Page 7 - Dgca

Domestic air traffic rises 1.89% to 14.05 million in May, says DGCA

DGCA's monthly data showed the number of domestic passengers flown by Indian airlines in May 2024 was 13.79 million

DGCA detects recurring defects in aviation checks at major airports

Aviation watchdog DGCA on Tuesday said surveillance conducted at major airports revealed several defects in the aviation ecosystem, including multiple cases wherein the defects reappeared on aircraft and centre line marking faded on runway. The surveillance, which comes against the backdrop of the fatal Air India plane crash at Ahmedabad on June 12, covered critical areas such as flight operations, airworthiness, ramp safety, air traffic control, communication, navigation systems, and pre-flight medical evaluations. Without disclosing names of airlines or any other entities in the ecosystem, the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) in a statement said the findings have been communicated to those concerned for taking corrective actions within seven days. Two teams led by DGCA Joint Director General carried out comprehensive surveillance during night and early morning hours at major airports, including Delhi and Mumbai. During the surveillance, domestic flight of a scheduled

Aviation regulator DGCA starts audit at Air India's main base in Gurugram

Aviation regulator DGCA on Monday commenced the detailed audit at Air India's main base in Gurugram that will cover operations, flight scheduling, rostering and various other areas, according to a source. The Tata Group-owned airline has come under intense scrutiny after its London-bound Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner plane crashed soon after take-off in Ahmedabad on June 12, killing 270 people, including 241 people onboard. An eight-member team from the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) has started the annual audit of Air India's main base. Generally, a three-member team carries out the yearly audit, the source said. "DGCA has started the audit at Air India's main base at Gurugram. The annual exercise will cover all aspects, including operations, flight planning, scheduling, rostering and IOCC (Integrated Operations Control Centre)," the source said. Air India is headquartered in Gurugam, Haryana. The audit exercise also comes at a time when the regulator has taken action aga

DGCA launches comprehensive special audit plan to end siloed safety checks

DGCA's new special audit framework moves beyond siloed inspections to assess safety, compliance and operations across airlines, airports, MROs and other aviation entities

DGCA revises guidelines for flight operations in adverse weather conditions

Aviation watchdog DGCA has revised its operational guidelines for operators during adverse weather conditions, emphasising that safety should take precedence over "schedule adherence" and encouraged pilots to divert flights in unpredictable conditions. Issuing an updated operations circular to scheduled and non-scheduled operators, the regulator also said pilots should cross-check visual cues with instruments to ensure accurate approach and landing assessments to deal with visual illusions that may occur during night operations in rain or on wet runways. The circular also comes against the backdrop of recent helicopter accidents in Kedarnath region and an IndiGo flight enroute to Srinagar encountering severe turbulence last month. Citing the growing impact of climate change on operational unpredictability, DGCA has advised flight crew to maintain heightened vigilance, "with an emphasis on safety taking precedence over schedule adherence". "Captains are encouraged to initiate ...

DGCA seeks audit and inspection records of Air India from 2024: Report

Aviation safety regulator DGCA has asked flight operations inspectors to provide details of all inspections and audits conducted for Air India since 2024, sources said on Saturday. The details on the findings of the inspections and audits will have to be submitted by Sunday, they said. In an e-mailed communication, which came a day after the regulator issued a show-cause notice to the airline for flight duty time limitations (FDTL) violation, and also ordered removal of the airline's three senior officials from their respective roles for certain lapses, the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) has sought these details for 2024 and 2025 (to date), the sources said. The data has been sought on planned and unplanned inspections, audit, cockpit/ enroute, station facility, ramp and cabin inspection among others, as per the communication. The Tata Group airline has been facing intense scrutiny since one of its Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner crashed shortly after taking off from the ...

79% Air India flyers report quality, aircraft maintenance issues: Survey

A staggering 79% of Air India passengers experienced aircraft quality issues, up from 55% in 2024, amid growing safety concerns after the June 12 crash, finds a nationwide LocalCircles survey

DGCA suspends 3 crew rostering heads, warns A-I of licence revocation

DGCA suspends three crew rostering officials and warns of future licence action as safety lapses and operational rule breaches emerge after AI171 crash investigation

Air India faces DGCA heat as 3 officials axed for safety violations

DGCA removes three Air India officials over repeated crew safety violations, warns of strict action for future breaches

Weeks before Air India crash, Parliament panel flagged funding shortfall

The panel report, tabled in March 2025, cited poor funding to key aviation bodies like AAIB and BCAS, and raised concerns over understaffing amid rapid expansion of India's airport network

Air India flew Airbus jets with overdue checks days before fatal 787 crash

DGCA flagged Air India for flying planes with overdue emergency equipment checks; however, these warnings were not related to the cause of the June 13 plane crash

Sorry and thank you: Air India CEO writes to flyers a week after crash

Air India CEO writes to frequent flyers after the June 12 crash, as 15 per cent of widebody international flights are cancelled due to safety inspections and disruptions

For the sake of air safety, DGCA's institutional design needs an overhaul

From first principles, we know that there are market failures that motivate state intervention. There may be a problem of market power in a small oligopoly of airlines

Air India's Boeing 787 fleet compliant with existing safety standards: DGCA

Safety checks on 26 of 33 aircraft find Air India's B787 fleet compliant but DGCA seeks better coordination, spare availability to address network delays

7 Air India int'l flights cancelled on Tue, DGCA flags maintenance issues

Troubles mounted for Air India as the beleaguered airline cancelled seven more international flights on Tuesday, bringing the total number of cancellations to 83 since the devastating Ahmedabad crash, which has led to the aviation safety watchdog raising concerns about its maintenance practices. The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) asked Air India for the training records of the pilots and dispatchers of the June 12 flight AI171 from Ahmedabad to London that crashed seconds after take off. The death of over 270 onboard the Boeing 787 Dreamliner and on the ground spawned the biggest crisis for the airline since the Tata Group bought it three-and-a-half years ago. While Air India cancelled the six flights due to DGCA's checks, a San Francisco-Kolkata-Mumbai flight had to be terminated at Kolkata because of a problem in the engine of the Boeing 777-200 jetliner. Its Ahmedabad-London Gatwick one was cancelled due to unavailability of aircraft, the airline said. The disruptio

DGCA summons Air India officials amid Ahmedabad-London plane crash probe

On June 12, Air India flight AI-171 crashed shortly after taking off from Ahmedabad, following a Mayday distress call from the pilot

DGCA seeks Air India pilots' training data, crashed plane dispatcher info

The Directorate General of Civil Aviation also asked all flying schools to conduct training compliance checks, according to the confidential memos, seen by Reuters

After Kedarnath crash, Uttarakhand to resume helicopter services on June 17

Seven people were killed after a Kedarnath-bound helicopter crashed on June 16; services to resume on June 17 if weather is favourable

Uttarakhand helicopter crash: MoCA halts all operations till Monday

5th helicopter crashes in Char Dham region in six weeks, claims 7 lives

'Tragedy calls for introspection': Naidu vows reforms after Air India crash

Civil Aviation Minister Ram Mohan Naidu pledges full support and reforms after the Air India AI171 crash in Ahmedabad. A high-level probe and urgent aircraft inspections are now underway