DGCA issues 1,081 commercial pilot licenses in 2022, highest in past decade

Aviation regulator DGCA has issued 1,081 commercial pilot licenses in 2022, which is the highest for any year in the last one decade, according to official data.

The record issuance of Commercial Pilot Licenses (CPLs) also comes at a time when the country's civil aviation sector is recovering at a fast pace after being hit by the coronavirus pandemic and the domestic air traffic is inching towards the pre-pandemic level.

A senior official at the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) told PTI on Sunday that 1,081 CPLs have been issued in 2022 till December 6 and the number is likely to cross 1,100 by the year-end.

This is also the highest for any year since 2011, as per the data. In 2014, the number of CPLs issued stood at 896 while the count was at 862 in 2021.

In 2015, the CPLs issued declined to 394 and rose to 537 in 2016. Further, it increased to 552 in 2017 and 640 in 2018.

The data showed that in 2019, the number of CPLs touched 744 before declining to 578 in 2020.

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