NEW DELHI: The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) has launched a probe into AirAsia India after a pilot levelled allegations of safety breaches by the airline on social media.
The pilot, who airline officials say has been suspended pending inquiry into disciplinary charges, had levelled charges in a video that went viral on Monday.

Taking cognisance of that, the DGCA tweeted: “DGCA has taken note of the concerns raised by some stakeholders against a particular airline and its approach to safety. DGCA has already started an investigation into the issues flagged and shall take appropriate action based on the outcome of the said investigation.”

In a statement, AirAsia India said that it “stands firmly on its value of ‘safety always’. The safety of our guests is of paramount importance in every aspect of our operations. AirAsia India is cognisant of the matter in regard to a social media post put up by one of its employees. We are cooperating with the DGCA on this matter. As a policy, AirAsia India does not comment on matters pertaining to its business or employees.”

Charges by the Pilot:-

The fear of taking a sick leave.

In the YouTube video where Taneja details the circumstances around his suspension, the AirAsia India pilot talks about an environment that discouraged pilots from taking a sick leave despite being unwell. This is a job that is responsible for about 200 people’s lives and needs a high level of physical and mental fitness.

Pilots from other airlines agreed with Taneja. “Pilots do fear asking for a sick leave, as it may lead to punitive action,” a pilot with over 20 years of flying experience, told Moneycontrol. The punitive action may be in the form of a lower bonus, at the end of the year.

“On any other job, one could go to work despite feeling a bit under the weather. As a pilot, I can’t afford to do that,” says the pilot cited above.

At the same time, added another aviator, the management also takes notice if a pilot is repeatedly taking sick leave or takes off on festivals despite being rostered to fly.

One does not know the factors around Taneja’s allegations, and only the investigation by DGCA can throw light.

SOPs not being followed

Taneja alleges that the airline was not strictly adhering to the SoPs issued by the government, on flying amidst COVID-19 times.

Though the pilot doesn’t get into the details on which SoPs were not being followed, one gathers he was talking about the procedures to be followed within the aircraft. Taneja alleges that he was forced to delay a flight by 40 minutes because SoPs were not being followed.

Is it the responsibility of the pilot-in-command (PIC) to ensure SoPs are followed in the flight, or should he just leave it to the ground handling team?

It’s a topic that seems to have different views.

“Pilot becomes responsible for the aircraft only once the doors are closed. Otherwise, he should let the ground handling team manage it,” says a senior executive from the industry.

Country’s largest airline IndiGo, another senior executive pointed out, details in its manual that the PIC assumes command of the flight the moment he signs the aircraft acceptance, and he is responsible “for the safe execution of the flight and for the safety of the occupants…and orderly conduct of the flight..”

The ‘flight’ is the key word here. The manual defines ‘flight’ to represent the period between ‘doors closed’ and ‘doors open.’

Amit Singh, an industry veteran and Fellow of London’s Royal Aeronautical Society, points to the Civil Aviation Regulations – which advises airlines on several aviation aspects. “The pilot-in-command shall be responsible for the safety of all crew members, passengers and cargo on board when the doors are closed,” says the CAR.

So going by the CAR, is Taneja technically responsible for the SoPs that are to be done before the doors close?

A senior pilot agreed with the CAR guidelines, but added that when it comes to the COVID-19 SoPs, the policy may differ from airline to airline.

On Taneja’s concerns, one will have to wait for the investigations to reveal if he was following the protocol laid down by the company, or not.

Flap 3 or Flap 4

Taneja’s third and final point was on Flap 3 and Flap 4.

Flaps are installed on an aircraft’s wings and are mainly used to create a drag in the speed of the plane while landing or taking off. This in turn can reduce the distance required for landing and take-off.

Flap 3 saves fuel – about 8kg – a reason why nearly all airlines advise their pilots to use this mode, rather than Flap 4.

But in the case of AirAsia India, alleges Taneja, the airline had made it mandatory for its pilots to use Flap 3, for 98 percent of their landings. In one particular month, Taneja says, he had done 10 landings, out of which seven were done using Flap 3, thus making it only 70 percent.

Two of the landings, says Taneja, were in Imphal where landing is complicated and thus he used Flap 4. Should he have compromised on passenger safety to save fuel, he asks.

Again, industry has differing views on this. “AirAsia India isn’t wrong in asking him to do a F3 landing to conserve fuel. It’s done the world over,” says a senior pilot with a private airline.

