Hearing on the petition challenging the decision to keep the Flight Duty Time Limitation (FDTL) rules on hold.
Jagran correspondent, New Delhi. The Delhi High Court sought the response of the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) on a plea challenging its decision to put on hold the new Flight Duty Time Limitation (FDTL) rules following massive disruptions in airline services. During the hearing of the case, a bench of Chief Justice Devendra Kumar Upadhyay and Justice Tejas Karia remarked that the rules should be implemented as they have a direct bearing on the safety of passengers.
The regulator made some rules
The bench said that the regulator has made certain rules and unless it is challenged or there is some lacuna in it, it has to be implemented. These have not been practically followed. With the above comment, the court asked advocate Anjan Gosain, appearing for DGCA, to take instructions on the matter by Thursday. The next hearing on the case will be held on Thursday.
no right to withhold rules
Petitioner Sabri Rai Layne and other petitioners had filed a petition challenging the DGCA's decision to put the rules on hold. The petitioners say that the DGCA does not have the power to withhold the rules and hence the rules should be implemented. The DGCA had introduced revised rules in 2025 to improve safety by limiting pilots' duty hours, increasing rest periods and reducing night landings, in line with global fatigue-risk standards.
Exempted till early February 2026
However, when these strict rules came into force, the country's largest airline IndiGo found it difficult to comply with them. This led to mass flight cancellations and delays in the first week of December. To ease the inconvenience to passengers, DGCA has temporarily put the new FDTL rules on hold and relaxed them till the beginning of February 2026, so that the airlines can adjust themselves. The petition has also demanded action against IndiGo for not providing facilities like free food, refreshments and hotel stay in case of flight cancellation.
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