Aviation safety regulator DGCA has directed Air India to relieve three of its officials, including a divisional vice president, of all duties related to crew scheduling and rostering, sources confirmed on Saturday.
The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA), in its order on June 20, also asked the Tata Group-owned airline to initiate internal disciplinary proceedings against these officials without delay, reported news agency PTI.
The three officials include a divisional vice president of the airline, as per the DGCA order.
Earlier on Tuesday, the DGCA held a high-level meeting with senior officials of M/s. Air India Ltd. and Air India Express are currently operating over 1,000 flights daily across the domestic and international sectors. The DGCA discussed with aviation companies and operators to review the operational robustness of the airlines and ensure continued compliance with safety and passenger service regulations.
One of the key issues of the meeting, which was held on Tuesday, was the increasing delay in flights relating to maintenance. As told in the release, DGCA also expressed concerns about the inclination to technical issues that are causing the flyers to go through a lot of major concerns. Discussions on strengthening internal coordination across departments, such as engineering, operations and ground handling, were also suggested by the DGCA to the airline operators during the meeting.
As told by the press release issued by the Ministry of Civil Aviation, the meeting also addressed the impact of airspace restrictions, particularly the recent closures over Iranian airspace. The concerns over the tensions in the Middle East have caused significant diversions, delays, and cancellations. However, airlines have been directed to adopt alternate routing strategies and ensure real-time communication with both crew and passengers to minimise inconvenience.
As issued by the Ministry of Civil Aviation, the DGCA also reviewed the results of the recent surveillance on Air India’s Boeing 787 Dreamliner fleet. The result consisted of 33 aircraft (B787-8/9). The inspection revealed no major safety issues. The aircraft and maintenance systems were found compliant with prevailing standards.
(With PTI inputs)