At the same time, pilots point out that few airlines put a target to using Flap3. “It’s an advisory. There are better ways to save fuel. In fact, if you plan your descent properly, a pilot can save more than 100 kg of fuel,” says a senior pilot.

Amit Singh says the solution may lie in wording the advisory. “If the airline wants its pilots to consistently perform FLAP 3 landings instead of Flap Full, then what should the policy read? As per my understanding, the policy should be:

“Normal flaps for landing is Flap 3 but, at the discretion of the pilot in command, up-to a maximum of 2 percent landings can be performed with Flap Full.

“People tend to avoid risk when a positive frame is presented but seek risks when a negative frame is presented,” Singh says in his blog Mindfly.

One can’t say if a different framing of the advisory would have prompted Taneja to react differently. At the same time, it’s an interesting thought. Can policymakers bring in more positivity to their regulations?

The style

While the three issues raised by Taneja have set off a debate in the industry, executives have also discussed the method the senior pilot has used to air his grievances.

Few employees take to social media to raise allegations against their employer. And that, say experts, may not be the ideal way.

“Talking about it is publicly about an organisation, there is a reputational risk of the company. From an HR point of view, it is not at all advisable to go immediately on social media and share details. Maybe one can speak about any concern about an organisation one he/she has left the company and also preferably without naming the firm,” says Aditya Narayan Mishra, CEO, CIEL HR Services.

He adds that talking about confidential information that one is privy to at the workplace, on social media, is not just contractually disallowed but is also ‘morally incorrect.’

For sure, the suspension of Gaurav Taneja has raised many an issue and may set a precedent in the industry.

Looking London Landing Tokyo, the wrong runway at Haneda:mindFly

Synopsis

On Thursday, December 22, 2016, an Airbus A320-214, registered JA811P, operated by PeachAviation Co., Ltd, as the scheduled Flight 1028 of the company, while approaching runway 16L of Tokyo International Airport, mistakenly tried to approach for runway 23 which was closed at 00:39 JST. An air traffic controller in the control tower noticed the situation and instructed it to go around at the position of about 5 miles east of the airport. Afterwards, the aircraft landed on runway 16L at 00:55 JST via visual approach following radar-vectored.

JTSB Full investigation report

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Probable cause, JTSB report

It is probable that the serious incident occurred because aircraft, conducting VOR-A approach to land on runway 16L of Tokyo International Airport, mistakenly tried to approach for runway 23 which was closed.

It is probable that the aircraft mistakenly tried to approach for runway 23 which was closed because advance preparations for VOR A approach by the captain and the first officer were not sufficient, and they could not recognize the runway change instruction to land as a threat and then they failed to manage workloads, properly monitor and advise.

MindFly Human Factor analysis

Tokyo Approach instructed that the Aircraft would be set to land on runway 34R. Later, Tokyo Approach reported that he expected to change landing runway to runway 16L. As per the investigation report, the Captain was amazed because he did not expect any possibilities of landing runway change at all and he had no idea about the reason for this change, but he thought that he could manage to address this situation because it was good weather around the Airport. He asked the FO to set up MCDU15, but later he noticed that the FO looked confused.

Expectation Bias 

Purdue University carried out a study of accidents incidents of landing on wrong runways and wrong airports. One of the reasons for landing at the wrong surface is that flight crew have a mental picture of the airport and orientation of the runways, this is compared with what the pilot see outside. The pilots misjudge the time, speed, distance and; finally, misidentify the landing surface through the distortion of facts of the facts of reality (Antuano & Mohler, 1989). The pilots are thus, disoriented and are inadequately informed by the external visual environment. This is more so when transiting from instrument conditions to visual conditions.

Visual cognition is limited by the number of computations it can perform, because the brain can process only a fraction of the visual faculties in detail, and by the inherent ambiguity of the information entering the visual system (Christopher, 2011). The brain prioritizes the information to reduce the burden. Attention prioritizes stimulus processing on the basis of motivational relevance, and expectations constrain visual interpretation on the basis of prior likelihood.

The expectation is the state of the brain that reflects prior information about what is possible or probable in the forthcoming sensory environment. Expectation leads to faster acquisition and interpretation of the visual input.

Conclusion

The crew had prepared and briefed for an ILS approach for runway 34R. The position of the runway from the arrival route would have been turning left after crossing point ‘KAIHO’ and the runway would have been straight ahead.

