843 commercial pilot licences issued this year by DGCA

The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) has issued more than 5500 commercial pilot licences (CPL) since 2008, including 843 this year, Lok Shaba was informed today.
The country’s aviation regulator issued 1458 CPLs in 2008, while 1886 such licences issued in 2009 and 1368 in the next year.
But DGCA issued only 843 CPLs out of 1023 applications it received in 2011, which saw a number of pilots found using fraudulent means to acquire their flying licences.
Similarly, DGCA issued 387 Air Transport pilot licences ( ATPL) and 181 Private Pilot Licences (PPL) so far this year, Civil Aviation Minister Ajit Singh said in a written reply to a query in Lok Sabha.
Regarding the criteria adopted in issuing various licences, Singh said, “Licences are issued on compliance of requirements stipulated in Part V and schedule II of the Aircraft Rules 1937.”
“In case fraud is detected, enforcement action is taken wherein the applicant is debarred from obtaining a licence and/or is registered with the police authorities,” he said.
Economic Times

Kenya Airways to recruit expatriate captains to ease shortage of pilots

Uganda: During the showcasing last week of Boeing’s B787 Dreamliner in Nairobi, questions were asked of Dr. Titus Naikuni, CEO of Kenya Airways (KQ), how the arrival of additional aircraft in 2012 and beyond – the airline is expecting 3 B777s and by all accounts some 10 more Embraer 190 aircraft over the next 12 to 24 months – would be managed in regard of human resources available, with specific reference to cockpit crew.
The airline has engaged in accelerated training of commercial pilots, both at their own in house, “Pride Academy,” at Embakasi headquarters and also through aviation schools in South Africa, to get sufficient pilot numbers on the payroll to actually fly those new aircraft.
Dr. Naikuni had to concede, though, that these efforts were not enough, particularly in regard of senior captains, to whom the young first officers, aka co-pilots, would then be attached. It was now becoming a certainty that expatriate captains would have to be recruited to fill those glaring gaps.
“We are in talks with the government and the unions to get permission and agreements in place to recruit expatriate pilots,” he said at the main arrival function at Jomo Kenyatta International Airport.
Kenya Airways has the declared intention to fly by the end of 2013 to every African political and commercial capital city, and as and when the B787 Dreamliner deliveries start to commence, expected but not yet 100 percent confirmed by end of 2013 or early 2014, the addition of more frequencies to existing long-haul destinations will then be accompanied by opening up new destinations in India and China.
20/12/11 Dr. Wolfgang H Thome/eTurboNews.com

Apply Now to be a Pilot with Air India Express

Air India Charters Limited now now recruits Trainee Pilots, Co-Pilots, Captains and Instructors.

1) ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA:
A) TECHNICAL QUALIFICATION : Candidates should be in possession of :
i. CPL / ATPL issued by Director General of Civil Aviation, Government of India.
ii. Instrument Rating endorsement on Indian CPL/ATPL.
iii. FRTO license issued by DGCA.
iv. RTR(P) / RTR(C) / RTR issued by Ministry of Communication, WPC Wing, Government of India.
v. All licenses shall be valid at the time of joining.
B) FLYING EXPERIENCE:

Captain
PIC on B737NG

Trainee Captain
-  With type endorsement on B737NG : 2000 hrs on type and holding ATPL.
OR
With PIC flying experience in jet engine aircraft with AUW greater than 50,000 kgs and holding ATPL.
OR
With PIC flying experience of 2500 hrs on Jet / Turboprop engine aircraft of airline type like ATR / CRJ / Bombardier / Embraer,holding ATPL and with airline experience.
Co-Pilot
With type endorsement on B737NG : 500 hrs on type and holding CPL / ATPL.

Eligible candidates will be required to appear for :
a) An Interview and Simulator Flight Proficiency Test (all at Mumbai).
b) Applications shall be processed in the order First Received and the selection process will be on a quasi “Walk-In” basis (see paras 07 & 08 below for details).
c) Candidates short-listed after Personal Interview will be required to undergo a Simulator Flight Proficiency Test.
d) After completion of the selection process, successful candidates shortlisted for induction as per vacancy(ies), shall be informed accordingly.
e) Short-listed candidates will have to undergo Company Pre-Employment Medical Examination (PEME); their induction will be subject to being found FIT in the PEME. (not necessary for candidates holding valid Class I medical).

