Hypocrisy at its worst

[divdby0]

I am currently trying to convert my foreign license to an Indian one. The waiting period for a class 1 medical is supposedly close to a year. Even better, I just attended an interview with one of the airlines here and the first question the interviewer asks me was : "How many hours do you have" to which my response was "I have logged --- hours, mainly from flight instruction"

Now the interviewer wants to know if I had actually flown the hours or simply logged them, and supposedly thats the trend in India now. Yes, you log hours without flying, but you pay the "key" people. To make things worse, and this is the best part, DGCA India has come up with a new circular asking for license authentication/verification from the issuing authority in the case of foreign licenses. (Proof should be given for the 300nm comercial crosscountry and all the instrument flights) Its high time the guys at DGCA realise the hypocrisy in their system.

When I approached one of the flying schools to get my flight tests done, I was told by the people there to pay them some amount so that the flight test time and additional multi time if required can be logged(without flying, and they log flight tests as well!:mad: ). A very sorry state of affairs in a place which has a booming industry. In my opinion, it would be better to fly single engines for life, rather than pay these :mad: and become an other shark in the dirty waters.

[thornycactus]

There is a discussion forum by Indian Nationals. http://www.indianpilots.com/forum/index.php

Please divert your queries there.

This forum is not often "patronised" by Indians and DGCA related discussion is not popular in this forum.

[Alpha 6]

That's so :mad: sad to know dvdby0...specially from a place where we know is badly in need of pilots.

Thornycactus...I for one believe that he just came to the right place to post his experiences (no matter how good or :mad: up they are) cause a lot of aviators IN HERE are eyeing and asking for the current situation in India. We are in the south asia&far east forum right?:E

Thanks for sharing them dvdby0...At least we now have an idea on how the game is played there.

Goodluck and keep us posted
A6

[mustangV8]

I agree with alpha... hey thorny, divd posted in the right place, whats your problem? Do you mean any indian DGCA issues are not welcome here? Think again.

Anyway, the DGCA is the reason why the 'boom' will only go so far. At the same time, there are many individuals out there willing to cheat and forge to get to that right seat, which, ironically requires a person to possess integrity along with the other qualifications and experience. So, unfortunately, these steps are taken by the DGCA...no trust anymore.

divd, to prove your logged hours, you can always get the 'counter' hours printed with a stamp from your previous 'employer'!!;)


mV8

[on_the_right]

DGCA sure is a "dirty" place. but make no mistake, they have in the past encountered a lot of people trying to convert their foreign CPLs without even flying a third of the total hours. yes, many schools around the world (US schools are very popular with indian flyers) take the "greens" and log your hours too !
this compunds to an already corrupt state of affairs.

[thornycactus]

Hey mustangv8,

I never said that DGCA issues are not welcome here. In fact, it is truly not a popular discussion in this forum. Mind your words!


That forum is widely used by the Indians. Frequent questions and useful answers are well answered by the real qualified Indian National airline pilots and Indian students there.:ok:

[flightknight]

Indian aviation is in its infancy and the DGCA has been around for a long time. I guess the only way things can change o'er there is through privatisation. It looks like they are in the process of instituting a formula from the FAA, with regards to license conversion exams. According to sources the exams should be available online , similar to FAA administered exams.
The lengthy process is not due to their inability to modernise, but its more political in nature. Ironically , the cradle of technology has included a lot of indian scientists and engineers, but these folks are not found in the DGCA structure.
Hopefully, they will adopt the staffing structure of the FAA, which is comprised of highly successful and qualified individuals. Corruption is a mental disease that strikes a society, mainly due to ignorance.
Indian aviation, can achieve some stability if the changes are made at the DGCA level. Till such time, flying in India is a gamble.
If you have a somewhat steady job at present, you may want to weigh your options before making a career move into the unknown.