Aviation ministry directs Air India to apply stricter norms after Mumbai mishap

The aviation ministry has ordered Air India (AI) to strictly implement the recommendations made by the committee that probed the Mumbai airport accident where a technician died after being sucked inside an aircraft last December.

The aviation ministry has ordered Air India (AI) to strictly implement the recommendations made by the committee that probed the Mumbai airport accident where a technician died after being sucked inside the aircraft on December 16 last year including banning unauthorised entry inside cockpit and off-duty pilots obtaining flight clearances.

An Air India Airbus at the Mumbai international airport. The aviation ministry has directed the airline to implement stricter norms to ensure mishaps do not occur.(PTI)

The report and the safety recommendations were first reported by Hindustan Times on August 24.

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Aviation minister Ashok Gajapathi Raju recently took a detailed briefing on the lapses that had led to the accident and the safety measures that had been recommended to ensure there was no repeat. Aviation secretary RN Choubey and senior officials of the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) were also present.

AI technician Ravi Subramanian had died on the spot — his limbs and head were shredded — as he stood with his back towards the aircraft without realizing that it had started to move.

In a serious breach of aviation rules, an off-duty AI pilot travelling as a passenger to Hyderabad had obtained flight clearance from the Mumbai air traffic control, as first reported by HT on February 5.

This was done as pilots who were to actually operate the Mumbai-Hyderabad flight had not reached the aircraft and, in fact, were still operating their previous Rajkot-Mumbai flight.

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Raju’s meeting assumes significance as India is preparing for a crucial safety audit of the DGCA by International Civil Aviation Organisation early next year.

India had been downgraded by the US FAA in 2014 before subsequently being upgraded to Category I.