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Pilot duty hours extended to manage Pakistan airspace

closure,

memo shows

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Concerns among pilots over increased workloads amid

booming air

travel

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Permanent solution being worked out, source says

By Abhijith Ganapavaram

NEW DELHI, May 2 (Reuters) - India's aviation regulator

has allowed Air India to temporarily extend the maximum duty

hours and rest period for pilots on long-haul routes to allow

the airline to tackle Pakistan's airspace ban, according to an

internal memo and a source familiar with the matter.

The exemption is for about two weeks beginning April 30 and

is applicable for Airbus and Boeing long-haul jets, according to

the memo, and is meant to cover flights to destinations in the

U.S.

The exemption increases the maximum flight duty period -

typically the time between reporting for duty and the end of

flight-related activities - for pilots and cabin crew, the memo

showed.

Air India and India's civil aviation ministry, which houses

the regulator Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA),

could not be immediately reached for comment.

Indian airlines are bracing for higher fuel costs and longer

journey times after Pakistan shut its airspace to the country's

carriers as tensions between the nuclear-armed neighbours flared

following an attack on tourists in Indian Kashmir last week.

Reuters reported on Thursday that Air India expects to face

around $600 million in additional costs if the ban from

Pakistan's airspace lasts for a year, and has asked the federal

government to compensate it for the hit.

The maximum pilot flight duty period for a flight of up to

12 hours is now 16 hours compared with the previous 14 hours,

while for flights above 14 hours, the duty period has risen to

24 hours instead of 22 hours, according to the memo sent to

pilots and seen by Reuters.

Extra rest periods of four hours and 12 hours over present

limits have also been planned for crew at layovers and the home

base, respectively.

The memo, which was earlier reported by the Economic Times

newspaper, has stoked concerns among pilots about increased

workloads at a time air travel in India is booming, with one Air

India pilot telling Reuters the measures were "extreme."

The DGCA is holding regular conversations with airlines to

ensure pilots and cabin crew are not overburdened, the source

familiar with the issue said. The pilot and the source declined

to be named as they were not authorized to speak to the media.

(Reporting by Abhijith Ganapavaram)