DGCA suspends pilots of Cessna aircraft which crashed at Aligarh airport during landing

The pilot-in-command and co-pilot of a Cessna aircraft which had crashed and caught fire while landing at Aligarh airport last year were suspended on Saturday by aviation regulator DGCA for one year and six months respectively, a senior official said. Investigation by the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) found that the plane, belonging to Air Charter Services Private Limited, was at a very low altitude while approaching the airport runway on August 27 last year, the official said. It also found that the landing gear of the small plane hit electrical cable located 180 metres ahead of the threshold line of the runway 11.

"The crew subsequently lost control, the aircraft hit the ground and caught fire," the senior official said citing the DGCA investigation.

The aviation regulator then issued show-cause notices to the pilots and the responses received were found to be unsatisfactory. The DGCA observed that the pilot-in-command failed to follow the procedures and maintain required visual clearance. The first officer too failed to maintain required visual clearance with obstacles in the final phase of landing, according to the official. Therefore, the DGCA has suspended the licenses of pilot-in-command and the first officer of the Cessna aircraft for a period of one year and six months respectively, the official said.