Two IndiGo pilots suspended for 3 months for runway incursion

The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) on Tuesday suspended two pilots of IndiGo airlines for three months over a runway incursion at the Indira Gandhi International Airport in the national capital.

Captain Rahul Dhar was commanding IndiGo's Delhi-Udaipur flight whereas Amit Kumar was acting as the first officer when the aircraft breached Holding Point RWY 10 and reached near active runway when a landing aircraft had "already crossed the threshold of active RWYIO" on June 2.

An investigation revealed that the crew did not follow the "hold at holding point RWY10" instruction from the Air Traffic Control (ATC).

The crew, the investigation revealed, did not pay attention to taxiway markings and brakes were applied brakes when they saw the landing aircraft was on "short final."

On September 5, the DGCA had issued the show-cause notice to the pilots to explain within 15 days as to why action should not be taken against them for "endangering the safety of aircraft and passengers onboard".

In his reply, captain Dhar accepted his lapses and explained that it happened due to "distraction for a while by the aircraft holding and taking off" from RWY09. Captain Amit Kumar, the first officer, also accepted his lapses and said it happened "due to the head down activity during the critical moment".

"This is in violation of DGCA Advisory Circular 7/2009 which inter-alia states that Flight crews should use a "continuous loop" process for actively monitoring and updating thier progress and location during taxi. This includes knowing the aircraft's present location and mentally calculaling the next location on the route that will require increased attention," the order read.

The DGCA, in its order, said the pilots' action "jeopardised the safety of the aircraft and the passengers".

( With inputs from ANI )