DGCA slaps Rs 30L fine on A-I, suspends pilot license for 3 mths

New Delhi, Jan 20: Aviation regulator DGCA on Friday imposed a penalty of Rs 30 lakh on Air India as well as suspended the license of the pilot-in-command of the New York-Delhi flight in which a person allegedly urinated on a female co-passenger.
In the incident, which happened on November 26, 2022, the watchdog has also slapped a fine of Rs 3 lakh on Air India’s Director of in-flight services for failing to discharge her duties.
The enforcement actions for violation of applicable norms come nearly two months after the incident, which came to the notice of the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) only on January 4.
This is also the first time that DGCA has penalised an airline for unruly passenger behaviour onboard a flight.
In a statement, an Air India spokesperson said it is in receipt of the DGCA order and studying it.
“We respectfully acknowledge the gaps in our reporting and are taking relevant steps to ensure that the same are addressed. We are also strengthening our crews’ awareness of and compliance with policies on the handling of incidents involving unruly passengers,” the airline spokesperson said.
On Thursday, Air India had imposed a four-month flying ban on Mishra, who is in jail now. Earlier, the airline had barred him from flying for 30 days.
In its statement on Friday, the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) said enforcement actions have been taken in the incident, which came to the notice of the regulator on January 4. (PTI)