90 SpiceJet pilots barred from flying Boeing 737 Max planes by the DGCA

In an unprecedented move, 90 SpiceJet pilots have been barred from flying the Boeing 737 MAX till they undergo proper training. The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) took this step after finding anomalies in the simulator training that these pilots underwent at a facility in Noida.

“These (90) pilots have been restrained from flying the Boeing 737 MAX. They will have to undergo the training again to the satisfaction of DGCA,” India’s aviation regulator Arun Kumar said on Tuesday, April 12. The airline’s pilot training is also under the regulator’s scanner following this alleged lapse.

Confirming the action, a SpiceJet spokesman said: “The DGCA had an observation on the training profile followed for 90 pilots. Therefore as per DGCA instructions, SpiceJet has restrained 90 pilots from operating MAX aircraft. These pilots will undergo training again to the satisfaction of the DGCA.”

90 SpiceJet pilots were barred from flying Boeing 737 Max planes by the DGCA

The airline, which operates 11 of the 13 MAX currently in its fleet, says the 60 daily flights operated on these planes will not be affected.

“About 144 pilots are required to manage 11 aircraft (MAX). SpiceJet has currently 560 trained pilots on MAX. The trained pilot strength is more than sufficient for continuing normal operations,” the airline spokesman said. These pilots continue to remain available for other Boeing 737 aircraft.

Sources say the crucial “manoeuvring characteristics augmentation system” (MCAS) was not working properly in the simulator at the time when these 90 pilots were undergoing their training.

About 144 pilots are required to manage 11 MAX aircraft. SpiceJet has currently 560 trained pilots on MAX.

MCAS, a controversial flight stabilising programme developed by Boeing for MAX, was eventually found responsible for the Lion Air and Ethiopian Airlines B737 MAX crashes in October 2018 and March 2019, respectively, in which 346 people had lost their lives.

“A part of this system, the ‘stick shaker’ that vibrates the control column and makes a loud noise when the jet risks losing lift, was also not working properly in the simulator at the time of training these pilots,” said a source.

In both the Lion Air and Ethiopian MAX crashes, the aircraft's nose got pushed down because of several factors that were addressed later when the MAX was allowed to fly again after a global grounding. Correct pilot training for MCAS on the MAX simulator is key to flying this plane safely.

Akasa has placed an order for 72 B737 MAX.

SpiceJet is currently the only Indian airline that operates the MAX. Billionaire investor Rakesh Jhunjhunwala’s Akasa will take to the skies this summer using this aircraft. Akasa has placed an order for 72 B737 MAX.

Boeing says MCAS “flight control law was designed and certified for the B737 MAX (Boeing’s hurried answer to arch-rival European Airbus’ best-selling A320neo family of planes) to enhance the pitch stability of the airplane – so that it feels and flies like other 737s.”

The crucial “manoeuvring characteristics augmentation system” (MCAS) was not working properly in the simulator

Boeing 737 MAX resumed operations in December 2020 two years after they were grounded after the 2018 Lion Air and 2019 Ethiopian Airlines crashes, which left 346 people dead.

A faulty flight handling system meant to keep the plane from stalling as it ascends was blamed for the crashes. The automated system was found to have pushed the nose of the plane downwards.

ALSO READ - DGCA allows Boeing 737 Max to fly again

Aviation authorities in the US later directed Boeing to revamp the planes and implement new training protocols for the pilots. The ban on Boeing 737 MAX was lifted in India in 2021.

The Indian Navy has started an apprentice training school at Dabolim to upskill ITI students and give them technical skills which will enable them to get employment as technicians for civilian and military aircraft.

The school will address the shortfall of aeronautical technicians, said the Indian Navy in a statement. While the first batch includes five students, the Indian Navy intends to scale up the school to accommodate around 50 apprentices per batch.

The Apprentice Training School (ATS) is attached to the Naval Aircraft Yard at INS Hansa and was inaugurated by master craftsman shipwright Rama Chari, the longest-serving employee of the naval aircraft yard. Assistant chief of naval staff (Air Material) rear admiral Deepak Bansal was present for the inauguration.

While the Indian Navy advertised for vacancies for apprentices in November 2021, just five candidates were selected for the first batch.

“The ATS aims to augment the aviation technical talent pool and also aid the national apprenticeship promotion scheme under the ‘Skill India’ initiative. The school is one of the limited vocational training institutes of the country in aeronautical technology,” said a naval officer.

The Navy said that the training school will provide “impetus for upskilling the technical workforce and also address the shortfall of aeronautical vocational training centres” in the defence and civilian sectors.

While the Indian Navy advertised for vacancies for apprentices in November 2021, just five candidates were selected for the first batch. The five candidates are two fitters and three electricians who hail from Karnataka, Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh and Bihar.

