Ritika
Mumbai. Nearly two months after a man urinated on its New York-New Delhi flight, Air India on Tuesday said it has closed an internal inquiry into the matter and the flight’s chief pilot’s license was suspended by the DGCA. She will assist him in the appeal against him.
The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) suspended Air India pilot’s license for three months and imposed a fine of Rs 30 lakh on Air India and the airline’s internal flight on November 26, 2022, in connection with the incident of urination in flight The director of services was fined Rs three lakh.
Tata Group-owned Air India on Tuesday said it has closed its internal inquiry into the conduct of the crew and administrative staff of flight AI 102, operated from New York to New Delhi on November 26, 2022.
In its statement, the airline said it acknowledges that it misclassified the incident based on the letter of Civil Aviation Requirements (CAR) and did not consider it necessary to report it. Air India also said that it found the suspension of the commander’s license excessive in comparison to his fault and would assist him in appealing against it.
“Air India would like to underline the well-intentioned efforts made by the aircrew in dealing effectively with the immediate situation when all the facts were not available,” the statement said. It also takes note that the statement written at the same time by a co-passenger in business class includes explicit praise for the work of the crew and his criticism of the pilot in another context.”
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‘PTI-Bhasha’ had released the news on January 21 that Air India’s pilots’ association ‘Indian Pilots Guild’ (IPG) is considering legal methods and other options regarding suspension of pilot’s license by DGCA for three months. Still working. Giving details of the aftermath of the incident, Air India said when a passenger allegedly urinated on a co-traveller, the complaining co-traveller approached the crew seeking assistance.
It said, “In the absence of any witnesses, the crew listened to the allegations of the complainant and helped him by providing him with new clothes, helped in cleaning his luggage and made him sit on the same second seat in business class. When confronted about this, the accused passenger was calm, cooperative and feigned ignorance of the allegation.”
The airline has also clarified that the accused passenger was not served excessive alcohol by the crew and did not appear intoxicated to the flight crew. It also said that the flight crew regularly kept the commander informed. Air India said, “According to the crew, the alleged accused did not pose any risk to the safety of the aircraft at any point of time.” Shankar Mishra, the accused in this case, is currently in jail. (agency)
