Air India Express adds confidential self-declaration process for psychoactive substance use

What to watch

• DGCA circulars expanding mandatory screening, reporting, or audit requirements for pilots and other safety-sensitive employees.
• Number of employees using the voluntary disclosure channel and the share requiring temporary removal from duty.
• Flight cancellations, delays, or crew-shortage disclosures linked to medical or screening-related staffing constraints.
• Any DGCA enforcement action, audit finding, or public update related to the Phuket-Delhi incident.
• Whether IndiGo, Akasa Air, SpiceJet, or other carriers announce comparable confidential-reporting programs.
• Passenger sentiment and booking trends following any renewed media coverage of substance-use incidents.
• Standardize confidential self-reporting, referral, treatment, return-to-duty, and record-separation protocols across Air India Group carriers.
• Increase random and post-incident screening while auditing whether testing coverage can be expanded without disrupting flight rosters.
• Train managers and crew on non-punitive reporting, escalation thresholds, and protections against misuse of confidential health information.
• Build reserve staffing and revised crew-planning contingencies for temporary removals from flight duty.
• Communicate the program externally as a safety-system enhancement rather than a reaction to isolated misconduct.