In multiple instances recently, Civil Aviation Authority of Nepal has grounded Aircraft Maintenance staffs, air traffic controllers and Pilots on the charge of Non-conformances and Aviation safety Violations.
The Civil Aviation Regulator came under highlights after the fatal Accident involving Yeti Airlines Flight 691, where an ATR 72 aircraft crashed en route from Kathmandu to Pokhara in Nepal on 15th Jan 2023, killing all 72 onboard.
Apparently , a part of the several corrective measures to address the safety concerns of a country with tough flying conditions due to mountainous terrains, Civil Aviation Authority of Nepal is taking tough stances on negigences and safety Breaches by Aviators.
Setting an example , on march 20 , Civil Aviation Authority of Nepal (CAAN) had suspended two maintenance personnel of Nepal Airlines until further notice on account of leaving right hand side cockpit window open overnight of the Airbus A330-243 aircraft (9N-ALY).
In another incident, on March 24, the Civil Aviation Authority of Nepal (CAAN) has grounded a pilot on the charge of hurling offensive words at the air traffic controllers (ATC).
CAAN has also recommended action against three pilots of Nepal Airlines Corporation (NAC) after they disobeyed the Air Traffic Control (ATC) instructions while landing at the Hong Kong Airport last Friday.
Jagannath Niraula, spokesperson for CAAN, said that the authority has instructed action against the pilots for not following the instructions of the ATC. Action has been taken against four pilots.
"The civil aviation authority in Hong Kong informed us about the pilots not obeying the instructions of the ATC," he said. "On this basis, we have instructed the NAC to suspend the three pilots."
Today, the regulator has grounded Air Traffic Controllers (ATCs) of Tribhuvan International Airport involved in traffic conflict incident (between Air India and Nepal Airlines on 24th March 2023) until further notice.
In a separate incident , a pilot of the Annapurna helicopter was also grounded after he was found throwing vulgar words at the ATCs while attending to the Kathmandu-Lukla flight, said the CAAN spokesperson Jagannath Niraula.
“A pilot of the Annapurna helicopter was grounded for mis-communicating with the ATCs during a Kathmandu-Lukla flight on March 21, 2023,” he said.
Similarly , pilots of two other helicopter companies (Air Dynasty and Fishtail Air) have also been grounded for violating the aviation safety guidelines. All three pilots in question will be banned until further notice, he said.
Recently, CAAN was seen running a Safety Campaign (13-17 March 2023) in technical collaboration with EASA to encourage the safety culture among Aviation professionals and establishments of the country ,that has multiple challenges like remote steep terrain and unpredictable weather hostile to the flight operation.
Pictures Courtesy : CAAN
