Domestic airlines have 298 foreign pilots, asked to reduce the number: Govt

Domestic airlinesa have employed 298 foreign pilots and the carriers have been advised to reduce their dependence on overseas pilots, according to the government.

The Civil Aviation Ministry today informed the Lok Sabha that the existing provision for allowing foreign pilots to fly India-registered aircraft on the basis of Foreign Aircrew Temporary Authorisation (FATA) is up to December 31, 2020.

The total number of foreign pilots employed by various domestic airlines is 298, Minister of State for Civil Aviation Jayant Sinha said in a written reply.

"Keeping in view the projected requirements of 1,043 aircraft to be inducted by schedule airlines over a period of next eight years and air crew/ aircraft utilisation, there is a projected requirement of approximately 12,516 pilots in the country by 2025," he said.

The minister said all domestic airlines have been advised to develop their in-house strength to reduce the dependency on foreign pilots.

In pics: World's largest amphibious aircraft AG600 makes its maiden flight

China on Sunday conducted the maiden flight of its domestically developed AG600, the world’s largest amphibious aircraft, from an airport on the shores of the South China Sea. This is the latest step in China's  military modernisation programme.

Powered by four turboprop engines, the AG600 can carry 50 people during maritime search-and-rescue missions, and can scoop up 12 metric tonnes of water within 20 seconds for fire-fighting trips, according to Xinhua news agency.

The AG600, codenamed Kunlong, can reach the southernmost edge of China's territorial claims in the area.

The state media said the aircraft was the “protector spirit of the sea, islands and reefs”.

AG600 AG600 claims to be the world's largest amphibious aircraft. Photo: Twitter (@PDChina) State-owned Aviation Industry Corp of China (AVIC) has spent almost eight years developing the aircraft, which is roughly the size of a Boeing Co 737 and is designed to carry out marine rescues and battle forest fires.
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