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The Captain had this mental image in mind when he prepared and briefed for the approach. The last minute change of runway to use runway 16L did not reprocess the mental image. The Captain flew the arrival route and the moment he saw a runway on his left, he turned and aligned with the runway. This is what he was expecting to see visually. The mental image matched with the visual image and expectation bias over ruled all visual indications of a wrong runway and that too a closed runway.

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It is imperative not only to reprogram the FMS for a correct visual representation of the runway on the navigation display but also to reprogram the mental image. The supporting crew plays an important role in this situation but is also challenged due to suddenly increased workload. The importance of briefing is exemplified here. We all carry out normal briefings but the SOP must also include strategies for handling change and that too last minute change. Unless there is a plan B ready and you are convinced and reprogrammed mentally, do not proceed.

My paper on “Inattentional blindness during visual approach”. This could have been the worlds worst air disaster.

What’s common between a phone conversation & what could have been the worlds worst air disaster:mindFly

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On 13th January’20, the Ministry of Civil Aviation (MoCA) issued a public notice providing a one time opportunity for the voluntary disclosure of civil drones and drone operators on their Digital Sky platform by January 31. The Digital Sky Platform is an exclusive portal for national unmanned traffic management launched in 2018. This platform came up with a total count of 19,533 UAVs or drones in the country, which were registered in their January 14th-31st window earlier this year. On public demand, the MoCA decided to resume the drone registration last week, for those who missed it in the first phase. The registration started on June 8th and has been kept open-ended, so far.

Why is Enlisting important?

As per the ‘No permission-No take off’ policy, a drone user needs to use the DGCA’s software program DigiSky to obtain valid permissions before operating drones in India. Drone enlistment has two parts- after uploading the owner’s details- the owner would get a unique Ownership Acknowledgement Number (OAN). Using this OAN, the owner needs to upload the device’s information to get a Device Acknowledgment Number (DAN).

“Each drone will require a fresh enlistment. Since a drone owner may have multiple drones, the owner shall use the same OAN to enlist all drones owned by him. A separate DAN will be issued for each drone.”, as per the registration website.

Most government tenders for drones ask for UIN (Unique Identification Number) or DAN as an eligibility condition. However, possession of an OAN or DAN does not confer the right to operate the drone in India if it does not fulfill the provisions given in the civil aviation requirements (CAR).

“ Ownership of a drone in India without a valid OAN and DAN shall invite penal action as per applicable laws.”

Keeping security implications in mind, the DGCA, in August 2018, issued a set of rules to regulate the use of drones in the Indian airspace, which requires obtaining UIN and UAOP (unmanned aircraft operator permit) and other operational requirements. This rule also states that people using non registered drones would be penalized under IPC 287 that is for “negligent conduct with respect to machinery” and provides for jail up to 6 months and/or fine up to Rs 1,000. The DGCA rule provides punishment under IPC sections 336, 337, 338, or any relevant section if anyone is found using an unregistered UAV.

Keep your documents ready

Make sure to keep the following documents handy while filling the enlistment form:-

1. Scanned copy of Passport’s first and last page (in one sheet) or Aadhaar card’s front and back view (in one sheet).

2. Three high-quality pictures of your drone: front-view, top-view; and a close-up view of the manufacturer’s serial number. Each picture should have a physical measuring-scale placed adjacent to the drone in order to provide a reasonable approximation of its dimensions.

3. Copy of any utility bill (electricity, water, gas, fixed-line telephone, or mobile phone) or a bank statement not older than 3 months.

4. Copy of the highest educational qualification (required ONLY for individual owners).

5. PAN card of the organization (NOT required for individual owners).

6. Letter on official letterhead certifying appointment of Authorised Signatory (NOT required for individual owners).

Each document or picture should be less than 300kb in size and if all the above-mentioned items are readily available with you, filling up the form would barely take 25 minutes of your time.

Join the growing drone community

According to official government data, 1,832 nano, 13,735 micro, 2,808 small, 140 medium, and 1,038 large drones or UAVs were registered during the stipulated time back in January’20.

“The registration was a significant achievement as far as we are concerned because we never expected such a high number,” said Amber Dubey, the Joint Secretary of the Ministry of Civil Aviation, which carried out the survey.

“The registrations are just the beginning. Next, we will have the training of drone users, the tracking of drones, and the mapping to ensure that drones don’t intrude into sensitive areas,” Dubey added. The initiative ⁠ — akin to a ‘drone census’ ⁠ — is an attempt to identify civil drones and operators in India. All types of drones including models, prototypes, toys, RC aircraft, autonomous, and remotely piloted aircraft systems, will have to obtain a DAN, the Ministry informed.

