Change call sign ‘VT’ on Indian aircraft: Plea in Delhi High Court

NEW DELHI:  A plea was filed in the Delhi High Court on Thursday seeking to direct the Centre to change the call sign ‘VT’ on Indian aircraft, saying that the prefix stands for Victorian Territory and Viceroy Territory which is a legacy of the British Raj.

The plea said the call sign or the registration code is for the identification of an aircraft and the prefix ‘VT’ is the nationality code that every aircraft registered in India is required to carry. The petition sought to direct the Central government to change the call sign ‘VT’ on Indian aircraft in order to secure the Sovereignty of India as well as rule of law, right to freedom, and right to dignity of Indians guaranteed under the Constitution, saying countries like China, Pakistan, Nepal, and Sri Lanka had changed the call signs of their aircrafts immediately after the independence.

“The code is generally seen just before the rear exit door and above the windows. All the domestic airlines have the prefix, which is followed by unique alphabets that define the aircraft and who it belongs to. For example, on Indigo flights the registration VT is followed by IDV, that is, VT-IDV, for Jet, it is VT-JMV,” the petition filed by advocate Ashwini Kumar Upadhyay said.

It said the prefix marks that the aircraft has been registered in the country and it is mandatory in all countries and the registration of the aircraft is required to appear in its Certificate of Registration and an aircraft can only have one registration in one jurisdiction. 

‘Other nations change sign’ 
The petition sought to direct the Centre to change the call sign ‘VT’ on Indian aircraft in order to secure the Sovereignty of India as well as rule of law, right to freedom, and right to dignity of Indians guaranteed under the Constitution, saying countries like China, Pakistan, Nepal, and Sri Lanka had changed the call signs of their aircraft immediately after the independence