Aviation India: Careers

Surat: In a major boost to the aviation sector of the city, the Director General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) has given a go-ahead to Surat Airport to set up a flying club.
"An Ahmedabad-based flying club has also been chipped in for the development of this club to be named Rainbow Flying Club. It has provided three Cessna aeroplanes to the club," said an official from Surat Airport.
The club, which will have the capacity to provide training to about 25 pilots at one point of time, has got the approval for providing both Commercial Pilot License (CPL) and Private Pilot License (PPL). To be set up within Surat Airport campus besides the ATC tower, the club will start from next week.
DGCA had conducted three flying tests of Cessna aircraft at the airport in July and on August 12 and 13. Following the success of the tests, DGCA gave sanction of the club to the airport on August 27.
31/08/09 Sandesh/Times of India

Result of AME Licence Examination June, 2009 session is published at the DGCA site
Access the results for various centers here:

• Delhi
• Mumbai
• Bangalore
• Chennai
• Hyderabad
• Other

The last date of submission of duly completed application form for written AME Licence Examination, Oct 2009 session is 7th Sept 2009.
The tentative exam dates for Oct 2009 session are 13th,14th of Oct 2009.
28/08/09 DGCA

Bangalore: Late last year, a public furore created by Jet Airway's decision to lay off 1,900 employees in one go forced the airline to reinstate them in less than a week.
Its rival Kingfisher Airlines seems to have learnt a lesson from the whole episode. So, now when Vijay Mallya's airline is sacking people, it is being done in a quiet and systematic manner.
An employee at Kingfisher's reservation department who was fired this month told DNAthat the FSC laid off around 90 cabin crew, four sales personnel from Delhi and several other staff over the last two months.
"I was asked by the HR (human resource) to resign. They told me that if I didn't, then they would terminate me. This is what they are doing with other employees, too. They create a situation where employees are forced to quit," said the former employee of the airline.
Poor performance is generally used as an excuse to get rid of an unwanted worker.
She said morale of the employees was very low as they have not received any increment or promotion in the last one year.
According to her, integration of Kingfisher and G R Gopinath-owned Deccan Air has also resulted in over 400 employees leaving the company.
"The company has been cutting its employee strength, but in a phased manner, to avoid coming under the media glare. Instead of firing staff in one shot, they are letting go one or two persons a week," she alleged.
29/08/09 Praveena Sharma/Daily News & Analysis

Sydney: Indian students at a Sydney flying school say their futures remain in limbo, while authorities review a decision to de-register the facility.
Last month, the New South Wales Government's education watchdog announced that Aerospace Aviation was being de-registered, after an audit found it was in breach of training standards.
Several students complained that they had paid thousands of dollars in tuition fees but did not get the promised training.
The flying school appealed against the decision, prompting an internal departmental review which will be completed within a fortnight.
At a meeting yesterday with federal education authorities, students were urged to remain at the school which is being allowed to operate while the review is taking place.
But several Indian students have told the ABC the meeting did nothing to reassure them and that they hope the school folds so they can finish their studies elsewhere.
25/08/09 ABC News, Australia

