26 March 2024 – Air India Limited has been fined Rs 80 lakhs by the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) for violating the flight crew’s fatigue management system (FMS) and flight duty time limitations (FDTL). This fine is the result of the carrier’s inadequate response to an earlier show-cause notification. In order to confirm that Air India Limited complied with FDTL and FMS laws, the DGCA performed a spot audit of the company in January.
The audit detected a number of infractions, including cases when flight crew members who were older than 60 were discovered to be flying together, which was against Sub Rule (2) of Rule 28 A of the 1937 Aircraft Rules.
In addition, the operator failed to provide the flight crew with enough rest each week, before and after ultra-long-range (ULR) flights and during layovers. These actions violated Civil Aviation Requirements pertaining to FDTL. In addition to these serious infractions, the audit also found instances of missing work deadlines, incomplete training records, and duplication of responsibilities, among other inconsistencies.
Conclusion
Air India has previously been subject to sanctions from the DGCA. A previous incident included an elderly customer who died at immigration because there was no wheelchair help, and the airline was fined Rs 30 lakhs.