Smit Shah, director of partnerships, Drone Federation of India, said, “The exercise will give us a picture of who owns what kind of drone in which part of the country. This data will help in making policy decisions and should ideally become the base for understanding the scale of drone operations in India. Finally, there is a way to get existing drones in the legal framework, and only if you register then in the future probably you will be considered, and some sort of a structure will be formed in which you can fly. This may enable the flying of drones easily in the future while maintaining high standards of safety, security, and accountability.”

Go on, tap the link — https://www.dronenlisting.dgca.gov.in/, to enlist your drones right now. Good luck!

                                              

Safety Management System is a very effective and proven management system to identify hazards in a proactive manner and to ensure that hazards do not turn into accidents, incidents, through timely elimination of hazards.

SMS was introduced in India for the first time on 20 Jul 10 by DGCA through the issue of a CAR. Since then DGCA has been making concerted efforts to ensure that the SMS is implemented in letter and spirit. In a recent audit by DGCA, it was observed that the implementation of SMS is lacking on many fronts and it is not being taken seriously by most of the Operators. The lack of proper implementation of SMS was also highlighted by the Honorable Minister of Civil Aviation during his briefing to the lawmakers in Parliament.

The Scope of SMS includes all the personnel of the operator right from the CEO downwards to lowest level including employees from Finance, HR, Admin and marketing etc. Every employee of the Company should be sensitized to the concept of Safety Management System depending on their role and responsibilities. Hence, everyone in an Aviation Company should be trained on SMS.

Most of the Operators have no choice but to train their employees i.e. Pilots, Cabin Crew, Accountable Executives/Managers, Chief, Deputy  Chief of Flight Safety and Safety Manager etc. as mandated by DGCA. Other employees of the Company obviously remain ignorant about the SMS in absence of any training.

It is pertinent to mention here that professional and vibrant Operators like Aviation Department of Gujarat and OSS Air Management have trained all their personnel including the class four helpers on SMS.

The Management of the Aviation organisations should appreciate that SMS is a very useful system to promote safety and hence, it would serve the interest of the Company towards maintenance of a safe operating environment. It needs to be remembered that Accidents are bad for business and reputation and can impact very heavily on the finances and survivability of a Company.

Keeping in mind the importance of SMS towards safety and the reluctance of the Operators to get the SMS training done for all their personnel due to financial considerations, ASMSI has decided to conduct Online  SMS training of all the personnel of a Company free of cost.

Kindly do not hesitate and feel free to avail this opportunity of getting all your personnel trained on SMS, without incurring any expenditure. Training of all your personnel on SMS will go a long way in enhancing safety of your operations and promoting safety culture in your organisation.

It must be remembered that Absence of Accidents does not mean that an organisation is Safe.

Air Commodore BS Siwach AVSM YSM VM (VETERAN) (9871251590)

Director General,Aviation safety Management Society of India

aviationsafetyindia@gmail.com

www.aviationsafetyindia.com

 

 

 

With inquiries growing over the past few days, Union Civil Aviation Minister Hardeep Singh Puri has expressed his view on India’s plans to resume international commercial passenger flights.

On Friday, the minister tweeted: “We are continuously monitoring the situation and will consider restarting international flights as soon as situation normalises a bit and poses no danger to our citizens. We will also have to consider that countries, where we intend to fly, are open to incoming foreign citizens.”

Under ‘Unlock 1.0’ guidelines released by the Ministry of Home Affairs on May 30, international flight operations remain suspended till June 30.

In fact, the guidelines stated that the resumption of operations will be discussed in ‘phase 3’ of Unlock 1.0, a timeline for which was not set at the time.

India Today TV has now learnt from highly-placed sources that the Ministry of Civil Aviation is targeting resumption of regular international flights by July.

But Is this possible? Resumption of commercial international flights depends on several factors. To begin with, domestic civil aviation operations, which restarted after a two-month gap on May 25, will have to see an increase in the number of flights being operated.

Currently, the ministry has permitted airlines to operate 1/3rd capacity of the summer schedule, which roughly means 33 per cent of the overall capacity of flights are currently up in the air.

Even then, state governments have imposed restrictions and are curtailing operations, in view of the overall pandemic scenario in their respective states.

