E-Paper
AI cockpit row: DGCA off-rosters entire flight crew
According to DGCA civil aviation rules, no staff or person is allowed to enter the cockpit without conducting the mandatory breathalyzer test
Aviation regulator Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) has off-rostered the entire crew of the Air India flight during which the pilot in command had invited his woman friend into the cockpit, violating safety norms, said an official aware of the matter.
The incident took place on the Air India flight AI 915 Delhi-Dubai on February 27. The violation was exclusively reported by HT. “All operating crew of the flight has been off-rostered pending investigation by the DGCA,” people aware of the matter told HT. “The pilot-in-command (PIC) Capt. Harsh Suri has also been issued a chargesheet by the airline management,” they added.
An official close to the investigation told HT that the regulator had summoned all the operating crew for questioning.
“Both the pilots and cabin crew including the ones serving the economy class passengers were summoned by the DGCA and their statements were recorded,” the official said. While DGCA called the crew for recording their statements after HT reported the matter, Air India had allowed the crew of this flight to continue operating.
A comment from Air India is awaited.
According to the complaint, the special incident report read, “He told me that the moment boarding is over he wants to know the load in business class as he has a very sweet friend who was travelling in economy, and he wants her to be upgraded to the business class. As I was already aware of the load, I told Captain that the load is full. In business we have 16 guests, and 2 seats are on MEL (minimum equipment list).’
According to DGCA civil aviation rules, no staff or person is allowed to enter the cockpit without conducting the mandatory breathalyzer (BA) test.
