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DGCA to airlines: Conduct one-time psychoactive substance tests on all pilots
Civil aviation minister Ram Mohan Naidu said they are moving towards an amendment to the drug test rule by the month end
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The aviation regulator has ordered airlines to conduct one-time psychoactive substance tests on all pilots, with testing in the current cycle running until July 31 next year, people aware of the matter said on Thursday, days after the August 4 Phuket-Delhi Air India flight pilot-in-command (PIC) tested “non-negative” for such a substance.
An official said testing of pilots across all airline operators is currently underway. “An order has been issued,” the official said. A second official said tests began last month.
HT was the first to report last month that the government was examining increasing the scope of random testing, with the possibility of every pilot being tested at least once a year. The government is working on amending the drug test rule.
The new testing mandate marks a significant expansion of the existing regime under which 10% of flight crew and air traffic controllers are randomly tested for psychoactive substances annually.
Asked about an amendment to the drug test rule, civil aviation minister Ram Mohan Naidu on Thursday said the government is moving for a change by the month end. “...the DGCA [Directorate General of Civil Aviation] is still holding discussions with stakeholders, but hopefully before the end of this month, we will be able to finalise what the new guideline will be on pilot testing.”
On any action against the Phuket-Delhi PIC, he said the DGCA has to do that. “Let the CAR [Civil Aviation Requirements] come out...what the CAR says, accordingly we will see what kind of action needs to be taken. Let us go ahead with the CAR, and later we can decide.”
The proposed changes are expected to provide a more stringent framework for testing pilots for psychoactive substances. They will make the process applicable more comprehensively across the industry.
In August, Naidu said the civil aviation ministry was examining the operational impact of expanding testing while balancing it with aviation safety. He added that the government was considering random drug tests for all pilots annually.
Air India voluntarily began testing 100% of its pilots starting August 13 after the PIC tested positive in a confirmatory drug test.
The Phuket-Delhi Air India flight lost all three of its hydraulic systems within seconds while cruising at 36,000 feet on August 4, triggering an “altitude upset” that injured 24 people on board.
A preliminary Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB) report last week said the PIC was the pilot monitoring, or crew member in a two-pilot aircraft not actively handling the primary controls, and the co-pilot tested negative in both tests.
The AAIB did not establish any link between the psychoactive substance finding and the altitude upset. It said the co-pilot responded before the PIC took over the controls, and the aircraft recovered and landed safely in Delhi.
The AAIB recommended that the regulator, DGCA, take appropriate action as deemed fit to prevent abuse of psychoactive substances. The AAIB called their use a serious concern.
