Although Jet Airways has blamed the “lack of clarity” in the government’s rules for its pilots flying even after their mandatory pilot proficiency checks (PPCs) had lapsed, an internal company memo shows the official concerned had drawn the attention of the management to the fact that pilots cannot fly till their PPC is renewed.

The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) had initiated an audit into Jet after the airline’s Mumbai-Brussels flight, with 280 passengers on board, plunged 5,000 feet over Turkey last week as one of the pilots had dozed off and the co-pilot was busy on an iPad.

A subsequent audit by DGCA found that 131 of the carrier’s pilots continued to fly despite their PPC having lapsed. While the DGCA has already removed the training head, action against the 131 pilots is expected soon. On September 5, it issued a show-cause notice to three Jet officials, including senior vice-president of flight operations Nikhil B Ved.

In a media statement last week, Jet attributed the lack of clarity in government rules relating to civil aviation requirements (CAR) as the reason for pilots continuing to fly. “Some of the (DGCA) audit findings have resulted due to a lack of clarity in the regulatory interpretation of the processes. The airline’s senior management will meet the DG and his team to discuss the ambiguity in some of the existing regulation and will work closely with DGCA to close all the findings. The airline welcomes the inputs of the regulator and confirms that it will comply with all established norms,” the statement had said.

However, FE has accessed an internal email by Jet’s manager (training and flight operations) clarifying the rules categorically to senior Jet officials. “With the new Training CAR effective September 1, 2013, included are guidelines to enable all personnel follow the regulatory requirements and monitor the validations in order to avoid lapses,” the email dated September 24, 2013 said. “PPC validity to date, No extension. If a pilot is unable to undergo PPC as per the validity he is to be assigned NTST (not to be scheduled) till such time he undergoes the PPC,” the mail had stated.

In response to an FE query regarding the internal memo clarifying the rules, a Jet spokesperson said, “We have already had a dialogue with DGCA officials and we will address the issues in our response to the DGCA.”



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