Maintenance failure and human error caused the helicopter crash that killed the then Haryana Agriculture Minister Surender Singh and Power Minister O P Jindal in March 2005. This is what the inquiry report of the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) says. The DGCA has submitted its final report to the government, which was yet to ratify it.‘‘Investigations reveal turbine failure and the inability of the pilot to notice the increase in temperature because of the failure. So, in effect, the crash was a combination of a maintenance problem and human error,’’ said a senior DGCA official. The chopper pilot TS Chauhan was also killed in the crash in Saharanpur district of Uttar Pradesh.Human error is a prime reason for chopper crashes. In an analysis of accidents involving civil registered helicopters in India between June 1990 and April 2005, the Rotary Wing Society of India (RWSI) has stated that 22 out of the total 41 major helicopter accidents during the period were due to pilot error, 12 were due to improper maintenance and five were avoidable ground accidents. The RWSI analysis is based on DGCA data.Presenting the analysis before the International Helicopter Safety Team (IHST) at a regional conference on helicopter safety, RWSI president AVM K Sridharan said 19 of these 41 helicopters belonged to state governments and Public Sector Undertakings. ‘‘Non-compliance with Standard Operating Procedures was the cause of most of the accidents,’’ Sridharan said. ‘‘In some cases, pressure to complete the mission to beat competition was the major factor,’’ stated the RWSI analysis report.It says, 11 of the 41 accidents were fatal and involved six single-engine and five twin-engine helicopters. A total of 36 lives were lost over 15 years in accidents due to loss of visual reference.Three more cities to get DGCA licenceThree more cities to get DGCA licence Following Delhi and Mumbai, Thiruvananthapuram, Chennai and Kolkata are in line to get licence from the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA). ‘‘Airports Authority of India has submitted a proposal for these three cities and we are examining the papers,’’ said DGCA’s Director General K Gohain. The licence makes it mandatory for airports to maintain an Aerodrome Manual with particulars of the aerodrome site, aeronautical information, aerodrome operating procedures, and safety measures. ENSIAF to acquire flight simulatorsStating that investment in flight simulators would pay rich dividends in the long run, Vice-Chief of the Air Staff, Air Marshal Ajit Bhavnani on Monday said that acquiring simulators was part of the Indian Air Force (IAF) procurement plans. Bhavnani said allowing the Original Equipment manufacturers to build, operate and own these simulators was under consideration. The Air Marshal also suggested the establishment of a National Aeronautics Commission to allow better civilian-military coordination of air traffic. ENS
