DGCA grounds two charter planes for serving liquor on board

Following a surprise raid at the IGI Airport, a team of DGCA officials also found that both aircraft were not carrying the mandatory operations manuals as well as Jeppesen manual or the comprehensive flight (route) guide, the sources claimed, adding one of them also had a “wrong” ETOPS (Extended range Twin Operations) clearance.

They said two women, not trained air hostesses, were in the Gulfstream acting as crew.

DGCA would shortly issue showcause notices to both the companies owning the aircraft asking them the explain the violations.

The sources said Bajaj Auto has informed the DGCA that a liquor bottle was left over from an August 2013 flight between Dubai and Chennai which carried a prominent Bollywood personality and 11 others.

The Aircraft Act 1934 bans serving liquor on planes operating a domestic air transport service, while Delhi liquor law allows carriage of “not more than one unsealed liquor bottle of 750 ml.”

In its recent spate of safety checks on business jets owned private charter firms or high net worth individuals, the DGCA has so far taken major or minor action in 30 cases.