DGCA releases first ranking of flying schools, none achieve top grade

Aviation regulator DGCA has come out with its first-ever ranking of flying training organisations in the country, and none of the 35 organisations in the list have managed to get top ratings of 'A+' and 'A'.

Out of the 35 Flying Training Organisations (FTOs), 13 got 'B' and 22 received 'C' rankings, according to the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA).

Operational aspects, FTO performance, safety standards, compliance standards and assistance to students are taken into consideration for evaluating the FTOs under four categories.

Those having a score of 85 per cent and above are classified as 'A+' and those with score of 70 per cent to less than 85 per cent are categorised as 'A'.

FTOs having a score of less than 70 per cent to 50 per cent are in 'B' category and those with a score below 50 per cent are in the 'C' category.

According to the regulator, 5 FTOs were excluded from the current rankings as 4 of them were yet to complete 18 months of operations and 1 FTO's approval was not valid as on August 31.

"FTOs falling under category 'C' will receive a notice from DGCA for self-analysis towards improvement of their performance," the watchdog said in a public notice along with the list released on Tuesday.

There are 13 FTOs in category 'B' -- Chimes Aviation Academy, SVKM's NMIMS Academy of Aviation, Shirpur, Bihar Flying Club, Orient Flights Aviation Academy, Skynex Aero Pvt Ltd, FSTC Flying School Pvt Ltd, Patiala Aviation Club, Haryana Institute of Civil Aviation and Jet Serve Aviation Pvt Ltd, as per the list.

Others in this category are Nagpur Flying Club, National Flying Training Institute, Banasthali Vidyapith Gliding and Flying Club and Rajiv Gandhi Academy for Aviation Technology.

Dunes Aviation Academy, Garg Aviations Ltd, The Bombay Flying Club, Chetak Aviation, Ekvi Air Training Organisation Pvt Ltd, Academy of Carver Aviation Pvt Ltd, Ambitions Flying Club Pvt Ltd, Flytech Aviation Academy, Indian Flying Academy, Sha-Shib Flying Academy, Government Aviation Training Institute, Indira Gandhi Rashtriya Uran Akademi (IGRUA), Redbird Flight Training Academy and Telangana State Aviation Academy have received 'C' rating.

Other entities that are in the 'C' category are Alchemist Aviation Pvt Ltd, Falcon Aviation Academy, Wings Aviation Pvt Ltd, Asia Pacific Flight Training Academy Ltd, The Gujarat Flying Club, The Madhya Pradesh Flying Club Ltd, Pioneer Flying Academy Pvt Ltd and Blue Ray Aviation Pvt Ltd.

FTOs provide training for pilots and other aviation professionals.

The rankings will be published biannually, and the next one will be issued on April 1, 2026.