Page 5 - Pilots

Confident of overcoming crisis: Akasa Air pilots contradict airline

The airline's pilots said they were not worried about the airline shutting shop anytime soon

Akasa's future: CEO Dube seeks to douse fire lit by lawyers' closure claims

Akasa's lawyers had said in the Delhi HC on Tuesday that the airline was in a "state of crises" and might "shut down" due to the abrupt resignation of 43 pilots to join rival airlines

Former Akasa pilots challenge maintainability of lawsuits filed by airline

The pilots contend that since their employment contracts were signed in Delhi, the case should fall under the jurisdiction of the Delhi High Court

Akasa flying less after some pilots quit abruptly: CEO Vinay Dube

The company has initiated legal action against the pilots that have quit without serving their mandatory contractual notice period, Dube said

33 pilots, 97 cabin-crew members found drunk on duty in H1 of 2023: DGCA

According to DGCA rules, pilots and cabin crew members must undergo pre-flight breathalyzer tests

IndiGo to use tech to keep check on pilot fatigue, trial in next few months

It will also conduct a proof-of-concept trial for this system to assess the alertness of pilots over the next few months

DGCA is unlikely to hold radio communication skill test for pilots in 2024

Aviation regulator Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) might not hold radio communication skill tests, also known as Radio Telephony exam, for pilots in 2024, according to sources. On May 1, 2023, the Ministry of Communication, which presently conducts the test, officially handed over the responsibility of conducting the test to DGCA from 2024 onwards after aviation experts and pilots' bodies alleged lack of expertise and malpractices. However, the regulator has initiated a process to scrap the post of officers responsible to hold the exam. Radio communication skill tests, officially called Radio Telephony Restricted License or RTR(A) test, is conducted for pilots by the Wireless Planning & Coordination (WPC) wing of the Ministry of Communication to assess if they are fully trained to communicate with Air Traffic Controllers (ATCs) for all kinds of situations. Radio telephone is a communication system operated between air crew members and pilots to connect with ATCs and ..

Pilot's death brings focus back on industry norms to handle fatigue

Rules in 2019 allowed pilot to fly commercial passenger flights for two consecutive nights

Pilots to unite to raise fatigue woes after colleague's pre-flight death

IndiGo, which operates 1,900 flights a day, said it has a comprehensive fatigue management system which tracks various parameters in line with international best practices

Pilots' lack of familiarisation factor for Pawan Hans chopper crash: AAIB

Pilots' lack of familiarisation with automatic flight control systems was one of the contributing factors that led to Pawan Hans' Sikorsky helicopter crash that killed four people off the Mumbai coast in June last year, according to an investigation report that has also called for various corrective measures. In its final report on the accident involving Sikorsky S-76D helicopter that was operated by Pawan Hans, the Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB) has also flagged the passenger safety briefing video did not provide correct guidance for inflation of life jackets. Out of the seven people who were onboard the chopper, the report said that all of them evacuated from the helicopter but only five could inflate the life jackets. The helicopter was to operate a crew change sortie to ONGC-operated Sagar Kiran Rig in Mumbai off-shore. The accident happened on June 28, 2022, as the helicopter entered into uncontrolled flight during its final approach and fell into the ...

Delhi HC dismisses plea against reduction in allowances of Air India pilots

The Delhi High Court has refused to interfere with the Centre's decision reducing allowances of Air India pilots on account of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, saying the pilots, who were taking home lakhs of rupees in spite of the cut when many others in the country had lost their livelihood, cannot claim victimisation. A division bench of Chief Justice Satish Chandra Sharma and Justice Subramonium Prasad took judicial notice of the complete lockdown in 2020, when all aviation operations were suspended, as well as the fact that pilots across various airlines lost their jobs but Air India ensured there were no lay-offs. Dismissing an appeal by Executive Pilots Association against a single bench order rejecting its plea assailing the reduction, the bench remarked, "The fact that a pilot even without the allowance takes home a pay package of Rs 6 to 7 lakh as compared to many other people in the country who lost their entire livelihood during the pandemic cannot raise a grouse that they

