Overview of Indian Airline Pilot Workforce and FTO Expansion in 2025

India – The Government of India has reported that 13,989 pilots are currently employed across the country’s six major domestic airlines, reflecting the scale of cockpit-crew demand amid ongoing fleet growth and network expansion. The figures were shared by Minister of State for Civil Aviation Murlidhar Mohol in a written reply to the Rajya Sabha on 8 December 2025.

• Air India employs 6,350 pilots, while Air India Express employs 1,592, representing the largest combined pilot workforce in the country.

• IndiGo, India’s largest airline by market share, employs 5,085 pilots.

• Akasa Air employs 466 pilots, SpiceJet employs 385, and government-run Alliance Air employs 111.

• The Minister noted that airlines continue to hire foreign pilots in limited numbers

• Mr Mohol also provided insights into FTO developements
  • India now has 40 Flying Training Organisations (FTOs) operating across 62 bases, reflecting sustained expansion of national training capacity.
  • As of November 2025, the DGCA has facilitated the induction of 61 new training aircraft into FTO fleets and approved two new FTOs during the year.

Source: Ministry of Civil Aviation