The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) has issued a notice to Air India and cautioned the airline’s CEO regarding breaches of pilot duty regulations. The DGCA has warned CEO and Accountable Manager Campbell Wilson regarding the alleged misuse of exemptions on pilot duty hours and for the unsatisfactory explanations provided by the airline. The breaches relate to flight duty time limitations (FDTL).
Air India was granted a limited exemption on cockpit crew duty hours after Pakistan closed its airspace, which was valid until April 2025. This exemption was specifically intended for airlines operating through Pakistani airspace.
The DGCA sent a letter on August 11th to the airline, issuing a warning to the Accountable Manager, with a strong emphasis on complying with civil aviation requirements (CAR).
The breaches involved two flights from Bengaluru to London on May 16th and 17th. The investigation found that both flights had exceeded the maximum 10-hour duty limit for pilots as per the CAR. The cockpit crew on these flights was reduced from three to two members. These exemptions were applicable only to flights using Pakistani airspace, not to other international flights.
On June 20, the DGCA had previously issued a show-cause notice to Air India regarding these flights. The notice requested an explanation as to why action should not be taken against the airline for violating the FDTL. An Air India spokesperson confirmed that the airline had received the DGCA’s letter. The spokesperson stated that the letter concerned the scheduling of the two flights in May. The spokesperson attributed the problems to a misunderstanding of the permissions granted after the closure of Pakistani airspace and further stated that the airline is now fully compliant with the regulations.