Parliament Question: Rules and Regulations for Safety and Maintenance of Aircraft

GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF CIVIL AVIATION Lok Sabha UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. : 2062 ( TO BE ANSWERED ON THE 31st July 2025 ) RULES AND REGULATIONS FOR SAFETY AND MAINTENANCE OF AIRCRAFT 2062. SHRI N K PREMACHANDRAN Will the Minister of CIVIL AVIATION be pleased to state:- (a) whether the Government proposes to introduce new rules and regulations for the safety and maintenance of aircraft considering rising safety concerns such as increasing air traffic, aircraft crashes, incidents related to bird hits and other technical issues; (b) if so, the details thereof along with the action taken thereon; (c) the details of the plane crashes in the country during the last ten years along with the number of casualties i.e. deaths and injuries and the action taken to compensate the victims; (d) whether the Government proposes to introduce a new mechanism to address the issue of the overburdened Air Traffic Control (ATC) system; (e) if so, the details thereof along with the action taken thereon; (f) whether the Government has received any report highlighting the reasons for the recent plane crash at Ahmedabad and if so, the details thereof; and (g) whether the Government proposes to implement an efficient mechanism to ensure the safety of the aviation system and proper maintenance of aircraft and if so, the details thereof? ANSWER Minister of State in the Ministry of CIVIL AVIATION (Shri Murlidhar Mohol)(a) to (b): Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) has a comprehensive and structured Civil Aviation Regulations for safe operation of aircraft and its maintenance. These regulations are continuously updated and aligned with International Standards.; ; (c): A total of 18 accidents involving Indian civil registered scheduled aircraft have been reported from year 2015 till date. The details are enclosed as Annexure A.; ; Payment of compensation to the passenger or Next of Kin in case of death or bodily injury to the passenger, caused by air accident / incident is governed by the provisions of Carriage by Air Act, 1972. India has ratified the Montreal Convention, 1999 by making amendments to the Carriage by Air Act, 1972 in 2009. As per the said act, the liability of payment of compensation in case of death, delay, damage or loss to persons, baggage or cargo for international carriage, is of the carriers.; ; Further, India has ratified the Montreal Convention, 1999 by making amendments to the Carriage by Air Act, 1972 in 2009 which inter-alia provides the liabilities of carriers for compensation in case of death, delay, damage or loss to persons, baggage or cargo for international carriage. ; (d) & (e): Airports Authority of India (AAI) follows national regulatory requirements such as Watch Duty Time Limitations (WDTL) and rest requirements for ATCOs at airports/ regions in India.; ; (f): An investigation has been ordered by Director General, Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB) under Rule 11 of the Aircraft (Investigation of Accidents & Incidents) Rules, 2017 to determine the probable cause(s)/contributory factor(s) leading to the accident of Air India flight AI-171 at Ahmedabad on 12.06.2025, ; ; A preliminary report on the accident has been published by AAIB on 12th July, 2025 and is available on their website www.aaib.gov.in. The investigation is under progress to determine the probable cause(s)/contributory factor(s) leading to the accident.; ; (g): DGCA has a robust safety oversight mechanism in place, which includes surveillance, spot checks, and audits to monitor compliance with Rules and Civil Aviation Requirements (CARs). Special audits are alsoconducted based on risk perception. Findings of audit reports are followed up with operators for compliance. Enforcement actions, including financial penalties, are taken in case of violations. ******S. Date Place of Aircraft Operator Fatalities Brief Description No. Accident Registration 1 08-Mar-15 Hubli VT-SUA Spicejet 0 Shortly after touchdown, the aircraft veered to the left, struck runway edge lighting—including non-frangible fixtures—which caused the left landing gear to collapse. The aircraft exited the runway onto rough terrain about 52 m from centerline. 