Passengers stranded for three hours after Air India pilot refuses to fly

The stranded passengers were asked to look for alternative arrangements in Jaipur

Air India pilots suspended for inviting woman friend into cockpit

The Air India management suspended the two pilots after receiving a complaint from the cabin crew about the cockpit violation

Air India growing, hiring 600 cabin crew members, pilots every month: CEO

Bullish on growth prospects with a "healthy start" to Air India's five-year transformation plan, its chief Campbell Wilson on Monday said the airline is hiring 550 cabin crew members and 50 pilots every month and also expects to have six wide-body A350 planes in its fleet by the end of this year. After taking over the reins from the government in January last year, Tata Group has put in place various measures to turn around the fortunes of the loss-making carrier, including placing the largest order for 470 planes and expanding international operations. Talking about the airline's hiring plans, Wilson, who is the Managing Director and CEO, said there is no target per se, but about 550 cabin crew members and 50 pilots are coming in and trained afresh every month. "In the case of cabin crew members, it is about ten times and in the case of pilots, it is about five times on an annual rate of the pre-privatised airline," he told PTI in an interview in the national capital. According to

DGCA fines Air India Rs 30 lakh, suspends pilot for three months

'We acknowledge and accept the DGCA's ruling', said Air India

DGCA slaps Rs 30 lakh fine, suspends AI pilot for letting friend in cockpit

Aviation regulator DGCA on Friday imposed a fine of Rs 30 lakh for lapses in addressing "safety sensitive issue" related to the incident of a pilot allowing a female friend in the cockpit during a Dubai-Delhi flight on February 27. Besides, the licence of the pilot who operated the flight has been suspended for three months, the regulator said in a statement.

AI pilots' unions decide to accept revised service terms, compensation

Air India's two pilot unions on Thursday decided to accept the revised service norms and new compensation structure offered by the airline. The Indian Commercial Pilots Association (ICPA) and the Indian Pilots Guild (IPG) had opposed the carrier's revised compensation structure introduced on April 17. The latest decision follows a virtual town hall meeting between pilots and the airline's chief of operations R S Sandhu last week, wherein the latter had assured that all demands will be looked into. "Upon the assurances given in the online Townhall Meeting for all pilots' and in the interest of the aspirations of Air India, The Tata Group and our passengers, the joint directive stands withdrawn," the two unions said in a joint statement on Thursday. The development also comes at a time when crisis-hit budget carrier Go First has gone into insolvency resolution proceedings. While ICPA represents pilots operating the narrow-body Airbus fleet, IPG has pilots who fly wide-body Boeing .

Air India pilot unions end protest on new salary contracts, service rewards

The change in stance from unions comes as Air India stepped up efforts to attract pilots from Go First that temporarily stopped operations last week

Air India pilots get more time to accept revised compensation structure

Air India has given more time to pilots to accept the revised compensation structure, which has been opposed by two pilot unions, according to a source. The decision to provide more time to pilots who are yet to sign the new contracts also comes days after Air India organised a town hall meeting with many pilots to discuss their concerns. The source said the airline has given time till the end of this week for signing the new contracts apparently due to requests from people who had not earlier accepted the revised compensation structure. There was no comment from Air India on extending the deadline. Initially, the deadline for accepting the new contracts had ended on April 30. The move to extend the deadline also comes at a time when crisis-hit Go First has stopped flying and its future remains uncertain, a scenario that has also resulted in many of the budget carrier's pilots seeking job opportunities elsewhere. The source said that nearly 800 pilots who had not accepted the new

Go First pilots rush to Air India's job drive after it files for bankruptcy

Go First's announcement on Tuesday that it had filed for bankruptcy as demand for post-pandemic air travel in the world's most populous country boomed came as a shock to many employees