DGCA begins investigation after Alliance Air's ATR aircraft departs without engine cover

An Alliance Air flight from Mumbai to Bhuj, carrying 70 passengers, flew without engine cover that was later retrieved from the runway at the city airport on Wednesday, February 9 prompting aviation regulator DGCA to start a probe into the incident, according to an official.

The ATR aircraft landed safely at Bhuj in Gujarat. Alliance Air said that it has initiated a probe into the incident.

The incident happened on Wednesday, February 9 morning and was brought to the notice of airport authorities by a Mumbai Air Traffic Controller (ATC). Subsequently, the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) started an investigation into the incident.

DGCA begins investigation after Alliance Air's ATR aircraft departs without engine cover

"Mumbai ATC informed the airport that Alliance Air ATR aircraft, operating flight 91-625 (Mumbai-Bhuj) took off without the left engine cowling (cover)," the official said. Later, the airline's engineering team reached the site and retrieved the engine cover from the runway.

During the operation of Alliance Air flight 9I-625 from Mumbai to Bhuj on February 9, the panel of the engine cowl was found on the runway post take off, Alliance Air said in a statement.

"We have taken strict note of the incident and a thorough investigation has been initiated. The findings of the same shall be shared with the regulatory authorities and we shall ensure that all required corrective actions are put in place," the government-owned airline said.

Flying without engine cowling may have an aerodynamic effect leading to marginal deterioration in the aircraft's performance.

It also said that "we are grateful that all passengers and crew onboard the flight safely landed and there was no damage to the aircraft due to this unfortunate incident. Expressing "regret" at the "unfortunate" incident, Alliance Air said, it follows laid down policies/ procedures as per the regulatory authorities.

The airline has strict checks in place both pre and post-flight operations to ensure the complete safety of its passengers and crew, Alliance Air said in the statement.

Flying without engine cowling may have an aerodynamic effect leading to marginal deterioration in the aircraft's performance, the official said. No one has been grounded so far but appropriate action will be taken after DGCA receives the preliminary report.

The Incident was brought to the notice of airport authorities by a Mumbai Air Traffic Controller.

Besides, it could have an impact on engine components as well because of the exposure to the airflow, the official said, adding that, however, in this case, the aircraft landed safely at the destination.

The Mumbai Air Traffic Control (ATC) had contacted the pilots of the Alliance Air flight, which flew from Mumbai to Bhuj without its engine cover, whether an object had fallen off the aircraft after its take-off from the airport in Maharashtra capital, an official here said.

As per the preliminary reports, the pilots did not realise that the cowl (cover) of one of the engines had fallen on the runway in Mumbai as they told the ATC that everything was fine, the official said.

"After spotting some object on the runway, the Mumbai ATC contacted the pilots of the Bhuj-bound flight and asked if something had fallen off the aircraft. However, the pilots said everything was alright. Later, the flight landed at Bhuj without any trouble. When it underwent routine supervision before the next flight, the maintenance staff learnt about the missing engine cowl.While 66 passengers arrived in the flight in the morning, 61 passengers were supposed to take the same flight to Mumbai a few hours later. However, upon learning about the missing engine cover, the airline cancelled the return flight and began the maintenance work."Navneet Kumar Gupta, Airport Director, Bhuj Airport

The propeller-powered aircraft was carrying 66 passengers. It flew to Bhuj town from Mumbai without its engine cowl, a removable metal covering for the engine, which fell on the Mumbai airport's runway during take-off, he said.

"Luckily, all the passengers and crew members are safe as the aircraft, which runs on propeller engines, landed without any trouble at the Bhuj airport," said Gupta. After the incident, Alliance Air cancelled its return trip to Mumbai, he added.

The airport director said that as per the primary reports he has received, the pilots were not aware that a section of the engine's cowl had fallen during the take-off.

The Delhi High Court issued a notice to the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) on a petition challenging the Civil Aviation Requirement (CAR).

The petition has been moved by the pilot body, the India Pilots' Guild, and others. CAR governs the ''Procedure for examination of the aviation personnel for consumption of Psychoactive Substances.

Justice V Kameswar Rao issued notice to DGCA on the petition which sought a stay on the CAR issued by the respondent. The court has listed the matter for hearing on March 28, 2022. The petition has challenged the CAR issued by DGCA claiming it to be arbitrary and unconstitutional.

