Aircraft blaze: AI derosters pilots

MUMBAI: Two Air India (AI) pilots operating the Mumbai-Riyadh flight that caught fire on Friday were derostered by the airline as Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) launched an investigation on Saturday. The two pilots, S Jha and Prakash Bapat, have been kept away from duty pending inquiry. AI, however, did not deroster its cabin crew, which is also being quizzed.
"It's a standard operating procedure.When an incident involving an aircraft takes place, those involved are derostered so that they are available to give their statements,'' an AI spokesperson said, adding that the cabin crew was quizzed by DGCA officials on Saturday.
On Friday, the left engine of the Boeing-747 caught fire, seconds after fuel was seen dripping from one of its wings. The 213 passengers aboard escaped unhurt. Following this, AI derostered the aircraft maintenance engineer who was supervising the flight departure.
Boeing officials will fly in from the US to look into the causes for the engine fire. "A team will be sent to ascertain if maintenance guidelines are being followed and to check if there is a manufacturing error which led to the mishap. In that case, the machinery of other Boeing aircraft will also be rectified,'' a senior official told TOI.
DGCA officials said a preliminary probe report would be ready on Monday. Incidentally, the DGCA itself is short- staffed when it comes to aircraft maintenance engineers who are needed to carry out inspections. Responding to reports which said the cabin crew evacuated passengers from the exit on the left side of the aircraft near the engine which was on fire, the officials clarified that the evacuation procedure was carried out from the right side of the plane.
"The left chute was opened by Mumbai International Airport Pvt Ltd fire officials, who entered the aircraft after the evacuation to check if any passenger was stranded. The firemen opened the left chute only after the evacuation was over,'' an official said.