The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) on Thursday levied a fine of ₹10 lakh on Vistara airline as it was found that two of its pilots who operated a flight to Indore in August 2021 had failed to undergo re-training after joining the airline in order to be approved for carrying out takeoffs and landings.
“The aircraft landing was being conducted by the first officer, without either him or the captain of trained at the simulator. This is a serious violation endangering the lives of the passengers onboard and, therefore, a penalty of ₹10 lakh has been levied on the airline,” a DGCA official said.
The airline said the matter was voluntarily reported by it to the regulator, and that though the pilots had not undergone re-training as per rules, they were trained pilots in possession of valid certificates issued by their previous employer.
“A supervised take-off and landing [STOL] was conducted on a flight to Indore in August 2021 under the supervision of an experienced captain. The pilots were adequately trained and in possession of valid STOL certificates issued by their previous employer for which Vistara claimed the credit. Vistara voluntarily reported to regulatory authorities that the same training which was to be conducted again in line with regulatory requirements was missed, leading to the regrettable violation.”
