Kerala AI Express plane crash: Issues red-flagged by DGCA were addressed and rectified, says Aviation Minister HS Puri

NEW DELHI: All issues such as excessive rubber deposits, water stagnation and cracks that were red-flagged by aviation regulator DGCA in the past were "addressed and rectified" by the Kozhikode airport operator, Civil Aviation Minister Hardeep Singh Puri said on Saturday.

In a series of tweets, he said that raising such concerns is the normal work of DGCA. DGCA strictly ensures that these are complied with and rectified under all circumstances and this was done by the airport operator.

The Union Minister also urged people to wait for the outcome of the statutory enquiry and then visit the issue with facts.

Puri’s tweets came after various news reports stated that the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) had issued a show cause notice to the director of the Kozhikode airport on July 11 last year after it found "various critical safety lapses" in different places, including the runway and the apron.

"It is indeed a fact that several issues were routinely red-flagged by DGCA, and were addressed by the (Kozhikode) airport operator. These pertain to excessive rubber deposits, water stagnation, cracks and other routine issues," Puri said in a series of tweets a day after the plane crash in Kozhikode that claimed at least 18 lives.

The point is that raising such concerns is the normal work of the DGCA, he noted. "The DGCA also strictly ensures that these are complied with and rectified under all circumstances. This was done by the airport operator," the minister added.

Puri said an enquiry has been ordered under the Aircraft Act in case of the Kozhikode accident and findings of the investigation will be made public.

"I will encourage all to exercise patience and refrain from making speculative observations bordering on the irresponsible. Again to emphasize, all the issues were addressed and rectified," the Minister said.

The Minister tweeted that AAI strengthened the runway and thereafter necessary permissions were issued in 2018 to operate wide body aircraft. Consequently, certain carriers started operating some flights with wide body aircraft to Kozhikode Airport. 

Puri further informed that Kozhikode Airport has a total footfall of 3.2 million passengers per annum with 70-80 aircraft movement per day.  The total wide body operations are only 4% of the total.

The Civil Aviation Minister reiterated that as in case of Kozhikode accident, an enquiry has been ordered under Aircraft Act, black boxes of flight IX-1344 have been recovered. Findings of this investigation will be made public. 

The Union Minister is continuously taking stock of the situation arising due to the accident in Kozhikode and holding meetings with senior officials including Secretary, MoCA, Chairman, AAI, DG, DGCA and AAIB among others.

Puri reached Kozhikode on Saturday afternoon to take stock of the relief measures. He went to the accident site at the airport, before visiting the Kozhikode Medical College, where senior doctors briefed him and Minister of State for External Affairs V Muraleedharan about the condition of the injured people admitted for treatment.

The Air India Express flight from Dubai with 190 people on board overshot the runway at the Kozhikode airport in Kerala at 7.40 PM on Friday in rainy conditions and went down 35 feet into a slope before breaking up into two, killing at least 18 people.