NEW DELHI: India’s largest pilot body, the Federation of Indian Pilots (FIP), has written to the Civil Aviation Minister asking for an immediate withdrawal of the extension of Flight Duty Time Limitations (duty hours) of pilots given to all airlines upto March 2027. Such a move is deeply concerning from the perspective of flight safety and pilot fatigue management, it pointed out.
In a letter dated October 21, FIP president Captain C S Randhawa billed it as “an issue that requires immediate action at the highest level.” He called for an urgent reconsideration of the extension of the dispensation from October 31, 2026 by another five months.
“FDTL requirements exist to protect pilots from fatigue-related risks and to ensure that commercial air operations are conducted within established safety limits. Their effectiveness depends on consistent enforcement, adequate airline manpower planning and a regulator that is prepared to insist on compliance even when doing so requires operational adjustments,” he said.
The Ministry must ensure that the extension rests on lawful authority, he added. “Aviation safety must not be compromised to accommodate deficiencies in airline operational planning,” the FIP president added.
The FIP has requested the following nine aspects – immediate review and withdrawal, examination of court compliance, review of the last two DGCA meetings, independent verification of pilot availability, disclosure of the basis for extension, independent fatigue-risk assessments, enhanced monitoring and enforcement, consultation with pilot organisations and a written response from the Ministry specifying the legal basis for the extension.
Apart from FIP, multiple organisations like the Indian Pilots Guild, Indian Commercial Pilots Association and the Airline Pilots Association, have repeatedly conveyed their concerns to the regulator and want an immediate withdrawal of the dispensation, he pointed out.
