The National Assembly has just voted to pass a law amending and supplementing a number of articles of 11 laws in the military and defense fields, including the Law on People's Air Defense.

The Law defines the key areas of people's air defense as areas where the enemy is likely to concentrate air attacks, including political , economic, cultural-social, defense, security, and foreign affairs centers or places with key national targets, military region, provincial, and communal levels, and places identified in defense combat plans at all levels.

The Chairman of the Provincial People's Committee decides on key points of people's air defense at the commune level.

The provincial people's air defense force and regional defense force will include: local troops, air defense militia, reserve soldiers specializing in air defense, part-time air defense forces under the provincial military command, regional defense command and Border Guard units.

Air defense training of Hanoi self-defense force. Photo: HUU THU
Air defense training of Hanoi self-defense force. Photo: QĐND

These forces will be organized into companies, platoons, and batteries; air defense observation posts and towers; low-flying target shooting teams; and teams to suppress unmanned aircraft and other flying vehicles.

The people's air defense force at the commune level, led by the militia, will be organized into anti-aircraft machine gun platoons, along with teams to shoot low-flying targets and teams to suppress drones and other flying vehicles. This is a new point compared to the current law, when the people's air defense task is regulated at the district level.

According to the law, this task is adjusted and allocated more clearly to the commune and provincial levels, in accordance with current defense operational requirements.

The construction of specialized people's air defense works must follow planning and plans, linked to the defense posture of the province and regional defense; ensuring the combination of socio-economic development with the people's air defense posture.

The Provincial People's Committee decides within its authority or submits to the Provincial People's Council for decision on the construction of specialized people's air defense works.

The Chairman of the Provincial People's Committee and the Chairman of the Commune People's Committee shall decide on the evacuation and dispersal locations of enterprises in the area under their management. The heads of agencies, organizations and enterprises shall determine the areas, evacuation and protection plans for workers and the places to store assets according to the local people's air defense plan.

Another notable content in the Law on People's Air Defense is on the management of unmanned aircraft and other flying vehicles. In particular, the Law amends the case where the Ministry of National Defense or the Ministry of Public Security grants flight permits in the area of ​​airports, airfields and other areas that affect the flight activities of civil aircraft, it must have the consent of the Ministry of Construction (previously under the old law, it was the Ministry of Transport).

Regarding the authority to suspend flights, the new Law has given more power to the commune level when there is no longer a district-level military command. Specifically, the commander of the regional defense command, the commander of the commune-level military command, and the commander of the Border Guard unit in the border area can suspend flights of drones and other flying vehicles within the area of ​​management, except for drones and other flying vehicles of the Ministry of Public Security operating outside the area and targets managed by the military.

Regarding the authority to suppress and temporarily detain unmanned aircraft and other flying vehicles, the Law stipulates: The Commander of the Military Region, the Commander of the Hanoi Capital Command, the Commander of the Ho Chi Minh City Command, the commander of the provincial military command, the commander of the regional defense command, the commander of the commune-level military command are authorized to order the suppression and temporary detention of unmanned aircraft and other flying vehicles...

Source: https://vietnamnet.vn/luc-luong-phong-khong-cap-xa-duoc-to-chuc-thanh-trung-doi-sung-may-phong-khong-2415749.html