Sunday, November 27 2005 17:08 Hrs (IST) - World Time -

New Delhi: Faced with a shortage of pilots in its aviation wing, the Border Security Force has approached the Ministry of Home Affairs with a proposal to train its own officers to overcome the crisis.

"We have a proposal to have our own pilots for the fixed wing and rotary wing aircraft because we are facing some problems in getting the pilots.

So, we would like to train our own pilots from our own officers," BSF Director General R S Mooshahary told PTI here.

"We have selected 15 to 20 people to undergo the training. The process is on. The response of the ministry is encouraging and I believe it would be through soon," he said. BSF, the country's largest para-military force, has both fixed and rotary wing aircraft including executive Embraer jets, Russian-made Avro and choppers.

The aircraft is being used by VVIPs including Union Home Minister, DG, BSF and other senior officials.