NEW DELHI: Indigo has been fined a penalty of Rs 20 lakh by the aviation regulator, the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA), recently for faulty training of pilots in specific categories of high risk airports. The airline plans to legally challenge the order.
In a disclosure filed in the Bombay Stock Exchange on Wednesday as mandated by SEBI regulations, Indigo’s parent company, InterGlobe Aviation, has reported that the DGCA had levied Rs 20 lakh penalty on it on September 26.
Specifying the violation by the airline which resulted in the penalty, the airline attributes it to its “alleged failure to use qualified simulators for pilot training at Category C aerodromes.”
Category C or high-risk airports refer to aerodromes with challenging approaches or complicated terrain and only pilots who have undergone specialised training can operate flights in them.
The disclosure further states, “The company is in the process of contesting the order before the appropriate appellate authority. “
Over 1,700 pilots in Indigo are provided this critical airfield training as revealed through an earlier order the airline had received from the regulator.
Elaborating on what qualified simulators refer to, Captain Anil S Rao, president of the All India Pilots Association, told this reporter, “All simulators used in aviation need to have a whole topographical view (realistic, actual view) of the airport and its surroundings t. A generic airfield will not have a topographic view. For instance, Calicut and Mangaluru airports have a 300-feet high table top and require what is known as a qualified simulator.” Similarly, Srinagar, Port Blair, Leh, Aizawl and Shimla are among the category C airports. Kabul and Kathmandu in the vicinity too are classified under it.
On August 11, DGCA had issued a show cause notice to Indigo in connection with lapses in simulator training. Earlier, Air India Express too had received a similar notice in connection with the Calicut International Airport.
