India, Oct. 19 -- The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) has purportedly told airlines that no relaxations to pilot duty and rest rules will be allowed from March 2027, when the Flight Duty Time Limitations (FDTL) take full effect. The regulator has set such dates before, but this one has to hold.

Pilots have fought for these rules since 2012, when their associations petitioned the Delhi High Court for fatigue norms in line with global practice. The court closed the case only in April 2025, after DGCA committed to phasing in rules notified in January 2024: one set of provisions from July 2025, and the second, governing night operations, from November 2025. That second phase was deferred for all airlines after IndiGo's operation...