Low-cost carrier Akasa Air has resumed hiring pilots after an 18-month hiatus as it prepares to add more aircraft to its fleet, founder and CEO Vinay Dube said on Wednesday.
Mumbai-based Akasa has suspended hiring pilots in June 2024 due to delays in aircraft deliveries from Boeing. With the US plane maker now expected to meet its revised delivery deadlines, the airline has started recruiting pilots again.
“We have stopped hiring pilots as the delivery time has shortened,” Dube told reporters at the Wings India 2026 event at Hyderabad’s Begumpet airport. “We started recruiting pilots again in November-December and will continue to recruit.”
Akasa currently employs 757 pilots, according to the airline.
Akasa’s move is significant as it becomes the third airline after IndiGo and Air India to resume pilot hiring, underscoring that crew availability is becoming a key constraint on airlines’ growth amid tighter working hours rules. With increasing capacity now dependent on staff numbers as much as aircraft deliveries, pilot recruitment has become central to execution throughout the aviation industry.
Read also | Boeing eyes higher performance as Air India, Akasa await bulk deliveries of jets
Akasa’s fleet includes 32 Boeing 737 MAX aircraft, including its 32nd aircraft, which is expected to join the fleet on Thursday from the US. Two more aircraft will be inducted next month, bringing the fleet size to 34 by the end of February, Dube said.
Unlike most Indian carriers, Akasa operates an all-Boeing fleet, while competitors such as IndiGo and Air India Group fly a mix of Airbus and Boeing aircraft.
Compliance with regulations
The airline said it was fully compliant with revised civil aviation norms that came into effect on October 1 last year. These rules limit the number of flights pilots can operate between midnight and 6 a.m., forcing many airlines to increase cockpit crew strength.
“As long as the norm is the norm and as long as the CAR is the CAR, we will stick to it 100% as we do now and there will be no violations,” Dube said.
Civil Aviation Requirements (CARs), issued by the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA), are mandatory and legally binding guidelines aimed at ensuring safety and operational efficiency.
The regulatory changes drew attention after IndiGo faced significant operational disruption in December, when flight delays and cancellations were linked to restrictions on crew availability due to the implementation of revised working hours rules. The episode highlighted the pressure new regulations are putting on airline staffing models, forcing carriers to recalibrate pilot rosters and accelerate hiring to stay in line with flight schedules.
Three years after its launch, Akasa overtook SpiceJet to become India’s third-largest airline by revenue in the April-June quarter last year, Mint reported on September 7, 2025.
According to DGCA data, the airline had a 4.7% domestic market share in November compared to SpiceJet’s 3.7% share. IndiGo and the Tata-backed Air India Group together control just over 90% of the domestic aviation market.
Ecosystem constraints
Dube said India’s aviation growth depends on deeper domestic funding, expanding airport capacity, supportive policy infrastructure and skills development, even as airlines struggle with rising costs.
“We are at a very nascent and early stage of Indian aviation. Growth is an important element in creating a large and more mature aviation ecosystem,” he said.
Read also | Navi Mumbai Airport plans to start international operations in Q1FY27, says CEO
“We need financing from Indian banks and Indian financial institutions. Today, most aircraft are financed through foreign lessors and foreign financial institutions,” Dube added, adding that he would like to see most aircraft acquisitions financed by Indian lenders.
Akasa Air is operated by SNV Aviation Pvt. Ltd and is backed by the family of late investor Rakesh Jhunjhunwal along with Bengaluru-based billionaires Azim Premji and Ranjan Pai. Dube holds a 16.1% stake in the airline.
