EXPAT FOs new rule
Times of India
[ 22 Sep, 2006 0005hrs ISTTIMES NEWS NETWORK ]
NEW DELHI: In a bid to tide over the pilot shortage issue in the market, India has decided to scrap the norm that mandated domestic airlines to have at least one Indian pilot inside an aircraft cockpit.
Effectively, domestic airlines can now have only expat pilots steering an aircraft in the domestic skies.
However, airlines have been permitted to avail of this facility only as a stop-gap arrangement till such time as their trainee Indian pilots are awaiting certification and authorisation from the DGCA, sources said.
"In all such cases where both captain and co-pilot are expats, airlines must have an Indian trainee pilot in cockpit for supernumary training. As and when this Indian trainee pilot completes his training, the expats can be phased out," a government source said.
This, sources said, will help the airlines meet their immediate need for trained manpower. "While helping the airlines move ahead with their expansion plans, this new norm is also aimed at protecting the interests of Indian pilots," a source said.
With the boom in air travel, over a dozen start-up carriers are mushrooming across the country, leading to a shortage of trained pilots in the country. India's two state-owned carriers — Air-India and Indian Airlines — alone are facing a shortage of around 150 pilots. In order to fill the gap, airlines are now hiring expatriate pilots for operating planes.
According to industry estimates, at least 4,000 additional pilots would be required in the Indian skies over the next five years. The shortage of trained pilots has led to a massive poaching exercise with airlines offering huge salaries to woo pilots from rivals.
This had earlier forced the government to hike the retirement age for pilots from 60 to 65 years, and even knock on the doors of Indian Air Force for help.