MUMBAI, Dec 27: The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) has ordered a six-month suspension for both the director of operations and the director of training at Akasa Air due to alleged deficiencies in pilot training.
The suspension comes as part of two separate directives issued by the DGCA on December 27, which state that the senior executives—the airline’s management includes stakeholders from the Rakesh Jhunjhunwala family—had “failed” to adhere to civil aviation compliance standards.
This action follows an evaluation of their responses to show-cause notices sent on October 15 and October 30, which the DGCA deemed “unsatisfactory.”
In conjunction with the suspensions, the DGCA has urged Akasa Air to appoint “suitable” replacements for these key positions.
As of now, there has been no response from Akasa regarding this matter.
According to the DGCA, the suspensions stem from findings during a regulatory audit conducted on October 7, 2024, at M/s SNV Aviation Private Limited (Akasa Air) in Mumbai. The audit revealed that RNP (Required Navigation Performance) training was being performed on simulators that did not meet the necessary qualifications, violating Paragraph 7 of CAR Section 7, Series D, Part VI.
The DGCA emphasized that both the director of operations and the director of training failed to maintain compliance with the Civil Aviation Requirements (CAR), which led to inadequate training of personnel and recurrent violations in training practices.
Furthermore, the DGCA noted that the two executives fell short in their responsibilities to uphold legal standards and ensure safe operational protocols, as mandated by specific CAR provisions. (PTI)
