No significant lapses spotted in DGCA audit of major airports: Minister

New Delhi: No significant lapses were observed during the DGCA’s recent surveillance audit at major airports, and all observations were categorised as Level II and communicated to the aerodrome operators concerned and subsequently closed after the completion of action by them, the Parliament was informed on Wednesday

In DGCA airport audits, a Level II lapse signifies a procedural or administrative oversight that doesn’t pose an immediate, critical safety threat like a Level I breach.

Minister of State for Civil Aviation Murlidhar Mohol, in a written reply to a question in the Lok Sabha, said that the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) has a robust mechanism at licensed airports to ensure compliance of regulatory requirements through surveillance audits. To ensure passenger safety and to maintain global aviation safety standards, there is a systematic safety oversight process in place for monitoring the compliance of the Rules and Civil Aviation Requirements. The safety oversight process includes surveillance, spot checks, and regulatory audits. In addition, special audits are also carried out in accordance with the perceived risk.

The airport license is issued after satisfactory compliance with the requirements specified in Civil Aviation Requirements (CAR) Section 4, he said.

Aerodrome operators are responsible for maintaining airports in a fit state during the validity of the aerodrome license, and the same is ensured by the DGCA by conducting surveillance inspections regularly. Further, if any violation is identified, enforcement action against the aerodrome operator is initiated as per the Enforcement Policy and Procedure Manual, the minister said.

He also said that in the last four months, 22 officers, selected by the government for various posts, have joined the DGCA to strengthen its manpower, while the Departmental Promotion Committee (DPC) has completed its due process for 42 officers.

Another 62 technical officers, five flight operations inspectors and 8 stenographers have also been selected to join the DGCA, while an examination has been conducted to select another 121 operations officers, the minister added.

Keeping in view the current and future expansion of the civil aviation sector, effective supervision and enhanced role of the DGCA as a safety regulator, as many as 441 posts have been created during the last 3 years as part of the DGCA restructuring. Out of the total 1630 sanctioned strength of DGCA, 836 posts are currently filled, he observed.

Regular safety oversight at licensed airports is an ongoing activity and is carried out in accordance with the Annual Surveillance Plan published on the DGCA website. The findings observed during such inspections are communicated to the airport operators concerned for necessary corrective action, and this is monitored by the DGCA at regular intervals, the minister added.

IANS