SpiceJet restricts 90 pilots from flying 737 MAX aircraft after DGCA fine

SpiceJet has restricted 90 pilots from flying MAX aircraft, said the company in a BSE filing. This comes after the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) imposed a Rs 10-lakh fine on SpiceJet for training 737 Max aircraft pilots on a faulty simulator.

“Training being imparted by SpiceJet could have adversely affected flight safety and was nullified,” the regulator had earlier said.

The faults were detected during a surveillance check by the DGCA at the Greater Noida-based facility of CAE Simulation Training Pvt Ltd (CSTPL).

The restricted pilots will undergo re-training. "These pilots undergo re-training to the satisfaction of DGCA. This restriction does not impact the operations of MAX aircraft and the company has adequately trained pilots available for its operations. Basis the observation of DGCA these 90 pilots shall undergo re-training," the company said in the BSE filing.

According to the filing, SpiceJet has 650 pilots trained on Boeing 737 Max aircraft out of which 90 have been restricted from flying till they receive further training.

This happened within eight months of the DGCA lifting a ban on Boeing 737 Max aircraft. 

This is the third instance when DGCA has imposed a financial penalty on operators after the regulator got the power to impose financial penalty for violation of rules.

Last year, the regulator had levied a fine of Rs 75,000 on two flight training schools for irregular maintenance of breath analyser equipment.

In the second such case, the DGCA imposed a penalty of Rs 5 lakh on IndiGo for not allowing a boy with special needs to board a flight from Ranchi.