Now, airlines oppose relaxed duty norms for cabin crew

The industry body representing airlines in the country has informed the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) that its proposed rest and duty norms for cabin crew will “decrease productivity” of staff, hamper airline growth, and erode their competitiveness in the global market.

In a letter dated February 12, 2026, a copy of which has been reviewed by The Hindu, Federation of Indian Airlines (FIA) has opposed several provisions proposed by the DGCA in a November notification on cabin crew rest and duty hours. The FIA represents various airlines in the country, including IndiGo, Air India, SpiceJet and Akasa,

The FIA has objected to the proposed tighter duty norms for night flights, which expand the definition of night duty from midnight–5 a.m. to midnight–6 a.m., thereby extending associated relief measures, including a cap of two landings during night operations. The changes also align the rest and duty norms for cabin crew with those applicable to pilots since last year, including increasing weekly rest from 36 hours to 48 hours.

The FIA argues that such restrictions on night duties fail to account for the fact that fatigue levels vary depending on the nature and duration of different flights.

A key demand from cabin crew that their weekly off should be scheduled at their home base so they can spend time with their families has also been opposed. Airlines have similarly resisted calls for single-room accommodation during layovers, instead of the current practice of shared hotel rooms.

The FIA letter maintains that fatigue recovery is driven by adequate rest opportunity and body clock alignment “rather than physical location of rest” and therefore the DGCA proposal for weekly rest at home base does not have any impact on mitigating fatigue.

On the issue of providing single occupancy rooms, the letter states that such a provision “creates practical constraints at several domestic and international stations due to limited hotel inventory” and goes on to add that twin sharing enables “quicker assistance during medical events, emergencies, personal safety situations.”

The airline industry’s latest position on cabin crew duty norms comes on the heels of a protracted two-year standoff with pilots over similar regulations for them. Although Delhi High Court last year directed that the rules be implemented in a phased manner, and airlines began complying, carriers have continued to oppose the framework and are lobbying for revision.

The All India Cabin Crew Association filed a writ petition in 2018 seeking amendment to their rest and duty norms to make them more scientific and bring them on par with those for pilots.