DGCA suspends Redbird’s flight training at all it’s six bases

The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) ordered suspension of flight training operations of Redbird Flight Training Academy at all its six bases in the country and Sri Lanka after preliminary findings indicate gaps in maintenance and operational practices, officials said.

The DGCA announced special maintenance audit and proficiency checks for trainers and examiners of the academy before permitting resumption of operations.

Redbird, in its response to DGCA action, stated it will adhere to the order and will not resume operations till investigation is over.

The action by apex aviation regulator comes in the wake of two incidents of crash landings of Redbirds Aircraft in Pune district in four days – Thursday and Sunday.

“These occurrences indicate gap in maintenance and operational elements. DGCA has suspended the operations of Redbird Flight Training Academy..,” order by aviation regulator stated.

The Delhi-based flying institute has been in operation since 2017 and has base locations of the academy at Baramati in Pune district, Lilabari in Assam, Kalaburagi and Belagavi in Karnataka, Seoni in Madhya Pradesh and Colombo (Sri Lanka).

The institute has 42 aircraft across India. At its Baramati centre, Redbird has 18 aircraft of which 12 are Tecnam while six are Cessna-172.

The DGCA in its order stated first incident on October 19 involved Tecnam P2008JC (single engine) aircraft VT-RBC which took off from runway 11 at Baramati with sole occupant on board.“During the initial climb at around 100ft, the crew experienced engine related snagging and loss of power. Crew decided to discontinue the sortie and crash landed just outside the fence towards the north of the field. This sortie was undertaken to assess the snag (abnormal noise and brake issue) observed in the previous sortie. However, he did not notify/record the snag for appropriate action by the AME,” DGCA stated