Govt, DGCA view sought on plea over pilot duty rules exemption

In a bold move, pilot associations have approached the Delhi High Court with contempt petitions. They argue that the civil aviation ministry and DGCA have given airlines a pass on new flight duty regulations, a decision that potentially jeopardize...

By Indu Bhan, ET Bureau | Dec 16, 2025, 11.57 PM IST

New Delhi: The Delhi High Court on Tuesday sought responses from the civil aviation ministry and the sector regulator on contempt petitions filed by two pilot associations over exemptions given to airlines from implementing new rules on flight duty time limitation (FTDL).

The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) and the government failed to implement the rules as per the Civil Aviation Requirement policy of 2024 and an undertaking given to court, the Federation of Indian Pilots and the Indian Pilots Guild said in their petitions.

The two bodies alleged that no exceptional circumstances existed to justify such deviations, which compromised cockpit alertness and passenger safety.

The comtempt petitions referred to relaxations allegedly granted in October 2025 to multiple carriers, including Air India, InterGlobe Aviation that operates IndiGo and SpiceJet.

Earlier this month, the DGCA granted IndiGo a temporary one-time exemption from some night operations-related changes in the rules, after a pilot shortage caused the country's largest airline to cancel thousands of flights, inconveniencing passengers.

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