Turkmen leader takes fighter flight over nation

ASHGABAT (Reuters Life!) - Turkmenistan's president showed off his military spirit on Thursday by flying in a Soviet-designed fighter plane over the desert nation that borders Iran and Afghanistan.

The official Turkmen Khabarlary news agency said President President Kurbanguly Berdymukhamedov, a former dentist, spent half an hour in the MiG-29 jet during his flight which was accompanied by two military aircraft.

Clad in full pilot's gear, Berdymukhamedov particularly enjoyed "the view over Ashgabat and its vicinities", it said, adding his trip will "enter the country's chronicles as a symbol of its incessant desire to reach new heights of progress".

Whether going on foreign visits or promising liberal change, Berdymukhamedov's image is a stark contrast to that of his predecessor, Saparmurat Niyazov who rarely went abroad and ruled Turkmenistan like an isolated fiefdom before his death in 2006.

During his 21 year rule, Niyazov dotted the nation with statues of himself and renamed months and streets after himself. He called himself Turkmenbashi, or Head of the Turkmen, banned opera and ballet and tolerated no political dissent.

The new leader has reversed some of Niyazov's harshest decisions and promised to bring about democratic change.

In contrast to Niyazov's shaky health, official media often portray Berdymukhamedov as an all-action man, sometimes referring to mountaineering as his hobby.

International human rights groups have, however, questioned his commitment to genuine change, saying that politically his government had yet to show signs of easing.