Fed up with being frequently told by crew that their passports have expired when rostered to operate international flights, Air India has in an unprecedented move directed all its pilots and cabin crew - of both the narrow body (Airbus A-320) and wide body (Boeing 787, 777 and 747) fleets — to submit their passport details. Due to this, AI - which anyway faces a crew shortage - is frequently looking for crew with valid papers to operate international flights at the last minute.
"The airline has issued a circular asking crew of narrow body fleet also (which operates mainly domestic flights and on routes to neighbouring places like Gulf and SAARC) to come with their passports when they operate the next flight. Their passports will be scanned and we will keep a track when they expire. Very often we are told by crew rostered for international flights on the A-320s that their passport has expired. Renewing a passport takes almost a month and we can't afford to have crew unavailable for flights for that long," said a senior AI official.
The circular issued by Captain Pankul Mathur, AI's general manager of crew management, says: "Passport details of all crew are to be collected by passport swipe system. All cockpit/cabin crew while operating their first flight of the day, whether domestic or international, are required to swipe their passport on the system placed at the movement control office of the airport. This is a one-time requirement to get an accurate passport details for immigration bureau requirements. All cockpit/cabin crew are required to carry their passport on all flights till January 31, 2017, even if they have swiped their passports."
26/12/16 Saurabh Sinha/The Times Of India
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"The airline has issued a circular asking crew of narrow body fleet also (which operates mainly domestic flights and on routes to neighbouring places like Gulf and SAARC) to come with their passports when they operate the next flight. Their passports will be scanned and we will keep a track when they expire. Very often we are told by crew rostered for international flights on the A-320s that their passport has expired. Renewing a passport takes almost a month and we can't afford to have crew unavailable for flights for that long," said a senior AI official.
The circular issued by Captain Pankul Mathur, AI's general manager of crew management, says: "Passport details of all crew are to be collected by passport swipe system. All cockpit/cabin crew while operating their first flight of the day, whether domestic or international, are required to swipe their passport on the system placed at the movement control office of the airport. This is a one-time requirement to get an accurate passport details for immigration bureau requirements. All cockpit/cabin crew are required to carry their passport on all flights till January 31, 2017, even if they have swiped their passports."
26/12/16 Saurabh Sinha/The Times Of India
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