Delhi High Court issues notice to DGCA in response to Pilot body's petition

The petition claimed that CAR has been issued by the DGCA in the arbitrary exercise of the power conferred by Rule 133A of the Aircraft Rules 1937 by issuing the impugned CAR without taking into consideration the suggestions and feedback of the petitioner, thus, vitiating the process of effective consultation in violation of the fundamental rights of the petitioners.

The petition claimed that CAR to be effective from January 31, 2022, suffers from major infirmities and is littered with arbitrariness.

"DGCA has failed to scientifically address the issues and shortcomings of the process. The impugned CAR has been issued without application of mind and without paying heed to the global guidelines and standards," the petition read.

It has been further claimed that the impugned CAR, therefore, if implemented, in its current form, will lead to chaos and infringement of the fundamental rights of the petitioners and others covered under the ambit of the CAR.

The Delhi High Court has dismissed petitions by the Executive Pilots Association and All India Aircraft Engineers Association challenging the reduction in allowances of Air India employees.

Justice V Kameswar Rao said that no case for discrimination was made out in the case and "rather there is a justifiable ground in reducing the allowances in the manner they have done for the pilots and engineers".

The judge stated that it was for the central government and Air India to determine what ought to be the appropriate reduction in allowances after taking into account all the relevant considerations and as long as the reduction is not palpably arbitrary, the scope of judicial review is very limited.

In its order passed on February 7, the court took into account the respondent's stand that the aviation industry was the worst-hit industry during the COVID-19 pandemic and that Air India accumulated losses of about INR 50,000 crores while suffering a cash deficit of INR 250 crores a month.

The court said senior advocates appearing in the matter have not disputed the power of the respondents to rationalise the allowances. "If that be so, there can also be no dispute that situation as was existing, required the respondents to take this drastic decision. The situation justified the rationalisation measures," the court stated in its order.

"It is for the respondents themselves to decide by taking into account relevant considerations to determine what ought to be the appropriate reduction in allowances. As long as the reduction is not palpably arbitrary, the scope of judicial review is very limited," it added.

The court observed that reduction in allowance had no impact on the concerned employees' basic pay, HRA, and DA and other categories of employees who faced similar reductions did not approach the court.

The petitioners challenged several orders issued by the aviation ministry in 2020 directing salary cuts of its employees. The Executive Pilots Association had contended that instead of rewarding its member pilots for their courage and role in Vande Bharat Missions, for which they were lauded by the aviation minister, their allowances and flying hours were being reduced.

Vande Bharat Missions were launched to repatriate Indians stranded abroad due to COVID-19 restrictions. The allowances which were reduced are - flying allowances, executive flying allowances, special pay, wide-body allowance, domestic layover allowance, and high-altitude allowance, among others, all of which exclusively affect pilots, the petition had said.

The Airport Authority of India and national carrier Air India suffered losses worth INR 7,083.91 crore during FY2020-21 during the Covid-19 pandemic. The information was shared by the Minister of State (MoS) for Civil Aviation Ministry General (Dr.) VK Singh (Retired) in the Rajya Sabha.

Adding further, General Singh informed the house that an assessment for losses owing to the suspension of international flights has not been undertaken yet.

Meanwhile, borrowers from the aviation sector have availed of guarantee support under the Emergency Credit Line Guarantee Scheme (ECLGS), according to the National Credit Guarantee Trustee Company Limited (NCGTC).

It may be noted that Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman announced the extension of ECLGS up to March 2023 in her Budget 2022-23 speech. She also said that the guarantee cover under ECLGS will be increased by INR 50,000 crore to a total cover of INR 5 lakh crore.

Talking of the operations of international flights, the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) has extended the suspension of scheduled international commercial passenger flights to and from India till February 28. However, these restrictions will not apply to international cargo flights and flights operating under the air bubble arrangement.

Meanwhile, the cash-strapped Air India returned to its founder Tata Group on January 27, almost 69 years after being nationalised. The group won the bid to acquire the airline in October 2021. Tata Sons brokered a deal with the Centre for INR 18,000 crore.

For the Air India sale, Tata Sons were pitted against Spicejet promoter Ajay Singh-led consortium, which placed a bid of INR 15,100 crore. However, after emerging as the winner, Tata Group's chairman N Chandrasekaran called it a "historic moment" adding that they will strive to develop a world-class airline that makes every Indian proud.

After the deal was completed, Chandrasekaran expressed his happiness saying, "We are excited to have Air India back in the Tata Group and are committed to making this a world-class airline. I warmly welcome all the employees of Air India, to our Group, and look forward to working together.”

