Air India Faces DGCA Probe After Operating A320 Eight Times Without Valid Airworthiness Certificate
Safety lapse leads to suspension and investigation of pilots and engineers.
Air India is under DGCA scrutiny after one of its Airbus A320 neo aircraft (VT-TNQ), inherited from the former Vistara fleet, operated eight revenue sectors on November 24 and 25 without a valid Airworthiness Review Certificate (ARC). The four-year-old aircraft had been grounded for an extended period, during which its ARC expired. The lapse was discovered only after the plane was sent for routine maintenance on November 25 evening.
On November 24, the aircraft underwent a proving flight over Delhi and was immediately pressed into commercial service on the Delhi-Bengaluru-Mumbai route. The following day it completed three round trips between Mumbai-Delhi and Mumbai-Hyderabad before the irregularity came to light. An ARC, issued annually after a thorough review of maintenance records and physical inspection, is mandatory for validating the aircraft’s Certificate of Airworthiness.
Following an internal investigation ordered by the DGCA, Air India has de-rostered the aircraft maintenance engineer responsible for releasing the plane into service. A special flight operations committee has been formed to examine the role of six to eight pilots who operated the aircraft and decide on potential disciplinary action. The airline has delegated authority from the DGCA to issue its own ARCs.
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Air India’s Director of Flight Operations, Manish Uppal, issued a stern reminder to all pilots on Monday, reiterating their legal obligation under Rule 7 of the Aircraft Rules, 1937, to verify the presence and validity of all mandatory documents before every flight. The communication warned that non-compliance would be viewed seriously and could invite action under the pilot policy handbook.
Pilots have expressed resentment over the directive, arguing that checking up to 27 documents falls primarily on the engineering and quality assurance departments rather than flight crew, who already follow standard checklist procedures. The DGCA continues its probe and has directed Air India to strengthen processes to prevent recurrence of such serious airworthiness violations.
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