New Delhi— The Federation of Indian Pilots (FIP) has filed a civil cPilots’ Federation Moves Delhi High Court, Accuses DGCA and Aviation Ministry of Defying FDTL Implementation Ordersontempt petition in the Delhi High Court against the Director General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) and the Secretary of the Ministry of Civil Aviation (MoCA), accusing them of deliberately violating court-mandated deadlines for enforcing the revised Flight Duty Time Limitations (FDTL) under CAR-2024.
In the plea, filed under Section 2(b) and Section 12 of the Contempt of Courts Act, 1971, and Article 215 of the Constitution, the FIP alleges that both officials “wilfully, intentionally and consciously” ignored binding timelines set by the High Court through orders passed on February 24 and April 7 this year. The case will be heard on November 17.
The FIP, which represents nearly 6,000 pilots, had earlier challenged the earlier 2019 FDTL norms. During that case, the DGCA submitted an affidavit on February 19, outlining a phased rollout of CAR-2024—committing to implement 15 provisions by July 1, 2025, and the remaining seven by November 1, 2025. The High Court accepted this schedule and closed the matter in April.
However, the new petition claims that the regulator later issued unauthorized extensions to airlines, allowing them to delay compliance beyond November 1, 2025. The FIP specifically cites an extension granted on October 29, 2025, which permitted Air India to operate Boeing 787 Dreamliner flights to Europe under relaxed duty-time norms due to prolonged flight durations caused by Pakistan’s airspace closure.
The pilots’ body argues that these relaxations contradict the commitments made before the court and undermine the entire CAR-2024 framework. It also asserts that there is no pilot shortage that could justify such exemptions, stating that capacity constraints are not a barrier to timely implementation.
Calling the DGCA’s actions a “direct compromise with flight safety,” the FIP warns that diluted duty-time limits could reduce cockpit alertness during critical phases of flight. The group also noted that it had written to the DGCA on October 28 requesting withdrawal of all extensions, but received no corrective response.
The petition urges the High Court to summon the DGCA and MoCA officials and initiate punishment under contempt laws for allegedly acting in violation of judicial orders.
