India’s civil aviation watchdog bars 90 SpiceJet pilots from flying Boeing 737 Max planes

New Delhi, India | Xinhua | India’s civil aviation watchdog Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) has barred 90 SpiceJet pilots from flying Boeing 737 Max aircraft until they undergo the required training, local media reports said Wednesday.

The watchdog cited issues with their simulator training.

“For the moment, we have barred these pilots from flying Max and they have to retrain successfully for flying Max. We will take strict action against those found responsible for the lapse,” DGCA director Arun Kumar was quoted as having said in a statement.

A SpiceJet spokesperson also confirmed to local media that the DGCA has restricted 90 pilots of the airline from flying the Max planes.

“SpiceJet has 650 pilots trained on the Boeing 737 Max. The DGCA had an observation on the training profile followed for 90 pilots, and therefore, as per the advise of the DGCA, SpiceJet has restricted 90 pilots from operating the Max aircraft, until these pilots undergo re-training to the satisfaction of the DGCA. These pilots continue to remain available for other Boeing 737 aircraft,” the spokesperson was quoted as having said.

This restriction does not impact the operations of the Max aircraft.

According to the spokesperson, SpiceJet currently operates 11 Max aircraft and about 144 pilots are required to operate these aircraft.

“Of the 650 trained pilots on the Max, 560 continue to remain available, which is much more than the current requirement,” the spokesperson said.

SpiceJet is the only Indian airline that has the Max aircraft in its fleet.

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Xinhua