Why different norms for foreign pilots, Indian pilots ask DGCA
Mumbai: It’s a question that Indian pilots have been asking the directorate-general of civil aviation (DGCA) for long: why don’t foreign pilots flying in India go through the same medical tests that they have to undergo and why is India not following international norms?
Following the recent death of a 62-year-old US pilot employed with Air India due to heart attack, Indian pilots have taken up the matter afresh with the DGCA.
“Medical examinations conducted for Indian pilots are very stringent, as a result of which, many pilots are declared medically unfit. However, often, they are replaced by expatriates, who do not have to undergo these tests,” stated an August 5 letter written to Group Capt J K Shrivastava, director, medical services, DGCA. It was sent by the Society for the Welfare of Indian Pilots, a Jet Airways pilots’ organisation.
“After crossing the age of 55, Indian pilots have to take treadmill tests every alternate year. It is a stress test for detecting blockages, if any, in the heart. The 60-year-old US pilot, who died of cardiac arrest, obviously did not go through that test. Had he been an Indian commander, he would not have been flying as he would have failed the treadmill test,” said a senior commander.
Though the letter does not refer to the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) norms, air safety experts said India has been violating international norms by not subjecting foreign pilots to medical tests in the country.
“Annexure I of ICAO, which deals with Licensing of Personnel, states that foreign pilots should undergo the medical tests of the country they are employed in. So a foreign pilot working for an airline in India should clear Indian Class I medical tests. However, the country has not yet started thinking in that direction,” said Capt M Ranganathan, an air safety expert. Incidentally, India had agreed to comply with the ICAO Annex I requirement by March 10, 2007, but has not done it so far.
Currently, the licence of a foreign pilot flying in India is not validated by the DGCA by contacting the country that issued that licence, which again is a violation of the ICAO norm.
08/08/08 Manju V/Times of India