Last week a single engine aircraft went missing and after two days the bodies of an 26-year-old instructor and an 20-year-old trainee were recovered from Chandil dam in Jharkhand. The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) has begun an investigation into the cause of the crash. Are there no rules by the DGCA that a trainer/instructor needs to be middle-aged pilot and with minimum hours of flying? They would be more experienced to handle the aircrafts in bad weather. This is not to cast aspersions on the young instructor who lost his life but to safeguard teenagers who might be trainers in aviation schools/academies. They could be made instructors only after a certain age, have required flying hours and teach the trainees in the presence of a senior pilot. It would be helpful if the DGCA maintains a database of the aviation schools with details of the number and type of aircrafts and simulators, employees’ details and tasks assigned, number of instructors, their age and experience and number of trainees. Surprise checks need to be carried out and DGCA could penalise or suspend the academy’s activities if anything amiss is observed.
