New Delhi: India’s aviation regulator, the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA), has warned Air India CEO and Accountable Manager Campbell Wilson after finding the airline’s explanation inadequate regarding the misuse of a relaxation on pilot duty hours.
An official source said the exemption, allowing extended cockpit crew duty limits, had been granted only until the end of April 2025 and solely to address disruptions caused by Pakistan’s airspace closure.
In its August 11 letter, the DGCA advised Wilson to exercise utmost care and responsibility in ensuring strict adherence to the Civil Aviation Requirements (CAR).
The matter involves two consecutive Bengaluru–London flights (AI 133) on May 16 and 17, where a DGCA spot check found that pilots had exceeded the standard Civil Aviation Requirements (CAR) duty limit of 10 hours, TNIE reported.
The exemption granted to Air India applied only to flights crossing Pakistani airspace, not to other international routes, yet the airline had also reduced the cockpit crew on these flights from three to two.
The DGCA had earlier issued a show cause notice on June 20, asking the airline to explain why action should not be taken for violating flight duty time limitations (FDTL).
Responding to the development, an Air India spokesperson said the DGCA’s letter related to rostering issues on two long-haul flights in mid-May, which stemmed from a different interpretation of the permission granted to mitigate the impact of the border airspace closure. The airline said the issue was corrected immediately after receiving the correct interpretation and maintained that it remains fully compliant with regulations.