DGCA issues record pilot licenses

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India is putting more and more planes in the air as the nation aspires to expand its skies into one of the biggest aviation markets in the country and to put more and more wings in the blue, the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) has issued a record number of commercial pilot licenses (CPL) in 2023. The number of CPLs issued by the civil aviation regulator in 2023 leaped 39% last year compared to 2022 and reached 1,622. Moreover, the number of CPLs given to women increased 22.5%. This number was the highest in the past 10 years. In 2022, DGCA issued 1,165 licenses to commercial pilots, said an official statement by DGCA. “The record issue of 1,622 CPLs for 2023 has surpassed the previous milestone of 1,165 licences issued in 2022, witnessing a 39.22 increase,” read the statement. Data indicate the Indian aviation is the third-largest and fastest-growing market in the world. It is growing at the rate of nearly 10% in the last decades which is 2.5 times faster than the worldwide rate of growth. The DGCA statement issued on January 1 said 2023 is the second consecutive year where the number of licences issued scaled decade-high peaks. The growth of licences issued to women was 18.12%. About 14% of the female workforce associated with scheduled airline companies are women pilots, DGCA said. The statement also claimed India issues one of the highest number of CPLs to women pilots, which is paving the way for women to storm this bastion which is traditionally held by men. The Indian civil aviation sector is not only recovering quickly from the hit of the pandemic but also is poised for major growth with Air India and Indigo jointly ordering more than 1,000 aircraft from major suppliers such as Airbus. These aircraft are supposed to joint the fleet of these carriers in the next five-six years. DGCA is also giving nods to organisations that train helicopter pilots. Small business and helicopter operators are in great demand and the country needs a number of helicopter pilots too. Helicopters are important for boosting regional connectivity. Use of choppers for ferrying patients and pilgrims is rising in the country. With training institutes coming up, these would provide the much-needed human resource beyond the ex-servicemen pilots of helicopters.