New Delhi: In a stern move to ensure aviation safety, the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) on Friday ordered Air India to immediately remove three senior officials from their crew scheduling duties. The directive comes after a series of persistent violations of regulatory norms and significant operational oversight failures were uncovered.
The officials in question are Choorah Singh, Divisional Vice President; Pinky Mittal, Chief Manager – DOPS, Crew Scheduling; and Payal Arora, responsible for Crew Scheduling – Planning. A DGCA order, dated June 20, pinpointed their involvement in unauthorised crew pairings, blatant breaches of crew licensing regulations, and consistent flouting of mandatory rest period norms. These are all considered paramount for maintaining the highest standards of aviation safety.
The aviation watchdog has minced no words, instructing that these individuals be promptly reassigned to non-operational roles, completely severing their ties with any function related to crew operations. Furthermore, the DGCA has mandated Air India to launch internal disciplinary proceedings against them without delay, with the outcome to be reported back to the regulator within a strict 10-day timeframe. The order explicitly stated, “Internal disciplinary proceedings must be initiated against these officials without delay, and the outcome shall be reported to this office within 10 days from the date of issue of this letter.”
Until comprehensive corrective measures are fully implemented within Air India’s scheduling practices, the trio will remain barred from holding any position that directly impacts flight safety or crew compliance. The irregularities surfaced during a post-transition audit of Air India’s crew management systems, specifically during the migration from the ARMS platform to the new CAE Flight and Crew Management System.
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