The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) has shut operations of Aman Aviation, a Mumbai-based helicopter organisation, for three months after their inspection revealed that the firm tampered with the expiry date of the ‘distress signal’, a device that helps in locating passengers in case of an air accident.
A DGCA official while confirming the development said, “A show cause notice was sent in December and its reply was not found to be satisfactory. It was then that Aman Aviation’s operations were ordered to be shut for three months.”
Despite repeated attempts, the chairman and managing director of the helicopter firm R Johri did not respond to HT’s query.
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According to its website, Aman Aviation & Aerospace Solutions, which was founded in January 2006, is a DGCA CAR 145 (civil aviation requirement) maintenance repair & overhaul company which is also approved by the Department of Transportation (United States). Later in 2010, it ventured into helicopter operations too.
A helicopter operated by the firm crashed in Mumbai’s Aarey colony in 2016, where the pilot along with a couple who were on a joyride on their anniversary, were killed.
The official added, “The approval of the organization was suspended in rating ‘C’ (Class components other than complete engine or APU) for their Mumbai and Delhi facilities and the acceptance granted to the post holders were also withdrawn.”
Officials aware of the matter said that the DGCA received a complaint against Aman Aviation after which the regulator conducted an inspection.
“Based on a complaint received, DGCA conducted an inspection of Aman Aviation & Aerospace Solutions Pvt. Ltd. wherein it was found that during the last shop visit of several survival kits, the organization had tampered with the expiry date on ‘Distress Signal’ and had carried out unapproved maintenance on ‘Age Limited Module’,” the official on the condition of anonymity said.
As per senior officials close to the matter, the firm is an approved organisation by DGCA for repair, inspection and maintenance of Oxygen Cylinders, Dinghy and Distress Signaling items which assure hope of passenger’s survival in case of a crash where the helicopter crashes into the sea/river.
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“This is because these survival kits help the survivors to indicate their location by firing distress flares, by using Dinghy for shelter and lamp and Oxygen Cylinder for breathing,” an industry expert who did not wish to be named, said.
“Fortunately, unlike US and Europe India did not have any air crashes in sea/river in the recent past, or else with this type of criminality, none of the survivors could have been rescued as these survival items would not have worked to indicate the location and oxygen cylinders would not have supplied oxygen to the survivors. Such a deed is criminal in nature,” the expert added.
Speaking to HT aviation expert Mohan Ranganathan said, “Tampering of distress signal is a serious violation and punishment for the same should have been harsher. The firm’s operations should have been shut for at least a year.”