Montreal: Mechtronix Systems Inc., a division of Mechtronix World Corp., one of the top three leading providers of flight training equipment in the world, today announced the purchase by the Aero Club of India of two Ascent(R) Flight Trainer(TM) configured as Cessna 172 with Garmin 1000 avionics for its New Delhi and Patiala training facility. The Aero Club plans to offer Instrument Rating training on the new devices to its students. This project is part of an important investment by the government of India to offer new modern training technology to one of India's most prestigious and oldest flying school.
The Aero club of India plans to deploy the units in 2009 while seeking qualification with India's CAA under JAR FSTD A FNPT II; bringing the current FTD approach in India to new realism and technology heights. The Aero Club of India is planning to receive 40 hours of credit for its IR training from the DGCA; they are both working hand in hand to adopt the EASA FSTD A FNPT II framework and practices.
The Ascent(R) Flight Trainers will each feature a 180 x 35 degree multi channel visual system and a Redifun Simulation Inc. (RSI) Image Generator that will provide exceptional fidelity. Its semi-enclosed instructor operating station area provides for easy interaction between instructor and student.
The visual and sound systems included in the units are compliant to Full Flight Simulator Level D requirements. The C172 cockpit delivers a high fidelity flight experience replicating 100% of the touch and feel of real avionics parts. "We look forward to taking delivery of Mechtronix simulators and see these key purchases as a way to offer training on modern state-of-the-art technology", said Mr. Kanda Aero Club of India's Secretary General. "The Ascent(R) Flight Trainers will help our school to optimize their training curriculum and support our expansion plan. Mechtronix had a complete offer that met our criterion based on superior technology, cockpit and architecture realism, high fidelity platform, performance and reliability."
"We are glad to be part of Mechtronix developments in India as their partner in India. We have been working closely with Mechtronix over the last few months to establish a local maintenance support base in India for all Mechtronix customers and we look forward at further developing our relationship with them," indicated HBE Aviosec's Managing Director Mr.Nandy Bhatia. "We greatly value Aero club of India's investment in two Ascent(R) Flight Trainer(TM) and HBE Aviosec's support throughout this initiative. We are pleased that they chose Mechtronix as their simulator provider," said Mechtronix' President Xavier Herve. "We are further establishing our leadership on the Indian market with the help of our partner HBE with this additional sale and being chosen by an organization such as the Aero Club of India with stringent availability, reliability and fidelity requirements."
24/08/09 PRESS RELEASE/Mechtronix Systems

Mumbai: With less than a year to go for domestic air-carriers to phase out their foreign pilots, the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) has directed all such operators to appraise it about their implementation plans of the same.
The DGCA has set July 31, 2010, as the deadline to phase out expat pilots and replace them with domestic ones.
"The operator shall furnish his plans for training of Indian flight-crew and provide due justification for employing foreign personnel along with their phasing-out programme every three months," the DGCA said.
The aviation industry regulator has also decided to oversee the process to ensure that the expat pilots' phasing-out programme is on track.
Simultaneously, Indian pilots should be trained and employed as co-pilots by the airlines, the DGCA said. Air-carriers would also now have to provide details about all the pilots, both Indian and expats, to the DGCA on a monthly basis.
There are some 686 foreign pilots employed with Indian air-operators, with 666 operating as commanders or senior pilots.
23/08/09 Zee News

Mumbai: Mumbai based Bafna Air– a private jet charter service company is keen on starting Commercial Helicopter Pilot License (CHPL) institute in India by January 2010. The company is going to offer 25 seats per year with a minimum of 210 hours of training. For the same, it has tied up with Hawaii based Mauna Loa Helicopter institute for technical support and course structure. Bafna Air has submitted the applications and documents to Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) and Ministry of Civil Aviation (MoCA) and is awaiting approvals. The company has selected few sites in Osmanabad, Surat, Latur and Solapur.
Talking about the potential of helicopter training institute in India, Arun Lohiya, CEO, Bafna Air, said, “Due to growing heli-tourism segment, there is a huge demand for trained helicopter pilots in the market. With negligible number of quality helicopter training institutes in India, most aspiring helicopter pilots from the country go to US for professional training. It is a similar story in other South East Asian countries. By tying up with the one of the top US training institutes, we are going to bring international expertise to India.”
According to Lohiya, the institute will offer training at a lower cost (between INR 20 lakhs – 25 lakhs) compared to US (more than Rs 30 lakhs). The company wants to attract students from neighbouring and South East Asian countries for training at the institute.
21/08/09 Anita Jain/TravelBizMonitor

