The Air Force Act, 1950 – All Sections

An Act to consolidate and amend the law relating to the government of the Air Force.

The Air Force Act, 1950 has 195 sections in 14 chapters, amended 4 times. Each link below opens the official text of that section. Official PDF on India Code.

The Air Force Act, 1950 PDF

All sections of the Air Force Act, 1950

Chapter I: PRELIMINARY

• Section 1 – Short title and commencement
• Section 2 – Persons subject to this Act
• Section 3 – Termination of application of the Act
• Section 4 – Definitions

Chapter III: COMMISSION, APPOINTMENT AND ENROLMENT

• Section 10 – Commission and appointment
• Section 11 – Ineligibility of aliens for enrolment
• Section 12 – Ineligibility of females for enrolment or employment
• Section 13 – Procedure before enrolling officer
• Section 14 – Mode of enrolment
• Section 15 – Validity of enrolment
• Section 16 – Persons to be attested
• Section 17 – Mode of attestation

Chapter IV: CONDITIONS OF SERVICE

• Section 18 – Tenure of service under the Act
• Section 19 – Termination of service by Central Government
• Section 20 – Dismissal, removal or reduction by Chief of the Air staff and other officers
• Section 21 – Power to modify certain fundamental rights in their application to persons subject to this Act
• Section 22 – Retirement, release or discharge
• Section 23 – Certificate on termination of service
• Section 24 – Discharge or dismissal when out of India

Chapter V: SERVICE PRIVILEGES

• Section 25 – Authorised deductions only to be made from pay
• Section 26 – Remedy of aggrieved airmen
• Section 27 – Remedy of aggrieved officers
• Section 28 – Immunity from attachment
• Section 29 – Immunity from arrest for debt
• Section 30 – Immunity of persons attending courts-martial from arrest
• Section 31 – Privileges of reservists
• Section 32 – Priority in respect of Air Force personnel’s litigation
• Section 33 – Saving of rights and privileges under other laws

Chapter VI: OFFENCES

• Section 34 – Offences in relation to the enemy and punishable with death
• Section 35 – Offences in relation to the enemy and not punishable with death
• Section 36 – Offences punishable more severely on active service than at other times
• Section 37 – Mutiny
• Section 38 – Desertion and aiding desertion
• Section 39 – Absence without leave
• Section 40 – Striking or threatening superior officer
• Section 41 – Disobedience to superior officer
• Section 42 – Insubordination and obstruction
• Section 43 – Fraudulent enrolment
• Section 44 – False answers on enrolment
• Section 45 – Unbecoming conduct
• Section 46 – Certain forms of disgraceful conduct
• Section 47 – III-treating a subordinate
• Section 48 – Intoxication
• Section 49 – Permitting escape of person in custody
• Section 50 – Irregularity in connection with arrest or confinement
• Section 51 – Escape from custody
• Section 52 – Offences to respect of property
• Section 53 – Extortion and corruption
• Section 54 – Making away with equipment
• Section 55 – Injury to property
• Section 56 – False accusation
• Section 57 – Falsifying official documents and false declaration
• Section 58 – Signing in blank and failure to report
• Section 59 – Offences relating to courts-martial
• Section 60 – False evidence
• Section 61 – Unlawful detention of pay
• Section 62 – Offences in relation to aircraft and flying
• Section 63 – Other offences relating to aircraft and flying
• Section 64 – Disobedience of lawful command of captain of aircraft
• Section 65 – Violation of good order and air force discipline
• Section 66 – Miscellaneous offences
• Section 67 – Attempt
• Section 68 – Abetment of offences that have been committed
• Section 69 – Abetment of offences punishable with death and not committed
• Section 70 – Abetment of offences punishable with imprisonment and not committed
• Section 71 – Civil offences
• Section 72 – Civil offences not triable by court-martial

Chapter VII: PUNISHMENTS

• Section 73 – Punishments awardable by courts-martial
• Section 74 – Alternative punishments awardable by court-martial
• Section 75 – Combination of punishments
• Section 76 – Cashiering of officers
• Section 77 – Field punishment
• Section 78 – Position of field punishment in scale of punishments
• Section 79 – Result of certain punishments in the case of a warrant officer or a non-commissioned officer
• Section 80 – Retention in the ranks of a person convicted on active service
• Section 81 – Punishments otherwise than by court-martial
• Section 82 – Punishment of persons other than officers and warrant officers
• Section 83 – Requirement of sanction in certain cases
• Section 84 – Limit of punishments under section 82
• Section 85 – Punishments in addition to those specified in section 82
• Section 86 – Punishment of officers and warrant officers
• Section 87 – Transmission of proceedings
• Section 88 – Review of proceedings
• Section 89 – Superior air force authority
• Section 90 – Collective fines

Chapter VIII: PENAL DEDUCTIONS

• Section 91 – Deductions from pay and allowances of officers
• Section 92 – Deductions from pay and allowances of airmen
• Section 93 – Computation of time of absence of custody
• Section 94 – Pay and allowances daring trial
• Section 95 – Limit of certain deductions
• Section 96 – Deduction from public money due to a person
• Section 97 – Pay and allowances of prisoner of war during inquiry into his conduct
• Section 98 – Remission of deductions
• Section 99 – Provision for dependants of prisoner of war from remitted deductions
• Section 100 – Provision for dependants of prisoner of war from his pay and allowances
• Section 101 – Period during which a person is deemed to be a prisoner of war

