Pilots may have to work longer hours 

JAGRITI CHANDRA
NEW DELHI, July 11, 2018 00:00 IST



All airlines must followthe rules to avoid fatigue-related safety issues. 

DGCA amends rules on flight duty

Pilots and flight attendants will now have to work longer hours after the aviation regulatory body, the Directorate-General of Civil Aviation (DGCA), amended its rules to allow airlines to extend duty timings of the crew during a medical emergency, a natural calamity, technical malfunction and unfavourable weather conditions.

Mandatory timings

The DGCA has laid down flight duty time limitation (FDTL) and rest timings for pilots and flight attendants, which have to be followed mandatorily by all airlines to prevent fatigue-related safety issues.

While the rules allowed airlines exemptions under exceptional circumstances, they did not define what those situations would be.

The aviation regulatory body has now spelt out the circumstances during which airlines will be allowed to extend shift timings of their crew to “avoid inconvenience to passengers.”