Since the Selection process is scheduled on a continuous basis, candidates must submit their Applications at the earliest. Eligible applicants will be called for selection as far as possible, on the first Wednesday of every month. Applicants will be called in the order the applications were received and in case where an applicant cannot make him / herself available on the first day called, he can approach on a mutually agreed date later. Applicants declared successful in the selection process, will be made an offer of employment, and the Candidate may join immediately, subject to DGCA etc stipulations. The offer of employment for selected candidates unable to join immediately will be kept open till such time as the advertised vacancies are filled or more vacancies for Pilots are advertised.

Pl. download the detailed notification from the Air India site itself.
And get the application form also from the site.

IndiGo asks govt to relax rules for hiring expat pilots

Mumbai: The country’s second largest private carrier by market share, IndiGo, has asked the government to relax the rules for hiring expatriate pilots under the Foreign Aircrew Temporary Authorisation (FATA) policy. The proposal, if approved, would allow the carrier to engage experienced pilots quitting crisis-ridden Kingfisher Airlines. “The airline has written to the Civil Aviation Ministry for waiver of additional security clearance and for transfer of FATA with respect to expatriate pilots flying in India,” industry sources said.

According to a report by The Financial Express, with the low-cost airline expanding its fleet by adding almost one aircraft every month, it needs commander-level pilots. While there is an over-supply of entry-level pilots in the country, the industry depends on foreign pilots at commander-level, experienced in flying commercial jets. The airline, which currently operates with 49 airplanes, is expanding its international operations to West Asia and Southeast Asian countries. As per an estimate, there are currently 450 expatriate pilots holding FATA.
As per existing rules, an expat pilot has to go back to his own country after completing his term with an Indian carrier and re-apply to a rival airline from there. In case the rival airline plans to hire them, they have to again go through the security clearance, medical tests and other procedures, adding to procedural delays.
27/12/11 TravelBizMonitor

More flying schools land in Salem airport as commercial flights shut

Salem: City airport is becoming a hotspot for pilot training centres in south India. International Aviation Academy launched its centre in the city last Thursday in addition to Southern Pilot Training Academy, which started to train pilots since 2008.

When asked about the reason for choosing Salem airport, Shaji Abraham John, one of the directors of IAA, said, “Good climate condition and runway at Salem Airport is highly suitable for flight training in southern India. Besides, Salem is becoming an education hub and has good road connectivity.”
John said, “A very few flying schools in the country has digital classroom facility and we are one among them, We have other facilities like Wi-Fi enabled classrooms, runway of 1,800 metre length and three fleets of Cessna 152. Cessna 172 aircraft will be available for training in next three months and multi-engine training craft will be in next December in our school.”
“IAA offers two courses – private pilot and commercial pilot. Those who had completed Plus Two with physics and maths are eligible for application,” said IAA’s ground instructor and flying instructor Captain Sarath Nair. He added that fees for the course is 18 lakh. “The flying hour of the course is 200 hours. After 30 to 40 hours of flying hours, the students themselves will operate the aircraft with the help of pilots. The daily flying hours per student will be different,” said Vineeth Kumar, aircraft engineer.
Currently, Salem Airport has zero commercial operation. It was set up in Kaamalapuram in 1993.
28/12/11 L Saravanan/Times of India

Jet cuts trainee co-pilots’ pay from Rs 1.3L to Rs 50k

New Delhi: India’s largest private airline Jet Airways has reduced the monthly salary of its trainee co-pilots by almost 60% from about Rs 1.3 lakh to Rs 50,000 in the New Year. The decision was conveyed to its trainee co-pilots in last week and is among a series of steps that the airline is taking to cut costs and survive the life-threatening phase that Indian carriers are passing through due to a mix of high operating cost environment at home and a slowing down economy.

During the last slowdown also Jet had reduced salaries of its employees to survive the tough economic conditions and then restored them to pre-cut levels when the environment improved. Its two full service peers – Air India and Kingfisher – have been unable to pay salaries to employees in time for months now.
Trainee co-pilots join an airline after getting type rated (certified) to fly a particular aircraft. They are first trained to fly by being seated on the co-pilot’s seat with a commander and a co-pilot on the third seat in the cockpit.
02/01/11 Times of India

Gayathri – IAF SSB – The sky is the limit

Women make better pilots.” It is not a feminist declaration. Gayathri R. Nair is merely sharing with us what her flying instructors had told her.

