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Chandigarh: Even as the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government axed Edwin Lutyens’ bust from Rashtrapati Bhavan in the name of decolonisation, its simultaneous move to acquire new executive jets for senior defence officials and service chiefs underscores the fact that, while monuments can be destroyed, the colonial instinct for exclusive airborne privilege at the apex of power endures.

Industry sources said the Ministry of Defence (MoD) has recently set in motion the modernisation of India’s secondary VIP airlift capability – a decision that perpetuates a colonial-era tradition of insulated aerial mobility for those at the apex of power, beyond the president, vice president, and prime minister.

Its Request for Information (RfI) to domestic and international vendors, seeking business jets for the Indian Air Force’s (IAF’s) ‘Pegasus’ Air Headquarters Communication Squadron (AHCS) at Palam, aims to replace platforms that have served for just over two decades and sustain a dedicated air fleet for the country’s uniformed military leadership and senior MoD officials.

This planned acquisition highlights the priority given to executive mobility, underscoring how the IAF maintains a dedicated, high-comfort fleet for the military and MoD’s top leadership, even as operational aircraft endure far harsher conditions.

The irony is stark and telling: executive jets, operating predictable and relatively low-stress profiles, are slated for replacement by the MoD after 20-odd years, while frontline IAF fighters – subjected to punishing high-G manoeuvres, extreme climates, and sustained operational demands across varied and harsh environments, alongside a myriad other man stressful challenges – routinely soldier on for 30, 40, even 50 years.

The Soviet-era Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-21s, for instance, which finally retired last September, after nearly six decades of active service, symbolised this culture of prolonged use, while the Anglo-French SEPECAT Jaguars inducted in the late 1970s, continue in upgraded form, well past 40 years.

France’s Dassault Mirage-2000Hs, operational since the mid-1980s, remain combat-relevant after extensive modernisation and the Russian Mikoyan MiG-29, inducted into the IAF in 1987, has likewise crossed the three-decade mark and continues flying after structural and avionics upgrades.

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