SpiceJet Durgapur incident: DGCA suspends pilot's licence for 6 months

Aviation regulator DGCA has suspended the licence of a SpiceJet pilot for six months following an incident where the airline's flight from Mumbai to Durgapur had faced severe turbulence and resulted in injuries to many passengers in May.

In the incident that happened on May 1, as many as 14 passengers and 3 cabin crew members were injured.

A senior DGCA official on Saturday said the licence of the pilot-in-command of the flight has been suspended for six months due to various violations.

Among others, the pilot could have dealt with the bad weather situation in a better manner, the official said.

There were no comments on the issue from SpiceJet.

Since it was a serious incident, the Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB) was probing the matter.

As many as 195 people, including 2 pilots and 4 cabin crew members were onboard the flight.

Earlier, the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) had said the 14 passengers and 3 cabin crew members suffered injuries related to head, spine, shoulder, forehead and face.

In recent months, various SpiceJet flights have faced issues, including technical problems.

On July 27, DGCA ordered the airline to operate a maximum of 50 per cent of its flights for eight weeks in the wake of multiple incidents.