The Director-General of Civil Aviation is working on a proposal to phase out the over 400 expat pilots/commanders on the rolls of various airlines in the country. The new deadline is set for 2013.
While this would help more Indian co-pilots to get promoted as commanders, the DGCA is also seeking to raise the minimum limit of flying hours that a co-pilot needs to put in to make the grade. The official notification will be released next month.