- Saturday, April 27, 2024
The DGCA said on Friday (22) that the airline, which is owned by India’s Tata Group, failed to ensure adequate weekly rest before and after ultra-long flights and on layover to flight crew.
By: Shubham Ghosh
INDIA’S civil aviation regulator Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) has fined the country’s premier carrier Air India Rs 8 million (£76,008) on charges of fliting flight-duty time limitations and fatigue-management protocols for its flight crew, Reuters reported.
In January, the air safety watchdog extended the compulsory weekly rest duration for flight crew from 36 hours to 48 hours. This decision came after a thorough examination of pilot fatigue data subsequent to the unfortunate incident of a pilot of IndiGo, India’s largest airline, collapsing and succumbing to death before his scheduled flight in August last year.
The DGCA said on Friday (22) that Air India, which is owned by India’s Tata Group, failed to ensure adequate weekly rest before and after ultra-long flights and on layover to flight crew, thus breaching the revised norms, the Reuters added.
Read: Air India fined over £28k after 80-year-old passenger, not given wheelchair, passes away
On March 1, the body issued a show cause notice to Air India. This action followed a spot audit conducted in January to assess the airline’s adherence to regulatory standards. According to the regulator, the response provided by Air India to the notice was deemed unsatisfactory.
Read: Air India unveils new uniforms for pilot, crew designed by Manish Malhotra
While pilot fatigue is a not a problem limited to India, it is particularly becoming alarming in the country which is the fastest-growing aviation market, with hundreds of new planes being ordered by IndiGo and Air India.
