Page 2 - Pilots

Baltimore bridge collapse puts specialised role of pilot under spotlight

The expert pilots who navigate massive ships in and out of Baltimore's port must often manoeuvre with just two feet of clearance from the channel floor and memorise charts, currents and every other possible maritime variable. The highly specialised role -- in which a pilot temporarily takes control of a ship from its regular captain -- is coming under the spotlight this week. Two pilots were at the helm of the cargo ship Dali about 1.25 am Tuesday when it lost power and, minutes later, crashed into a pillar of the Francis Scott Key Bridge, causing the bridge to collapse and kill six construction workers. While the incident will undoubtedly raise larger questions about ship and port safety protocols, so far there is no indication the pilots on the Dali did anything wrong given the immediate situation they faced. The ship sent out a mayday call, which gave just enough time for authorities to close the bridge to traffic and likely prevented further deaths. The lead pilot also dropped

New FDTL rules: Have enough pilots, won't cancel flights, says Akasa CEO

As of February 2024, the cancellation rate at Akasa Air has been 0.30 per cent, which is the lowest among domestic Indian carriers

Vistara's ultimatum to pilots: Accept new salary structure by EOD

Pilots to lose slot on 'upgrade sequence list' if they fail to sign contract by Friday

Indian airlines shouldn't gamble with stricter safety

India's aviation industry needs to embrace these rules quickly with the understanding that safer skies and a greater emphasis on working conditions can only help business and lure more customers

Do not have any pilot shortage: Akasa Air founder and CEO Vinay Dube

The airline, which has a 23 Max aircraft in its fleet, cancelled a few flights on Sunday and Monday due to operational reasons. These cancellations were not due to lack of sufficient number of pilots

DGCA increases rest time among other reforms to address pilot fatigue

The new reforms include weekly rest periods of 36-48 hours for flight crew, increasing the official "night period" by an hour, and limiting maximum flight time & duty periods to 8 hours and 10 hours

Time-consuming training, pilot shortages causing fog-related flight delays

During the pandemic, only a few pilots could train on these simulators as these enclosed spaces carried a high risk of transmission, exacerbating the challenge with simulator availability today

Pilot unions express concern as Air India 'threats of appropriate measures'

Pilot unions at Air India on Sunday expressed "concern" over the Tata Group-owned airline's alleged threat to the cockpit staff with "appropriate measures" if pilots report sick for duty. In a communication to Air India senior vice president for flight operations Manish Uppal on Sunday, Indian Pilots Guild (IPG) and Indian Commercial Pilots Association (ICPA) said that reporting illnesses without the "fear of reprisal" is in the interest of flight safety. IPG is the wide-body aircraft pilots' body at Air India while ICPA represents pilots who fly narrow-body Airbus 320 family aircraft of the full-service carrier. The copies of the letter have also been marked to Air India Chairman N Chandrasekaran, DGCA Vikram Dev Dutt, Air India Managing Director and CEO Campbell Wilson, among others. "We are writing to express our concern and objection regarding recent communications implying threats of appropriate measures for sick reporting," the pilot bodies said in the communication. Stating

DGCA issues draft of revised duty rules for pilots to address fatigue

The proposed draft reads that fatigue reports shall be used as an effective tool in identifying and mitigating crew fatigue

Breath analyser: DGCA issues new norms; pilots, crew not to use mouthwash

Pilots and crew members cannot use mouthwash, tooth gel or any such substance that has alcoholic content, as that could result in positive breath analyser test, according to revised norms issued by aviation regulator DGCA. Besides, various changes have been made to the norms pertaining to the procedure for medical examination of aircraft personnel for alcohol consumption. In a release on Wednesday, DGCA said it has revised the Civil Aviation Requirements (CAR) on procedure for medical examination of aircraft personnel for alcohol consumption with the objective of enhancing safety of aircraft operations coupled with streamlining provisions of the existing regulations in line with feedback from industry and stakeholders from time to time for more effective implementation. "No crew member shall consume any drug/formulation or use any substance such as mouthwash/tooth gel or any such product which has alcoholic content. "This may result into positive breath analyser test. Any crew memb

Chief executives of Air India, Akasa joust over poaching of pilots

The rare verbal and written confrontations between the airlines' chief executives were detailed in the letter, sent by Campbell Wilson of Air India, which is owned by the Tata Group conglomerate

Off-duty pilot hit with 167 charges, tries to shut down engines mid-air

Off-duty pilot who tried to shut down plane's engine in mid-air, arrested and hit with 167 charges and out of these, 83 are first-degree attempted murder

Tata-owned Air India Express to double its pilot count in next one year

Air India Express is in the process of merging low-cost domestic carrier AirAsia India with itself, and last week unveiled its new brand identity

Airlines to operate 8.16% more flights this winter, shows DGCA data

Akasa Air, which recently reduced flights due to the exodus of 43 pilots, is slated to operate 64.9 per cent more flights

Pilot licence now valid for 10 years, says civil aviation ministry

These licences will be issued to pilots at the time when their pilot's licence is up for renewal

Air India to roll out new uniforms for frontline employees by December

The Tata Group took charge of Air India in January last year. Currently, the conglomerate is in the process of merging Vistara into Air India

DGCA can act against noncompliance of pilots to aviation rules: Delhi HC

The court clarified that pilots who are resigning without serving their notice periods during the pendency of the current case do so at their own risk

Air India crafts action plan to resolve spectrum of pilot concerns

In light of pilots identifying errors in flight plans, the airline will randomly scrutinise five per cent of dispatched flight plans for enhanced oversight

Bombay HC reserves order on plea maintainability in Akasa-pilot matter

The order, which will now be pronounced on 27 September, will decide if the troubled airline can proceed with the case before the Bombay High Court

Can't interfere in employment pact between Akasa, pilots: DGCA in Delhi HC

The bench of Justice Manmeet Pritam Arora recently kept the order reserved and asked the concerned parties to file their written synopsis