- KR Bharat
- 2025-10-22
At a recent industry event in New Delhi, Pieter Elbers of IndiGo expressed concern over the trend of foreign airlines recruiting Indian-trained pilots without early coordination. While discussing India’s aviation growth, he said that foreign carriers “poaching” Indian pilots would be “disturbing” for the domestic industry. His remarks highlighted the strain on Indian carriers who are already facing shortages of experienced flight crew.
India’s aviation ministry has also brought this issue to the forefront by submitting a working paper to the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), calling for a global “code of conduct” on hiring aviation personnel across borders. The paper argues that the unregulated movement of pilots, engineers and cabin-crew from Indian carriers disrupts training investments, undermines Indian airlines’ growth plans and hampers safety and operational continuity.
However, this proposal has been met with resistance from the Airline Pilots' Association of India (ALPA). The union argues that restricting mobility of Indian aviation professionals infringes on their constitutional rights and could amount to bonded labour. They state that the root issue is not foreign recruitment per se, but rather domestic airline working conditions, pay structures and career progression that prompt talent to seek opportunities abroad.
In short: while India’s carriers and regulators are flagging concerns about the outflow of trained aviation staff as a threat to expanding the country’s fast-growing aviation sector, there is a balancing act between protecting national operational capacity and preserving individual professionals’ rights to seek employment globally. Elbers’ comment underscores the industry-wide sensitivity to this trend and the need for a coherent strategy to address it.
