In a shock announcement, the Go First Airlines, owned by Wadia-group, said it is cancelling all its flights for two days in view of fund shortage. The decision shocked the airline’s passengers who had booked tickets for their scheduled destination.
What prompted Flight cancellation announcement
The airline’s half of the fleet is grounded due to shortage of spare parts and engines that the airline blames on US engine maker Pratt & Whitney (P&W). The airline also said it has grounded it half of the fleet due to P&W ‘faulty’ engines. The latest development marks the first major collapse of an airline in India after the failure of Jet Airways. The now defunct airline collapsed in 2019 leaving thousands of employees in lurch.
Ever increasing Engine Failures
In a statement, the airline said that it was forced to take the step due to the ‘ever-increasing’ number of failing engines supplied by Pratt & Whitney’s International Aero Engines. The company has grounded 28 planes and this has resulted in a fund crunch, said company CEO Kaushik Khona. The airline currently employees nearly 5,000 people.
DGCA notice to Go First
Even as the events unfolded, the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) issued a notice to the airline over the sudden suspension of flights. The aviation regulator has asked the airline to file a response with in 24 hours. The DGCA in its notice told the airline that airline failed to adhere to the approved schedule and caused passenger inconvenience leading to non-compliance. The regulator asked the airline as to why action should not be taken against it for violation.
Go First Bankruptcy filing
The company on Tuesday also announced that it has filed for bankruptcy proceedings with the National Company Law Tribunal. The airline claimed it can’t met the financial obligations. The company in its filing said that that Pratt & Whitney refused to release engine orders making it difficult for them to operate half of the fleet, said CEO Kaushik Khona. Pratt & Whitney is the sole supplier of engines for Airbus A320neo aircraft fleet operated by Go First.
Aviation Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia’s assurance
Civil Aviation Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia said the airline was being helped in all possible manner. He said the issue has been taken up with the stakeholders involved. Scindia also asked the airline to make appropriate arrangements so that the passengers not inconvenience.
NCLT reserves order on plea seeking interim moratorium
Go First Airlines, which filed for bankruptcy on Tuesday, announced that its flight operations will remain cancelled from May 3 to May 5 adding that a full refund will be issued to the passengers. However, some reports suggest that flight operations may remain suspended till May 15. The Wadia group-owned carrier has also moved the National Company Law Tribunal, seeking voluntary insolvency resolution proceedings. “Go First is facing financial crunch due to non-supply of engines by US-based jet engines manufacturer Pratt and Whitney (P&W) that has forced grounding more than 50 planes,” a Go First official told ANI.
Tag: DGCA
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Go First Crisis: Story behind India’s 3rd largest airline’s crash landing
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Go First airline fined Rs 10 lakh for leaving 55 flyers behind at Bengaluru airport
The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) on January 27 imposed a Rs 10 lakh fine on Wadia-Group-owned airline GoFirst (formerly known as GoAir) for failure to ensure adequate arrangements for ground handling for the flight.
“The airline failed to ensure adequate arrangement for ground handling, preparation of load and trim sheet, flight dispatch and passenger/cargo handling,” the aviation regulator said in a notice.
On January 9, 55 passengers who were bound for New Delhi from Bengaluru on a 0630 IST GoFirst flight G8 116 were left behind in a bus. The stranded passengers were later accommodated on another flight a few hours later. The DGCA on January 10 sent a show cause notice to the carrier, highlighting “multiple mistakes” that could be easily avoided.
Following the incident, GoFirst announced that the airline will offer one free ticket to all affected passengers for travel to any domestic sector in India in the next 12 months.
Further, the airline pointed out that all concerned staff (would be) off the roster till the inquiry is going on.
GoFirst submitted a response to DGCA’s show cause notice on January 25.
The airline also issued an apology saying that the shocking error occurred due to an “inadvertent oversight”.
Two IAF aircraft crash near Madhya Pradesh’s Morena
Two Indian Air Force fighter aircraft crashed in Pahadgarh area of Morena in Madhya Pradesh on Saturday. Morena additional superintendent of police Rai Singh Narwariya said, “An air force team is reaching the spot to confirm about the plane and number of people present in it. Police found a hand near the plane.”
News agency ANI reported citing defence sources that a Sukhoi-30 and Mirage 2000 aircraft were involved in the crash.
The two aircraft had taken off from the Gwalior air base in Madhya Pradesh where an exercise was going on.
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Singapore-bound flight takes off from Amritsar airport without 35 passengers; DGCA orders probe
The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) has ordered a probe into how a Singapore-bound flight took off hours ahead of schedule, leaving behind 35 passengers at the Amritsar airport.
The probe was initiated by the aviation regulatory authority after a Scoot Airline flight which was scheduled to depart at 7.55pm on Wednesday, January 18, from the Amritsar airport took off at 3pm, hours ahead of its departure time.
This triggered chaos at the airport with angry passengers who were left behind staging a protest. They registered their complaint with authorities concerned at the airport.
After the airport authorities contacted the airline officials they were informed that the passengers had been sounded about the change in flight time via e-mail. “Around 280 passengers were to travel to Singapore but 253 passengers were rescheduled, leaving behind over 30 passengers behind,” Amritsar airport Director told ANI.
The DGCA has sought details from both Scoot Airline which is a Singaporean low-cost airline and a wholly owned subsidiary of Singapore Airlines and the Amritsar Airport authority.
According to the airline, all the passengers were informed about the change in timing via email. An airport official told ANI that the travel agent, who booked the tickets for 30 people in a group, had not informed them (passengers) about the change in flight timings due to which the airline flew with the passengers who had reported on time.
BBC documentary on 2002 Gujarat riots a ‘propaganda piece’: India
India on Thursday, January 19, described a BBC documentary on the 2002 Gujarat riots as a “propaganda piece” designed to push a particular “discredited narrative”.
The bias, lack of objectivity and continuing colonial mindset are blatantly visible, External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Arindam Bagchi said at a media briefing while replying to a volley of questions on the documentary.
The documentary deals with the riots that broke out in Gujarat when Narendra Modi was the Chief Minister.
Bagchi said the documentary is a reflection on the agency and individuals that are peddling “this narrative” again.
“It makes us wonder about purpose of this exercise and agenda behind it,” he said.