Air India will phase out expatriate pilots eventually

Air India is currently expanding in every way possible. One of the most significant growth areas is its fleet and network, and finding qualified crew to operate its aircraft has been challenging. The carrier’s decision to hire expat pilots to operate some planes was criticized, but now Air India's CEO has clarified that it is only a temporary solution to a temporary problem. Air India CEO Campbell Wilson has clarified the airline’s position on expat pilots. In an interview with The Hindu and Businessline, he explained that the airline’s current expansion has been unlike anything it has witnessed in recent years. For many years the carrier was actually shrinking, with several planes grounded and many others flying after cannibalizing other aircraft for parts. But after the Tatas took over, there was ample financial backing to get the grounded fleet back in the air and also welcome additional planes on short-term leases. But this posed a new challenge. Finding qualified crew with enough experience quickly, particularly for some of its widebody fleet, has been a challenge. Air India has been able to lease 11 Boeing 777s and will also receive six Airbus A350s in the coming months. This amounts to an increase in widebody fleet by 17 aircraft in 12 months. Wilson explained that hiring expat pilots to fly some of these planes is, in fact, just a temporary solution, saying, “The expatriate pilot plan, I need to make this very clear, is a temporary solution to a temporary problem … 17 aircraft [are] coming in [in] the space of less than 12 months. You do not have the pipeline ready to fly those aircraft overnight, as it takes time to build. And clearly we would want to build it from within and staff these aircraft from within... the time is just too short. The intention was and remains for them to fly only so long as it takes to recruit and promote from within. And that is actually happening faster than we expected.”<br/>