IndiGo Co-Founder and Managing Director Rahul Bhatia have said the airline needs to continue expanding its domestic and "regional international footprint” besides strengthening the cargo franchise in the near term.

In an e-mail to employees on Tuesday, February 8, Bhatia, who was appointed as the Managing Director on February 4, said that he was looking forward to working closely with the management team just not only to establish and achieve near-term goals but also to get the company to be future-ready for the massive opportunity that lies ahead.

Rahul Bhatia, Co-Founder Managing Director, IndiGo

Bhatia has taken over as the airline’s first Managing Director at a time when the domestic aviation space is expected to see increased competition, particularly in the wake of Tatas acquiring Air India and Akasa Air expected to start services this year.

IndiGo is the country’s largest airline and has more than 50% of the domestic market share.

"In this (MD) role, I look forward to working closely with the management team to not only establish and achieve near-term goals but to get the company to be future-ready for the massive opportunity that lies ahead,” Bhatia said.

According to him, the airline should continue to grow "the domestic and the regional international footprint, further strengthen our cargo franchise with the induction of the first batch of A321 freighters, starting this summer, rapidly implement the digital agenda and prepare for entry into service of the A321 XLR aircraft”.

The induction of A321 XLR will extend IndiGo’s reach into markets where it has not been in a position to serve so far, he added. During the IPO process in 2015, the promoters and the then management team had promised an Indian airline of "great significance" to public shareholders, he said.

"I, as a founder-promoter, owe it our country and our shareholders the necessary stewardship to ensure that we continue to live up to our promise”.

In the last more than 16 years, employees’ collective efforts have built an "admirable" Indian brand, which has earned the goodwill of customers and public shareholders alike, Bhatia said.

IndiGo had a fleet of 283 aircraft, including 56 A320 CEOs, 140 A320 NEOs, 52 A321 NEOs and 35 ATRs at the end of December 2021. It operated a peak of 1,574 daily flights during the quarter, including non-scheduled flights.

ALSO READ - After 7 quarters of losses, IndiGo reported a profit of INR 130 crore

ALSO READ - IndiGo’s stock rises 10% since Q3 results

On February 4, IndiGo posted a profit after tax of INR 129.8 crore in the three months ended December 2021 amid the pandemic clouds. The airline’s parent InterGlobe Aviation had a loss of INR 620.1 crore in the year-ago period.

A USD 600 million contractual and safety dispute between Airbus and Qatar Airways deepened on Tuesday, February 8 when the European planemaker revoked orders for two A350-1000 jets, days after ripping up an order from the Gulf carrier for 50 A321neos.

Qatar Airways has sued Airbus for more than USD 600 million and is refusing to take delivery of further A350s until its regulator receives a formal analysis of erosion to the painted surface and underlying lightning protection on 21 of the jets.

ALSO READ - Qatar airways sue Airbus for USD 618mn over A350 paint issue

Airbus revoked orders for Qatar Airways' two A350-1000 jets

Airbus, which has two completed A350s ready for delivery to Qatar Airways, has said it has provided the necessary information on the problem of surface degradation and that the damage does not amount to a safety issue.

The planemaker said in a UK court filing in January that it was declaring Qatar Airways in default on two A350 jets that were completed and ready to be delivered.

It also took the unusual step of cancelling an order for 50 A321neo jets because the alleged default on the larger planes had triggered a clause allowing it to revoke the order for A321neos, which are in high demand. 

ALSO READ - Airbus responds to Qatar Airways’s A350 dispute by cancelling A321 Order

Qatar Airways last week ordered 25 competing Boeing 737 MAX, plus options for another 25, as well as 34 new 777X freighters during a visit by the Gulf state's ruling emir to Washington.

ALSO READ - Qatar Airways signs a deal for 737 Max and new 777X freighters with Boeing

The airline has denied in legal arguments that it has broken its contract by refusing to take two A350s waiting on the tarmac in Toulouse. It also says Airbus is not entitled to claim a "cross-default" allowing it to cancel the A321neo deal.

An Airbus spokesman said the company had "terminated delivery positions for two A350s for Qatar Airways in full compliance with our rights". Qatar Airways had no immediate comment.

Airbus included the cancellations for 50 A321neos and two A350-1000s in a monthly summary for January, pushing it into negative territory with a net total of minus 16 orders for the first month of the year, after receiving 36 new orders.

The planemaker delivered 30 airplanes in January.

(With Inputs from Reuters)