Maximising Civil–Military Fusion for Indian Airlift: Requisition and Beyond

As many pieces of the jigsaw puzzle, which is India’s aerospace policy, come together, there are still pieces that merit spotlight to ensure the picture is complete. India’s requisition policy is one such missing piece which the Indian state needs to rectify quickly. Though in terms of legislation, India has the Aircraft Act, 1934 and Defence of India Act, 1962 that allows for requisitioning aircraft and airports, there is a policy void that the Union government must redress. As of today, the government can requisition aircraft during an emergency/wartime to augment airlift capabilities, but it can completely deflate the civil aviation industry in the process post airlift requirements, if not properly managed and in the absence of a dual-use policy.

During the seminar ‘Samanjasya Se Shakti’, the Indian Army’s first such seminar on military logistics held in 2022, former Secretary, Ministry of Civil Aviation, Rajiv Bansal, delved into the requisition of aircraft where he stated that there needs to be clarity on how to proceed further and initiatives to be taken in enlisting an objective. However, requisition by itself is a means to an end with the ultimate objective being strategic airlift for the armed forces. This article explores a dual-use policy to augment Indian airlift capabilities leveraging the civil aviation ecosystem and lays out inputs for consideration and scrutiny.