Aviation minister Hardeep Puri has indicated that domestic operations will have to touch the 50-60 per cent mark for international flights to become viable.

Proactive Safety Initiative- Precautions Monsoon Flying-Aviation Safety India

 

Dear Sir/Madam,

Greetings from Aviation Safety Management Society of India (ASMSI).

ASMSI is concerned about the safety of Aviation Operations in the country and is taking proactive steps to compliment the efforts and initiatives of DGCA to maintain high standards of safe flying environments.

Monsoon/Rainy season, which is around the corner, is known to pose number of hazards to flying and has caused many weather related accidents/incidents around the world.

Last year there were couple of avoidable runway excursions and overruns causing serious damage to aircraft? It was fortunate that many safety situations occurring due weather were controlled in time to prevent any mishap.

ASMSI has prepared a list of Precautions to be taken during Monsoon Flying (attached)which are aimed to create awareness about the hazards associated with Monsoon Season and steps to be taken to prevent any occurrences due to adverse weather conditions, among various stakeholders.

It is an acknowledged fact that Safety concerns all the stakeholders and every one right from top to bottom has an important role to play. Hence, it is essential that CEO’s, Accountable Executives/Managers, Head Operations,Safety,Training,Maintenance,Safety Managers, Marketing Executives,Dispatch,Ops and Maintenance and other  supporting staff, are fully involved to ensure safety and efficiency of the operations.

Senior Management has a significant role to play in promoting Safety Culture in their respective organisations and they should be at the forefront to provide Safety assurance through sincere and serious implementations of Safety Management System in their organisation, keeping in mind the Monsoon related hazards.

Emphasis should be laid on knowledge, skill levels, competency, recency, proficiency checks, hands on flying, instrument and Simulator Flying,

Flight following and close monitoring of the progress of the flights and weather developments should be ensured by the concerned officials. ATC, Met Department and Company Dispatch should be proactive, alert, vigilant, situationally aware and provide timely assistance, accurate and timely weather information and runway condition.

Last year some runways were blocked and operations were suspended due to the aircraft overruns/excursions and lack of Disabled Aircraft Recovery Equipment (DARE). DGCA had acted swiftly and given instructions for priority procurement of the DARE by number of airports and hopefully these must have been made operational. Hope and pray that there will be no requirement to use the DARE but procurement is essential to cater for contingencies. DGCA must be complimented for being firm on procurement of the essential Disabled Aircraft Recovery Equipment.

Let us all join hands to make sure that there are no flight safety related occurrences during this Monsoon Season.

Knowledge, Awareness, Professional Planning, Preparations, Adherence to SOP’s, Rules, Regulations, Supervision, Monitoring  and full Involvement of Senior Management are Key to Safety of Operations.

Please share among your friends and colleagues. I shall be grateful for your efforts.

Happy Landings. 

Thanking you

With warm Regards 

Air Cmde BS Siwach AVSM YSM VM (Veteran)

Director General (9871251590)

Aviation Safety Management Society of India

New Delhi.

www.aviationsafetyindia.com 

PRECAUTIONS- FLYING DURING MONSOON SEASON 

General. 

During the past years, DGCA has taken many proactive steps and has  published number of CAR’s and Circulars which are source of knowledge and guide the Pilots and Operators to take various steps to ensure safety of aviation operations during adverse weather operations. All the Pilots and Operators should go through the following DGCA CAR’s and Circulars, make a summary of important points, disseminate and  prepare themselves for safe and efficient conduct of aviation operations during adverse weather phases:-

CIVIL AVIATION REQUIREMENT SECTION 8 – AIRCRAFT OPERATIONS SERIES ‘C’ PART I Issue I, Dated 13th June 2011 Effective (Rev 10): 01st April 2017. All Weather Operations (AWO).

CIVIL AVIATION REQUIREMENTS SECTION 8 – OPERATIONS SERIES ‘O’, PART V ISSUE II, 28TH MARCH 2017 EFFECTIVE: FORTHWITH, Subject: OPERATION OF GENERAL AVIATION HELICOPTERS.

OC NO 3 OF 2017 Date: 17th January 2017 OPERATIONS CIRCULAR, Subject: Unstable Approaches

OC NO 9 OF 2017 Date: 18th August 2017 OPERATIONS CIRCULAR, Subject: Approach and Landing Accident Reduction (ALAR) and Control Flight into Terrain (CFIT) reduction tool kit.

OPERATIONS CIRCULAR 1 OF 2013 Subject: Missed Approach/Go Around, 08 February 2013.

