Editor's Pick: SpiceJet gets DGCA notice for safety lapses

On Wednesday, the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) served a show-cause notice on SpiceJet over its failure to offer “safe, efficient and reliable” air services after as many as eight mid-air incidents in the past two months. Giving the airline three weeks to explain why action should not be taken against it, the DGCA blamed the airline for “poor safety oversight” and failure to procure spare parts for aircraft maintenance. In an interview to the news agency PTI, SpiceJet Chairman and Managing Director Ajay Singh said the airline would be “doubly careful”, but called the incidents “minor”. In the past month, the airline faced at least three incidents — the diversion of a Delhi-Dubai flight to Karachi due to a fuel indicator malfunction; a cracked windscreen on a Kandla-Mumbai flight; and a snag on the weather radar on its cargo aircraft flying from Kolkata to Chongqing, forcing its return to Kolkata. The notice stated that a review of the reported incidents from 1st April 2022 till date showed that, on several occasions, the aircraft either turned back to its originating station or continued landing to the destination with degraded safety margins. It added that a financial assessment carried out by DGCA in September, 2021 has revealed that airline is operating on cash and carry, and suppliers/ approved vendors are not being paid on regular basis leading to a shortage of spares and frequent invoking of MELs [minimum equipment list]. An MEL is a document an airline seeks from a regulator to seek relief when all equipment on an aircraft is not operative. During the financial year 2020-2021, SpiceJet incurred a loss of ₹998 crore. In an implicit warning to the airline, the DGCA also said that the airline’s permit to operate commercial flights was valid only till May 2023. Was this newsletter forwarded to you? Head over to our newsletter subscription page to sign up for Editor‘s Pick and more. Click here The Hindu’s Editorials Hate crime and punishment: On violence over ‘hurt sentiments’ Changed equations: On the new Test era for England The Hindu’s Daily Quiz The G-20 Foreign Ministers meeting on July 7-8 will be held in which city? Bali Da Nang Manila Shanghai To find out the answer and play the full quiz, click here [logo] Editor's Pick 07 JULY 2022 [The Hindu logo] In the Editor's Pick newsletter, The Hindu explains why a story was important enough to be carried on the front page of today's edition of our newspaper. [Arrow]( [Open in browser]( [Mail icon]( [More newsletters]( SpiceJet gets DGCA notice for safety lapses On Wednesday, the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) [served a show-cause notice on SpiceJet over its failure to offer “safe, efficient and reliable” air services]( after as many as eight mid-air incidents in the past two months. Giving the airline three weeks to explain why action should not be taken against it, the DGCA blamed the airline for “poor safety oversight” and failure to procure spare parts for aircraft maintenance. In an interview to the news agency PTI, SpiceJet Chairman and Managing Director Ajay Singh [said the airline would be “doubly careful”, but called the incidents “minor”.Â]( In the past month, the airline faced at least three incidents — the diversion of a Delhi-Dubai flight to Karachi due to a fuel indicator malfunction; a cracked windscreen on a Kandla-Mumbai flight; and a snag on the weather radar on its cargo aircraft flying from Kolkata to Chongqing, forcing its return to Kolkata. The notice stated that a review of the reported incidents from 1st April 2022 till date showed that, on several occasions, the aircraft either turned back to its originating station or continued landing to the destination with degraded safety margins. It added that a financial assessment carried out by DGCA in September, 2021 has revealed that airline is operating on cash and carry, and suppliers/ approved vendors are not being paid on regular basis leading to a shortage of spares and frequent invoking of MELs [minimum equipment list]. An MEL is a document an airline seeks from a regulator to seek relief when all equipment on an aircraft is not operative. During the financial year 2020-2021, SpiceJet incurred a loss of ₹998 crore. In an implicit warning to the airline, the DGCA also said that the airline’s permit to operate commercial flights was valid only till May 2023. Was this newsletter forwarded to you? Head over to our newsletter subscription page to sign up for Editor‘s Pick and more.  [Click here]( The Hindu’s Editorials [Arrow][Hate crime and punishment: On violence over ‘hurt sentiments’]( [Arrow][Changed equations: On the new Test era for England]( The Hindu’s Daily Quiz The G-20 Foreign Ministers meeting on July 7-8 will be held in which city? - Bali - Da Nang - Manila - Shanghai To find out the answer and play the full quiz, [click here]( Today’s Best Reads [[Boris Johnson digs in despite calls to quit] Boris Johnson digs in despite calls to quit]( [[P.T. 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