12 November,2009 08:14 AM IST | | Bipin Kumar Singh
AI, Kingfisher, GoAir that used barred runway on Tuesday could face suspension for a month like Damania Airways did in 1994
GoAir, Air India and Kingfisher could be temporarily asked to suspend operations for using Runway 0927 at the Mumbai airport despite clear instructions by the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) not to do so.
In 1994, the DGCA had suspended Damania Airways' licence for a month after it violated a similar order that had asked them to not use a wet runway.
u00a0
Kingfisher Flight IT-4124, which was carrying 42 passengers and four airline personnel from Bhavnagar, Gujarat, caught fire, as it skid while landing at the Mumbai runaway at 4.36 pm on Tuesday.
The plane had skidded past an aviation fuel depot situated dangerously close to the runway.
Air India and GoAir flights also violated the DGCA's orders by using the wet runway on Tuesday.
Captain A Ranganathan, an aviation expert, said, "DGCA has the authority to suspend operations of any airline for violation.
In this case, the DGCA should consider the Damania Airlines case as a precedent and act against the erring airlines, who are putting several lives at risk by ignoring safety laws."
Get tougher
The DGCA has already indicated that merely de-rostering six pilots and suspending one ATC official is not sufficient punishment for Tuesday's lapses.
DGCA Chief Nasim Zaidi said, "We have asked GoAir, Air India and Kingfisher to explain why action should not be taken against them.
I am not aware about the Damania Airways incident, but, of course, we will take appropriate action if the airlines are found guilty."
DGCA has also directed Mumbai International Airport Ltd, the managers of Mumbai airport, to film the ongoing repair work on runways every Tuesday, so airlines do not violate restrictions imposed on them on
the day.
The Other Side
"It is premature to say if the DGCA will ask us to suspend operations, but we will abide by all decisions made by the DGCA," saidu00a0 Prakash Mirpuri, spokesperson, Kingfisher.
"We will share with the DGCA what we have to say, but obey whatever decisions it arrives," saidu00a0 Air India Executive Director Jitender Bhargava.
"DGCA investigated the incident on Tuesday, and subsequently cleared GoAir pilots for normal operations," said Go Air spokesperson Carolina Bajaj.
[DGCA has denied clearing any pilot in the incident.]
NRI dies on flight
A British national was found dead in the toilet of a London-Mumbai Kingfisher Airlines flight last morning. Jamnadas Jetwa (71), suffered a cardiac arrest and was declared dead on arrival.
