E-Paper
India placed 379 passengers on ‘No Fly List’ in last five years: Centre
Aggrieved people, after being informed about being included in the ‘No Fly List’, have the right to appeal within 60 days from the date of issue of the order.
India has placed 379 passengers on the ‘No Fly List’ in the last five years, the Union ministry of civil aviation (MoCA) said in the Parliament on Tuesday.
In a written response to a question raised by Trinamool Congress MP Sagarika Ghose in the Rajya Sabha, minister of state for civil aviation Murlidhar Mohol shared an yearly breakup of individuals banned from flying due to unruly behaviour.
As per the data shared, ten people were placed in the list in 2020. That number rose to 66 in 2021, but there was a slight dip in 2022 with 63 people being banned from flying.
However, 2023 saw 110 people being put on the list, the highest so far. This decreased to 82 in 2024 and till July 30 this year, 48 people have been placed in the list.
The government confirmed that it maintains a record of all individuals placed on the list and stated, “As per the provisions of Civil Aviation Requirements (CAR) on ‘Handling of unruly/disruptive passengers’, unruly passengers are categorised into three levels based on the severity of their misconduct onboard an aircraft.”
“The duration of ban for Level 1 misconduct is up to three months, for Level 2 is up to six months and for Level 3 is a minimum of 2 years or more without limit,” he added.
As per rules, aggrieved people, after being informed about being included in the ‘No Fly List’ and the duration of the ban, have the right to appeal, within 60 days from the date of issue of the order, before an appellate committee constituted by the civil aviation ministry.
The appellate committee comprises a retired judge of a high court as the chairman, a representative from a passengers’ association, consumer association, or a retired officer of a Consumer Dispute Redressal Forum as a member, a representative of the airline holding a position not below the rank of vice-president or its equivalent as a member.
Once the appeal is heard, the appellate committee issues a decision, and their ruling is considered final. If the appellant disagrees with the decision, they have rights to take the matter to the high court.
