jetsreams
6th Jul 2007, 12:54
The INDIAN AIRCRAFT RULES 1937,Para 42 Clause (4) State that " The holder of a flying licence shall not exercise the privilinges of his licence during any period when he is aware that his physical condition has deterioriated below the standard required for that category of licence".
Air India however, does not seem to agree. In a new set of Conditions of Service for its pilots, the airline intends to penalise its pilots monetarily for falling sick !
" ..... Pilots Emoluments
Para (vii) If a Pilot (Instructor/Trainee/pilot under check in case of Simulator duty) refuses to undertake a flight/simulator after the Pilot has been rostered on the printed programme, (..except for the reasons mentioned in para 3 of General Conditions of Service ,which are the following reasons – serious illness or death of Parents/child /Wife/ Brother/Sister/Grandparents/etc, or un-expected premature delivery of wife or natural calamities arising out of flood/fire/landslides/earthquakes, or personal accident causing injury or illness requiring hospital treatment, resulting in damage to own residence to the extent that temporary shelter elsewhere is to be sought) then 10 hours will be reduced from the Pilot's account. In case the refusal/ reporting sick is within 16 hours prior to the departure of the flight a further US$ 200 for Commander and US$ 150 for co-pilot will be deducted from the pilots flying hours payment. ...."
Roughly this means that if a pilot rostered for a two hour flight from Bombay to Delhi falls sick within 16 hours preceeding a flight he will be penalised $ 200 + allowances equal to ten hours of his flying pay which can be upto $ 1100 in some cases. ( Total of $1300 ).
So now the chances are many pilots are going conceal their ailments and fly anyway.
Air India however, does not seem to agree. In a new set of Conditions of Service for its pilots, the airline intends to penalise its pilots monetarily for falling sick !
" ..... Pilots Emoluments
Para (vii) If a Pilot (Instructor/Trainee/pilot under check in case of Simulator duty) refuses to undertake a flight/simulator after the Pilot has been rostered on the printed programme, (..except for the reasons mentioned in para 3 of General Conditions of Service ,which are the following reasons – serious illness or death of Parents/child /Wife/ Brother/Sister/Grandparents/etc, or un-expected premature delivery of wife or natural calamities arising out of flood/fire/landslides/earthquakes, or personal accident causing injury or illness requiring hospital treatment, resulting in damage to own residence to the extent that temporary shelter elsewhere is to be sought) then 10 hours will be reduced from the Pilot's account. In case the refusal/ reporting sick is within 16 hours prior to the departure of the flight a further US$ 200 for Commander and US$ 150 for co-pilot will be deducted from the pilots flying hours payment. ...."
Roughly this means that if a pilot rostered for a two hour flight from Bombay to Delhi falls sick within 16 hours preceeding a flight he will be penalised $ 200 + allowances equal to ten hours of his flying pay which can be upto $ 1100 in some cases. ( Total of $1300 ).
So now the chances are many pilots are going conceal their ailments and fly anyway.