Govt to take over private planes during emergency

The delayed NSG response due to unavailability of an aircraft during the Mumbai terror attack on 26/11 has forced the government to make it mandatory for private airlines to spare their immediately available aircraft for use by security agencies during a terror attack, communal violence or any other incident concerning public safety. The private airlines can even offload passengers to make the aircraft available for transporting security personnel anywhere in the country. According to the rules, notified by the civil aviation ministry, the airlines will have “to place their aircraft at the disposal of the central government for public service” along with crew, maintenance personnel and material as will be necessary for the operation of the aircraft. The mandatory provision will, however, be applicable to only those private operators who are registered in India. “The service of private airlines will not be availed free of cost. The government will pay the operators for using their aircraft during emergencies,” said an official. The rules were formulated by a team of officials from home as well as civil aviation ministries. The notification says: “Authorised officer (not below the rank of joint secretary in the ministry of civil aviation or home affairs) will before issuing the order of requisition, satisfy himself that an aircraft belonging to the operator is available at or near the place at which it is required to be delivered to or be at the disposal of the central government.” Officials in home ministry said the need to have such provisions in the existing Aircraft Act was felt during the Mumbai terror attack. So far, there was no specific rules to deal with such situations, which were generally met by government-owned aviation firms, they added. Referring to the delay caused by non-availability of a government aircraft at Delhi airport on 26/11, a senior official said: “Had the mandatory provision of using private aircraft during such a situation been there at that time, the NSG commandos would have saved a few more lives during their Mumbai operation.” As NSG does not have its own air wing, it has to depend on aircraft from the Air Force and Aviation Research Centre (ARC) of India’s external intelligence agency RAW. But on November 26, no aircraft was available and the commandos lost two-and-ahalf hours before they boarded an Air Force IL-76 to Mumbai.