DGCA Probes Air India for Operating A320neo Without Required Certification

New Delhi: The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) has launched a probe on Air India for operating an A320 neo plane without having a requisite airworthiness certification on at least eight routes. The DGCA has also ordered de-rostered of the personnel concerned till completion of the investigation.

Air India is also carrying out an internal investigation to identify deficiencies in their system and put corrective measures in place to prevent such failures from occurring in future, a statement from the company said on Tuesday.

Air India issues Airworthiness Review Certificate (ARC) in respect of aircraft it operates. ARC is issued annually in respect of an aircraft after a comprehensive review of its maintenance records, physical condition and verification of compliance with all airworthiness standards. It acts as a validation of the aircraft's main Certificate of Airworthiness (C of A).

The DGCA said that as part of the merger process of Vistara into Air India, in 2024, in respect of all the 70 Vistara Aircraft it was decided that the first ARC renewal post-merger will be done by the DGCA. Till date ARC for all the 69 aircraft has been issued by the DGCA after satisfactory compliance by the operator. In respect of the 70th aircraft, the operator filed application with the DGCA and subsequently the aircraft was grounded for engine change. During this period the ARC expired, however the aircraft was released for service after engine change. On November 26, the operator informed DGCA about the flying of the aircraft on the expired ARC for eight revenue sectors.