DGCA to airlines: Send SMS to passengers for delay and cancellation

Aviation regulator DGCA on Friday asked all the airlines to send text messages after every 30 minutes to passengers whose flight has been delayed, cancelled or whose boarding gates have changed. The DGCA''s direction comes after passengers complained on social media that the airlines do not inform them on time about flight''s delay, cancellation or boarding gate change. In a communique sent to all the airlines on Friday, the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) stated, "The airlines should make all efforts to send SMS in case there is a delay in flight beyond 30 minutes or a boarding gate change has taken place at the airport."

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The regulator has asked the travel agents to share the mobile number of passengers with the airlines for ease in sending flight information updates. DGCA chief Arun Kumar on Thursday held a meeting with the "appellate authority and nodal officers of all scheduled domestic airlines" to discuss matters related to passengers grievance redressal. The communique further said, "Airlines must send repeated SMS after every 30 minutes to keep the passengers updated for the flight delay/cancellation/ boarding gate change."

"The airlines must keep close coordination with their travel agents. The travel agents must share the mobile numbers of the travelling passenger with the airlines for flight information updates," it added.

If a ticket has to be refunded through a travel agent, the airlines must ensure that it happens in a timely manner, the DGCA noted. The regulator also said that airlines must give all necessary assistance to the passengers for their connecting flights. "Airlines must ensure proper conduct and behaviour of their employees towards passengers," it added. 

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Three pilots and two aircrafts grounded

Aviation regulator DGCA has grounded three pilots and two aircraft maintenance engineers of IndiGo for not reporting vibrations in the Pratt and Whitney (PW) engines of the A320neo planes in separate incidents that have occurred since March, senior officials said on Wednesday. "Three pilots -- Captain Krishna Arjun Reddy, Captain Sanjay Gupta and Captain Pankul Nag -- have been suspended for not reporting the vibrations observed in the PW engines of their A320neo planes," a Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) official said. Two aircraft maintenance engineers of IndiGo have also been suspended by the DGCA in connection with separate incidents, one of the officials said. As on August 30 this year, IndiGo and GoAir had 92 and 35 A320neo aircraft powered by PW engines respectively in India. A total of 436 such aircraft are operating globally. On August 30, the aviation regulator had said it was keeping a tab on the issues related to the PW engines in the Airbus A320neo planes and that it would act when warranted.

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