Pilots barred from Boeing’s 737 MAX: ‘SpiceJet knew about faulty gear, still continued training’

SpiceJet determined to proceed coaching its pilots at a Boeing 737 MAX simulator facility close to Delhi regardless of realizing that gear on the stated coaching centre was defective, official sources advised The Indian Express. Aviation security regulator DGCA, which barred 90 pilots of the airline from flying the 737 MAX mannequin until they bear retraining on a compliant simulator, has served a show-cause discover to SpiceJet and Canadian flight coaching service supplier CAE, which manages the simulator facility.

According to a senior official on the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA), throughout a routine inspection on March 30 it was discovered that the Boeing 737 MAX simulator had a malfunctioning ‘stick shaker’ on the co-pilot seat. A stick shaker is a mechanical system that warns the pilots of an imminent aerodynamic stall by shaking the plane’s management yoke violently. The stated piece of kit had been out of service since March 17.

Notably, particular pilot coaching for the Boeing 737 MAX is necessary for airways working the aircraft mannequin to make pilots perceive the brand new flight management system within the plane referred to as MCAS, or manoeuvring traits augmentation system. This system was on the coronary heart of the 2 crashes of this plane kind that collectively killed 346 individuals, resulting in a world grounding of the aircraft.

Upon discovery of the defective gear on the CAE-managed coaching facility in Noida, the DGCA inspectors reached out to Boeing looking for the American airframe maker’s view on whether or not coaching might be carried out with a malfunctioning stick shaker on co-pilot seat. “Boeing replied that such training should not be conducted. Reply was then sought from SpiceJet regarding this issue, to which they replied that they have taken in house measure to continue such training. However, the OEM (Boeing) was not consulted by the operator (SpiceJet)”, the DGCA official stated. “The simulator training was stopped by DGCA … and the credit of training for 90 pilots was nullified. Further, SpiceJet was informed not to utilise these pilots for B737 MAX flight operations,” the official added.

Additionally, the DGCA additionally served show-cause notices to SpiceJet and CAE for conducting the coaching that was in violation of the principles laid down by the regulator — particularly mentioning {that a} flight simulation coaching system with lacking, malfunctioning or inoperative part “that is required to be present and correctly operate for the satisfactory completion of that maneuver, procedure, or task” shouldn’t be used or be allowed to be used.

In response to a question from The Indian Express looking for touch upon why the airline determined to proceed coaching at a defective simulator facility, a SpiceJet spokesperson stated: “We have received a communication from the regulator on the matter and the airline shall submit its reply within the specified period. We would like to reiterate that safety and security of our operations and passengers are of utmost importance which is manifested in our outstanding track record. None of our operations are compromised and are in line with international safety standards”.

CAE responded through mail saying: “As the simulator is owned by Boeing, please speak to Boeing. We are working closely with all parties involved including Boeing and the DGCA to ensure the maintenance and operation of this specific device complies with all regulatory requirements. We are committed to ensuring our customers receive high quality simulation experiences in accordance with all regulations”. In a equally worded response to a question despatched by this newspaper, Boeing in India stated: “We are working closely with all parties involved including our supplier and the DGCA to ensure the maintenance and operation of this specific device complies with all regulatory requirements. We are committed to ensuring our customers receive high quality simulation experiences in accordance with all regulations.”