DGCA gives clean chit to SpiceJet, says no safety violation found

• The DGCA found no major significant safety violations in the SpiceJet aircrafts.
• It asked the airline to rectify the malfunctions in 10 of its aircraft and now all these aircraft are back in operation.
• The regulator had issued a notice to SpiceJet after it reported 8 safety incidents in the span of just 18 days.

The aviation safety regulator Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) didn’t find “any major significant finding or safety violation,” when it carried out spot checks of SpiceJet aircraft after a series of air safety incidents were reported over the last two months, the aviation ministry said in the Parliament on July 25.

“A series of spot checks were carried out recently on all operating aircraft of M/s Spicejet from 9th July 2022 to 13th July 2022. A total of 53 spot checks were carried out on 48 aircraft, which did not find any major significant finding or safety violation,” the aviation ministry told Rajya Sabha in a reply to a question.

The DGCA asked the airlines to rectify the malfunctions in 10 of its aircraft and now all these aircraft are back in operation, the ministry added.

The ministry further informed the Parliament that it had also carried out the regulatory audit of three scheduled airlines, including SpiceJet, as per published Annual Surveillance Programme (ASP) 2022.

The ministry also clarified that in the SpiceJet flight that was diverted to Karachi on July 5, the crew did not declare an emergency nor was there any fuel leak in the aircraft.

“Cabin crew did not declare an emergency. Post-landing check and inspection at Karachi did not reveal fuel leak,” the ministry said.

“I am happy that the findings of the various checks carried out by the DGCA on our fleet have been made public by the government. I am glad that these findings and assessment are of none other than the DGCA, India’s top-most aviation safety agency and regulator,” said Ajay Singh, chairman and managing director of SpiceJet.

The regulator had issued a notice to SpiceJet after it reported 8 safety incidents in the span of just 18 days. “Passenger safety is paramount. Even the smallest error hindering safety will be thoroughly investigated and course-corrected,” Union Minister of Civil Aviation Jyotiraditya Scindia had said in a tweet in June. The carrier has around 13% market share in India’s aviation sector, in terms of passengers carried.

The safety issues took a toll on SpiceJet. In May, the airline came in second in terms of flight cancellations, according to a report by DGCA.

SpiceJet also topped the list of airlines whose services are the most unsatisfactory, followed by Indigo, according to a recent LocalCircles survey.

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