The preliminary report on the Air India crash in Ahmedabad (June 2025) deepen the existing mistrust among aviation professionals and observers. This mistrust comes from a systemic crisis in India's aviation sector, which lacks a genuine 'culture of safety'. Instead of holding airlines and regulators to account, the system often penalizes its personnel. Aviation accidents are rarely due to a single cause but are a result of multiple, compounding failures, as explained by the Swiss cheese model, where holes in various safety layers align to create a path for disaster.

Compensatory afforestation, compensatory afforestation

Swiss cheese model, swiss cheese model

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What are the Issues in India's Aviation Sector?

1. Regulatory Loopholes

Erosion of Safeguards: The strict control over construction around airports, mandated by the Aircraft Act, was effectively diluted in 2008 by a non-statutory committee. This committee approved tall buildings by misusing aeronautical studies, creating permanent safety hazards.

as a result, Mumbai's airspace is one of the world's most hazardous, with over 1,000 obstacles in the flight path funnel as of 2025, up from 125 in 2010. This issue has spread to new projects like Navi Mumbai and Noida airports.

Aircraft design and airworthiness: The DGCA has limited technical capability, to esnure these standards. It is over-reliant on foreign regulators (e.g., FAA, EASA).

Aircraft maintainance; Airlines cut costs by delegating the tasks of qualified Aircraft Maintenance Engineers (AMEs) to less-qualified technicians. Crucially, duty-time limits for AMEs, recommended after the 2010 Mangaluru crash, remain unimplemented.

Flight Crew: Airlines frequently violate Flight and Duty Time Limitations (FDTL), leading to pilot fatigue, often with exemptions granted by the DGCA.

Air Traffic Management: The Airports Authority of India (AAI) faces a severe shortage of Air Traffic Controller Officers (ATCOs).

Silencing Whistle-blowers: There is a prevalent trend of demoting, transferring, or terminating employees who report safety concerns, which actively discourages transparency.

Undervaluation of Life: In India, the low monetary compensation for lives lost in accidents makes it easier for stakeholders to ignore expensive but critical safety upgrades.

Recommendations for improvement

Judicial intervention: The judiciary, historically a "silver lining," has been inactive on aviation issues, over-relying on the state's technical expertise. It must become more active.

Implement Pending Reforms: Immediately implement long-pending recommendations, especially duty-time limitations for AMEs and ATCOs.

Revaluing Human Life: Courts should adopt a less conservative approach to valuing human life in compensation cases. A higher valuation would financially incentivise stakeholders to invest in safety.

Ensure Accountability: Establish robust mechanisms to hold regulatory bodies (DGCA, AAI) and airline management accountable for safety lapses.