Chennai:The dreams of about 200 poor youth to take up a career in aviation have been grounded due to the apathy of the Adi Dravidar Housing and Development Corporation (TAHDCO) and the unsympathetic attitude of Air Hostess Academy (AHA) that trained them.
The trainees, belonging to the scheduled castes (SC) and scheduled tribes (ST) communities, have not received their certificates even five months after passing out as TAHDCO, that is supposed to bear the cost of the one-year course, has not paid their fees.
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Jennifer and Vedanayaki were selected by Indian Airlines as ground staff but were not appointed, as they did not have the qualifying certificates. Three others in Emirates Airlines fear losing their jobs because they do not have certificates.
The academy had fixed a fee of Rs 1 lakh for students sponsored by TAHDCO. Even as the students were running around for their certificates, the Academy told them that TAHDCO had not paid any fees for their study. Another version is that a part of the fees had been paid. TAHDCO, on its part, has said that it had no funds.
15/08/09 Sangeetha Neeraja/ExpressBuzz

The list of admitted candidates for Pilot Licence Examination July 2009 regular session is published at the DGCA site.
The examinations are to be conducted on 11, 12 and 13 of August 2009. Here is the list of admitted candidates.
The schedule of exam can be found here.
The rejected candidates lists also are published:
List1, List2
06/08/09 DGCA

Mumbai: Jet Airways pilots' association today said it has given the management seven days time to reinstate two sacked pilots, failing which it may resort to industrial action.
"After seven days notice, it could be industrial action (which can be a strike) to be undertaken by the Guild," National Aviators Guild (NAG) President Girish Kaushik told reporters here.
The Guild is sending the notice today, he said.
Jet Airways recently sacked two of its pilots -- Captain Sam Thomas and Captain Balaraman -- alleging that the two were indulging in union activities.
The Jet Airways pilots recently formed the National Aviators Guild to take up various pilot-related issues such as carrier progression and wage revision, among others, with the management. Jet Airways, however, has refused to recognise the Guild.
06/08/09 Press Trust of India/Business Standard

New Delhi: The Delhi High court today refused to quash the requirement for pilots to serve six-month notice period before quitting their respective airlines.
A division bench headed by Chief Justice A P Shah held that the Civil Aviation Requirement (CAR) of 2005 is binding on the pilots till the time it is revoked or modified by the Directorate General of Civil Aviation.
CAR mandates that pilots give six month notice on resigning from their services.
Court's direction came over a petition filed by Jet Airways, which has challenged an order passed by the single member bench directing the airline to give No Objection Certificate to a pilot named Captain Randeep Pratap Singh Panag who had put in his papers.
The court had also sought DGCA's opinion. The aviation regulatory body had sought some more time on it.
06/08/09 PTI/Indopia

New Delhi: The Delhi High Court has asked the national airlines to conduct the re-examination of an aspiring pilot whose selection was denied on medical grounds despite having passed the written test and interview.
"Denial of re-examination would result in injustice to the student," Justice Siddharth Mridul told National Aviation Company of India Ltd (NACIL) in a judgement earlier this week.
The court was hearing the plea of Abhishek Antil who had applied for the post of cadet pilot but the company declared him medically unfit because he was found suffering from hypothyroidism.
According to Antil, he had successfully cleared the medical evaluation and other tests conducted by the Indian Air Force (IAF) authorities in March 2007 and had been selected for the technical branch as a permanent commissioned officer. He said medical tests have proved he was not suffering from the disease.
But the airline counsel dismissed the medical reports saying medication can suppress the results and prevent hypothyroidism from being detected during tests. The airline counsel contended that the company had no policy to conduct re-examination.
05/08/09 IANS/SamayLive

A Sydney flying school that teaches large numbers of Indian students has been deregistered by the NSW Government after a ‘‘critical’’ breach of standards.
The school, Aerospace Aviation, last night issued a statement saying it would appeal against the decision by the Vocational Education and Training Accreditation Board. The board has previously alleged the school had used unqualified trainers.
The husband and wife team Zane and Sue Davis own the school that is based at Bankstown Airport. Mrs Davis is the managing director and chief flying instructor of the 25-year-old business. Her husband is a Qantas pilot.
The deregistration follows a Civil Aviation Safety Authority audit expressing satisfaction with the flying credentials of the instructors of the course.
The federal Department of Education, Employment and Workplace Relations inquired into the school and found against a group of Indian students who complained about conditions.
More than 20 Indian students complained in October that the school had failed to deliver the training promised for a commercial pilot course, including 200 hours of flying time.
06/08/09 Heath Gilmore and Erik Jensen/The Sydney Morning Herald/brisbanetimes, Australia

