Repeat offender AI pilot suspended for three months
Sources said the captain had violated norms more than ten times.
Mumbai: Arvind Kathpalia, executive director of operations (ED) of Air India, who has been de-rostered for missing his mandatory breath analyser test (BA) before flying as a pilot, has been suspended for three months. Sources said the captain had violated norms more than ten times.
The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) came out with an order that said captain Kathpalia before operating flight AI 174 (Delhi- Mumbai) had missed his mandatory BA test.
The regulator under sub rule 3 of rule 19 of Aircraft Act under ministry of tourism and civil aviation suspended the captain’s licence with effect from the day he was grounded by the national carrier (November 9).
The Indian Commercial Pilots Association (ICPA) last week had sent a legal notice to the DGCA stating disappointment on no action or response on the two letters, which intimated the authority of grave legal violation. It stated, “It has been a matter of great concern that a senior executive pilot of AI has been avoiding pre-flight breath analyser tests on multiple occasions in the last month. This is even graver in view of the DGCA data from 2011 to 2015, which shows a three-fold increase in such safety lapses. It must also be recalled that this individual is not some raw recruit but an executive pilot who has to be held up to a higher standard of scrutiny.”
The ICPA wrote stating that proofs against Kathpalia were in their possession and that they were willing to provide DGCA. ICPA also stated that Kathpalia is a habitual offender endangering the safety of innocent flying passengers and flight safety and claimed that he had fudged the records after the flight, which is evident in the CCTV footage and statements given by the pre-flight medicals (PFM) doctors.
“His offence of skipping the mandatory breath analyser test for around ten times calls for registering a FIR under section 336 (Act endangering life or personal safety of others), which needs to be lodged not only against the pilot but also against the doctor who allowed him to skip the tests. When someone continues skipping the tests it is a clear indication that he has consumed alcohol,” said a source.