Chapter X: COURTS-MARTIAL

• Section 109 – Different kinds of courts-martial
• Section 110 – Power to convene a general court-martial
• Section 111 – Power to convene a district court-martial
• Section 112 – Contents of warrants issued under sections 110 and 111
• Section 113 – Power to convene a summary general court-martial
• Section 114 – Composition of general court-martial
• Section 115 – Composition of district court-martial
• Section 116 – Composition of summary general court-martial
• Section 117 – Dissolution of court-martial
• Section 118 – Powers of general and summary general courts-martial
• Section 119 – Powers of district Court-martial
• Section 120 – Prohibition of second trial
• Section 121 – Period of limitation for trial
• Section 122 – Liability of offender who ceases to be subject to Act
• Section 123 – Place of trial
• Section 124 – Choice between criminal court and court-martial
• Section 125 – Power of criminal court to require delivery of offender
• Section 126 – Successive trials by a criminal, court and a court-martial

Chapter XI: PROCEDURE OF COURTS-MATRIAL

• Section 127 – Presiding Officer
• Section 128 – Judge Advocate
• Section 129 – Challenges
• Section 130 – Oaths of member, Judge advocate and witness
• Section 131 – Voting by members
• Section 132 – General rule as to evidence
• Section 133 – Judicial notice
• Section 134 – Summoning witnesses
• Section 135 – Documents exempted from production
• Section 136 – Commissions for examination of witnesses
• Section 137 – Examination of a witness on commission
• Section 138 – Conviction of offence not charged
• Section 139 – Presumption as to signatures
• Section 140 – Enrolment paper
• Section 141 – Presumption as to certain documents
• Section 142 – Reference by accused to Government officer
• Section 143 – Evidence of previous convictions and general character
• Section 144 – Lunacy of accused
• Section 145 – Subsequent fitness of lunatic accused for trial
• Section 146 – Transmission to Central Government of orders under section 145
• Section 147 – Release of lunatic accused
• Section 148 – Delivery of lunatic accused to relatives
• Section 149 – Order for custody and disposal of property pending trial
• Section 150 – Order for disposal of property regarding which offence is committed
• Section 151 – Powers of courts-martial when certain offences are committed by persons not subject to this Act

Chapter XII: CONFIRMATION AND REVISION

• Section 152 – Finding and sentence not valid, unless confirmed
• Section 153 – Power to confirm finding and sentence of general court-martial
• Section 154 – Power to confirm finding and sentence of district court-martial
• Section 155 – Limitation of powers of confirming authority
• Section 156 – Power to confirm finding and sentence of summary general courts- martial
• Section 157 – Power of confirming authority to mitigate, remit or commute sentences
• Section 158 – Confirming of findings and sentences on board a ship
• Section 159 – Revision of finding or sentence
• Section 160 – Alteration of finding or sentence in certain cases
• Section 161 – Remedy against order, finding or sentence of court-martial
• Section 162 – Annulment of proceedings

Chapter XIII: EXECUTION OF SENTENCES

• Section 163 – Form of sentence of death
• Section 164 – Commencement of sentence of transportation or imprisonment
• Section 165 – Execution of sentence of transportation
• Section 166 – Execution of sentence of imprisonment
• Section 167 – Temporary custody of offender
• Section 168 – Execution of sentence of imprisonment in special cases
• Section 169 – Conveyance of prisoner from place to place
• Section 170 – Execution of sentence of detention
• Section 171 – Communication of certain orders to prison officers
• Section 172 – Execution of sentence of fine
• Section 173 – Establishment and regulation of air force prisons
• Section 174 – Informality or error in the order or warrants
• Section 175 – Power to make rules in respect of prisons and prisoners
• Section 176 – Restriction of rule-making power in respect to corporal punishment

Chapter XIV: PARDONS REMISSIONS AND SUSPENSIONS

• Section 177 – Pardon and remission
• Section 178 – Cancellation of conditional pardon, release on parole or remission
• Section 179 – Reduction of warrant officer or non-commissioned officer
• Section 180 – Suspension of sentence of transportation, imprisonment or detention
• Section 181 – Orders pending suspension
• Section 182 – Release on suspension
• Section 183 – Computation of period of suspension
• Section 184 – Order after suspension
• Section 185 – Reconsideration of case after suspension
• Section 186 – Fresh sentence after suspension
• Section 187 – Scope of power of suspension
• Section 188 – Effect of suspension and remission on dismissal

Chapter XV: RULES

• Section 189 – Power to make rules
• Section 190 – Power to make regulations
• Section 191 – Publication of rules and regulations in Gazette
• Section 191A – Laying of rules and regulations before Parliament
• Section 192 – Repealed (omitted/repealed)

Chapter XVI: TRANSITORY PROVISIONS

• Section 193 – Definition of British officer
• Section 194 – Powers of British officer

• Section 5 – Application of Act to certain forces under the Central Government
• Section 6 – Special provision as to rank in certain cases
• Section 7 – Commanding Officer of person subject to Air Force law under clause (d) of section 2
• Section 8 – Officers exercising powers in certain cases
• Section 9 – Power to declare persons to be on active service

• Section 102 – Custody of offenders
• Section 103 – Duty of commanding officer in regard to detention
• Section 104 – Interval between committal and court-martial
• Section 105 – Arrest by civil authorities
• Section 106 – Capture of deserters
• Section 107 – Inquiry into absence without leave
• Section 108 – Provost-marshals