Air India will implement a stricter health and fitness compliance policy for cabin crew beginning May 1, using Body Mass Index (BMI) as the primary assessment metric, according to press reports.
Under the new rules, a BMI of 18 to 24.9 will be considered normal and fully acceptable for active flying duties. Crew with a BMI below 18 will be classified as underweight, and those with a BMI between 25 and 29.9 will be classified as overweight. Employees in either of these categories may continue employment only after obtaining clearance through designated medical and functional assessments. While awaiting or until they pass the functional assessment, affected crew will be removed from active flying rosters and may be placed on loss of pay.
The policy is more stringent for crew with a BMI above 30, classified as obese. Personnel in this category will be grounded immediately, face loss of pay, and must reduce their BMI to the acceptable range within a specified timeframe to be reinstated for flying duties.
News agency PTI reported the details after obtaining access to the policy document. The move is part of Air India’s effort to standardize fitness criteria across its cabin crew workforce.
Background: Air India is India’s flag carrier. It was founded in 1932 as Tata Airlines by JRD Tata, nationalised in 1953, and returned to the Tata Group in January 2022 following a purchase reported to be around $2.4 billion.