Air India operations chief fails pre-flight alcohol test; grounded
Mumbai, Nov 11 : Government-run Air India Sunday grounded its chief of operations Captain A K Kathpalia after he allegedly failed to clear pre-flight alcohol test, a senior airline official said.
Kathpalia was to operate the airline's London-New Delhi flight on Sunday afternoon.
Air India had to call another pilot to replace him and operate the flight (AI-111) which departed after a delay of 55 minutes, causing inconvenience to passengers, an airline source said.
"We have grounded Capt A K Kathpalia as he failed twice in the breath analyser test. He was to operate the London flight from New Delhi, but he failed to clear the pre- flight alcohol test," the official said.
"He was given another chance, but the second test was also found positive following which he was grounded," he said.
Air India spokesperson was not available for comments on the matter.
Rule 24 of the Aircraft Rules prohibits crew members from partaking any alcoholic drink 12 hours prior to the commencement of a flight, and it is mandatory for him/her to undergo an alcohol test both before and after operating a flight.
The prescribed punishment for such offences under the DGCA rules is suspension of flying licence for three months in case of first breach.
For violating the norms for a second time, the licence is suspended for three years and for a third time, the licence is permanently cancelled.
Earlier, Kathpalia's flying licence was suspended in 2017 for three months by the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) for allegedly skipping the breath analyser test before a flight. He was subsequently removed from the post of executive director, operations.
However, he was later appointed to the post of director (operations) in Air India Ltd for a period of five years.
A senior official at the DGCA said that a decision on Kathpalia's flying licence is expected to be taken on Monday.
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26 killed, 61 injured in blast at fireworks factory in China
Beijing (PTI): At least 26 people were killed and 61 others injured in a massive explosion at a fireworks factory in China's Hunan province, officials said on Tuesday.
The explosion occurred on Monday afternoon at the plant operated by the Huasheng fireworks manufacturing and display company in Liuyang, a county-level city under Changsha, the provincial capital.
Videos circulating on Chinese social media showed massive destruction of property spanning several kilometres.
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More than 480 rescuers, organised into five teams, have been deployed for relief operations, with three rescue robots pressed into service.
Officials said 26 people were killed and 61 others were injured. The injured have been rushed to hospitals for treatment, while a second round of search operations is underway.
China is a leading manufacturer and exporter of fireworks.
As the explosion site is located near two black powder warehouses, the rescuers have evacuated nearby residents and set up a buffer zone to prevent a secondary accident, the state-run Xinhua news agency reported.
The Ministry of Emergency Management has dispatched experts to the scene to guide rescue efforts.
The person in charge of the company has been detained by police and the cause of the accident is being investigated, the report said.