OPERATIONS CIRCULAR 02 OF 2010, December 17, 2011 Revision 1, dated December 17, 2011 Subject: PILOT’S SPATIAL DISORIENTATION.

OC NO 2 OF 2014 Date: 1st May 2014 GOVERNMENT OF INDIA, CIVIL AVIATION DEPARTMENT DIRECTOR GENERAL OF CIVIL AVIATION OPERATIONS CIRCULAR Subject: Continuous Descent Final Approach (CDFA).

OC NO 3 OF 2015 Date: 4th August 2015 OPERATIONS CIRCULAR, Subject: Crosswind and Tailwind Operational Limits.

OC NO 3 OF 2014 Date: 25TH JUNE 2014 GOVERNMENT OF INDIA CIVIL AVIATION DEPARTMENT DIRECTOR GENERAL OF CIVIL AVIATION OPERATIONS CIRCULAR Subject: All-Weather Operations Training Programme

AIR SAFETY CIRCULAR 09/2013 Subject: Precautionary landings of helicopters due bad weather. Dated 13th December, 2013.

AIR SAFETY CIRCULAR 03 OF 2017, Dated: 10th Oct, 2017 Subject: Adverse Weather Operations.

OC NO 2 OF 2017 Date: 17th January 2017 OPERATIONS CIRCULAR, Subject: Guidance for Operators on Training Programme on the use of Ground Proximity Warning System (GPWS).

• Adverse Weather is one of the Worst Enemy of the Pilots. Flying during Monsoon Season pose number of hazards and challenges to the Pilots.
• Flying during monsoons particularly in Northeastern states, Western Ghats, Coastal areas and hilly areas demands special attention and alertness on part of the aircrew.
• Early mornings, afternoons are more likely to have thunderstorms. Keep this aspect in mind.

• Normally adverse phase of thunderstorms lasts around 30 Mts to 1 Hour but in the case of regenerating thunderstorms it may continue for hours.

• Flying in the hills is most dangerous during monsoons and great care must be exercised.

• Offshore flying is very challenging during monsoons. Exercise special caution and take no chances with weather particularly during monsoons which are quite severe in the areas of offshore operations.

• Need to Brush up your knowledge about Spatial Disorientation, loss of Situational Awareness, prevention of CFIT and Approach, Landing Accident Reduction tool Kit, cannot be overemphasized.

• Be knowledgeable about use of Weather Radar and onboard Nav, Landing Aids and approach charts.

• Knowledge of terrain is very vital particularly during monsoons and adverse Wx Conditions. Study the terrain thoroughly and have full knowledge about the Minimum Enroute Altitude, Minimum Safe Altitude, MORA, grid MORA, natural and manmade obstructions enroute and around airfield, Helipads.

• Be current in instrument flying/simulator flying and know the limitation of Aircraft/Helicopter and your own limitations.

• Ensure serviceability of your weather radar, wind screen wipers, Nav aids, communication equipment, Radio Altimeter, ELT, flying instruments, nav and flashing beacons etc.

• It is very essential to plan the flight meticulously keeping in mind the weather conditions, availability of diversionary airfields. On number of occasions due to widespread thunderstorms; it may not be possible to reach your destination and even the diversionary airfield/helipad. Fuel planning has to be as per the CAR on the subject and plan for extra fuel to cater for contingencies.

• Carry out thorough preflight briefing, covering the aspect of CRM,Situation and terrain awareness, weather conditions and contingency plans in case of adverse weather.

• Remember the Golden Rule in Aviation. Aviate, Navigate, Communicate. One of the Pilot should be flying/monitoring the aircraft / Helicopter all the Time. Accident happen when both the pilots are busy doing something else and no one is flying and monitoring.

• Do not get pressurized for any reason to undertake the flight and take no chances with weather. Don’t hesitate to say NO regardless of pressures.

• No show off, false sense of pride, ego, macho attitude. Number of aircrew have lost their lives while taking chance with weather.

• Effective team work and synergy are of paramount importance. Cockpit/Authority gradient related issues should be addressed to ensure better synergy and coordination between crew.

• A knowledgeable and alert Co Pilot/First Officer is a great asset in the cockpit. Co Pilot/First Officer should be good monitor of the situation and provide full cooperation and support to the Captain. Co Pilot should keep in mind that in spite of the experience levels, the Captain can get disoriented, loose situational awareness and commit errors. An alert and situationally aware Co Pilot can caution the Captain in time and help in preventing mishaps.

