In an unprecedented event, an Air India airman refused to fly a listed flight from Gujarat’s Rajkot field to Delhi carrying 100 passengers onboard including three Members of Parliament( MPs) from the Bhartiya Janata Party( BJP). As per the airman, he’d exceeded his duty hours as stated under the morals of Directorate General of Civil Aviation( DGCA), sparking difficulties and conversations within the aeronautics assiduity.
Flight AI404 was listed to depart at 830 PM original time on July 23 from Rajkot. The three onboard politicians included- Rajkot MP Mohan Kundariya, Jamnagar MP Poonam Maadam and Rajya Sabha MP Kesaridevsinh Jhala.
Duty Hour Limits
The Directorate General of Civil Aviation( DGCA) is responsible for setting Flight Duty Time Limitations( FDTL) in India. To alleviate the pitfalls associated with airman fatigue, FDTL regulations are put in place to insure the safety of passengers and crew members. According to DGCA authorizations, all crew members can fly a maximum of 8 hours in a day.
Air India Issues Statement
The Air India Airline issued a statement saying that Flight AI404 operating between Rajkot and Delhi was delayed due to functional reasons. An Air India prophet in his statement said that the Airline will rigorously not compromise FDTL regulations under any circumstances. Arrangements were made for passengers who had to reach Delhi on exigency base by transferring them to Ahmedabad from where they took an Air India flight to Delhi. The remaining stranded commuters were offered a full refund on cancellation, asked cataloging of breakouts and a hostel room accommodation.
A Similar Event in the Beginning of July, 2024
In an analogous event, around 20-25 students were left abandoned at the Vancouver airport after Air India cancelled its flight AI 186 from Vancouver to Delhi on July 2. According to the students, the flight was scheduled to take off at 10:15 AM on july 2 but got cancelled after getting rescheduled twice.
The students were provided with an Air India email address for reimbursement and were assured of refunds, however, a written confirmation for the same was refused by the staff stating that no confirmed guarantee can be given for the ticket amount. This left the students in a state of confusion after receiving no response in mail from Air India. About 10 students from the group had to find accommodation at a friend’s apartment after ending their rental accommodations before planning to leave for India.
Another Turndown of Flight Take Off in the Month of June, 2024
AI Flight 112 listed to reach Delhi from London at 4 am on Sunday, June 25 had to be diverted to Jaipur due to adverse weather conditions. After a 2 hour detention at Jaipur, the airman refused to fly stating he’d exceeded his flight operation hours as per DGCA morals. Over 350 passengers were left stranded, leaving them frustrated and discommoded by the detention. After staying for 6 hours, arrangements were made for a many passengers to commute to Delhi via a Volvo bus while others managed to travel by taxicabs. Additionally, some passengers chose to continue their journey on the same flight with a replaced crew.
While some passengers acknowledged the pilot’s commitment to adhering to safety rules, others chose to condemn the airline on twitter by sharing videos of mishandle by Air India.