New Delhi: Recession-hit private airline Jet Airways is all set to carry out downsizing of employee strength in a phased manner over the next six months.
CNN-IBN learns that the job-cuts are supposed to be carried out from amongst the catering and crew members.
On Saturday July 11, 2009 Jet Airways had terminated the services of more than 40 trainee junior technicians on contract as part of its restructuring exercise in view of the challenges of the global financial downturn.
“These personnel are on fixed term contracts and the notices have been issued in accordance to the terms of their contract and law,” a Jet Airways spokesperson had told the media.
Some of them have also been offered opportunities to work in other departments of the airline, she had added.
“This trimming of the workforce has been necessitated by the ongoing rationalisation of airline operations,” the spokesperson said.
Kingfisher Airlines is also undertaking similar measures to stem rising losses.
05/08/09 PTI/CNN-IBN

New Delhi: Jet Airways has sacked two of its senior pilots for joining a newly formed union.
Balaraman and Sam Thomas were sacked for joining the National Aviators Guild - the pilots' union - which was registered with the labour commissioner in Mumbai last month.
"The two pilots were asked to leave last week. It is, however, not part of our cost restructuring operations," a spokesperson for the airline told IANS Wednesday.
The two sacked pilots enjoy the backing of over 600 union members, union officials said.
They added that pilots were considering going on strike if the two were not reinstated.
05/08/09 IANS/Economic Times

Mumbai: Air India today scrapped induction of 42 trainee pilots into the company even though the airline is facing an acute shortage of pilots at the senior level and has about 170 expatriate pilots employed on contractual basis and flying as commanders.
The reason given by the carrier, in an e-mail office order dated July 31, is that as the carrier might defer deliveries of the Boeing 787s, the recruitment has to be put on hold.
However, a senior official from the airline said that even if the recruitment was put on hold because of deferral of deliveries of 787s’, the airline already had 178 expatriate pilots who come at enormous costs. “The fact is we even have a shortage of co-pilots and DGCA does not allow you to hire expatriate co-pilots. The shortage (of co-pilots) is such that these expatriate pilots are flying as co-pilots in Air India Express,” he claimed. While an expatriate commander is paid about Rs 5.5 lakh plus hotel bills every month, fresh first officers can be hired for just about a Rs one lakh per month.
05/08/09 Shashank Shekhar/Indian Express

Mumbai: SpiceJet, the Gurgaon-based low-fare carrier, will hire 84 cabin crew and 24 pilots by the end of current calendar year, as the airline plans to add four new aircraft to its fleet from March 2010. These new planes will be used to connect tier-1 and tier-2 cities in the country, CEO Sanjay Aggarwal told ET recently.
The move comes even as private air carriers, including SpiceJet, have agreed to stop operations on August 18 if the government does not roll back high taxes, which the airlines say, have affected their profitability. Interestingly, SpiceJet has been able to post a net profit of Rs 26 crore in the quarter ended June due to lower fuel charges and better route management.
“We are preparing a full-fledged plan for the current financial year, including fleet expansions and manpower additions,” Mr Aggarwal told ET. “Four new planes will be added to our fleet from March next year. We need around 21 cabin crew and six pilots for every single aircraft.”
These recruitments will be in addition to the 12 pilots that the company hired last month. According to current industry benchmarks, a pilot gets about Rs 6 lakh per month, including accommodation allowance. The pay goes up depending on the number of flying hours the pilot has put in. Industry observers say there are many local Indian hands as many pilots and cabin crew had recently lost jobs due to the grounding of flights and rationalising of routes of aviation companies.
Apart from earlier-placed orders, SpiceJet plans to order new passenger planes by December as it seeks to expand its fleet to meet potential growth in air travel. Currently, SpiceJet has a fleet of 19 Boeing 737 aircraft.
03/08/09 Mithun Roy/Economic Times