The number of <keyword id="587323" type="General" weightage="80" keywordseo="commercial-pilot-licenses" source="Orion">Commercial Pilot Licenses</keyword> (CPLs) issued have recorded a steady rise over the past few years along with the growth in the aviation sector in the country, with 699 already issued in the first six months of this year as against 862 in 2021. As per the <keyword id="6368649" type="General" weightage="80" keywordseo="civil-aviation" source="Orion">Civil Aviation</keyword> Ministry's data, a total of 4,612 commercial pilot licenses have been issued in the country since 2016. The ministry has said that there is no shortage of pilots in <keyword id="3658" type="General" weightage="50" keywordseo="india" source="Orion">India</keyword>. "There is, however, a marginal shortage of commanders on certain types of aircraft and the same is being managed by utilising foreign pilots by issuing Foreign Aircrew Temporary Authorisation (FATA). "As the air traffic increases, the requirement of pilots will go up. As per industry projections, there may be a need for 1,000 pilots per annum over next five years. Given the growing requirement in the domestic aviation sector, most trained pilots get employed," Civil Aviation Minister <keyword id="29632" type="General" weightage="80" keywordseo="jyotiraditya-scindia" source="Orion">Jyotiraditya Scindia</keyword> had told the <keyword id="6354721" type="General" weightage="50" keywordseo="parliament" source="Orion">Parliament</keyword> recently. There were 34 Flying Training Organisations (FTO) as on March 31, 2022. Since then, four more have commenced operations - two at Karnataka's Kalaburagi, and one each at Maharashtra's Jalgaon and Assam's <keyword id="1476470" type="General" weightage="80" keywordseo="lilabari" source="Orion">Lilabari</keyword> - taking the number to 38 as on July 31, 2022. Currently, there are six approved type rating training organisations in India which are providing aircraft type rating training after obtaining CPL. FTOs are established and operated largely by private entities under the regulatory supervision of the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA). It has issued No Objection Certificate (NOC) to two operators to set up FTOs at Salem and Hosur airports in <keyword id="20154" type="General" weightage="80" keywordseo="tamil-nadu" source="Orion">Tamil Nadu</keyword>. SEE ALSO : <a target="_blank" class="c-link c-message_attachment__title_link" href="https://www.businessinsider.in/finance/news/not-only-foreign-investors-but-indian-retail-investors-also-seem-to-be-losing-faith-in-markets/articleshow/93457258.cms">Although FII flows have reversed, retail investor confidence remains low thanks to macro concerns</a> <a target="_blank" class="c-link c-message_attachment__title_link" href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/news/indias-lab-grown-diamonds-are-adding-more-shine-to-the-worlds-diamond-market/articleshow/93458389.cms">Indian diamantaires want to make lab-grown diamonds a woman’s best friend</a>

India issues more pilot licenses as its air traffic increases

Given the growth in the aviation sector it is expected that <keyword id="3658" type="General" weightage="100" keywordseo="india" source="Orion">India</keyword> is likely to require over 1,000 pilots per annum over the next five years. However, experts have said that the country lacks the adequate pilot training infrastructure to produce trained pilots. They also said that the number of commercial pilot licenses issued during the last few years is hardly enough to meet the rising demand. As per the <keyword id="149609" type="General" weightage="50" keywordseo="ministry-of-civil-aviation" source="Orion">Ministry of civil aviation</keyword>, a total 744 commercial pilot licenses (CPL) were issued during the year 2019 which came down to 578 in the year 2020. However, the number increased further to 862 in the year 2021. A senior pilot said, "Demand of pilots is going to rise. Nearly 200 retirements are expected every year... But, we don't have adequate infrastructure for this. Currently, a large number of pilots get training in other countries. After coming here, they need to undergo 20 hours of flying, including day and night and cross country for the issue of CPL by the regulator. Issuance of CPLs also takes some time." "Government has taken initiatives, but, lack of proper infrastructure at flight training organisations has been observed. There should be monitoring and audit of FTOs," he added. While the government has said that there is no shortage of pilots in India, it also admitted a marginal shortage of commanders on certain types of aircraft and the same is being managed by utilising foreign pilots by issuing Foreign Aircrew Temporary Authorization (FATA). There were 82 FATA-holders in India as on June 30, 2022, as compared to over 9,000 pilots employed with airlines in India, said a <keyword id="6354721" type="General" weightage="50" keywordseo="parliament" source="Orion">Parliament</keyword> reply on July 28, 2022. Recently, Air India planned to hire foreign pilots to meet its requirements on the Boeing 777 fleet through a placement firm and these pilots are being offered better pay, lucrative terms and generous benefits. However, many senior Indian pilots termed the move as a crazy initiative when India already has efficient and experienced pilots for Boeing 777. Officials said that the government has taken multiple initiatives keeping in view the requirement of trained pilots. In 2020, Airports Authority of India (<keyword id="47439" type="General" weightage="80" keywordseo="aai" source="Orion">AAI</keyword>) came up with a liberalised Flight Training Organisation (FTO) policy. In 2021, after a competitive bidding process, AAI awarded nine FTO slots at five airports at Belagavi (Karnataka), Jalgaon (Maharashtra), Kalaburagi (Karnataka), Khajuraho (Madhya Pradesh) and Lilabari (Assam). As on 30th June 2022, four of these FTOs are operational, one each at Jalgaon and Lilabari, and two at Kalaburagi. In June 2022, after a competitive bidding process, six more FTO slots were awarded by AAI at five airports namely: Bhavnagar (Gujarat), Hubballi (Karnataka), Kadapa (Andhra Pradesh), Kishangarh (Rajasthan) and Salem (Tamil Nadu). A Parliamentary standing <keyword id="47865" type="General" weightage="80" keywordseo="committee" source="Orion">committee</keyword> on Transport and Tourism in its recent report took note of the new initiatives saying, "The Committee supports the new initiatives of the Ministry as it is of the opinion that with the expected growth of the Civil Aviation Sector in the country, there would be increased demand for trained pilots. The Ministry should therefore gear up for the requirement of FTOs and set up FTOs in a time bound manner." Recommending more FTOs, the report said, "The Committee also recommends that keeping in view of the Atmanirbhar Bharat, sufficient Flight Training Organisations (FTOs) may be established in various parts of the country to ensure that our boys and girls are not going to foreign countries to get pilot training." SEE ALSO: <a target="_blank" class="c-link c-message_attachment__title_link" href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/news/adb-wabag-sign-usd-25-mn-debt-facility-for-sanitation-water-security-in-india/articleshow/95781185.cms">ADB, Wabag sign USD 25 mn debt facility for sanitation, water security in India</a> <a target="_blank" class="c-link c-message_attachment__title_link" href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/news/rbi-pauses-onboarding-of-online-merchants-by-paytm-payments-services-firm-says-no-material-impact-on-biz/articleshow/95780851.cms">RBI pauses onboarding of online merchants by Paytm Payments Services; firm says no material impact on biz</a>

