New Delhi, Jan 7,2023: Stating that non-action or inappropriate action by the airlines towards untoward incidents has tarnished the image of air travel, aviation regulator DGCA said on Friday that cabin crew should use restraining devices when all conciliatory approaches are exhausted.

Taking note of instances of unruly behaviour of air passengers where pilots and cabin crew members failed to take appropriate actions, aviation regulator DGCA issued an advisory on Friday and asked the head of operations of all the airlines to sensitise the pilots, cabin crew and director-in-flight services on the topic of handling unruly passenger through appropriate means.

The DGCA referred to the rules describing responsibility of cabin crew for handling unruly passengers and to defuse a critical situation until it becomes clear that there is no way to resolve it through verbal communication and written notice to the passengers.

It also referred to the rule which makes cabin crew responsible for informing the passenger of the repercussions and consequences of such unruly behaviour.

The advisory also mentioned the rule which makes the pilot in command responsible for assessing the situation quickly if the cabin crew can control the situation and accordingly relay this information to the airline’s central control on the ground for further action.

In addition, rules mandate that upon landing of the aircraft, airline representatives shall lodge an FIR with the concerned security agency at the aerodrome, to whom, the unruly passenger shall be handed over, said the advisory.

The regulator also has said that any non-compliance towards applicable regulations shall be dealt with strictly and invite enforcement action.

Individual’s responsibilities for handling of an unruly passenger have been specified under various provisions of Aircraft Rules, 1937, DGCA regulations, and the circulars and manuals of airlines approved and accepted by DGCA.

The directions came after a shocking incident came to light wherein a man urinated on an elderly female co-passenger in a drunken state on a New York-New Delhi flight in November last year.

Days after this incident was reported, another similar case came to light in which a drunk male passenger allegedly urinated on a female passenger’s blanket on a Paris-Delhi Air India flight in December last year.

On Thursday, the DGCA had said that the conduct of Air India was unprofessional and has led to a systemic failure in the case related to a Mumbai-based businessman urinating on female co-passenger onboard an AI flight on November 26, 2022.

Observing that provisions related to handling of an unruly passengers onboard have not been complied with, the DGCA had asked why enforcement action should not be taken against the concerned executives of Air India for dereliction of their regulatory obligations in the matter.

The regulator also issued show-cause notices to senior Air India executives, and pilots and cabin crew of the said flight after receiving a report from the airline on the incident.