DGCA can fix pilots’ working hours, rules Supreme Court
May 3rd, 2011 - 11:47 pm ICT by IANSNew Delhi, May 3 (IANS) The Supreme Court Tuesday held that aviation regulator Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) has full authority to issue a circular fixing the duty hours of pilots.
The apex court bench of Justice P. Sathasivam and Justice B.S. Chauhan said this in their ruling that also rejected the plea by the Joint Action Committee of Airlines Pilots Association (JACAPA) that challenged the 2008 circular of the DGCA revoking its earlier circular of 2007 revising pilots’ flying hours.
As per the norms issued in 2007, pilots were expected to fly for nine hours in their 12-hour shift. However, this circular was rescinded and superseded by another circular of May 2008, which restored the earlier 10 hours of flying in a 14-hour shift.
The pilots had contended that the 2008 circular provided for longer working hours which could endanger passenger safety.
At present, pilots are following the 2007 circular, but the DGCA will issue new set of flying hours within 30 days.
The JACAPA challenged the 2008 circular of the DGCA, saying it was not entirely its own but was issued under pressure from the civil aviation ministry to accommodate the private airlines which wanted to keep the operational costs low by making pilots work for longer hours.
The apex court, however, said that it was within the powers of the DGCA to fix these timings and it had done so in consultation with the civil aviation minister, who is the competent authority under the Business Rules, 1961.
Speaking for the bench, Justice Chauhan said: “It is evident that executive instructions issued for guidance and to implement the scheme of the Act and (which) do not have the force of law, can be issued by the competent authority and altered, replaced and substituted at any time.”
It further said that it is a settled legal proposition that the authority which has been conferred with the competence under the statute alone can pass the order. No other person, even a superior authority, can interfere with the functioning of the statutory authority.
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Tags: action committee, apex, apex court, business rules, civil aviation ministry, competence, competent authority, consultation, court bench, dgca, directorate general, guidance, New Delhi, norms, operational costs, passenger safety, pilots association, plea, private airlines, supreme court