INS Hansa is India's biggest naval airbase.

“It is intended to scale up the school to accommodate around 50 apprentices per batch,” the Navy stated. The Navy is offering apprenticeships at the naval ship repair yard at Karwar and the Naval Aircraft Yard at INS Hansa and the selected candidates had the option of choosing Karwar or Goa.

The Navy said that just five candidates opted for Goa. The selection, tests and interviews were held at the Naval base at Karwar.

INS Hansa, is an Indian naval air station located near Dabolim in Goa, India. It is India's biggest naval airbase. The military air base has a civil enclave, that operates as Dabolim Airport.

Alliance Air's made-in-India Dornier 228 aircraft was deployed for its first commercial flight on the Dibrugarh-Pasighat route on Tuesday, April 12 with Union ministers Jyotiraditya Scindia and Kiren Rijiju on board.

Accompanied by senior government officers, Scindia and Rijiju boarded the flight at the Mohanbari airport in Assam's Dibrugarh for Pasighat in neighbouring Arunachal Pradesh.

The state-run Alliance Air became the country's first commercial airline to fly an Indian-made aircraft for civil operations. Till now, Dornier 228 planes were used by the armed forces only.

https://twitter.com/JM_Scindia/status/1513818525730672640

Ministry of Civil Aviation (MoCA) has approved a Scheme- "Providing air connectivity and Aviation infrastructure in North Eastern Region (NER)" to promote air connectivity in the states of the North Eastern Region and, it requires, to develop of infrastructure for air connectivity. 

As a part of this scheme, two important development will take place - The first flight of Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) - Made in India - Dornier Do-228 from Dibrugarh in Assam to Pasighat town in Arunachal Pradesh by Alliance Air, making it India's only first commercial airline to fly Indian made aircraft for civil operations and inauguration of first FTO (Flying Training Organization) for North Eastern Region at Lilabari, Assam.

ALSO READ - Northeast India’s first commercial pilot training academy set to begin at Lilabari airport

https://twitter.com/JM_Scindia/status/1513904086696951811

Alliance Air had in February signed an agreement with the government-owned Hindustan Aeronautics Limited to lease two 17-seater Dornier 228 aircraft. The airline received its first Dornier 228 plane on April 7.

ALSO READ - Alliance Air receives the first made-in-India civilian aircraft – Dornier 228

Regular flight operations are slated to start from April 18 on the Dibrugarh-Pasighat-Lilabari-Dibrugarh route.

The services will be further expanded to Tezu, Mechuka, Ziro and Tuting in Arunachal Pradesh with the Dibrugarh airport as the hub station. The services will be operated by Alliance Air under the regional connectivity scheme UDAN.

https://twitter.com/PemaKhanduBJP/status/1513791591735246850

Development of the North Eastern Region (NER) is not only of strategic importance but, is a part of India's growth story.

Connectivity in North Eastern Region is very essential and Under "Ude Desh Ka Aam Nagrik (UDAN)", the Regional Connectivity Scheme (RCS), the Ministry of Civil Aviation (MoCA) has identified North Eastern Region as a priority area. This has helped in enhancing inter and intra connectivity for the North Eastern Region. 

In this regard, new airports are getting developed and old airports are getting upgraded. Considering the hilly terrain, helicopter operations under the UDAN scheme have been given the focus on connectivity.

Alliance Air's made-in-India Dornier 228 made its first commercial flight

Dornier is originally a german aircraft first deployed by the long-defunct regional airline Vayudoot to service over 100 airports across India till the early 1990s.

In 1981, HAL acquired the production license for the aircraft from the manufacturers and assembled 125 of them at its Kanpur facility for both civilian and military purposes. 

Since 2009, Swiss aerospace engineering and defence company RUAG has been manufacturing the upgraded Do-228 New Generation (NG), with the fuselage, wings and tail being sourced from HAL.

The Dornier 228 NG used for commercial operations is the first aircraft made entirely in the country. It is a far improved version as compared to its predecessors.

The aviation e-Security module is likely to be completed by June 2022 and the e-Quality control programme is likely to be completed by August this year.

The single-window facility for approvals of security programmes related to aviation safety is likely to be ready by June this year, Union minister of civil aviation, Jyotiraditya Scindia, said on Monday, April 11.

In a parliamentary consultative committee attached to the civil aviation ministry, Scindia, on Monday, April 11 said that the Bureau of Civil Aviation Security (BCAS) establishes, develops, implements maintains and reviews the National Aviation Security (AvSec) programme.

