Fake pilot scam, a big fraud: Govt, vows to act tough

Government also vowed not to show any leniency, describing as serious the issue of some pilots getting licenses on the basis of forged marksheets or through illegal means with the help of flying schools.

"There are about 40 flying schools. Now there is an audit of these schools... Blanket order has been given to go ahead into the complaints. There is no leniency to anybody," Civil Aviation Minister Vayalar Ravi told reporters outside Parliament.

"This is a big fraud playing with human lives. There will be no leniency to anybody. We will go very strongly by abiding with the laws. Every angle would be looked into. The issue is very serious," he said.

On the case of suspended woman pilot getting bail from a court, "Everything would be done step by step. We want the case to be very strong."

The Minister said the Director General of Civil Aviation(DGCA) had discussed the issue with him "more than once" and steps are being taken to address the issue.

Bharat Bhushan, the Director General in DGCA, said essentially there are two types of frauds in regard to fake pilot licenses.

One type of fraud related to not passing the Commercial Pilot License(CPL) exam and producing false marksheet to procure the flying license while the other related to flying schools crediting flying hours in certificates which has actually not been undertaken by the persons concerned, he said.