Airlines short of Type rated Commanders; Expat pilots to stay till July next year

There is no shortage of trained pilots in the country, however there is shortage of Type rated Commanders with Airline operators. To overcome this shortage, Airline operators have been permitted to utilize expatriate Pilots upto 31 July 2011 subject to validation of their foreign licence by the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA). This information was given by the Minister of Civil Aviation, Shri Praful Patel in Lok Sabha today.
India being an International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) signatory State, recognizes the licences issued by other ICAO contracting States provided they meet the Standard and Recommended Practices (SARPs) contained in ICAO Annexure I regarding Personnel & Licensing. The validation of licences is done as per Rule 45 of the Aircraft Rules, 1937.
There are no such norms that mandate domestic airlines to have at least one Indian Pilot inside an aircraft cockpit.
As on 2 August 2010, the number of expatriate pilots employed with various Schedule operators are (i) Air India/Air India Charters Limited – 89; (ii) Kingfisher Airlines – 83; (iii) Jet Airways – 111; (iv) Spice Jet – 30; (v) Blue Dart – 05; (vi) Deccan Cargo – 07; (vii) Indigo – 34; (viii)Alliance Air – 24 and (ix) Paramount Airways – 01.
12/08/10 PRESS RELEASE/Press Ibformation Bureau