Air India to increase retirement age for pilots, non-flying staff

Air India has decided to increase the retirement age for pilots to 65 years and for non-flying staff to 60 years, sources said on Friday. At present, the retirement age for both pilots and non-flying staff at the airline is 58 years. The announcement about increasing the superannuation age was made at the airline's townhall addressed by CEO and MD Campbell Wilson, the sources said. Air India pilots' retirement age will be increased to 65 years and that of non-flying staff will be raised to 60 years, a move that will also bring their superannuation age at par with erstwhile Vistara. There was no official comment from Air India.

Tata Group-owned Air India has around 24,000 staff, including about 3,600 pilots and nearly 9,500 cabin crew members. It could not be immediately ascertained whether the retirement age for cabin crew, which is currently 58 years at Air India, has been increased or not. In recent times, some pilots and cabin crew members have quit the airline. According to the sources, while 58 years is the superannuation age for the pilots at Air India, the tenure of most of them were extended till 65 years, which is also the maximum limit permitted by aviation regulator DGCA for commercial pilots.

Vistara, a joint venture between Tatas and Singapore Airlines, was merged with Air India in November 2024. During the integration process, there was discontent among a section of Air India pilots about the different retirement age limits for them and their counterparts at Vistara.