would make a great contribution to ensuring the country's security and the regional peace and stability.

Saying that the people are our God and it is necessary to think about the inconvenience of the flood victims who were evacuated to the safe area even at this moment when boiling heat has still raged and to accelerate the rehabilitation as soon as possible, he earnestly stated that the communist trait of one for all and all for one should be made to prevail across the country in hard time and, in particular, our army should show the filial devotion to the people as their sons and daughters.

Expressing thanks again to the unit for having performed sacred feats in the struggle for defending the people, he ardently wished victory and glory to the heroic People's Air Force.

When his speech was over, the cheers of the service personnel of the air force echoed like thunder again.

All the participants expressed their gratitude to the Supreme Commander praising them, who have been only faithful to the mission of the sacred People's Air Force, as pride of the Party and the state and hardened their iron will to be always thorough and courageous in defending the sovereignty of the country and ensuring the safety and wellbeing of the people as the slogan inscribed in their glorious colors.

Choe Ryong Hae read out the decrees of the SPA Standing Committee of the DPRK on awarding the Order of Freedom and Independence First Class to the helicopter unit of the KPA Air Force and the title of DPRK Hero to its commander who led the unit to the campaign for defending the people and the air service of feats.

Kim Jong Un personally conferred the order on the unit.

He affixed the honorable Order of Freedom and Independence First Class to the colors of the unit.

He awarded the title of DPRK Hero and the Gold Star Medal and Order of National Flag First Class to the commander of the unit.

The citation of the Supreme Commander of the armed forces of the DPRK was conferred on 47 pilots and crew engineers.

The officers and men of the Air Force broke into enthusiastic cheers, looking up to the great brilliant commander who is decorating their distinguished military feats on the road of service with the gold star while respectfully calling them the army of lifeguards of the Party Central Committee and the first death-defying corps of defending the revolution and the people.

The unit commander made an oath-taking speech on behalf of the unit.

Saying that the self-sacrificing devotion of the great father regarding our people as his flesh and blood that can never be lost was an irresistible driving force of standing any downpour and strong wind without fear and a key to the fighting efficiency of the unit which brought about an unprecedented miracle in air rescue operation, he made a solemn pledge that the red hawks of the brave DPRK air force would as ever fly along the route of loyalty and reward without the deviation of 0.001 mm, cherishing the trust of the Supreme Commander and the Party Central Committee as their whole life.

The order-conferring venue was filled with the militant enthusiasm of the participants to fully demonstrate the spiritual qualities and mettle of the People's Air Force in the struggle to defend the wellbeing, rights and interests of the DPRK and its people unto death by giving fuller play to the steadfast revolutionary faith, patriotic spirit and spirit of devoted service with which they have supported the idea and cause of the great Party Central Committee in the vanguard.

There took place a march-past of the guard of honor of the KPA Air Force.

Kim Jong Un had a photo session with the pilots, who performed distinguished feats in the operation for defending the people, with the background of the glorious colors.

He repeatedly said with high appreciation that the steadfast officers and men of the air force, who take the same step of strenuous efforts with the same mind to absolutely serve the people, cherishing the outlook on the revolution and life that there is no greater happiness than the pride of sharing intention, will and practice with the supreme commander, are the highest pride of our Party and people, expressing expectation and belief that the pilots will steadily carry on the present honor with more brilliant feats.

The firm pledge of the air fighters to display the bravery of the WPK's red phoenix despite any flames and storm, cherishing the great love and trust shown by Kim Jong Un as the mainstay of faith, resounded far and wide in the sky of August along with the loud shouts of "Kim Jong Un" and "Death-defying defence".

That evening Kim Jong Un hosted a reception in congratulation of the unit officers and men who received the order of honor.

Leading officials of the Party, government and military attended the reception to warmly congratulate the winners.

The reception was filled with the feelings of kinship and trust between the great brilliant commander and the bodyguards.

Kim Jong Un's congratulatory visit to the helicopter unit will be brilliantly recorded in the history of army building as an event of warm love and encouragement that put on the eminence of the times the brilliant tradition and ever-victorious militant spirit of the People's Air Force, which has always flied along the route of absolute loyalty and heroic military service to defend the country and the people, and powerfully inspired it to perform continuous feats.