Flight cancellations and delays to cost dearer to airlines; online fee collection mandatory for over 14 services

Effective August 1, 2016, the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) has revised compensation norms for flight cancellations and delays. Moreover, as part of the e-governance project for civil aviation, it has made online fee collection mandatory for over 14 services. As per the revised compensation norms, airlines are required to pay up to Rs 10,000 per passenger in case of cancelling a flight or delaying it beyond two hours, while the compensation for not allowing a passenger to board a flight is up to Rs 20,000. Meanwhile, key services for which online fee collection has been mandated include the issue and renewal of aerodrome licences, air operator permits, regular certificates of registration, licences for aircraft maintenance engineers and certificates of airworthiness.