New Delhi, India: The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has registered a corruption and criminal conspiracy case against Captain Anil Gill, former Director of Flying Training (DFT) at the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA), alleging that he abused his regulatory position to favour select Flying Training Organisations (FTOs), facilitate aircraft transactions involving entities linked to his relatives and cause financial disadvantage to competing operators.
The regular case was registered on August 21, 2026, under Sections 11 and 12 of the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988, as amended in 2018, and Section 120-B of the Indian Penal Code relating to criminal conspiracy. According to the CBI case, the FIR followed a preliminary enquiry registered on April 7, 2025. The preliminary enquiry originated from a complaint lodged by Captain J.S. Dhillon, managing director of Global Avianautics Ltd, against Gill, after the required approval under Section 17A of the Prevention of Corruption Act was obtained. The CBI’s Anti-Corruption Branch in Delhi received the subsequent complaint on August 17, 2026, before registering the regular case four days later.
The FIR names Gill, Bluethroat Aero Global Pvt Ltd (BAGPL), Redbird Aviation Academy Pvt Ltd, Sabres Corporate Solutions Pvt Ltd and Sandhills Aviation IFSC Pvt Ltd as accused, along with unidentified public servants and private persons. The CBI alleges that Gill, while serving as DFT, acted in collusion with directors and shareholders of the companies and extended “undue official favours” to selected FTOs, allegedly causing detriment and pecuniary loss to other similarly placed operators.
At the centre of the allegations is what the FIR describes as a network of corporate entities involving members of Gill’s immediate and extended family. Bluethroat Aero Global was incorporated in 2016 with Gill’s mother and maternal aunt among its directors, while his cousin and sister-in-law subsequently joined the company. The FIR also identifies Sabres Corporate Solutions and Sandhills Aviation IFSC as entities in which Gill’s relatives were directors. The CBI alleges that these structures were used as benami or shell entities to facilitate the acquisition and leasing of training aircraft.
The aircraft transactions form a major part of the current case. According to the FIR, Bluethroat Aero Global acquired one Cessna aircraft in 2020 for ₹10 lakh and another in 2021 for ₹37.5 lakh. The second aircraft, the FIR alleges, was in operational condition with only 123 engine hours and had an estimated market value of between ₹75 lakh and ₹1 crore. Both aircraft were subsequently leased to Redbird Aviation Academy under approvals allegedly granted by Gill in his regulatory capacity.
The CBI alleges that Bluethroat Aero Global received more than ₹2.16 crore in lease rentals from Redbird Aviation Academy between 2021 and October 2023. The FIR characterises the returns as disproportionately high in relation to the alleged capital investment and is examining whether the transactions generated illicit pecuniary benefit. The ₹2.16 crore figure refers specifically to alleged lease rentals received by Bluethroat from Redbird; it should not be described as the total amount of an alleged bribe or the total amount of corruption proceeds unless investigators establish that separately.
The FIR also raises questions over the speed with which Redbird Aviation Academy obtained regulatory approval. According to the CBI, Redbird received its initial FTO approval within one month and three days, excluding the time reportedly taken to rectify compliance shortcomings. In contrast, approvals for competing operators Skynex Aero and Jet Serve Aviation allegedly took between four and six months. The FIR further alleges that Gill approved Redbird’s training and procedure manual before its official date of acceptance, while an aircraft-induction application submitted by another operator, GATI, was allegedly kept pending without reasons being recorded on file.
Another allegation concerns Gill’s cousin, Vikas Nain. The FIR states that Gill chaired a selection committee in September 2022 that appointed Nain as Deputy Chief Flying Instructor. Nain was subsequently employed by Redbird Aviation Academy at a monthly salary of approximately ₹6.5 lakh. The CBI is examining this appointment in the broader context of the alleged preferential treatment and family-linked business interests.
The agency has also flagged financial transactions involving Sabres Corporate Solutions and Sandhills Aviation IFSC. According to the FIR, the companies were involved in financing and mortgaging aircraft rented to FTOs that fell under the regulatory purview of the DGCA’s Director of Flying Training. Bank-account statements allegedly showed multiple financial transactions between Bluethroat Aero Global and Gill’s family members. The FIR further alleges that Gill failed to disclose the involvement or employment of close relatives in aviation-related activities, which the agency says could constitute a violation of applicable DoPT conduct rules and DGCA directions.
The current CBI case follows allegations that had already surfaced publicly in 2023. At the time Gill had been accused of using his position to pressure pilots and FTOs into providing benefits to companies allegedly linked to him. An October 25, 2023 complaint alleged that FTOs unable to meet demands were pressured to sell training aircraft at “nominal prices”, which could then be leased to other flying schools. Some of those allegations involved lease rates of around ₹90 lakh a year. Those were allegations at the time and were denied by people associated with the companies.
The 2023 reporting also brought Redbird Aviation Academy into the controversy. An October 25, 2023 complaint alleged that Gill had failed to act against Redbird despite claims of “15-20 crashes in the last 36 months”. DGCA ordered Redbird to suspend operations on October 23, 2023, after identifying gaps in maintenance and operational practices. A Redbird representative denied the allegations, saying the academy had a fleet of 40 aircraft and that no incidents involving its aircraft had resulted in passenger or crew injuries. These older claims should not be treated as established findings or as findings of the present CBI investigation.
Gill was subsequently moved from the Flying Training Directorate to the Aerosports division. On November 22, 2023, the government suspended him after corruption allegations surfaced. Reports said that the DGCA had sought transfer of the matter to the CBI and Enforcement Directorate. At the time, Civil Aviation Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia said: “There is zero tolerance to malpractices. Any such issue will always be dealt with the strictest measures in accordance with the law.”
The 2023 allegations also included a separate claim involving Skynex Aeroflight Solutions, an approved FTO. Reports said that an anonymous complaint alleged Gill had pressured the company to send him to the Czech Republic for training on a Piper PA-28 aircraft. The complaint further alleged that the trip was used to establish dealership relations between Sabres Corporate Solutions and Bristell Aircraft. However, an official quoted by Hindustan Times said the allegation appeared baseless, noting that there was no such Bristell aircraft in India and that DGCA did not regulate or control foreign manufacturers. This allegation was therefore contested and should not be presented as an established fact.
As of August 24, 2026, the new CBI FIR establishes that a formal criminal investigation has been opened; it does not establish Gill’s guilt. The CBI is still required to investigate the alleged transactions, ownership structures, regulatory approvals, financial flows and the possible involvement of other public servants and private persons. The FIR itself says the circumstances “prima facie disclose the commission of cognisable offences”. No conviction has been recorded in the matter.
There is also no verified report in the sources reviewed that Gill has been arrested in connection with the August 21 FIR. The latest reports identify him as a former DGCA official, following his suspension in November 2023, but do not establish his present physical location or provide a confirmed current employment status. Similarly, there is no confirmed finding yet that any of the four companies or their directors committed the alleged offences; their inclusion in the FIR means they are subjects of the investigation.
The investigation has been entrusted to CBI Inspector Aditya Kumar of the Anti-Corruption Branch-I in New Delhi, according to the CBI information carried by ANI.