2 13-Apr-15 Khajuraho VT-JGA Jet 0 Approximately 15 seconds after Airways touchdown at about 36 knots, the aft trunnion pin on the left main gear sheared due to fatigue induced by excessive grinding and hydrogen embrittlement, causing the aircraft to veer off the runway and come to rest on its nose gear and right engine. 3 04-Dec-15 Jabalpur VT-SUC Spicejet 0 Aircraft struck wild boars during the landing roll at Jabalpur Airport. The impact collapsed the left main landing gear, causing the left engine propeller to shear off and the nose gear to collapse. The aircraft veered off the runway onto soft ground and came to a halt. 4 16-Dec-15 Mumbai VT-SCQ Air India 1 A service engineer working under the aircraft was ingested into the No. 1 engine and suffered fatal injuries. The tow truck driver also took the tow truck away from the aircraft leaving tow bar. The nose wheel of the aircraft hit the tow bar and the tow bar got stuck with the RH main landing gear wheel. 5 03-Mar-16 Mumbai VT-JGD Jet 0 After landing on runway 27 at Mumbai, Airways cockpit crew heard a thud sound an aircraft started turning towards right. During investigation it was observed that trunnion pin sheared off during landing roll. 6 07-May- Indore VT-JCX Jet 0 The aircraft was involved in Runway 16 Airways Excursion while landing at Rwy 25. Aircraft veered towards left, went into kutcha and stopped near isolation bay 7 27-Dec-16 Goa VT-JBG Jet 0 Aircraft was aligned with the runway Airways center line and throttle was at approx. 40% of N1 and TOGA was pressed by PIC. As soon as TOGA was pressed, aircraft started veering towards the right of centerline. In spite of efforts by the crew to control the aircraft by applying rudder, brakes, aircraft exited the runway on the right. Aircraft stopped on the soft ground and sustained substantial damage. 8 05-Sep-17 Cochin VT-AYB Air India 0 On 04.09.2017, M/s Air India ExpressB737-800 aircraft VT-AYB was involved in an accident at Cochin Airport while operating Flight IX 452 from Abu Dhabi to Cochin. There were 102 passengers and 06 Crew (02 Cockpit Crew & 04 Cabin Crew) on board the aircraft. After landing while taxiing, aircraft took a 90 m early turn before Taxiway ‘F’ on Taxiway ‘C’ (between E and F) and entered into open rain water drain. Major Structural damage occurred including damage to Nose Landing Gear (NLG), Engine inlet Cowls, Fan Cowls, Engine Strut, Belly skin etc. 9 11-Oct-18 Trichy VT-AYD M/s Air 0 M/s Air India Express B737-800 aircraft India VT-AYD was involved in an accident Express while operating flight AXB-611 (Trichy- Dubai) on 12.10.2018. The aircraft hit the ILS Antenna and top of boundary wall while taking off from Trichy Airport. 10 1-Jul-19 Mumbai VT-SYK Spice Jet NIL While operating a scheduled flight for sector Jaipur - Mumbai, met with runway excursion accident at Mumbai. Aircraft traveled approx150M forward from runway 27 end 11 14-Jun-20 Enroute VT-IJT Indigo Nil Cabin crew fell during cruise due (Damam- turbulence. Cabin crew sustained Cochin) serious injury to her leg. 12 7-Aug-20 Calicut VT-AXH Air India 21 During landing on R/W 10 at Calicut Express aircraft went out of the runway 10 end Ltd and then fell in to a gorge. Aircraft was completely damaged. 13 20-Feb-21 Vijaywada VT-GHE Air India NIL After landing, while taxing to stand, Express aircraft right wing leading edge hit flood Ltd light mast thereby damaging leading edge of slat no 7 & 8. Due to hit by the aircraft right wing, flood light mast broke and fell on the ground. 14 7-Jun-21 Kolkata VT-TGE Vistara Nil During descent, passing FL-200, aircraft encountered severe turbulence. seat belts were on since past 20mins and crew were advised to sit via intercom. 04 pax suffered injuries. 15 14-Jun-21 Hubli VT-IYX Indigo NIL Aircraft operating flight 6E-7979 sector Kannur to Hubli was involved in severe hard landing accident at Hubli. 16 4-Sep-21 Bangalore VT-IYM Indigo Nil During cruise aircraft encountered turbulence and one cabin crew received serious injury. Nil damage to aircraft. 17 1-May-22 Durgapur VT-SLH Spicejet 1 (After During descent, aircraft encountered four severe turbulence resulted in injuries to months passenger. of accident)18 12-Jun-25 Ahmedab VT-ANB Air India 241 Shortly after takeoff at Ahmedabad, ad Onboard aircraft crashed into building of the BJ and 19 medical college in the Meghaninagar on area of Ahmedabad. ground ****