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AirAsia India sacks whistleblower Captain

  •   Tue, Jun 30 2020 08:31:00 AM

New Delhi, Jun 30 (IANS): AirAsia India has fired Captain Gaurav Taneja, who is said to have acted as a whistleblower against alleged safety malpractices of the airline, sources said on Monday.

However, the action, according to sources, happened on disciplinary grounds, whereby, the airline followed due procedure.

The pilot was sacked on June 26, days after he was suspended for publicly alleging safety violations at the airline.

Taneja, through a Youtube video on June 14, said that he has been suspended by the airline for standing up for "safe operations of an aircraft and its passengers".

The alleged violation is regarding a landing technique of the use of 'Flap 3' mode during landing.

On June 15, the aviation regulator DGCA tweeted that it has taken note of allegations against a "particular airline".

"DGCA has taken note of the concerns raised by some stakeholders against a particular Airline and its approach to safety. DGCA has already started an investigation into the issues flagged and shall take appropriate action based on the outcome of the said investigation," it had said.

Consequently, the DGCA had decided to issue a showcause notice to a senior executive of the airline after the alleged violation of safety norms came to light.

A DGCA official said that the showcause notice has been served post the pilot's allegations.

"AirAsia India confirms receipt of the notice and we are assisting the regulator in its fact finding process. We will fully cooperate with the regulator," said an AirAsia India spokesperson on Sunday.
  

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Comment on this article

  • Esther, Darjeeling

    Tue, Jun 30 2020

    Please do not be panic captain 🌱
    Let the truth win 🏆
    My prayers are with you 🌺

    DisAgree [2] Agree [8] Reply Report Abuse

  • Rishi, Thane/ Mumbai

    Tue, Jun 30 2020

    May be Airlines was following the policies of our present government.
    Whoever questions the present government they are deemed as anti-national or anti social.
    But some of the Chamchas who had problem of fuel price hike in UPA government now they too have gone silent.
    Some Celebrities have also lost their spine. but we can understand their situation, if they raise their voice they will be also termed as anti national or antisocial or trend will start to boycott their movies

    DisAgree [5] Agree [13] Reply Report Abuse

  • Ann, Mangalore

    Tue, Jun 30 2020

    I have been watching flying beasts Captain Gaurav Taneja's videos for the last 3 years. He isn't my family member nor anyone I should support blindly but I have seen him make in-depth videos on how an aircraft works, the takeoffs and landings, how an emergency landing is done, why cabin crew is important(basically he explains their job role is not just to serve us food but they are the first ones to help us during an emergency/engine failure/bomb threat or any other critical situation as they are trained to think of the passenger safety first and help passengers not panic. He explained this because most people think cabin crew are just dolled up and serve food in an aircraft ) , he has made videos on the safety guidelines to be followed, videos on crash landings /plane crashes, also his knowledge on many plane crashes including Mangalore. He explains all this in layman's terms so that people like you and me understand. He isn't new to the business. I also have 2 pilots in my immediate family. Everyone knows what he is talking about and also agree he is right but the problem is nobody has the courage to go against the system because what happened to Captain Gaurav Taneja is exactly what will happen to the pilots if they do so. I know for a fact how the pilots are made to fly even when they are fatigued . Yes, they are given 14hrs rest before the next flight but they are made to fly minimum 4 to 6 sectors a day. It gets tiresome. They aren't given vacation when they need . If they are extremely tired and take a day off, they get emails from the higher ups threatening to take serious action against them. This I know because as I already mentioned, I have pilots in the family. Btw, this is not like driving a truck to say the least. So much effort goes into passenger safety from the pilot and co-pilot's side. The company will always try to blame the pilots for everything because it would otherwise tarnish their company image. Pilot's job is a stressful job.

    DisAgree [2] Agree [24] Reply Report Abuse

  • swati, mang/dxb

    Tue, Jun 30 2020

    No chamcha aviation experts comment yet...

    DisAgree [8] Agree Reply Report Abuse

  • Mangalurian, Mangaluru

    Tue, Jun 30 2020

    AirAsia, as a business, would not ignore safety. An accident, and the airline would be made liable big time. The airline would be employing many people who are specialised in safety.

