Lagatar24 Desk
New Delhi, Sept 21: As a safety measure, budget airline SpiceJet will continue to run a small number of flights for the time being, according to the aviation regulator Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA). Until October 29, 2022, the airline has been instructed to operate only 50% of departures, according to the DGCA.
Following many incidents recorded over the past few months, including diversions to other locations, turn-backs, and one instance where a SpiceJet flight was forced to land in Karachi as a precaution, the airline has been under the safety regulator’s scrutiny.
“SpiceJet can only increase the number of flights by demonstrating sufficient technical support and financial resources.” The statement further said that the airline will be subjected to “enhanced surveillance by civil aviation authorities.
“Any increase in the number of departures beyond 50% of the total number of departures approved under the Summer Schedule 2022, shall be subjected to the airline demonstrating to the satisfaction of DGCA that it has sufficient technical support and financial resource to safely and efficiently undertake such enhanced capacity,” the DGCA statement further explained.
Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) extended restrictions on SpiceJet to operate only 50% of departures till October 29, 2022.
DGCA though notes that there is appreciable reduction in number of safety incidents. pic.twitter.com/f0GnQ80A8Q
— ANI (@ANI) September 21, 2022
Recently, the cash-strapped airline has struggled to pay suppliers and lessors on time, causing some to deregister aircraft. SpiceJet’s budget airline responded to past claims of salary delays by saying that payments were being handled in a “graded style.”
On July 6, a SpiceJet cargo flight bound for Chongking was forced to turn around and return to Kolkata due to a weather radar fault. On the same day, the airline’s Kandla-Mumbai flight made an emergency landing in Mumbai when cracks appeared in its windshield mid-flight, and its Delhi-Dubai flight was diverted to Karachi owing to a malfunctioning fuel indicator.
