Junior pilot trained out of turn on aircraft'

Mumbai: One of the two pilot unions in Air India, on Thursday, accused the airline of allegedly overlooking passenger safety to allow a junior pilot to train on the Boeing 777 aircraft, which is the latest addition to its fleet. Incidentally, the pilot’s father holds a senior rank in the company.
On Thursday, the Indian Pilots’ Guild (IPG) reported the matter to the civil aviation ministry and the Central Labour Commission. According to the complaint (a copy of which is available with HT), captain Aditya Beri, a pilot with the Air India Express, the airline’s low-cost subsidiary, had been training on the Boeing 777 aircraft since January.
Beri’s training allegedly flouts the airline’s training policy, which does not permit pilots without experience on jet engine powered aircraft to train on wide-bodied planes such as the Boeing 777. The union alleged that the airline management favoured Beri because his father captain NK Beri was the officer of special duty to Arvind Jadhav, chairman and managing director of the airline.
11/02/11 Soubhik Mitra/Hindustan Times

To Read the News in full at Source, Click the Headline

Categories: Air India - International Feb 2011, Air India Budget Feb 2011, Air India Feb 2011