Phasing out foreign pilots while airlines add aircraft

New Delhi On one of the many job hunting and information sharing online networking forums, pilots from round the world post their queries on the Indian job market. They are worried about their job prospects in India — world’s second largest growing aviation market after China — ever since the Indian air safety regulator, Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA), mandated foreign pilots to clear medical examination in the country last year.

India, which has been trying to phase out foreign pilots from its domestic airlines, has been pushing the deadline on the airlines’ insistence. The deadline has been postponed to 2013 from August 2010, said DGCA chief EK Bharat Bhushan. But the airlines insist that this goal will be tough to meet.
“There is a huge scarcity of experienced pilots in the country. Airlines are left with no choice but to hire them from abroad,” a senior executive at Jet Airways, the country’s largest private carrier, told The Indian Express.
At present, there are 356 foreign pilots employed with domestic airlines, almost half of their total strength in 2009 as per DGCA figures. Jet Airways has 140 — possibly the highest number of foreign pilots as Kingfisher airlines refused to share latest number — on its rolls.
“We are expanding rapidly. By year-end, over seven aircraft will be inducted. We need flight crew for these,” the executive said. The airline has an immediate requirement of 50 senior pilots or commanders and another 50 by year-end.
18/07/11 Smita Aggarwal/Express India