3 in 10 flyers say airlines cut corners on safety protocols: LocalCircles

Three in 10 airline flyers surveyed by LocalCircles say that they have often found airlines cutting corners on safety protocols in the last three years.

The survey asked flyers, “In your or your family’s experience of flying on domestic airlines in the last 3 years, how did you/ they find the adherence of airlines to flight safety protocols?” The question received 14,818 responses with 18% stating that it was “always perfect”; 43% stated that it was “mostly fine but there have been some exceptions”; 18% stated that “mostly they tend to cut corners but sometimes they are fine”; 12% stated that “they are generally cutting corners” and 9% of respondents did not give a clear reply.

“It must be noted that this is significant as passengers do not have visibility to any violations that are not customer facing and happening at the back end,” says LocalCircles. “If those are added, the numbers will look worse.”

On November 29, the Bureau of Civil Aviation Security (BCAS) fined IndiGo for violation of aviation security protocols. The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) imposed a fine of ₹30 lakh in October on Akasa Air for multiple regulatory violations. The penalty followed a spot inspection in May 2024 which revealed breaches related to pilot training and operational procedures. In January this year, it imposed a ₹1.1 crore fine on Air India for violating safety rules on flights on certain long-range routes that were “critical” in terms of terrain. The fine was imposed after the DGCA found merit in a complaint filed by a pilot in October 2023 accusing the Tata Group-run airline of carrying insufficient emergency oxygen on its B777 aircraft operating on India-US routes. Air India was earlier in January directed to pay ₹30 lakh fine for not rostering sufficient pilots, who are trained to land on low visibility (CAT-III landings), during the fog season. In March this year, Air India was fined ₹80 lakh for violating regulations pertaining to Flight Duty Time Limitations (FDTL) and fatigue management system (FMS) of flight crew.