• It is essential to maintain open atmosphere in the cockpit so as to enable Co Pilot/First Officer to give inputs without any fear, apprehension or reservation.

• Bird Hazards increase during Monsoon Months due to water accumulation and vegetation growth. After vegetation clearance, plenty of insects and reptiles get exposed which attract birds and increase bird hazard. Keep these aspects in mind to avoid bird strikes.

• High Humidity and Temperatures which are typical of monsoon season, can lead to fatigue and stress among Pilots. This aspect has to be kept in mind since stressed and fatigued pilots are more prone to errors.

During Flight

• Use the Weather Radar in conjunction with weather reports and forecast to detect, analyse and avoid weather. If the weather situation is bad and widespread, then do not press on. Divert or return to your base in time.

• Most of the accidents during bad weather occur during approach and landing. As far as possible, carry out ILS approach, if available. Otherwise, Continuous Descent Final Approach (CDFA) in case of Non Precision Approach.

• Chances of accidents in Non-Precision Approaches are 5 times more than during ILS approaches. Be very careful about horizontal and vertical situational awareness.

• Remember the landing techniques on wet, contaminated runways, be familiar with risk of hydroplaning, cross wind landing Techniques, essential aspects of stabilized approach, use of reverse thrust and spoilers.

• Never hesitate to go around or divert if the situation demands. DGCA/ATC/Operator need no explanation for go around/diversion on grounds of Safety.Follow the SOP meticulously. Take the decision to divert in time before it is too late.

• While orbiting or in hold waiting for your turn to land, particularly at busy airports like Delhi,Mumbai,Chennai,Kolkata,Bangalore,Hyderabad, be fully alert and situationally aware about the availability of diversionary airports, weather conditions, availability of approach and landing aids and fuel state. Do not delay decision to divert if situation demands.

• Have good CRM in the cockpit. Remember the phenomenon of spatial disorientation and apply the knowledge about it intelligently. Trust your instruments and do not look outside while flying on instruments.

• With weather, no amount of experience or heroism works. Never be overconfident, respect weather and prepare well for your sortie. Do not press on regardless of adverse weather even if you are highly experienced.

• Most of the flying by helicopters is VFR. Ensure that flying is undertaken with ground contact. Keep a very sharp look out for obstructions like pylons, cables, TV towers, Communication poles/towers, high rise buildings, tall trees, hills, high ground etc.

• If forced to descend below clouds (Helicopters) to remain in contact with ground and unable to maintain safe height, than it is better to divert, return to base or land at suitable place (Air Safety Circular 09/2013), rather than continue at low heights in poor visibility conditions.
•  Importance of correct Altimeter setting, cross check between Captain, Co Pilots/First Officer, altitude/Height Call Outs, correlation of the altitude/Height with Radio Altimeter, needs special emphasis. Do not ignore EGPWS/TAWS warnings.
•  Do not disengage autopilot while flying under IMC conditions. Make use of TOGA switch as per SOP whenever situation demands.

 

Post-Fight

Proper picketing, lashing of Aircraft/Helicopters is essential to prevent damage due to strong gusty wind conditions.

Ensure the bonding of Aircraft/Helicopter is intact to prevent lightning strikes.

Take great care during refueling lest water enters fuel tanks. Proper bonding during refueling needs no emphasis.

Ensure that the Aircraft/Helicopter are  not parked in low lying areas which are prone to flooding, water logging specially in high rain density areas like Mumbai etc.

Rain Water and high humidity during monsoons have adverse effects on electronics equipment and spurious warnings. Ensure protection by parking inside hangars if possible. Use suitable covers when parking in the Open.

Ensure that the Aircraft/Helicopter is properly sealed when parked. Danger of reptiles entering the Ac/helicopter are high during monsoons due flooding.

Kuchcha /grassy landing surface becomes soggy during rains. Ensure due caution during landing, parking. Wheels/skids getting stuck on wet surface may lead to dynamic roll over conditions. Skidding while fast taxying/turning is expected on wet surfaces. Exercise caution.

Birds are known to make nest in the areas of air intakes, exhaust and other available space on Aircraft/Helicopters even with in a very short duration. Carry out proper externals.

Make sure that soft parts of the Aircraft/Helicopter like stabilizers/antennas etc. are covered while parked with proper covers to prevent damage due to hail storms.

