Parliament panel quizzes aviation brass: MPs seek updates on AI-171 crash probe; raise alarm over airfare surge | India News
NEW DELHI: A Parliamentary Panel on Tuesday questioned top officials from the aviation ministry, airline, and airport representatives over the Air India plane crash, news agency PTI reported citing sources.The agenda of the meeting was to take oral evidence from representatives of the ministry, DGCA, AERA, AAI, AAICLAS, BCAS, and other concerned organisations, including airport operators and airlines, on the subject “Levy and regulation of fees, tariffs, user charges, etc. on public infrastructure and other public utilities,” as per the Lok Sabha website.According to PTI, parliamentarians asked the authorities about the timeframe for the report’s completion. Top airline representatives, including Air India CEO and MD Campbell Wilson, were also present at the meeting.274 people were killed in the fatal crash of the London Gatwick-bound Air India plane in Ahmedabad soon after takeoff on June 12.Since the crash, the ministry of civil aviation has been assisting the Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB), which is conducting a full-scale investigation.The AAIB, operating from its lab in New Delhi and equipped with advanced technology, is leading the probe. According to the ministry, the Crash Protection Module from one of the plane’s black boxes was retrieved and accessed by June 25, and data from it has been successfully downloaded.A source told ANI that an identical black box, referred to as a “golden chassis,” was used to confirm whether the data could be accurately retrieved from the original black boxes. The investigation team comprises experts from the Indian Air Force, Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL), and the US-based National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB).Additionally, officials from Boeing, GE, aviation medicine specialists, and Air Traffic Control experts are involved. The inquiry is being conducted under international norms as laid out in ICAO Annex 13 and India’s Aircraft (Investigation of Accidents and Incidents) Rules, 2017.Members also raised concerns over a sudden surge in Srinagar airfares following the Pahalgam terror attack in April.
