by Aditya Kalra
NEW DELHI, Feb 13 (Reuters) – India’s civil aviation regulator fined Air India $110,350 for flying an Airbus aircraft eight times without airworthiness clearance, a confidential order showed, saying the lapse further eroded public trust in the country’s second-largest carrier.
An Airbus A320 was carrying passengers between New Delhi, Bengaluru, Mumbai and Hyderabad on November 24 and 25 without obtaining a mandatory airworthiness review certificate (ARC), a key license issued by the regulator every year after the aircraft passes safety and compliance inspections.
Reuters reported in December that Air India’s internal investigation into the incident found “systemic failures” at the airline, which also acknowledged an urgent need to improve the airline’s compliance culture.
Indian authorities issued a secret penalty order to Air India CEO Campbell Wilson on February 5, saying the incident “further eroded public confidence and adversely affected the organization’s safety compliance.”
“The responsible manager on behalf of Air India is responsible for the said lapse,” Manish Kumar, joint director general of civil aviation, wrote in the order, referring to Wilson.
Air India did not respond to queries from Reuters.
The airline was asked to deposit INR 10 million (approximately $110,339) within 30 days.
Air India suffered its worst disaster when a Boeing Dreamliner crashed shortly after takeoff in June last year, killing 260 people.
Air India’s investigation into the Airbus incident also blamed pilots, saying the pilots flying the eight flights did not follow standard operating procedures before takeoff, Reuters reported.
Air India, owned by India’s Tata Group and Singapore Airlines, also received warnings from regulators for operating planes without checking emergency equipment and other audit lapses.
(Reporting by Aditya Kalra; Editing by Anil D’Silva)