NEW DELHI: The government has started work on a plan to turn airfields belonging to the staterun Airports Authority of India (AAI), including non-operational ones, into pilot academies to help meet burgeoning demand in India and overseas. India’s pilot shortage means that the country’s fastexpanding carriers have to hire foreign pilots or even cancel flights at times.
“The aviation ministry’s view is that the country has human capital and the plan is to produce enough pilots so that we are able to meet not just India’s demand but also become a pilot supplier to the world,” said a top government official who sought anonymity.
