Question on Pilot Rest Hours Hangs: Verdict Tomorrow

MUMBAI: Civil aviation pilots and the Director General of Civil Aviation (DGCA), both rested their case on Tuesday in the legal fight before the Bombay high court over the curbs on the rest hours of the cockpit crew. The pilots will know by Thursday whether the more relaxed flight duty schedules of 2007 or the rigorous ones of 1992 will continue to apply to them.

A month after the Supreme Court after staying a Bombay high court order-asked the pilots to go back to the 1992 flight duty hours with shorter rest hours, the matter had come back to the HC for a final hearing. Senior counsel K K Singhvi who appeared for the three pilots’ associations, which had challenged the decision of the DGCA to keep in abeyance the 2007 rest hour rules stressed primarily on two aspects. He said the DGCA had to follow the law and proper procedure which it had not done before deciding to review the scientifically framed rules. Secondly, the issue concerned the safety of not just the pilots but of passengers as well. He said with increasing long haul flights across several time zones, pilots were entitled to more rest not less. Besides, he argued the 1992 rules stood cancelled and could not automatically be revived.

But Solicitor General Goolam Vahanvati appearing for the DGCA said the revival of the 1992 rules based on a June 2, 2008, notification was “specific’ ‘ and “not automatic.” He also said the move to review the 2007 rules was a policy decision, which the DGCA that is part of the Civil Aviation ministry, was authorised to take. He added the 2007 rules were “impractical in more ways than one’ ‘ and impeded proper as well as optimum operations of the airlines. For instance, it redefined ‘neighbouring countries’ and thereby increased rest hours for pilots flying to Dubai.

Vahanvati and senior counsel Aspi Chinoy who appeared for Air India said safety was not being compromised under the “tried and tested 1992 rules” .

Vahanvati said, the world over, airlines are bleeding due to rising fuel prices and that “20 airlines had folded up in the US.” Aviation fuel in India is among the most expensive due to 40% sales tax and foreign airlines do not want to refuel here, he added. According to him, the decision to keep the 2007 rules in abeyance was intended to help “wealthy and hefty airlines’ ‘ as the high court had said earlier in its interim order. Chinoy said that the viability of airline operations and schedules were being jeopardised because of the 2007 rules. Besides, he added, “Which airline would risk aviation safety. It would get wiped out if there is a crash.”

Vahanvati said the 1992 schedule, which was in smooth operation for 15 years, envisaged a pilot doing three landings during a continuous nine hour-long duty. The 2007 rules reduced the three landings to two during the same duty hours, thus allowing for increased rest hours, according to international standards.

The pilots’ case was that the DGCA took all possible procedural steps before coming out with the 2007 norms to improve safety standards in the aviation sector, but suddenly due to the objection of a few private airlines, DGCA took a U-turn and kept the 2007 norms in abeyance.

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