The PML-N-led government’s decision to create a new aviation division and separate the civil aviation from the ministry of defense has not only created uncertainty but also raised questions about the safety and security of all the airports in the country.
The decision by the new government was sudden and surprising for the defense ministry, well-placed sources said. Even the top officials at the defense ministry were unaware of such an important move, they added.
Under the new arrangement, the transfer of civil aviation from the defense ministry will complete in few weeks to come, however, the move is not being seen as a wise decision by the ministry which believes the govt has taken this initiative in haste.
Before the govt’s decision, it was the aviation wing at the defense ministry that would deal with the administrative and financial matters of the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA), Airport Security Force (ASF), Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) as well as the Met department.
Nonetheless, the new decision has put all these organisations under the new aviation division. The concerns which are likely to arise after the govt’s decision to bifurcate the ministry are about the absence of a well-coordinated mechanism for effectively dealing with important matters falling within the ambit of defense ministry.
The officials at the ministry are also concerned about most of the country’s airports which are used for dual purposes – civilian air traffic as well as Pakistan Air Force (PAF).
The air traffic is controlled both by the CAA’s air controllers and the PAF personnel and serving military officials also form the ASF.
“The defense managers are worried that in the absence of any ‘interface’ for the coordination between the defense ministry and the aviation division, different issues are likely to arise from time to time that would be difficult to handle,” said a source seeking anonymity.
He said the sensitivities about the use of country’s airspace were also important. Whenever there was air violation, the air force dealt with it and the unified command of CAA and PAF had been effective and useful in this regard, the source added.
Moreover, he said there were also concerns about the possible leakage of sensitive national security data with two separate institutions dealing with the airspace.
He said: “There are secret missions at times whose confidentiality has to be maintained but there is possibility of leakage when two separate agencies will deal with the information.”
As of now, the ASF comes under the command of serving army officials and its staffers are governed by the Manual of Pakistan Military Law and it is feared that bringing these personnel under civilian command could give birth to legal complications.
The sources said with the possibility that army officials in the ASF would be replaced by the police officers, there would be serious concerns about the security of airports keeping in view the performance of police in dealing with the menace of terror.
“If we look at the recent major terror attacks such as jail break in DI Khan, we see that police had not been effective as it was supposed to be,” the source commented.