India needs 1,000+ pilots annually, but training infra in short supply

<ul><li>There are 15% <keyword id="72719" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="women-pilots" source="Orion">women pilots</keyword> working across Indian airlines currently.</li><li>This percentage is thrice the global average, says the Civil <keyword id="53054" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="aviation-ministry" source="Orion">Aviation Ministry</keyword>.</li><li>In spite of an improving gender diversity, the Indian <keyword id="45911" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="aviation-sector" source="Orion">aviation sector</keyword> could fall short of employees thanks to new airline launches, relaunches and comebacks.</li></ul>The Ministry of Civil Aviation said in a Lok Sabha session that the share of women pilots in the overall pool of pilots is significantly higher in <keyword id="3658" type="General" weightage="100" keywordseo="india" source="Orion">India</keyword> as compared to the global average. Jyotiraditya Scindia, Union Civil Aviation Minister, further added that only 5% of the pilots are women globally, but the share of <keyword id="2610372" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="women-pilots-in-india" source="Orion">women pilots in India</keyword> is 15%. “Globally, according to the International Society of Women Airline Pilots, around 5 percent of pilots are women. In India, the share of women pilots is significantly higher - at around 15 percent,” Scindia said in the parliament. The Ministry also said that its associated organizations have taken several initiatives to increase the number of pilots in the country for both women and men. “These include issuing award letters by Airports Authority of India for nine new Flying Training Organizations (FTO) slots at five airports namely Belagavi, Jalgaon, Kalaburagi, Khajuraho and Lilabari in the first phase and six more FTO slots at five airports in the second phase namely Bhavnagar, Hubballi, Kadapa, Kishangarh and Salem,” Scindia added. These initiatives will enrich the number of flying hours at FTOS and will also increase the number of commercial pilot licenses issued per annum. “ In addition, Women in Aviation International (WAI), India Chapter, conducts awareness programmes across the country to encourage women aviation professionals with special focus on young schoolgirls especially from low income families,” the ministry said. However, according to several media reports, there are over 17,700 registered pilots in India, out of which only 2,500 are women. <cmsannotation type="cmsannotation" annotationid="Talent crunch in the aviation industry" comment="subhead" text="Talent crunch in the aviation industry">Talent crunch in the aviation industry</cmsannotation> In spite of good gender diversity, the Indian aviation sector could fall short of employees thanks to new airline launches, relaunches and comebacks — Akasa Airlines, Tata Air and Jet Airways, respectively. “India needs 10,000 more flight attendants, 6,000 more qualified pilots. Compared to past slowdown of 2010, 2012 or 2009 in the industry, this time it is going to be very hard for the airlines to sustain. To sustain growth one has to add aircrafts, fleets, need more pilots, flight attendants, engineers,” Mark Martin, founder and CEO of Martin Consulting told Business Insider in an interview. Experts believe that an increase in demand for experienced pilots will push them to hire foreign pilots. Flying schools had closed during the Covid-19 pandemic for two years and there are a lot of pending licenses to be approved as well. It’s not just the pilots but there will be a shortage of experienced engineers, ground staff and other cabin crew that <keyword id="1997286" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="new-airlines" source="Orion">new airlines</keyword> would need to hire. It means an aviation talent war is afoot and it will be another ground for old and new airlines alike to battle on — in addition to fliers and flying slots. SEE ALSO: <a target="_blank" class="c-link c-message_attachment__title_link" href="https://www.businessinsider.in/india/news/air-indias-cochin-flight-diverted-to-mumbai-after-pressure-loss/articleshow/93042126.cms">Air India's Cochin flight diverted to Mumbai after pressure loss</a> <a target="_blank" class="c-link c-message_attachment__title_link" href="https://www.businessinsider.in/finance/news/bihar-self-help-groups-raise-the-most-loans-but-andhra-tops-in-loan-quality/articleshow/93036522.cms">Bihar self-help groups raise the most loans but Andhra tops in loan quality</a>

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India issues more pilot licenses as its air traffic increases

IANS

India needs 1,000+ pilots annually, but training infra in short supply

IANS

India has 3x more women pilots than the global average

Vaamanaa Sethi