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Shortage of pilots, air-traffic controllers turns focus on safety

CHENNAI: The aviation industry in India is facing a rising shortage of trained pilots and air-traffic controllers. With the industry continuing its growth at breakneck speed — the 30 per cent increase in passenger traffic last year was among the highest in the world — the demand for pilots and ATCs is only expected to increase in the next few years. Experts worry that as airlines struggle to handle a personnel crunch, air safety will be the biggest casualty.

Over the last three years, the number of aircraft in Indian skies has almost doubled to over 300, and there will be an additional 250 aircraft by 2010, according to the Centre for Asia Pacific Aviation (CAPA), an aviation consultancy. This will generate a demand for at least 2,000 additional pilots in the next three years, and 15,000 more by 2020 — and these are conservative estimates.

The airlines are already facing the strain of increased competition and more packed schedules with limited resources at their disposal. A Civil Aviation Ministry source told The Hindu that this led to increased violations of air-safety norms, particularly among new airlines that were under pressure to balance their books. The source said that violations of Flight Duty Time Limitations (FDTL) for pilots were “widespread,” and the regulatory agencies were “struggling” to enforce their regulations.

“The authorities do carry out safety audits and inspections every month, so we are very aware of the violations,” the source said. “But the fact of the matter is every operator is politically influential, so there is not much we can do.” Capt. A. Ranganathan, a former pilot with more than 19,000 hours’ flying experience with two national carriers, said there was increased fatigue among pilots. The airlines were adding new sectors to meet the rising consumer demand — but there were not enough hands on deck. “I have been asked to fly with a pilot on a 5 a.m. flight after he had flown all day the previous day,” he said. “In that state, your ability to make split-second decisions is severely affected.”

With the coming winter expected to bring with it fog over the airports in New Delhi, Bangalore and Chennai, delays and diversions are expected.

Under the Directorate-General of Civil Aviation regulations, airlines are granted exemptions for diversions and congestions, and pilots are allowed to exceed their usual FDTLs. The fatigue factor will be multiplied — and in flying conditions that can be treacherous.

As the skies become more crowded — aircraft movements increased by 30 per cent in the past year — the role of air-traffic controllers has become more important than ever.

An airport official said that while the present situation was “manageable” for ATCs, there was an urgent need to improve the existing infrastructure now if the expected increase in traffic was to be handled. “The current equipment is outdated by more than 10 years,” the official said. “There is also a lack of understanding of our workload levels, and a bureaucratic attitude that delays investment in infrastructure.”

While workload levels for ATCs are rising, recruiting and training new hands is a difficult task. Information and Technology jobs are a bigger draw for engineering graduates, and for those who are hired, it takes usually three or four years of on-the-job training before they can fully handle the rigours of the job. Consequently, fatigue is a growing concern.

“Everyone’s talking about the industry’s growth and the addition of new aircraft,” the official said. “But how are we going to manage it? No one’s asking that question.”

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