[Civil Appeal Nos. 4717-4719 of 2013]. [Civil Appeal No.7219 of 2013]. These appeals arise out of separate but similar orders passed by the Armed Forces Tribunal, Principal Bench, New Delhi, whereby the Tribunal has allowed the petitions filed by the respondents holding them entitled to continue in service upto the age of 57 years in the case of officers serving in the ground duty branch and 54 years in the case of those serving in the flying branch of the Indian Air Force. The solitary question that falls for our consideration, therefore, is whether the respondents who at the relevant point of time held the rank of Group Captain (Time Scale) in the Indian Air Force were entitled to continue in service upto 54 and 57 years depending upon whether they were serving in the flying or ground duty branch of the force. The question arises in the following backdrop: Post Kargil War, the Government of India constituted a Committee headed by Ajay Vikram Singh, former Defence Secretary (hereinafter referred to as AVS Committee) to study ways and means that would help ensure a "younger age profile" for the commanding officer in the Indian Armed Forces. The Committee made its recommendations in regard to all the three wings of the armed forces which were considered and accepted by the Government culminating in the issue of separate orders regarding re- structuring of the officers cadre in the Army, Navy and the Air Force. In so far as the Indian Air Force was concerned, the Government of India by an order dated 12th March, 2005 revised the terms and conditions applicable to Air Force Officers excluding officers serving in the medical and dental branch.
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