New Delhi, October 05: Imagine the plight of 106 airplane passengers as their pilots and crew exchanged blows at 35,000 feet, jeopardising for a while just about everything on board.
Shortly after the Air-India flight took off from Sharjah on Saturday, the passengers were horrified to watch the staff come to blows in the cockpit and galley of the Airbus A-320 as it cruised over Pakistan on its way to Delhi via Lucknow.
“It was a cabin versus cockpit situation, where (the) pilot and co-pilot slugged it out with crew members,” the Ministry of Civil Aviation said on Sunday. Air-India too confirmed the incident, while India’s Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) ordered an investigation into the case.
A three-member panel has been set up by Air-India to probe the incident and the airline has grounded all staff members allegedly involved in the mid-air scuffle.
It has been reported that the cockpit was left unmanned for ‘some time’, as the pilots, Captain Ranbir Arora and co-pilot Aditya Chopra, were busy battling with the crew outside.
Minister for Civil Aviation Praful Patel told Khaleej Times the probe would bring out the facts of the matter. “We are very upset with such an incident coming to our knowledge. No one guilty will be spared,” he said.
The cabin crew alleged that the pilots harassed a 24-year-old female colleague, who later filed a molestation case with the New Delhi police. But the pilots have denied the charge, accusing instead flight purser Amit Khanna of misconduct.
The pilots, in a written report to the DGCA, have admitted the incident seriously compromised flight safety regulations. Many crew members and the pilots have bruises and have been advised medical treatment, police said.
According to the pilots, the cabin crew came to meet them for a pre-flight briefing. The said air-hostess later announced flight time from Sharjah as per the schedule, and not the actual one the captain had given, the pilots said.
The pilot allegedly scolded the air-hostess and then called Khanna to the cockpit. Khanna entered the cockpit angrily, but was ordered out when he became abusive.
Khanna reportedly apologised after the aircraft landed, but persuaded the air-hostess to formally level charges of molestation against the pilots. The crew’s allegation is that when the air-hostess went into the cockpit, one of the pilots held her hand and then pushed her out of the cockpit. She hit the cockpit door and started bleeding.
The crew alleges that when Khanna saw the air-hostess injured, he went to the cockpit to find out what had happened. At this point, the pilots got abusive with him and the fight started. Meanwhile, the police, have registered a case against the pilots on the air-hostess’ complaint.
Joint police commissioner Satyendra Garg said the case against the pilots has been registered for assault and use of criminal force against a woman with intent to outrage her modesty. The police got the victim examined at the Safdarjung Hospital, where her bruises from the incident were confirmed. Khanna, too, sustained injuries.
However, it denied that the flight safety was compromised at any stage. “There was never an instance of no pilot being present in the cockpit. The Commander of the flight was in his seat throughout the flight and never left it.
–Agencies