Air India warned by watchdog over serious violations of pilot oversight on London flights

Flights in May reportedly exceeded the allowed pilot flight time.

According to government reports seen by the Reuters news agency, Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) had issued warnings to the airline over 'repeated and serious violations' of rules regarding flights from Bengaluru to London.

The DGCA had allegedly instructed Air India to remove three staff members from crew scheduling over breaches.

These staff members included a divisional vice president, a chief manager of crew scheduling, and a planning executive, all of whom have been removed.

The report states that flights on both May 16 and 17 exceeded the allowed pilot flight time limit of 10 hours.

'Systemic failures in scheduling protocol and oversights' were highlighted in the report, which also criticised a lack of strict disciplinary measures against responsible officials.

This report is not related to the fatal Air India crash that killed 241 passengers earlier this month.

53 Britons were on board the Gatwick-bound flight, which came down shortly after takeoff from Ahmedabad airport.

Investigations into the crash are ongoing.