    A captain/pilot's job is to fly safely. Just as a tipper driver is expected to drive safely. The recent crash in Pakistan that killed 90 people has found a bad job by the pilots (they were busy talking about Covid-19) and there was no fault with the plane.

    But there are pilots who consume alcohol and are under the influence of substances of dependence. That is very dangerous.

    In this case the captain may have blown the whistle after the airline found fault with him. It is common to find disgruntled employees everywhere.

    DisAgree [45] Agree [24] Reply Report Abuse

  • sri_elder, Karkala

    Tue, Jun 30 2020

    Why don't you think other way?
    Captain first made YouTube video, then DGCA started investigation..
    Reality is that, nobody wants to know their faults to outside world.

    Let us assume that pilot just saved many lives due to whistle blowing

    DisAgree [9] Agree [40] Reply Report Abuse

  • Ashok, Mangalore

    Tue, Jun 30 2020

    Sir Eler, the fact is that the captain was still working for Air Asia tells us that the so called safety was not compromised.
    Now he is out and crying is another testimony that the safety wasn't compromised and he still wanted to work in that "UNSAFE" plane.
    Air Asia might be budget airline but they do have good track record and flying in many countries with many other names.
    No company will neglect the safety of it's customers when people have alternatives and every company is there to make profit which comes only if they provide good service.

    DisAgree [18] Agree [6] Reply Report Abuse

  • Danny, Sharjah

    Tue, Jun 30 2020

    Mr Mangalurian , so you mean to say that just because he has some sought of fault he became a whistleblower so he turned against the company then why did the dgca issue a show cause notice to air asia india if they haven't found some evidence to prove that , you have no idea whatsoever that's going on in the aviation industry or any large corporations for that matter .

    DisAgree [2] Agree [8] Reply Report Abuse

  • Danny, Sharjah

    Tue, Jun 30 2020

    Mr Mangalurian , so you mean to say that just because he had some sort of fault and his company wanted to fire him he became a whistleblower then why did the dgca issue a show cause notice to air asia india , you have no idea whatsoever that's going on in the aviation industry or any large corporations for that matter.

    DisAgree [3] Agree [3] Reply Report Abuse

  • Ann, Mangalore

    Tue, Jun 30 2020

    Let's talk about safety. Firstly, no pilot is allowed to board a flight without a breathalyzer alcohol test.This is NOT a supermarket.Even a miniscule Blood Alcohol Content (BAC) reading of 0.01 per cent (which indicates that there is 10 milligram of alcohol for every 100ml of blood) can make a pilot unfit for flying. Also,this will be marked against the pilot and the pilot gets grounded. Even taking medications before flying can be dangerous for them as it may show some alcohol. It is true that pilots also make mistakes. I wouldn’t be wrong if I said there are instances where the planes have crashed because of the pilot’s mistake, but it is also true that many aircraft have crashed because of engine failures or safety concerns like the aircraft was not maintained to save costs, aircraft being very old, etc. Also, a pilot is allowed to take a nap in an aircraft if required but he has to be awake well in advance before the landing. Definitely, a pilot can’t sleep for 1 hour in a flight that would reach another destination in 2 hours. Also, last time there was a news where it was said the pilot left the passengers stranded at the airport saying his duty is over and the passengers were angry at the pilot. This became a big news and people started blaming the pilot for being so irresponsible. The truth is pilots are allowed to fly only a particular number of hours for the safety of passengers. He/she at any cost is NOT allowed to fly even a minute extra than the given numbers of hours has to follow the DGCA guidelines. Pilots get grounded or suspended for months without salaries for their mistakes. They can also lose their license permanently for a grave mistake. Pilots go through enormous stress yet they have to stay calm during an engine failure or critical situation even when they know they are going to die. They are trained very well. They do not get a chance to question the aviation industry even if their company does something wrong because they would get fired

    DisAgree [1] Agree [9] Reply Report Abuse

  • Danny, Sharjah

    Tue, Jun 30 2020

    So you mean to say that just because he had some sort of fault and his company wanted to fire him he became a whistleblower then why did the dgca issue a show cause notice to air asia india , you have no idea whatsoever that's going on in the aviation industry or any large corporations for that matter.

    DisAgree [3] Agree [4] Reply Report Abuse


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