Aviation regulator Directorate General of Civil Aviation. Photo: dgca.gov.in/digigov-portal/
The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) has issued four show-cause notices to Air India over 29 violations, including non-compliance with crew rest norms, under-deployment of cabin crew on ultra long-haul flights, and lapses in pilot and crew training. The notices also flagged unresolved “systemic issues” and deficiencies in “safety management” despite previous regulatory interventions.A total of 19 violations pertain to pilot training and the timelines within which refresher training program has to be completed where pilots operate commercial flights under the guidance of an instructor. These also include breaches in requirement of specialised training for flying to Kathmandu airport which has a table-top runway. These were observed for a 12-month period from July 2024 to June 2025.The Hindu has reviewed the show-cause notices procured through industry sources. The violations were disclosed voluntarily by Air India.Three violations concerning weekly rest periods for one first officer and two captains were recorded between June 2024 and June 2025.Additionally, four ultra long-haul international flights operated between April 27 and May 2, were found to have fewer than the mandatory number of cabin crew. A Chicago–Delhi flight on April 27 had only 12 cabin crew members instead of the required 15. Three other flights, two on the Toronto-Delhi route and one from Mumbai to Newark, had 14 cabin crew deployed.Atleast four showcause notices against Air India for 29 violations pertaining to rest and duty time for pilots and cabin crew, violation of training oversight and recency requirements, and assigning fewer cabin crew on ultra long haul flights than mandated. This follows voluntary… pic.twitter.com/XCh3Z2vcJ9— Jagriti Chandra (@jagritichandra) July 23, 2025The regulator also noted three shortcomings related to cabin crew training. These included instances of crew members operating flights with lapsed competency cards and, in one case, a crew member assigned flight duty despite a safety violation on a previous flight, where an evacuation slide was inadvertently deployed. These incidents occurred between December 2024 and May 2025.“In its show cause notices the regulator has said, “Despite repeated warning and enforcement action for non-compliance in the past, systemic issues related to compliance monitoring, crew planning and training governance remain unresolved,” adding that there was a “failure” to establish and enforce effective “control mechanisms”. The regulator has also raised questions about poor “safety management” at the airline.Air India has been given 14 days to reply to these notices.An Air India spokesperson said in a statement, “We acknowledge receipt of these notices. We will respond to the said notices within the stipulated period. We remain committed to the safety of our crew and passengers.” Last month, the DGCA also ordered Air India to remove three officials, including the Divisional Vice President of its Integrated Operations Control Centre, from all responsibilities and roles for similar violations regarding validity of pilot licenses and crew rest requirements. Published - July 24, 2025 03:18 pm IST
