ALPA India to Brief Parliamentary Standing Committee on FDTL Gaps, Pilot Fatigue and GPS Spoofing Risks.

New Delhi; December 2025: The Airline Pilots’ Association of India (ALPA India) has been invited to

Parliament by the Parliamentary Standing Committee to present its concerns on Flight Duty Time Limitations (FDTL), pilot fatigue and growing safety risks in the aviation sector.

According to ALPA, the discussion will focus on gaps in the implementation of revised FDTL norms and continuing concerns over duty-time compliance across airlines. ALPA India has repeatedly warned that poor fatigue management can affect flight safety. ALPA India will also brief members of Parliament on the rise in GPS spoofing incidents reported at major airports in recent months.

In an official statement, the organisation said,

“ALPA India has been officially invited by the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Transport, Tourism and Culture to present pilots’ concerns on FDTL non-compliance, duty-time violations, and

operational stress. For the first time, pilot fatigue, FDTL violations, and safety critical

operational realities will be heard at the highest legislative forum“.

Earlier, Captain Anil Rao, General Secretary of ALPA India, raised concerns over the “temporary exemption” granted to IndiGo from certain FDTL rules by the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA). Speaking to reporters, Rao said the exemption created a safety risk. He said,

“The root cause should be explained to the people. The issue is the chances of it happening again. Our concern is that DGCA allowing a temporary exemption from some FDTL rules compromises the

safety. Today, we have one law for IndiGo and another for other operators. To fulfil the

demands of the flights, we are compromising on safety, and that will not go very well

with the flying public”.

He added that:  

“the airline had not clearly explained the reasons behind the disruption. This was totally unwarranted and unexpected because passengers were not expecting it. The company is saying it is a miscalculation. We don’t know what the miscalculation is because it hasn’t been

clearly stated where the miscalculation occurred or where the error happened.

DGCA has formed a panel of its own officials who will look

into this matter and provide a review“.

Meanwhile, Union Civil Aviation Minister Kinjarapu Rammohan Naidu on Monday confirmed that several flights approaching Delhi’s Indira Gandhi International Airport recently experienced GPS spoofing while using GPS-based landing procedures on Runway 10. He made the remarks in response to a starred question raised in the Rajya Sabha.

The Minister said affected aircraft switched to contingency procedures after receiving spoofed navigation signals, while operations on other runways were not impacted due to the use of ground-based navigational aids. Naidu added that the DGCA had issued an Advisory Circular addressing GNSS interference and introduced a new Standard Operating Procedure on November 10, for real-time reporting of GPS spoofing events.

The Airports Authority of India (AAI) has also sought help from the Wireless Monitoring Organisation (WMO) to trace the source of the interference. Naidu reiterated while adding,

“After being mandated by DGCA to report instances of GPS Jamming/Spoofing since November 2023, regular reports are being received from other major airports in the country. Kolkata, Amritsar,

Mumbai, Hyderabad, Bengaluru, and Chennai airports have all recorded GNSS interference incidents“.

The Minister said India continues to maintain a Minimum Operating Network of conventional navigational infrastructure to ensure integrity during such incidents and is actively participating in global forums to upgrade technology. He also noted that the aviation sector faces heightened cybersecurity threats, including ransomware and malware attacks, and said AAI is deploying advanced systems in line with guidelines from NCIIPC and CERT-In. Naidu stressed that cybersecurity measures must be continuously upgraded as threats evolve.

While expressing his concerns regarding the ongoing fiasco, Congress leader KC Venugopal claimed that “hidden things are happening” and demanded an answer from the government on the exact action to be taken to alleviate the people’s troubles. “There are hidden things happening in this matter. There

should be an investigation. We need a full answer on what action to take. People in our country are troubled,” Venugopal told reporters outside Parliament.

Congress MP Chamala Kiran Kumar Reddy criticised the Union Civil Aviation Minister, saying that no clear answers were given in Parliament. “The civil aviation minister is trying to say that IndiGo is coping up with the situation and it will come into normal functioning within a few days… Until now, he hasn’t clearly explained where the system went wrong with the IndiGo and what action to take on IndiGo? What compensation are they giving to the people”, he said.

“He (Union Civil Aviation Minister) didn’t even answer whether there is any mechanism which is going to come into place to regularise the airfares… Otherwise, the people of this country will be exploited by airlines again and again. Major issues have not been answered. He only formally read what he had brought, a note, and then he just left. We walked out of the House because we wanted proper justification to be done to the people,” he added.

Earlier today, Union Civil Aviation Minister Ram Mohan Naidu Kinjarapu summoned IndiGo CEO Pieter Elbers and top management officials. The Union Civil Aviation Ministry has ordered the airline to

curtail its overall operations by 10%, up from an earlier order of 05%, citing the necessity to “stabilise the airline’s operations”. The airline is ordered to continue covering its usual destinations.

The ministry also gave “strict instructions” to expedite baggage return and complete remaining refunds for the passengers. In his post on X, the Union Minister noted,

“The Ministry considers it necessary to curtail the overall “The Ministry considers it necessary to curtail the overall Indigo routes, which will help in stabilising the airline’s operations and lead to reduced cancellations. A curtailment of 10% has been ordered. While abiding with it, Indigo will continue

to cover all its destinations as before. Indigo has been instructed to comply with all the

directives of the Ministry, including fare capping and passenger convenience

measures without any exception“.

According to the union minister, IndiGo CEO Elbers has confirmed that the airline has confirmed 100% of its refunds for flights affected till 06th December.

Team Maverick.