Pakistan Airspace Ban: Dgca Mandates New Rules For Airlines On Passenger Service, Flight Delays

Amid longer formation durations triggered by Pakistan’s airspace closure, India’s aviation regulator, DGCA, connected Saturday issued a elaborate advisory directing airlines to upgrade rider communication, in-flight catering, aesculapian preparedness, and customer service.

The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) said airlines must proactively pass passengers astir revised routing, extended artifact times, and nan anticipation of method stops astatine intermediate airports. The move follows Pakistan's determination to barroom Indian airlines from utilizing its airspace aft escalating tensions betwixt nan 2 countries successful nan aftermath of nan Pahalgam panic onslaught that killed 26 people.

International and location flights, particularly those operating from Delhi and different bluish cities, person been importantly rerouted, starring to longer travel times and imaginable unscheduled halts for operational aliases refuelling purposes, nan regulator said.

In ray of these developments, DGCA issued a information titled Passenger Handling Measures successful View of Airspace Restrictions Resulting successful Extended Flight Durations and Technical Stops, outlining mandatory action points for each hose operators:

1. Pre-Flight Passenger Communication

Airlines must:

• Inform passengers astir routing changes owed to airspace restrictions.

• Communicate nan revised full expected recreation clip (departure to arrival).

• Notify passengers of immoderate imaginable method stopovers and explain that specified stops are operational successful nature, pinch passengers mostly remaining onboard.

• Deliver this accusation proactively astatine check-in, boarding gates, and, wherever feasible, done SMS and email alerts.

2. In-Flight Catering and Comfort

Operators must:

• Revise catering uplift based connected existent expected artifact time, including method halts.

• Ensure proviso of capable meals, beverages, further hydration, barren snacks, and immoderate typical meals per manifest requests.

3. Medical Preparedness and Alternate Aerodromes

Airlines are required to:

• Ensure capable aesculapian kits and first-aid resources onboard for extended operations.

• Validate that alternate airports person emergency aesculapian support and crushed ambulance availability.

• Brief compartment unit connected managing rider fatigue, discomfort, aliases aesculapian incidents during prolonged flights.

4. Customer Service and Support Readiness

Carriers must:

• Brief nan telephone centre and reservations teams astir imaginable delays and schedule disruptions.

• Establish processes for managing missed onward connections and providing assistance to affected passengers.

• Prepare compensatory action plans for delays exceeding period limits, arsenic per CAR (Civil Aviation Requirements) provisions.

5. Intra-Departmental Coordination

Operators must guarantee seamless coordination among:

• Flight Dispatch/IOCC,

• Commercial and Customer Support teams,

• Ground handling and airdrome operations,

• In-flight work providers,

• Medical vendors astatine designated alternate airports.

DGCA stressed that each operators are to dainty this advisory arsenic mandatory guidance successful nan liking of rider safety, comfort, and regulatory compliance. Non-compliance aliases rider inconvenience resulting from nonaccomplishment to instrumentality these measures whitethorn pull enforcement action nether applicable civilian aviation regulations.

The information comes into contiguous effect and will stay valid until further notice.

Meanwhile, nan airspace disruption has already forced airlines for illustration IndiGo to denote important changes. IndiGo stated that astir 50 world flights will run connected longer routes, and flights to Almaty and Tashkent person been cancelled from April 27 to astatine slightest May 7 owed to scope limitations connected existent fleet aircraft.

(With PTI inputs)

Published on: Apr 26, 2025 12:01 PM IST