DGCA issues notice to SpiceJet

New Delhi; The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) on Wednesday issued a show-cause notice to SpiceJet for failing to ‘establish safe, efficient and reliable air services.’

“The reported incidents on aircraft operated by SpiceJet from April 1, 2022, till date have been reviewed. It has been observed that on a number of occasions, the aircraft either turned back to its originating station or continued landing to the destination with degraded safety margins. This shows poor internal safety oversight and inadequate maintenance actions as most of the incidents are related to either component failure or system related failure (resulting) in degradation of the safety margins,” the notice said.

The DGCA has asked the carrier to explain why action should not be taken against it for failing in this regard. The airline has been under fire of late due to back-to-back incidents concerning its flights.

On Monday a SpiceJet B737 aircraft flying from Delhi to Dubai was diverted to and landed in Karachi in Pakistan after an indicator light malfunctioned.

On Saturday a Delhi-Jabalpur flight of the small budget carrier returned to Delhi after the cabin crew noticed smoke inside the plane shortly after takeoff. The plane was flying at a height of 5,000 feet when the cabin crew noticed the smoke.

According to an airline spokesperson, the pilots decided to return to Delhi. The aircraft landed safely and the passengers disembarked.

On June 19, a Delhi-bound SpiceJet flight had to return to Patna after the plane caught fire after being hit by a bird.

On June 25, a Patna-Guwahati flight had to abort take-off due to a technical snag. On May 4, the Chennai-Durgapur flight returned to Chennai due to a technical snag that developed mid-air.

Meanwhile, Civil Aviation Minister Jyotiraditya Scandia said passenger safety is paramount and even the smallest error hindering safety will be thoroughly investigated and course-correction would be done.

“Passenger safety is paramount. Even the smallest error hindering safety will be thoroughly investigated & course-corrected,” he tweeted.

Meanwhile, the airline said it has received the notice and will be responding within the specified time.

“SpiceJet is in receipt of the DGCA notice and will be responding within the specified time period. We are committed to ensuring a safe operation for our passengers and crew,” a statement from the company said.

“We are an IATA-IOSA certified airline. SpiceJet successfully completed the meticulous audit program for recertification in October 2021. We have been regularly audited by DGCA. All our aircraft were audited a month ago by the regulator and found to be safe. All flights of SpiceJet are conducted in compliance with the applicable regulations of the DGCA Civil Aviation Regulations on the subject.” a SpiceJet Spokesperson said. (UNI)