IndiGo December Disruption: Minister of State for Civil Aviation Murlidhar Mohol, in a written reply to the Lok Sabha, on Thursday, said the current pilot-aircraft ratio at domestic airlines is "adequate". The clarification by the Civil Aviation Ministry came a month after massive disruptions at India's largest domestic airline, IndiGo, which were caused by multiple factors, including inadequate planning to comply with the new flight duty norms that were aimed at addressing fatigue among pilots.

The number of flight crew and cabin crew should not be less than three sets of crew per aircraft as per the DGCA (Directorate General of Civil Aviation) norms.

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Mohol said all airlines assess the pilot-aircraft ratio while keeping into account the fleet expansion and dynamic operational requirements to ensure operational stability.

Crew Rest Requirements And Work-Life Balance Of Pilots In Focus: Govt

"Periodic reviews are undertaken by respective airlines to ensure continued compliance and smooth functioning of air services without compromising flight safety, crew rest requirements and work-life balance of pilots," the Minister of State for Civil Aviation said. The pilot-aircraft ratio at domestic airlines in India is found to be adequate, he underlined, adding that the revised pilot duty rules were formulated after studying and comparing the norms of FAA (Federal Aviation Administration), EASA (European Union Safety Agency) Transport Canada and other nations.

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"Further, DGCA has also taken into consideration International Civil Aviation Organisations Standard and Recommended Practises and other International best practices to formulate FDTL norms," he said in another written reply.

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Mohol said DGCA has issued warnings to IndiGo's senior management for deficiencies in oversight, planning and implementation of revised FDTL (Flight Duty Time Limitation) norms.

December IndiGo Services Mayhem

In early December, over-optimisation of operations, inadequate regulatory preparedness along with deficiencies in system software support and shortcomings in management structure and operational control led to disruptions that happened at IndiGo. A monitoring mechanism to track flight cancellations and delays of network planning has also been set up by the regulator after the IndiGo disruption.

(With PTI inputs)