AMEs, Technicians to exercise due caution while servicing the Aircraft/Helicopter since chances of slipping are high due to wet surfaces.

Carry out special checks on aircraft/helicopter parts/equipment which are likely to get affected due to rain water. Rusting of the parts is another hazard.

Although efforts have been made to include all the aspects related to monsoon flying yet there may be some points which might have been missed out. Operators, supervisors, aircrew, maintenance staff are requested to include those which have been missed out or are particularly applicable in their area of operations.  Let us all involve ourselves to ensure safe flying during monsoons.

All the best and happy landings.

www.aviationsafetyindia.com

 

 

 

 

New Delhi: SpiceJet plans to use drones for faster delivery of medical, essential and e-commerce supplies in remote areas of the country. The budget airline has got Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) nod to conduct drone trials. A consortium led by SpiceJet’s freighter arm, SpiceXpress, had submitted a proposal to the regulator for conducting experimental “beyond visual line of sight” (BVLOS) operations of remotely piloted aircraft in response to a DGCA expression of interest.

SpiceJet CMD Ajay Singh said: “Testing of drone technology for last mile connectivity and cost-effective cargo deliveries are a big leap in the air transportation of essential and non-essential supplies in India. We are extremely optimistic about using this exciting new mode of delivery for products like perishables and medicines which have a smaller shelf-life and need urgent deliveries in the remotest parts of India.”

The consortium includes Throttle Aerospace, a drone manufacturing company, AeoLogic, an analytics and software solution firm and Involia, which is a provider of air traffic awareness and collision avoidance services.

“SpiceXpress will be looking at last-mile delivery from the warehouse and the prime focus will be on delivering medical emergency parcels and essential supplies in remote areas. Drones will ensure a faster delivery bringing down costs and would go a long way to augment our business to offer express delivery of medicines, perishable items and e-commerce shipments,” the airline said in a statement.

In a breakthrough for electric flight technology, a 750-horsepower electric engine made by MagniX, an Australian electric motor manufacturer, will power a Cessna 208 Caravan aircraft to fly for an expected 20-30 minutes over Washington state. This will be the largest aircraft ever to fly on electric power.

In December last year, an engine from the same company powered a seaplane in Vancouver, Canada, in what was described as the “world’s first” 100 per cent electric flight.

The retrofitted Caravan plane, which can carry nine passengers, is expected to take off at 8 am Pacific time (8:30 pm in India) on May 28, and will fly at a speed of 183 kmph, as per a Guardian report. However, for its first journey, a test pilot will fly the plane alone.

The plane selected, a Cessna 208 Caravan, is a popular utility aircraft around the world since the 1980s, with over 2,600 currently being operated for commuter airlines, air cargo, VIP transport, flight training, and humanitarian missions. MagniX aims at commercial operations over a 100-mile range by 2021, and hopes retrofitting its engine to a Caravan would speed up regulatory approvals.

According to a CNBC report, such electric flights could require significantly less maintenance compared to fuel-based aircraft, and could lead to short-distance flights becoming cheaper, thus helping make it more viable for airlines to fly to remote locations.

Apart from MagniX, several companies are involved in making electric flights a reality. The ride-sharing company Uber has announced air taxis to fly as early as 2023. Major industry players such as Airbus and Rolls Royce, a number of startups, as well as the space agency NASA are involved in developing electric flight technologies.

Yet, despite the promise shown by short-range electric flights, several more years of development is expected for powering long-distance journeys. A major obstacle in this process is battery technology, with the weight of the battery being a major challenge.

The aviation sector is a fast-growing source of carbon emissions, and significantly contributes to climate change. According to the World Wildlife Federation, unregulated carbon pollution from aviation is the fastest-growing source of greenhouse gas emissions. If the entire sector is considered as a country, it would be among the 10 most polluting nations on the planet.

By 2050, the aviation industry is expected to cater to 16 billion passengers, up from 2.4 billion in 2010. If the sector solely relies on conventional technologies, emissions would triple by 2050.

Making the aviation sector eco-friendly is an important step for meeting the 2016 Paris Agreement’s goal of limiting the increase in global temperatures to below 2 deg Celsius, and pursuing efforts to limit the increase to 1.5 deg Celsius.

Environmental activism has already impacted the popularity of air travel as a mode of transport. According to a UBS bank study from October last year, campaigns such as those by Greta Thunberg and the Swedish concept of “flygskam” or “flight shaming” are expected to cause people to cut down on their flying habits in the US and Europe.