Sources informed news agency PTI on Saturday that the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) has sent a show-cause notice to Air India for breaching flight duty time limitations (FDTL) regulations for the crew. This occurred after the aviation safety regulator mandated the removal of three Air India officials from crew scheduling duties due to ongoing and significant breaches of aviation safety regulations.
The three identified officials are Choorah Singh, Divisional Vice President; Pinky Mittal, Chief Manager – DOPS, Crew Scheduling; and Payal Arora, Crew Scheduling – Planning.
As per the DGCA order from June 20, these individuals engaged in several violations, such as unauthorized and non-compliant crew pairings, breaches of licensing and crew rest regulations, and persistent failures in oversight.
The DGCA identified breaches of the flight duty time limits during inspections of the May 16 and 17 Bengaluru-London flights, where the FDTL surpassed the 10-hour maximum, according to the notice.
“A spot check revealed the Accountable Manager of Air India conducted two flights from Bengaluru to London (Al133) on May 16, 2025, and May 17, 2025, both surpassing the mandated flight time limit of 10 hours,” the DGCA stated in the notice citing a breach of Civil Aviation Requirement.
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The DGCA has asked Air India to provide an explanation within seven days for why “action should not be taken regarding these violations, according to the notice”.
The decision followed more than a week after an Air India flight AI171 from Ahmedabad to London crashed shortly after takeoff, resulting in the deaths of over 270 individuals both on the aircraft and on the ground.
The DGCA has instructed Air India to promptly dismiss the three officials from their current positions. Air India was directed to commence internal disciplinary actions against them and provide the report to the aviation regulator within 10 days.
