Zoya Agarwal is an Indian commercial pilot who has flown for Air India. (File)
As much as 15 per cent of pilots in India are women, which is almost three times the global average of 5 per cent, according to an official release on Thursday.
However, currently, there is no special programme in the government to encourage pilot training for women and backward classes including SCs/STs, it said.
Also, there are currently 67 expat pilots working with various air operators in the country, it said.
As per data received from various Indian scheduled airlines, a total of 244 pilots have been recruited in 2021, the release noted and that industry estimates suggest that the country may require 1,000 pilots per annum over the next five years.
The annual requirement of commercial pilots depends upon various factors such as financial health of an airline, airline expansion plan and growth in the aviation sector, the release stated.
As per the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA), there are approximately 10,000 pilots including 67 foreign nationals employed with various domestic airlines in India, it added.
According to the release, there are 35 DGCA approved Flight Training Organisations (FTOs) in the country, operating at 53 bases.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)