Business · India Bureau
AAIB flags pilot drug use in Air India Phuket incident as serious concern
India's accident investigation agency has raised alarm over confirmed drug use by the pilot-in-command of an Air India flight that experienced a sudden loss of altitude in August, injuring multiple passengers. The AAIB has urged the civil aviation regulator to take appropriate action to prevent substance abuse among flight crew.
LSN India ·
The Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB) on Friday identified pilot drug use as a "serious concern" in its preliminary report on Air India flight AI 2379, which experienced a dramatic incident on August 4. The Phuket-Delhi service, operated using an Airbus A320-251N aircraft, suddenly lost 300 feet of altitude, resulting in injuries to several of the 145 people aboard.
In its interim safety recommendation, the AAIB stated that a non-negative result for psychoactive substances had been confirmed for one member of the flight crew. The agency has called on the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) to implement appropriate measures to prevent substance abuse among aviation personnel.
"In view of a non-negative result for psychoactive substances for one of the flight crew, it is recommended that DGCA may take appropriate actions as deemed fit to prevent abuse of psychoactive substances," the AAIB said in its recommendation.
The aircraft carried 2 pilots and 6 cabin crew members along with 137 passengers at the time of the incident. A comprehensive investigation into the circumstances surrounding the flight's sudden altitude loss remains ongoing, with the AAIB expected to release a detailed final report upon completion of its probe.