Cadet programmes

IndiGo cadet pilot programme

In 2026, the IndiGo cadet pilot programme costs ₹1.04 to about ₹1.10 crorePublished, going by each partner flying school's own fee page. IndiGo charges no programme fee of its own, so what you pay is whichever partner flying school you are routed to, and most of those schools publish their fee outright.

Ready Aviator · Fees checked between 14 June and 20 October 2026

IndiGo A320s on the apron, a ground crew walking past
StatusRunning
Cost₹1.04 to about ₹1.10 crorePublished
Type ratingA320
Checked14 June and 20 October 2026

IndiGo charges nothing itself

No IndiGo page publishes a fee (checked 14 June 2026). You sign with a partner flying school and pay that school directly.

Cadet programmeIndiGo
RouteThrough partner flying schools
Training partnersSix: Skyborne, Flight Training Adelaide, Insight, Chimes, Garuda and Marigold
Type ratingA320. The type rating is inside each school's fee
Airline feeNone charged
BondNot published. ALPA India said in July 2026 that cadet bonds run three years or more
Job at the endA First Officer's seat at IndiGo, offered by letter of intent (LOI). An LOI is not a legal guarantee, but the airline has hired its cadets

What each partner school publishes

The overseas fees are quoted in US dollars and converted at the exchange rate on 14 June 2026. Read the school's own dollar figure before you plan around one.

IndiGo's list names neither CAE nor L3Harris, so a figure you find for either on this route is out of date.

IndiaAll-in fee
Chimes Aviation AcademyDhana, Madhya Pradesh. Checked 20 October 2026₹1,04,00,000Published
Overseas flying, converted in IndiaAll-in fee
Insight AviationGurugram, flying at 43 Air School, South Africa. Twenty-one months. Checked 14 June 2026about ₹1,06,00,000Published
Garuda AviationGurugram, flying at 43 Air School, South Africa. Eight instalments. Checked 14 June 2026about ₹1,10,00,000Published
Marigold, trading as MG AviationIndia, with partner schools. Checked 14 June 2026about ₹1,10,00,000Published
Skyborne Airline AcademyVero Beach, Florida. Five equal instalments. Checked 14 June 2026about ₹1,10,00,000Published
Flight Training AdelaideAdelaide, Australia. The fee schedule sits behind a download. On the school's own page, checked 14 June 2026Not publishedUndisclosed

What a school fee buys

Inside the school's figure

  • Ground school for the DGCA papers.
  • Flying to a commercial licence.
  • The A320 type rating, which is why the number is so far above a plain licence.

Outside it

  • The assessment fee. Each partner school charges its own: Chimes ₹35,000Published, Insight ₹30,000Published plus GST, Marigold USD 360Published and Skyborne GBP 250Published. Check your school's page before you pay.
  • Your Class 2 and Class 1 medicals.
  • The radio telephony test and the licence issue.
  • International airfare on the overseas routes.
  • Tax, which no school quotes as an amount.

Who can apply, and how

You can apply if you are 18 to 40, an Indian citizen or OCI holder, with at least 51% in each of Physics, Maths and English in Class 12. IndiGo names no height. You can apply with a Class 2 medical. You need a Class 1 before training starts. The course runs about 21 months.

  • Online application
  • Screening
  • Computerised aptitude assessment
  • Psychometric stage
  • Interview
  • Sign with a partner school

The aptitude stage first, the same DGCA papers after

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Sources: IndiGo careers; IndiGo, Becoming a Pilot; Chimes Aviation Academy; Skyborne; Free Press Journal, 30 Jul 2026.