Section of Akasa Air pilots flags hiring, rostering issues, seeks probe

A section of Akasa Air pilots has written to the civil aviation ministry seeking a probe into the airline's hiring practices, alleging rostering issues and other lapses. Among others, these pilots have claimed that some operating crew do not report to work on time and claimed that there are issues with reporting of On-Time Performance.

On Thursday, the section of the pilots sent an e-mail to Civil Aviation Minister K Rammohan Naidu, Civil Aviation Secretary, and Director General of Civil Aviation, flagging various issues at the airline.

There was no immediate comment from Akasa Air.

In the e-mail, the pilots have sought an investigation into the airline's hiring practices, claiming that hiring was being done at the whims and fancies of a chosen few.

It also alleged that the carrier does not have a stable roster.

Recently, the section of pilots had raised concerns about alleged training and safety issues at the airline even though the airline had rejected them as baseless and untrue.

In recent months, Akasa Air, which has been flying for over two years, has come under the regulatory lens for certain lapses.

Earlier this month, the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) withdrew the Line Training Captain approval given to an Akasa Air pilot for lapses in the landing of a passenger aircraft in March 2024, till further orders.

In December, the DGCA ordered the suspension of director of operations and director of training at the airline for six months for alleged lapses in pilots' training.

A fine of INR 30 lakh was imposed on the airline for certain lapses in the training of crew in October last year by the DGCA.>