India
DGCA Orders One-Time Drug Tests For All Pilots By July 2027 After Air India Safety Scare
The rule expands screening after one pilot’s positive test raised wider safety
The rule expands screening after one pilot’s positive test raised wider safety
’s order turns a single Air India safety scare into a wider test of and in India. The move reflects growing pressure to prove that are strong enough to catch , restore passenger trust, and push airlines toward tighter before the new testing rules take effect.
The DGCA directed airlines to carry out a for all pilots by July 2027, turning the Air India case into an . The new directive expands screening beyond the current system, where only 10% of pilots are randomly tested each year.
The ’s again highlighted the rare hydraulic failure and separately noted that the had tested non-negative in confirmatory testing. The bureau urged the DGCA to take appropriate action to prevent abuse of .
The began consultations with the on tougher pilot . One proposal was annual testing for all pilots, which would be a major shift from the existing rule that only requires 10% of pilots to be tested annually.
Reports said the airline’s special screening was extended across Air India and crews. The action marked a wider internal and showed the issue had moved beyond a single pilot case.
Air India began a of its more than 5,000 pilots after the incident. The airline said the move was meant to protect passenger trust and went beyond the normal regulatory baseline for .
The early investigation treated the aircraft’s sudden altitude loss and the captain’s positive substance test as separate matters. The preliminary findings focused on the hydraulic failure while also noting the positive confirmatory result and recommending action on psychoactive-substance abuse.
Media reports said the pilot-in-command’s returned positive for a psychoactive substance, later described in reporting as marijuana. The co-pilot was reported negative, and the pilot was taken off pending the investigation.
After landing, both pilots were subjected to post-flight medical checks, including and . Initial tests did not show alcohol use, but the ’s screening sample was flagged for confirmatory laboratory testing.
Air India flight from Phuket to Delhi suffered a rare triple and briefly lost about 300 feet of altitude during the August 4 journey. The scare affected passengers and crew and immediately triggered a safety response after landing in Delhi.