I have travelled in India many times on their domestic carriers and having friends who actually fly as FOs on some of these carriers, I thought I would put my two cents in.
The civil aviation training standards in India are poor compared to Australian standards. I had a mate who had finished his CPL in NZ, was doing his check ride in India for the process of conversion. He was told off for carrying out a steep turn in a C-152. "Aircraft are not to exceed 30 deg. AoB at any time", he was told. Stall recovery is always initiated at the onset of the stall warning. Engine Failure after Take-off, the students get told to aim for the end of the field and hope for the best. First solo is conducted with Instructor still on board. Navigation exercises only go from point A to point B. Instrument flying tests usually require the student to Take-off, demonstrate a holding pattern and land. Like most other flight tests, they all begin with a bribe paid to the Instructor & ATO. The bribe can be in the form of money, cellphones or laptops. There are a couple of schools which say that they can provide training on par with western standards in India itself, but because of the corruption, this is never the case.
The theory is on par with JAA. They actually use JAA books to study for the exams, and the theory exams are based on them. It is the practical side which is lacking far behind.
Then, you have students who train overseas. Australia is a favourite destination, as we have good standards.
But, to get a job in India, it's not what you know, it's who you know. Even before the interviews are conducted, the spots are already taken. The interviews are just a show for the DGCA and the rest of the applicants. There was a case of girl who was about to finish her CPL in India, and got the job offer from Kingfisher. A family friend of mine, who was helping with CPL theory at that school, asked her how she got the job. Her reply was that Kingfisher always pick the gifted ones! Upon further investigation, my friend found out that her father was the Airworthiness officer for DGCA.
Let me not get started on the DGCA. There are plenty of threads on that topic in the South East section.
Now, there are a few positives in this whole mess called Indian Aviation. During line training, you are required to pass exams on the 737 for example. You can get two chances to pass this exam, or you are out. It is the same for the A320, if you fail the type-rating exam, you are out. During the aviation boom (04-06), guys with just a CPL, without MECIR, got jobs in the airlines flying B737. But during type-rating, these guys were asked to get their MECIR and then return for training. My mate, who had done his entire MECIR training in NZ, but did not have enough time to sit his flight test, got his MECIR check ride done on the 737 during his type-rating.
The Indian air force pilots are highly trained. The RAAF has regular exchange programs for officers with the IAF and vice versa. I have a family friend who was a Mig-29 instructor in the IAF. He joined Air India as a B737 FO and is about to become a Captain. Got another mate, who is working as an FO for Jet airways, who loves to hand fly the 737 in the cruise (just for a few mins). He misses his C-172 flying days!
So, the problem is not just the DGCA or the Airlines not setting good training standards, but the corruption which causes the leaks and the not so good get through. But who is to blame here, if you need anything to be done in India, you have to pay a bribe. If you refuse to pay, your work gets held up. If you decide to complain, your work gets passed on to someone else, who then causes delays on purpose for dobbing his mate.
Last edited by flyboy_nz; 26th Nov 2010 at 22:10.