Harshit Singh
In response to the tail strike incident at Ahmedabad Airport last month, the aviation regulating body, the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA), has suspended the licences of an IndiGo pilot in command for three months and a co-pilot for one month, according to persons acquainted with the situation.
According to a senior DGCA official, the two pilots’ suspension was decided upon after carefully considering their justification.
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The official stated, “DGCA investigation has shown that the crew executed the landing in deviation from established SOPs (stand operating procedures)”.
On June 15, as IndiGo’s A321 aircraft, flying as flight 6E6595 from Bengaluru to Ahmedabad, touched down at Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel International Airport, a tail hit event occurred.
When an aircraft is taking off or landing, its tail may strike the earth or any other object. Human error is frequently to blame for tail impacts, which can seriously harm an aircraft.
The two pilots were immediately removed from the roster and the aircraft was grounded at the Ahmedabad airport for inspection and repairs.
“The DGCA sent show cause notices to both crew members. The PIC’s (pilot in command) licence has been suspended for a period of three months, and the co-pilot’s licence has been suspended for a period of one month due to violations of the relevant Civil Aviation Requirements (CAR) and SOPs, the DGCA official continued.
There have been at least four tail strike accidents involving IndiGo this year, but there have never been any with an A321 aircraft.