This helicopter pilot with the Indian Air Force (IAF), now on a vacation at her home near Jagathy, believes her instructors are correct, “because women are amazing multi-taskers. They have a peripheral vision, which put them on a higher level as pilots.”
The 23-year-old computer science engineer, an alumni of Arya Central School and the LBS Institute of Technology for Women, Poojappura, is now posted with the Jamnagar unit of the IAF as a Flying Officer.
Surprisingly, Gayathri never nurtured any dreams of becoming a pilot. “My family has no defence background. I have been a great admirer of the profession since my childhood. Girls often get little encouragement when it comes to joining the armed forces. But my parents, K.G. Ramachandran Nair and Sasikala, employees with the State Bank of India, and sister Sharika (working with IBM in Bangalore) didn’t question my decision to apply for the short service commission. In fact, I’d applied for all the three streams – the Army, the Navy and the Air Force. I wanted to do something related to the engineering stream, flying never crossed my mind,” she says.
At the Services Selection Board tests in Mysore, Gayathri fulfilled the parameters for both the engineering and flying streams. She appeared for the Pilot Aptitude Battery Test, a selection format to induct potential officers into flying branch of the IAF, and got selected. “I call that a twist of fate,” Gayathri says.
04/01/12 Athira M/The Hindu

Flying club to remain in city

The eight decades old Madras Flying Club (MFC) will not move out of the Chennai airport as feared, but will change location inside it , according to MFC sources. A few months ago, the Airports Authority of India (AAI) had issued notice to MFC asking it to vacate its present premises at the airport to make way for the straightening of a taxi track from the new terminal to the end of runway.
The MFC was also asked to stop using the airstrip at Vellore, where the flying club trains its students since the Chennai terminal is busy for most part of the day. “We had no option but to close down the club. But when we approached the state government, it took it as a prestige issue and assured us that an alternative arrangement would be worked out with the AAI ,” said an MFC official. Following the government’s intervention the club will now be relocated to the other side of the runway near Porur, where AAI has been given free land by the state government for expansion.

Aviation academy’ cheats 200 students

A private ‘aviation academy’ in Kerala allegedly cheated around 200 students by promising jobs in Malaysia. The ‘academy’ at Kodakara had lured them by offering jobs of airhostesses and ground handling and cabin crew in Malaysia once they completed their three-month course, which was started in 2010.
While three batches had completed the course through the Academy’s centres at Kottayam, Kozhikode and Kodakara, the fraud came to light when the first batch flew to Malaysia and couldn’t find any job there and retuned within 11 days. The institution misled the other batches with an ad carrying the photograph of the “first batch being sent to Malaysia.”
A victim of the racket who had to return from Malaysia lamented that many had also lost Rs 25,000 as travelling expense.
A student of the ‘academy’ Amrutha had filed a case with the Kodakara police station. The police, whose inquiry showed that the institution had no approval of the panchayat, sealed its office. The man who was running the institution, Shabeer Ali, a Thrissur native, is in hiding.
When the course cost around Rs 1.5 lakh, the salary for the jobs they promised were more than Rs1 lakh a month. Most of the students were attracted by the advertisement of the academy, showing logos of five well-known airlines. The cheated include a youth who was working at the Cochin International Airport but who resigned his job to enroll for the course “for a better income”.
05/12/11 City Journal

33 flying clubs fail to comply with norms

New Delhi: At least 33 flying schools have failed to meet government norms, Parliament was informed on Thursday.
The licences of two clubs have been suspended, and others have been asked to tide over their inadequacies and report to the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA).
Civil aviation minister Vayalar Ravi informed the Rajya Sabha that DGCA has conducted audits of 33 clubs, and has found deficiencies in these flying schools. “Yes sir,” said Ravi when asked whether it was a fact that DGCA has found fault with almost all the schools. Of the 37 flying clubs, 33 have been audited, and action has been taken a few of them. While, Ahmedabad Aviation Academy was warned, approval was suspended for Bombay Club and Birmi flying Academy Pvt Ltd, the House was informed.
DGCA audits are carried out to ensure that the flying schools function as per guidelines and have facilities and systems in place to conduct flying, training and maintenance of aircraft.
09/12/11 Times of India