BackDelhi HC directs DGCA to permit pilots to fly 125 hours over 30 days
HC also asked DGCA to review the civil aviation requirement and frame norms with respect to flight duty time limitation for maximum hours and minimum rest necessary for pilots and cabin crew, within a year
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New Delhi: The Delhi high court on Wednesday directed the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) to permit a pilot to fly a maximum of 125 hours over 30 consecutive days in order to remain within the prescribed fatigue limits, and not allow any variations that exceed this prescribed time limit for pilots and cabin crew, for the time being.
In September 2017, the Centre had brought an amendment to follow the civil aviation requirement (CAR), allowing DGCA to determine the roster for pilots at their discretion.
The court also directed the DGCA to review the CAR and frame norms with respect to “Flight Duty Time Limitation" for maximum flight hours and minimum rest necessary for pilots and cabin crew, within a year.
A bench of acting chief justice Gita Mittal and justice C. Hari Shankar was hearing a public interest litigation filed by Yeshwanth Shenoy that pointed to “the acts and omissions of aviation regulator DGCA in compromising aviation safety and consequently the life of flyers and people on ground."
The petitioner had claimed that variations in flight duty hours for pilots and cabin crew at the discretion of DGCA, without any maximum and minimum standards to strictly adhere to, posed a threat to the safety of passengers due to increased pilot fatigue.
Additionally, the PIL also challenges the airworthiness of Airbus A320neo planes in India and construction of buildings that pose as an obstacle around Delhi’s Indira Gandhi International Airport.
The matter would be next heard on 30 July.
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