6 in 10 air passengers had at least one rough flight experience in last 3 years: LocalCircles

64% airline passengers surveyed in India say they have had at least one or more rough flights in the last 3 years with a difficult take-off, landing or inflight experience, according to a report by LocalCircles.

Around 76% Indian airline passengers surveyed believe that many airlines are spending more on publicity than on safety.

The survey asked air travellers, “Do you believe India based airlines are spending more on publicity than on safety?” Out of 26,696 who responded to the question 43% stated “yes, all of them”; 33% of respondents stated “yes, some of them”; 11% of respondents stated "no, none of them” focus more on publicity and less on safety; and 13% of respondents did not give a clear answer.

The survey comes a day after Air India flight AI 2744 from Kochi to Mumbai veered off the runway at Mumbai upon landing. “Three tyres burst, engine cowling and runway lights were damaged, and the aircraft veered into unpaved terrain before taxiing to the gate. Though all passengers and crew disembarked safely and a DGCA probe was initiated, the incident made airline travellers nervous once again, some of whom are still tracking the probe findings from AI 171 crash in Ahmedabad last month,” said LocalCircles.

“As India strives to become a global business hub and tourist destination, it cannot afford to overlook or shortchange on aviation safety which depends on several factors including trained and alert pilots, proper aircraft maintenance, and a good airport infrastructure. The government needs to improve the strength of the DGCA so that it can fulfil its role as aviation regulator and thus ensure that no airline or airport overlooks safety protocol and proper operations,” said LocalCircles.

Aviation regulator Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) recently issued directives for mandatory inspections and assessment of airworthiness of a range of Boeing's India-registered aircraft and related components by July 21.

The directive assumes significance as it follows a preliminary report by the Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB) into Air India's Boeing 787-8 crash in Ahmedabad on June 12, which killed 260 people on board and on the ground.

The US Federal Aviation Administration's December 2018 advisory had recommended that operators of several Boeing models, including the 787 Dreamliner, inspect the locking feature of the fuel cutoff switches.

Air India on Tuesday completed precautionary inspections on the locking mechanism of Fuel Control Switch (FCS) on all Boeing 787 and Boeing 737 aircraft in its fleet. “In the inspections, no issues were found with the said locking mechanism. Air India had started voluntary inspections on 12 July and completed them within the prescribed time limit set by the DGCA. The same has been communicated to the regulator,” Air India said in a statement.