Employees working in airlines and at airports in Russia have started receiving conscription notices. The staff of at least five airlines and 10 airports has been asked to report to military registration and enlistment offices, reported Russian newspaper Kommersant newspaper.

This comes after Russian President Vladimir Putin ordered a partial mobilisation of its military reserves on Wednesday that prompted many men to flee the country.

Within a day of the mobilisation order, five Russian airlines including the Aeroflot Group, which is the country’s top carrier, and staff of over 10 airports received summon to serve the military. Sources at three companies said that 50-80% of employees could be conscripted, the report added.

According to a source close to the Aeroflot Group, around half of the staff of the group’s three airlines could be recruited. These include staff of the Rossiya Airlines and Pobeda Airlines. While Aeroflot did not provide an official comment on the matter, it is learned that the group has now set up working teams to prepare lists for reservation in different specialties, the report stated.

Besides, at least five companies have begun compiling the list of employees who are to be exempted from the draft. Two of these airlines have even sent the list forward where one has given it to the local administration while the other has sent it to the Ministry of Transport. The exemption is said to be critical for air controllers, pilots, and other commercial, technical, and IT specialists.

President Vladimir Putin said in a televised address, on Wednesday, that the partial mobilisation is to defend Russia and its territories. He also claimed that the West wants to destroy Russia and did not want to restore peace in Ukraine.