Govt can requisition pvt aircraft in emergencies

The Government has armed itself with powers to ask aircraft operators,including private ones...

The Government has armed itself with powers to ask aircraft operators,including private ones,to place at its disposal aircraft in emergency situations. A notification issued by the Civil Aviation Ministry on January 22 now empowers authorised officials from either the Civil Aviation Ministry or the Home Ministry to requisition one or more aircraft from airlines in the interest of public safety.

The move is essentially a fallout of the 26/11 Mumbai terror strikes when despatching commandos of the NSG from Manesar reportedly got delayed due to unavailability of Government aircraft.

Under the new guidelines,the aircraft operator will be required to provide the aircraft with crew,maintenance personnel and all materials that will be necessary for the operation of an aircraft. Government officials,not below the rank of joint secretaries,will now be able to requisition the planes when needed. The authorised officer will,before issuing the order of requisition,need to satisfy himself that an aircraft belonging to an 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.

As per the notification,the Central Government shall pay to the aircraft operator compensation as determined in the Aircraft Act,1934. Until now,Government-owned civilian or military aircraft were summoned to deal with crisis situations. The new move will help Government agencies react faster to emergency situations.