Emirates Airline indicted for flight mishandling

KOCHI - India’s Director General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) has indicted Emirates Airline for the manner in which the pilot and other officials handled its Dubai-Kochi flight on April 25 that suffered air turbulence that left 18 passengers and one crew injured.

A report prepared by S. Durrairaj, inquiry officer, regional controller of air safety, southern region, said that prompt communication between the captain of the aircraft and the air traffic controller at Kochi was lacking during the incident.

The report said airline officials were trying to suppress information and had mentioned only one passenger was injured while the total number of people injured included one crew and 18 passengers.

The inquiry also found that the flight officials failed to inform the passengers at the right time to use seat belts when the aircraft suffered air turbulence.

The report said the airline be directed to tell its flight officials to see that they get in touch with air traffic controllers in time.