The Hindu Business Line : Is Indian aviation ready for the monsoon?

The darkening skies over the country are also to be full of pilots with limited experience in flying in monsoon conditions. The shortage of pilots raises a host of questions about the cockpit crew, their origins and experience. The coming monsoon will show up how safe the Indian skies are.

A SAUDIA BOEING 777 taking off in heavy rain from Chennai airport.

On July 21, 2004, an Aero California DC-9 overshot the runway in Mexico City when the take-off was aborted in heavy rain and windshear. The aircraft was destroyed. Fortunately, no one was killed.

In another weather-related accident a couple of months back, an Adam Air Boeing 737 crashed in the Indonesian island of Sulawesi. All on board were killed. Both the accidents involved were with older aircraft that did not have several safety features that modern planes come with.

The Kenyan Airways 737 crash in Douala (Cameroon) last week featured one of the latest aircraft. The Boeing 737 New Generation aircraft is fitted with the latest weather radar and windshear alert features. All on board were killed when the aircraft crashed a few minutes after take-off in heavy rain.

Media reports indicate that two other airlines opted to delay the departure due to the adverse weather conditions. The question is: "What made the captain of the Kenyan Airways flight feel that the weather was safe for the take-off?" Only the investigations will reveal the true nature of the accident.

The Age Gradient

The significant point that is evident in the accident is the difference in the experience levels of the two pilots of the aircraft. The Captain was 53 years old with 8500 hours of jet experience. The co-pilot was just 23, with hardly a year as an airline pilot.

Normally, the co-pilot should have been in a position to express his discomfort on the weather conditions. The modern concept of CRM (Crew Resources Management) that was introduced several years back makes it possible for a young co-pilot to exercise his privilege as part of the cockpit crew.

This concept was introduced after investigations in several accidents showed that the "Age Gradient" between the cockpit crew reduced one member to a non-entity. The question that would arise in the Kenyan crash was whether there were any inputs from the inexperienced first officer. Only the Cockpit Voice Recorder will reveal this.

Indian aviation is flooded with very young and inexperienced co-pilots. They may have never flown in monsoons. In the earlier years, several captains were blooded in the monsoon conditions for several years. The inexperience on the right seat of the cockpit never mattered.

The current situation is very different and worrisome. Without any disrespect to former Services personnel, there is a complete lack of monsoon flying experience in the present day cockpit.

Pilots from the Indian Air Force or the Navy have not flown the modern `Glass Cockpit' aircraft, one that features electronic instrument display.

The Flight Safety Foundation, the premier safety organisation in the world, has identified that one needs a minimum of at least 500 hours of `Glass Cockpit' experience to be really comfortable and safe.

When one considers that many pilots have been directly trained on the Captains seat, without any `Glass Cockpit' experience and without any adverse weather operations experience, the situation is grim.

Foreign Pilots Issue

Meteorologists have predicted a fairly strong monsoon ahead. The sky is going to be full of pilots who have never flown in Indian monsoon conditions.

The severe crew shortage that airlines face has resulted in a large induction of expatriate pilots. Several of them are from regions that do not boast of a high standard of aviation safety. The new ICAO (International Civil Aviation Organisation) rule increasing the retirement age of pilots to 65 has brought many from out of retirement. Some who have flocked to India have not flown for more than a year.

Not all the countries have accepted the extension of age to 65. Yet, many of them who cannot fly in their own country have come to India to a red carpet welcome.

The recent overshooting of the runway by a private airliner in Visakhapatnam raises the question of foreign pilots.

Almost all accidents in the last few years have involved foreign pilots. An Air Sahara CRJ landed on a closed runway in Kolkata a few years back. An Air Deccan ATR went off the runway in Bangalore. An Air Sahara aircraft crash landed in Mumbai. All these involved foreign pilots, who were also Examiners and Instructors.

Are these accidents due to the deterioration of standards, or are they due to improper scrutiny of their experience? Are these pilots familiar with Indian conditions? Is the "Age Gradient" rearing its head again with aged captains flying with very young co-pilots? Do they have enough experience in monsoon conditions?

Stringent Stipulations

The DGCA (Directorate-General of Civil Aviation) places several restrictions on new captains flying during the monsoon.

There is a stipulation that a new captain should have flown a minimum of two monsoons as a co-pilot. Will safety or commercial considerations prevail?

Another factor that is ignored pertains to the medical standards. Indian pilots, especially over 50, undergo very stringent medical examinations with the Air Force Medical Board. The foreign pilots undergo just a cursory medical check-up with a private medical practitioner.

Is this a safe practice, considering the low experience levels of the co-pilots and the lack of monsoon experience of foreign pilots? The coming monsoon will show up how safe the Indian skies are.

(The author is an airline pilot with 19,000 hours experience and specialises in accident-prevention studies.)

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