Air India Flags 19 Safety Breaches, DGCA Calls Findings ‘Normal

Swift Summary:

• DGCA audit over the past year found 19 “level 1” findings against Air India Group airlines (10 for Vistara, 7 for Air India, adn 2 for Air India Express), requiring immediate corrective action.
• All other airlines recorded zero findings in the level 1 category.
• In the level 2 category (non-compliance and procedural lapses),DGCA observed:

– Air India Group: 74 findings (across its three airlines).
– IndiGo: 23 findings, SpiceJet: 14 findings.

• Smaller regional carriers had notable observations too, such as Star Air with nine aircraft recording 41 level-2 violations and Alliance Air with 57 violations. Cargo operator Quikjet recorded 35 issues.

The DGCA stated that a high number of audit observations for larger airlines reflects operational scale rather than unusual lapses. The regulator reassured passengers of active oversight processes ensuring aviation safety standards are upheld.

Indian Opinion Analysis:
The DGCA’s latest data highlights disproportionate regulatory findings against the Air India Group, especially in “level-1” violations that mandate urgent remedial actions. This raises questions about operational inefficiencies or gaps in compliance within one of india’s largest airline conglomerates amidst its aspiring expansion plans post privatisation.

However, the regulator’s clarification-that higher infractions correlate with fleet size and operational complexity-is a logical perspective when comparing results across carriers ranging from IndiGo’s significant presence to smaller operators such as Alliance Air. It underscores that richer datasets enable granular oversight of bigger players but do not necessarily imply widespread flaws.

For passengers and industry stakeholders alike, assurances from DGCA regarding proactive safety supervisory mechanisms aim to bolster confidence in India’s aviation sector-even when systemic non-compliances recur across all types of fleets at varying degrees.

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