The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA), India’s main civil aviation safety regulator, finds itself in a precarious position, tasked with enforcing global safety norms while simultaneously mitigating a nationwide crisis triggered by those very rules.

Observers say the current chaos, primarily centred on IndiGo’s mass flight cancellations, stems directly from the implementation of stricter Flight Duty Time Limitations (FDTL) norms—rules designed by the DGCA to combat pilot fatigue. The irony is that the regulator has now been compelled to partially roll back certain key provisions to restore order to India’s overwhelmed air travel sector.

According to the regulator, the chaos stemmed from IndiGo’s inability to plan adequately for new crew duty rules under the revised FDTL frame

See Full Page