number of servicemen of the army, which since 1953 reached over 300,000. The final Report of the Commission of Inquiry of the Federal Assembly for clarification of events of 17 November 1989 characterized the Czechoslovak People's Army as follows: "... the Czechoslovak Army, next to the SNB (the people's police force) and LM (the paramilitary workers militia), was understood as one of the direct power tools designed for control over society and for the immediate management of internal political problems; the Communist Party by means of a vast staff of the Main Political Administration (HPS) of ČSLA penetrated as far as into the lowest units and in this way virtually ensured its absolute influence on the Army." During the Velvet Revolution, Communist Minister of National Defence Milán Václavík proposed to use the army against demonstrators, but his suggestion was not heeded. Components The ČSLA was composed of Ground Forces, Air Forces and Air Defence Forces, under the direction of the General Staff. Ground Forces Of the approximately 201,000 personnel on active duty in the ČSLA in 1987, about 145,000, or about 72 percent, served in the ground forces (commonly referred to as the army). About 100,000 of these were conscripts. There were two military districts, Western and Eastern. A 1989 listing of forces shows two Czechoslovak armies in the west, the 1st Army at Příbram with one tank division and three motor rifle divisions, the 4th Army at Písek with two tank divisions and two motor rifle divisions. In the Eastern Military District, there were two tank divisions, the 13th and 14th, with a supervisory headquarters at Trenčín in the Slovak part of the country. Czechoslovak military doctrine prescribed large tank columns spearheading infantry assaults. While the armoured columns secured objectives, the infantry would provide close support with mortars, snipers, anti-tank guns and medium artillery. The majority of the soldiers in the Ground Forces were recruited through conscription, compulsory military service of 24 months for all males between 18 and 27. Air Force The Air and Air Defence Forces of the CPA celebrated 17 September 1944, as the birth date of their force. On that date, a fighter regiment, manned by Czechoslovak personnel, the :cs:První československý samostatný stíhací letecký pluk - 1st Czechoslovak Independent Fighter Aviation Regiment - flew out for Slovak soil to take part in the Slovak National Uprising. This first regiment grew into the 1st Czechoslovak Mixed