Last Updated:
IndiGo News- The committee said that pilot fatigue, increasing pressure on ATC, shortage of staff in regulatory bodies and rapidly growing aircraft fleet are taking India’s aviation system towards a dangerous turn. The government should not give any relaxation to the airlines on flight duty time limitation.
New Delhi. The country’s leading airline Indigo is currently facing a serious crisis. Due to the situation not being normal yet, passengers are facing a lot of difficulties. This threat was already anticipated and a parliamentary panel had warned the government in early August that airlines should not be allowed to circumvent the Flight Duty Time Limitation (FDTL) rules set for pilots. According to an Economic Times report, in its report presented in Parliament, the Standing Committee on Transport, Tourism and Culture warned that India’s aviation sector is reaching “a turning point” due to the rapid growth in the number of aircraft and slow growth in the human resource of pilots and air traffic controllers (ATC).
It was also said in the report that DGCA itself is constantly facing shortage of staff. Out of 1,063 sanctioned posts, only 553 have been filled. Almost half the posts are lying vacant, while the number of passengers in the country is reaching record levels and the aircraft fleet is increasing rapidly. The committee described this as a serious structural weakness for aviation security.
Aviation system towards dangerous turn
The committee said that pilot fatigue, increasing pressure on ATC, shortage of staff in regulatory bodies and rapidly growing aircraft fleet are taking India’s aviation system towards a dangerous turn. Pointing to the increasing workload on pilots and controllers, the committee warned that fatigue increases the risk of runway incursions, ground collisions and mid-air collisions. The report said DGCA should strictly monitor compliance with the updated FDTL rules and ensure that operators do not circumvent these important safety measures under any circumstances.
The parliamentary committee had also requested the DGCA to study how effective the amended FDTL rules and mental health protocols are proving to be in reducing fatigue and stress among employees. The committee recommended similar fatigue-risk measures for air traffic controllers, including a national ‘Fatigue Risk Management System’ and comprehensive staffing audits.
thousands of pilots needed
The committee had said in its report that thousands of new pilots would be required in the coming years to meet the increasing demand for pilots. The Ministry of Civil Aviation and DGCA approved five new Flying Training Organizations (FTOs) in 2024-25 to enhance training capacity, taking the total number to 39, and six more are in the certification process. This year alone, 34 aircraft were added to the FTO fleet, taking the strength of the training fleet to 350.
Despite this, the committee urged the government to speed up the certification process and expand training centres. The report also pointed to “serious regulatory shortcomings” and noted that despite complex conditions such as Himalayan flights, India still does not have mandatory mountain-flying training and certification for pilots flying in those areas.
