IndiGo Revises Pay Structure Of Pilots Days After Operational Meltdown — Profit Exclusive

IndiGo has revised the pay structure of pilots days after the airline faced an operational meltdown, NDTV Profit learnt exclusively from sources on Monday.

The additional allowances paid to the pilots have been restructured, which would likely result in an increase in the take-home salaries, said the persons privy to the development.

For captains, the domestic layover allowance has been increased to Rs 3,000 an hour from Rs 2,000 an hour. For First Officers (FO), it has been increased to Rs 1,500 from Rs 1,000.

Also, the deadhead allowance for Captains has been increased to Rs 4,000 per hour from Rs 3,000. For FOs, the same has been raised to Rs 2,000 from Rs 1,500.

The night allowance has also been rejigged. Earlier, it was based on 1.5-time multiplier of night block hours. Now, it has been increased to Rs 2,000 per night hour for Captains, and Rs 1,000 per night hour for FOs.

IndiGo has also introduced a "Tail-Swap Allowance", which is to be paid when a pilot's assigned aircraft is changed during the duty hours. It has been fixed as Rs 1,500 for captains, and Rs 750 for FOs. However, only tail swaps with a halt in excess of 90 minutes would be eligible for this allowance.

The pay revision comes amid the adjustments being made by the airline to comply itself with the Flight Duty Time Limit (FDTL) norms by February. The airline, earlier this month, said it aims to hire 158 new pilots by February, and take the cumulative count of new hirings to 900 by late 2026.

The airline has been granted a one-time reprieve from the FDTL norms till February, as its inability to comply with the strict rostering norms led to a massive disruption in operations in the first week of October. Since IndiGo holds over 63% of India's aviation market share, a meltdown in its operation nearly disrupted the entire sector.

The new FDTL regulations require pilots and cabin crew to get more rest, including 48-hour weekly breaks instead of 36 hours earlier, and stricter limits on night landings.