The aviation e-Security module is likely to be completed by June 2022

“The e-Security programme is the single window facility for security programme approvals. The e-Quality control module is for security audit and security inspection of airports. The three modules: e-Sahaj, CACS and e-training have been completed and launched. The e-Security module is likely to be completed by June 2022 and the e-Quality control programme is likely to be completed by August this year,” a statement from the ministry read.

“BCAS has now undertaken e-BCAS, an initiative under e-Governance for automation of internal processes. This will be an online platform for the facilitation of stakeholders. It will leverage strengths of existing processes and organization structure, with the objective to make entire activities transparent, user-friendly and efficient.The Centralized Access Control System (CACS) deals with online systems for a biometric aerodrome entry permits and vehicle entry permit. It will regulate access of employees of approved government and private entities and authorized vehicles across zones at airports."Jyotiraditya Scindia, Union Minister of Civil Aviation

The meeting was also attended by the minister of state Gen (Retd) Dr VK Singh, secretary civil aviation Rajiv Bansal and officers of the ministry, Airports Authority of India, BCAS and Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA).

He also said that 16 training courses are being run for aviation security training and certifications.

The Bureau of Civil Aviation Security (BCAS) is an attached office of the Ministry of Civil Aviation in India. It is the regulatory authority for civil aviation security in India.

The Bureau of Civil Aviation Security (BCAS) is an attached office of the Ministry of Civil Aviation in India.

It is headed by an officer of the rank of Director General of Police and is designated as Director General of the Bureau of Civil Aviation Security.

The Director General, BCAS is the appropriate authority for the implementation of Annexure 17(Security: Safeguarding International Civil Aviation Against Acts of Unlawful Interference) to the Chicago convention of the International Civil Aviation Organization.

The Director General, BCAS is responsible for the development, implementation and maintenance of the National Civil Aviation Security Programme.

On Monday, April 11, Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) announced that it had signed a contract with the Nigerian Army to provide Phase-II flying training on the Chetak Helicopter to six Nigerian Army Aviation officers.

The Bengaluru-based company said in a statement that this is the continuation of a contract signed in April 2021 for the provision of Phase-I flying training to six Nigerian Army Aviation officers, which was completed successfully in December 2021.

https://twitter.com/HALHQBLR/status/1513396446711926784

The Phase-II flying training on Chetak Helicopter is scheduled to commence on Monday and is planned to be completed by December 2022.

As part of the training, 70 hours of flying training would be imparted for each Nigerian Army Aviation Officer, it was stated.

HAL to train Nigerian army pilots on Chetak Helicopter

The contract was signed by General Manager, HAL Helicopter Division, B K Tripathy and Defence Adviser, High Commission of Nigeria in India, Commodore Anthony Victor Kujoh, at a programme held at Helicopter Division here.

Tripathy said the platforms such as the Advanced Light Helicopter (ALH) and Light Utility Helicopter (LUH), with a wide range of capabilities, can be of great strength for the Nigerian Army.

Nigeria would not only like to further enhance the business relationship with HAL for training but also towards asset acquisition, said Cmdre Kujoh.

India’s low-cost airline IndiGo has emerged as the world’s sixth-largest carrier by passenger volume for March, according to the UK-based Official Airline Guide (OAG).

The airline carried more than 2.02 million passengers in the month, the most by any Asian carrier, according to statistics collected till March 28.

IndiGo was also named the world's fastest-growing airline by OAG, with a 41.3% growth in frequency in March. The airline also ranked among the top 10 airlines in the world by seat capacity for March.

The OAG data includes airport and route capacity as well as a list of the 20 largest worldwide airlines by flights based on monthly data. IndiGo is the only airline from India to appear on this list.

“It is exciting to see IndiGo among the top airlines in the world. It also is a moment of pride for India, and a strong indicator that the nation is bouncing back strongly from the pandemic. With the easing of restrictions around the world, we look forward to opening more routes and frequencies. This will allow an even greater number of passengers to experience an affordable, on-time, safe and hassle-free travel experience, onboard our lean clean flying machine.”Ronojoy Dutta, Wholetime Director and Chief Executive, IndiGo

The airline recently announced the re-introduction of scheduled operations of more than 150 foreign flights from various airports in India in April. IndiGo has also expanded its domestic network with several new routes.

IndiGo has evolved from a single plane carrier to a fleet of 276 aircraft since its establishment in August 2006. As of January 2022, the airline is India's largest passenger airline, with a market share of 55.5%. IndiGo has a total of 97 destinations, including 73 domestic and 24 internationals.

Top 25 airlines with the most active aircraft in March 2022. (Data - ch-aviation)

According to ch-aviation, IndiGo was part of the top 25 airlines in the world with the most active aircraft in March 2022 with 92% active aircraft.

ALSO READ - The Indigo fleet in 2021, 2022 and beyond: Outstanding order explained