DGCA Cracks Down On Air India, Orders Removal Of 3 Officials Over Crew Scheduling Violations Days After Ahmedabad Plane Crash

New Delhi: Days after the deadly Ahmedabad plane crash incident, the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) took strict action against Air India over serious lapses in crew scheduling protocols. The DGCA removed three senior officials from Air India’s rostering department.

The civil aviation body on Friday issued a formal directive in this regard. As per the DGCA, the airline violated important safety protocols by engaging in non-compliant crew pairings. Air also also allegedly breached licensing and recency rules.

“Whereas, repeated and serious violations voluntarily disclosed by M/s Air India concerning flight crew being scheduled and operated despite lapses in licensing, rest, and recency requirements. These violations. were discovered during the post-transition review from ARMS to the CAE Flight and Crew Management System,” the order read.

The three officials removed from the rostering department are:

- Choorah Singh, Divisional Vice President

- Pinky Mittal, Chief Manager - DOPS, Crew Scheduling

- Payal Arora, Crew Scheduling - Planning

The DGCA directed Air India to remove the above-mentioned officials from all roles and responsibilities related to crew scheduling and rostering.

DGCA's Order:

The civil aviation body also asked the management to initiate internal disciplinary proceedings must be initiated against these officials without delay. The DGCA directed the concerned authorities to submit a report within 10 days.

"The aforementioned officials shall be reassigned to non-operational roles pending conclusion of corrective reforms in scheduling practices, and shall not hold any position involving direct influence over flight safety and crew compliance until further notice," the DGCA said.

"Any future violation of crew scheduling norms, licensing, or flight time limitations detected in any post-audit or inspection, will attract strict enforcement action, including but not limited to penalties, license suspension, or withdrawal of operator permissions as applicable," it added.

The development came days after the Air India plane crash in Ahmedabad in which over 275 people lost their lives, including 241 passengers and crew of the ill-fated plane. Only one passenger survived the crash. Among the deceased were medical college students as the plane crashed into their hostel second after takeoff from the Ahmedabad Airport on June 12.

Published on: Saturday, June 21, 2025, 02:06 PM IST