In a move that will help reduce the massive pilot shortage, the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) has decided to rope in private hospitals for medical certification of all those applying for a pilot’s licence.

A domain of the Indian Air Force’s medical authorities based at three centres since pre-Independence days, the Class I medical certificate compulsory for all Commercial Pilot Licence (CPL) applicants has a waiting period of more than one year at present.

The DGCA is set to change that with a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) already signed with Delhi’s Max hospitals, Mumbai’s Nanavati hospital and Chennai’s Apollo hospital to hold Class I medical tests.

“The move is aimed at clearing the massive backlog at IAF medical centres for a Class I medical test report,” says a senior DGCA official, adding that an announcement in this regard will be made this week.

If the private hospitals are allowed to conduct the test and issue a medical certificate, the waiting period for applicants is likely to fall to less than 15 days.

At present, Class I medical tests are carried out only at the Air Force hospitals in Rowriah, Assam; Vimanpura, Bangalore; and Subroto Park, Delhi. Applicants have to wait up to 15 months for just an appointment. The private hospitals, on the other hand, are looking at conducting tests of 10-20 applicants per day, with reports readied in a week’s time.

Both Max and Nanavati hospitals confirmed that they had reached an understanding with the DGCA.

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