Aviation watchdog DGCA on Tuesday announced stringent safety measures for non-scheduled operators after surge in aircraft accidents and said non-scheduled operators failing to meet compliance standards to face penalties and their licenses may be suspended. The DGCA said accountable managers, senior leadership of non-scheduled operators will be held personally responsible for systemic non-compliances.
DGCA to conduct increased random Cockpit Voice Recorder audits
The DGCA said it will conduct increased random Cockpit Voice Recorder audits; tech logs of non-scheduled operators' aircraft to detect unauthorised operations. The regulator also planned safety ranking mechanism for all non-scheduled operators; details to be published on regulator's website.
Earlier, the DGCA proposed stricter norms to deal with unruly passengers, including allowing airlines to directly impose a flying ban on such passengers for up to 30 days. "A 'No/ Zero Tolerance Policy' has been adopted to ensure the safety of the aircraft/persons/property and to maintain good order & discipline on board an aircraft," the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) said in its draft revised rules.
Airlines to formulate SOP for handling of unruly passengers
Among other proposals, the regulator has mentioned that an airline shall formulate and implement a Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) for the handling of unruly passengers and for reporting the incidents to the DGCA, and shall circulate the same among all concerned stakeholders.
An independent committee set up by the airline that will include a representative from another carrier, among others, will take a decision on the flying ban...an airline may directly impose a flying ban for a disruptive passenger for a period not exceeding thirty days (30) days without referring the matter to the Independent Committee, where the passenger is found to have committed any of the following disruptive acts on board an aircraft," the regulator said.
Such an action can be taken by an airline for various violations, including smoking on board the aircraft, consumption of alcohol onboard a domestic flight and misuse of an emergency exit or unauthorised use of life-saving equipment, including life jackets.
Unruly passengers can face varying periods of flying ban
Under the existing Civil Aviation Requirement (CAR), pending decision of the independent committee, the concerned airline may ban such unruly passenger from flying for up to 45 days. This provision also remains in the proposed revised CAR for handling unruly passengers.
Unruly passengers can face varying periods of flying ban depending on the level of offences. For Level 1, the ban can be up to three months and for Level 2, the same can be up to six months. In the case of Level 3 and 4 cases, the minimum ban can be for two years or more without a limit.
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