Indigo, Spicejet Suffered Most Technical Snags in 2022; Vistara, Air India Follow

The year 2022 has been a year of ups and downs for the aviation industry, but the problems with the functioning of these carriers remained constant. As per the government data, 546 mechanical issues were encountered by domestic airlines last year while operating aircraft. The largest airline in the nation, IndiGo, experienced 215 problems, followed by SpiceJet with 143 problems and Vistara with 97 problems. According to information submitted by the civil aviation ministry in a written reply to the Lok Sabha, Air India encountered 64 problems, while Go First and Akasa Air reported 7 and 6 issues, respectively. Air Asia (India) recorded 8 issues in 2022, Alliance Air 3, Fly Big 1, TrueJet 1, and BlueDart Aviation 1.

A total of 1,090 snags were faced by airlines in the last two years. Last year, the number of snags was slightly higher at 546 compared to 544 in 2021. To a query on whether more technical snags are reported in the country due to low-cost airlines, Minister of State for Civil Aviation V K Singh replied in the negative.

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"No Sir, Technical snags are experienced during operation of aircraft. These may be due to improper functioning/ malfunctions of systems/ equipment/ components fitted on the aircraft," he said.

The minister also noted that some of the technical snags may require the flight crew to take actions such as air turn back, aborted take-off, or go around keeping the safety of operation in view and are usually taken to avert serious incidents/ accidents.

"Operators take action to rectify the technical snags based on the guidance provided by the manufacturer before further operating the aircraft," he added.

The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) ensures that the airline and the maintenance organisation continue to comply with the regulatory requirements against which they have been initially approved through a system of surveillance, audits, spot checks, and night surveillance.

"In case of non-compliance, DGCA ensures that rectification is done by the airlines/ maintenance organisation. DGCA initiates enforcement action against organisation/personnel in case violations are found, which may include warning, suspension, and cancellation besides imposition of financial penalty," Singh said.

With PTI Inputs