‘…significant safety ramifications’: Air India fined ₹90 lakh for operating flight with non-qualified pilot, co-pilot

The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) has fined Tata-owned Air India ₹90 lakh for operating a flight with non-qualified crew members. Additionally, due to the lapse, the aviation regulator has imposed a penalty of ₹6 lakh and ₹3 lakh on Air India's Director of Operations and Director of Training.

DGCA said that the pilot concerned has been warned to be cautious to prevent such instances in the future.

"Air India Ltd operated a flight commanded by a non-trainer line captain paired with a non-line-released first officer which has been viewed by the regulator as a serious scheduling incident having significant safety ramifications," DGCA said in a press release.

This incident was highlighted after the airline submitted a voluntary report on July 10. The aviation regulator investigated the airline's operations, including verifying documents and spot-checking the scheduling facility.

"Based on the investigation, it was prima facie revealed that there are deficiencies and multiple violations of the regulatory provisions by several post holders and staff, which could significantly affect safety," the release said.

The aviation regulator also said that the flight's commander and the airline's post holders were given an opportunity to explain their position through show cause notices, which were issued on July 22.

According to DGCA, the reply submitted to the show cause notices by the concerned parties did not provide satisfactory justification. Following this, DGCA started the enforcement actions according to the provisions of the prescribed regulations and has, therefore, imposed such fines.

For the violations, DGCA has fined Air India ₹90 lakh, the airline's director of operations ₹6 lakh, and the carrier's Director of training ₹3 lakh.

Air India was also fined in March earlier this year for violating regulations regarding Flight Duty Time Limits (FDTL) and the fatigue management system (FMS) of flight crew. The fine was around ₹80 lakhs.