Mumbai: An Air India pilot facing inquiry for leaving the controls of a Bangkok-Delhi flight to two air-hostesses has been placed under suspension for three months by the Director General of Civil Aviation, disregarding his attempt to place the blame on the stewardesses.
Along with flight's commander Captain B K Soni, the two stewardesses J Bhatt and Kanika Kala too, however, have been suspended. The flight's co-pilot, Captain Ravindra Nath, who was also derostered after the incident in April, has been spared.
Captain Soni in his clarification to the DGCA notice had blamed the two air-hostesses for distracting him with non-aviation chatter, causing him to accidently switch off the autopilot mode. The clarification said that the airhostesses entered the cockpit on the pretext of serving tea, though he had not asked for any refreshment. It added that the two then distracted him by discussing topics as unrelated to their duties as "cinema and married lives."
According to Captain Soni, it was during the air-hostesses' prolonged and unsolicited presence in the cock-pit and the alleged disturbing chatter that he switched off the auto-pilot. By his own admission, "identifying the problem and re-establishing the auto-pilot took some time."
20/06/13 Bipin Kumar Singh/Mumbai Mirror
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Along with flight's commander Captain B K Soni, the two stewardesses J Bhatt and Kanika Kala too, however, have been suspended. The flight's co-pilot, Captain Ravindra Nath, who was also derostered after the incident in April, has been spared.
Captain Soni in his clarification to the DGCA notice had blamed the two air-hostesses for distracting him with non-aviation chatter, causing him to accidently switch off the autopilot mode. The clarification said that the airhostesses entered the cockpit on the pretext of serving tea, though he had not asked for any refreshment. It added that the two then distracted him by discussing topics as unrelated to their duties as "cinema and married lives."
According to Captain Soni, it was during the air-hostesses' prolonged and unsolicited presence in the cock-pit and the alleged disturbing chatter that he switched off the auto-pilot. By his own admission, "identifying the problem and re-establishing the auto-pilot took some time."
20/06/13 Bipin Kumar Singh/Mumbai Mirror
