Where do we get captains from? AI, IndiGo locked in dogfight for pilots amid FDTL fallout; joining bonus up to Rs 50 lakh

NEW DELHI: Call it the IndiGo schedule collapse and its fallout. A clamour has broken out between the budget airline and the Air India group over the availability of adequate captains to avoid a repeat of what happened under the new safety-enhancing Flight Duty Time Limitation (FDTL) rules.IndiGo has had to commit to the DGCA that it will hire more pilots—it plans to induct 100 in January alone—while Air India has already issued advertisements to bring more aviators on board. However, both airlines are also facing a significant number of captain resignations, with some moving between the two carriers and many leaving to join foreign airlines. As a result, much of the hiring is aimed at simply maintaining current numbers, making the scramble more intense than anything seen before in Indian skies. For once, balance-sheet-centric human resource departments are on the back foot and can no longer oppose strengthening ranks after the events earlier this month. A senior official of one of the two major Indian carriers said its captains are already receiving “calls offering joining bonuses of up to ₹50 lakh”.“Where do we get captains from? Under the new FDTL norms, the availability of experienced pilots will become acute. There will be a lot of poaching from each other,” said a senior airline official.A few years ago, a senior pilot recalled, IndiGo had offered joining bonuses to experienced aviators to cover bond payments, if any, required to be paid to the airline they were resigning from. “This ranged between ₹15 lakh and ₹25 lakh to take care of bonds, which at the time were between ₹5 lakh and ₹15 lakh,” the pilot said.“India will witness a scramble for captains between the Air India group and IndiGo. While Air India does not currently face a shortage for most of its fleet—except the Boeing 787 Dreamliner—it needs to hire for the future. IndiGo will have to improve pilot-management relations to retain and attract talent. Akasa does not need more pilots as it has a large surplus. Unless Air India and IndiGo offer better working conditions, they will not be able to stem the outflow to the Middle East and other markets such as Vietnam,” said Captain Shakti Lumba, former vice-president of Air India and IndiGo.IndiGo has marginally raised pilot pay from next month by enhancing some existing allowances and introducing new ones. Air India, meanwhile, is planning a major move expected in the first week of January, details of which remain a closely guarded secret within the airline.Pilots at both the Air India group and IndiGo have been unhappy primarily due to poor working conditions and pay structures that have not kept pace with inflation. While the FDTL aims to reduce fatigue, the ongoing tug of war means both airlines will have to become more humane employers to retain pilots.While IndiGo will see an increase in pilot requirements due to less strenuous working norms under the new rules, Air India is preparing for aircraft inductions expected from next year. At present, only pilots operating Air India’s Boeing 787 fleet fly more intensively, while those on the Boeing 777 and Airbus A320 fleets fly less. This is expected to change from next year, and Air India does not want to find itself in IndiGo’s position when that happens.