IndiGo risks penalties for deliberate non-compliance: Experts

Budget airline IndiGo could face its toughest regulatory action yet if aviation regulator Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) concludes that the airline deliberately did not have enough pilots on its rosters to successfully implement the revised pilot duty norms, legal experts said.

- BHAVINI MISHRA

“If DGCA concludes that the carrier wilfully delayed a mandated safety-related roster change, the consequences become qualitatively harsher,” said Raheel Patel, partner, Gandhi Law Associates.

The revised Flight Duty Time Limitation (FDTL) Rules entered their second and final phase on November 1, activating seven clauses deferred during July’s rollout.

Phase II tightened limits on pilot duty during the early-morning “window of circadian low” (roughly 0200-0600 hours), when fatigue risk peaks. Under Para 3.11, “night duty” covers any duty overlapping 0000-0600 in a pilot’s acclimatised time zone; Para 6.1.4 caps flight time in such periods at 8 hours, total duty at 10 hours, and typically limits pilots to two landings.

Following the cancellations, the DGCA set up a four-member committee to investigate the inability to accurately forecast crew availability, conduct timely training, and realign rosters despite advance regulatory intimation.