INDEPTH: Safety challenge of charter flights

India’s aviation safety record carries a visible contrast. Scheduled commercial airlines have maintained a relatively stable and consistent performance over the years, but the same assurance has not always extended to the non-scheduled and small aircraft segment, where lapses continue to surface with uncomfortable frequency. As the country emerges as the world’s third-largest domestic aviation market, this divergence is becoming harder to ignore.When two deadly crashes involving charter aircraft occur within a month, followed by another serious incident within hours, the focus shifts from isolated failures to the system itself and whether oversight has kept pace with expansion.On January 28, a Learjet 45 crashed while attempting to land in Baramati, killing Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar and four others. Less than a month later, on February 23, a Beechcraft King Air C90 air ambulance flying from Ranchi to Delhi crashed in Jharkhand’s Chatra district, leaving all seven persons on board dead. Within a day, a helicopter operated by Pawan Hans ditched short of a helipad in the Andamans, though all passengers survived.The pattern is difficult to ignore. While scheduled airline operations remain tightly regulated and largely stable, inconsistencies in safety practices among non-scheduled operator permit (NSOP) holders, including charter flights, private jets and air ambulances, have surfaced repeatedly.The scale of the sector makes this divergence more consequential. The country today handles more than 300 million domestic passengers annually, while hundreds of non-scheduled aircraft operate across charter, corporate and medical services, often beyond the ecosystem of large airports.The difference lies in how these systems function. Airlines operate on fixed routes, under layered supervision, with standardised procedures and infrastructure support. Non-scheduled operations are built for flexibility. Flights are often arranged at short notice, routes vary, and operational environments can shift significantly from one mission to the next.In many cases, these flights operate into uncontrolled or minimally staffed airfields, where air traffic services are limited and real-time weather inputs may not always be available with the same reliability as major airports. Such conditions narrow operational margins and increase dependence on pilot judgment and procedural discipline.Over time, this flexibility has exposed structural gaps. Aviation safety experts have pointed to inconsistencies in maintenance practices, gaps in crew training, and uneven risk assessment across operators. In certain cases, operational decisions may also be influenced by commercial pressures, particularly when flights involve urgent timelines or high-profile passengers.As per industry experts, the imbalance is not incidental, it is structural. The recent sequence of incidents has also drawn attention to regulatory capacity. The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA), responsible for aviation safety oversight, has been operating with a significant shortage of technical personnel.According to the latest data placed before Parliament, 787 posts remain vacant out of a sanctioned strength of 1,630, leaving the regulator to function at roughly half its intended capacity. Internal data has also pointed to gaps within critical divisions, including vacancies in the air safety wing and surveillance functions that are central to oversight.The issue extends beyond a single agency. Data presented to Parliament shows that the Bureau of Civil Aviation Security (BCAS) and air traffic control systems under the Airports Authority of India are also operating with substantial vacancies, pointing to wider capacity constraints across aviation safety and regulation.This creates a clear systemic contradiction. India is expanding aviation infrastructure at speed, adding airports, routes and aircraft but the regulatory and safety architecture meant to oversee this growth is operating with limited capacity. The issue has been flagged repeatedly. A Parliamentary Standing Committee led by Sanjay Jha observed that aviation growth was outpacing oversight capacity, noting that the regulator was often overburdened and functioning in a reactive mode rather than a preventive one.Institutional processes add another layer to the challenge. The DGCA functions under the Ministry of Civil Aviation, and recruitment for specialised roles is largely routed through the Union Public Service Commission, a process that can be slow for a sector requiring rapid scaling of technical expertise.The result is uneven surveillance. With limited manpower, regulatory attention tends to remain focused on scheduled airlines, where operations are larger and more visible. Smaller operators, despite operating in more variable and sometimes risk-prone environments, may not always receive the same level of continuous oversight.A Beechcraft King Air C90 air ambulance crashed in Jharkhand on February 23, leaving all seven persons on board dead. PTIThe recent air ambulance crash has also highlighted limitations in onboard monitoring. Several smaller aircraft, with a maximum takeoff weight below 5,700 kg, are not mandated to carry advanced flight data or cockpit voice recorders, constraining both real-time monitoring and the depth of post-incident investigation.In response to the recent incidents, the DGCA has moved to tighten oversight of non-scheduled operations. The regulator has ordered stricter audits, enhanced surveillance, and closer scrutiny of operators with past safety concerns. The warning follows back-to-back incidents, with officials indicating that non-compliance could lead to suspension or cancellation of permits, signalling a more immediate enforcement stance.At the same time, investigations by the Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB) are underway into the recent crashes. These probes are expected to determine technical causes and assign accountability, while DGCA audits continue in parallel to identify systemic gaps.Industry bodies have also advised operators to strengthen internal safety checks and reinforce standard operating procedures, particularly as operations expand into more demanding environments.India’s aviation sector is growing rapidly, but the recent sequence of incidents suggests that expansion, particularly in the non-scheduled segment, may not have been matched by a corresponding strengthening of oversight capacity. The numbers placed before Parliament make that gap difficult to overlook.A regulator functioning with nearly half its sanctioned strength, alongside broader staffing shortages across safety systems, is expected to oversee an increasingly complex aviation network. It raises questions on whether oversight systems will evolve fast enough to match that shift, or continue to respond after incidents rather than staying ahead of them. The warning signs are no longer isolated, they are repeating.

INDEPTH: Safety challenge of charter flights

Deadly air crashes in the recent past have shifted focus from isolated failures to glaring systemic gaps

Shekhar Singh

INDEPTH: Safety challenge of charter flights

Deadly air crashes in the recent past have shifted focus from isolated failures to glaring systemic gaps

Shekhar Singh

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