Indigo Woman Pilot Faked Papers

[WOW99]

Woman pilot faked papers for licence after failing test 7 times - The Times of India (http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/Woman-pilot-faked-papers-for-licence-after-failing-test-7-times/articleshow/7583939.cms)

Feb 27, 2011

CHENNAI: The Directorate General of Civil Aviation has revoked a woman pilot's licence alleging she used forged papers to get her airline transport pilot licence (ATPL), mandatory for an aircraft captain.

On January 11, IndiGo pilot Captain Parminder Kaur Gulati made a rough landing at Goa airport. When the plane flew back to Delhi, its nose wheel had developed a snag.

Investigations found fault with Gulati's landing technique and she was grounded. She used the nose wheel to touch down instead of using the rear landing gear. Further investigations showed she had used the wrong technique several times.

"We have revoked her licence. The pilot seems to have obtained an ATPL by submitting forged documents. We are going to file a police complaint," director-general of civil aviation Bharat Bhushan told TOI. The DGCA is probing how she got her ATPL after having failed the examination seven times.

Pilots aspiring to become captains must log 1,500 flying hours, pass an examination that comprises three papers: navigation, metrology and radio aids.

[A69]

yeah same one.
http://www.pprune.org/south-asia-far-east/442737-woman-pilot-command-indigo-landed-plane-its-fragile-nose-wheel.html

[masalama]

I think it's important that DGCA starts taking strict action against corrupt officials/agents/touts that all of us except DGCA know exist. Make examples of a few publicly and the rest will fall in place.

Recently had a distant friend ask me for "contacts" to help his friend's son clear his CPL conversion exams.Apparently, it was his 4'th attempt and kids who performed worse than him cleared with "help". Told him to advise his friend to steer well clear of these so called agents as you might clear your CPL/ATPL but you never know when it comes back to haunt you. A diary somewhere, an investigation where your name crops up can ruin your career, embarrass you publicly many years down the line.

DGCA, wake up , clean the rot from within if you want some sort of trust from your customers. Scrutinize people with access to exam papers , licensing officers etc.

Lastly, it's important for us to realize that we are feeding this and there's no short-cuts in life. If you know of someone who's paid or someone who's taking , write anonymous complaints to the DGCA with specific information ....how many of us have done it??????
It's an uphill battle but we can do it ....that's what pilots are trained to do ....giving up or feeling hopeless is not how we face situations...:ok:

[VT-ASM]

The list of such people is long.
Unfortunately lot of people are absorbed just because they are someone's son or daughter instead of talent....

But unfortunately, We wait for blood for any action to be taken.

The folks on this 6E flight should thank their stars......The outcome could have been catastrophic...

[NGFellow]

There seems to be a lot of media and political pressure (DGCA included) to have Indian Commanders as soon as possible. Plainly put, some are ready, some are not and some will never be ready. It's not just India, it's at any airline. Upgrading someone at 23 with little flying experience, let alone life experience and mental maturity is a recipe for disaster in any environment. Furthermore these inexperienced Captain's are being paired with inexperienced first-officers. Companies doing this need to wake up.
Sadly, it's just a matter of time before the incidents start to pile up. Lot's of good Indian pilots, they just time and experience to fill the seats. But the Government and media wants expats out and are seemingly willing to do at great expense to the safety management model. Some airlines have Captains, who 3 years ago had 250 hrs in a C-152.:=

[sunnyjet]

Desi pilot, I agree with you. No excuse to mention that in a professional forum when there's no logic to it.

The question here, is why focus on just the fact that she forged her ATPL papers, as we all know what kind of stupid exams system the DGCA has. They should focus more on her flight training! Which flight training school etc. and question her flight examiners.

[doubleu-anker]

NGFellow

Totally agree with your post.

A crew with less than 500 hours between them on type should never be allowed near that aircraft.

"Some airlines have Captains, who 3 years ago had 250 hrs in a C-152"

Yes I am aware of this also. It does say a lot for the automatics of the aircraft these days. God help them and their passengers if those automatics fail.

[SuperflyTNT]

This is nothing but an embarrassment to our country/DGCA.

[AviatorJack]

I find the biggest problem is that there are so many well skilled folk unemployed now in this industry who cant find work and we have people like this flying around, makes me want to vomit..................

[SmoothCriminal]

All passengers on board those flights with her as the skipper, bring on a class action against DGCA, and attempted manslaughter on her, lock her and a few involved for a few years.,..
That should fix it ! :mad:

Then again, most likely the Judge will be bribed and some polly will poke his/her nose in, and it'll all turn into a election winning swindle ., :ugh:

Smoothie....:ok:

[rdr]

nothing will happen as the DGCA themselves are corrupt. this is the face of Delhi as per the Commonwealth games, 2G scam......... etc
aviation is just but one of the many areas affected badly by corruption. the Ministry of Civil Aviation is the worst of the lot.

forged licences, forged flying hours, forged logbooks, Rs 50,000 FRTO, believe me, the list goes on and on and on.......
its up to the young to take on the filthy older generation of crap, floating along at the top levels, Egyptian style.

[Sky Dancer]

The biggest problem facing Indian aviation today is the lack of experienced pilots.The sooner the DGCA , airline management and the travelling public realise it the better.You can't throw out expats for the colour of their skin and you can't upgrade Indians for the colour of their skin.Right now in India , if you have an ATPL , you're a Captain.I think that practise should stop before more people get hurt.It's time we went back to the good old days when you needed at least 4,000 hours and at least 2,000 hours on a jet aircraft to become a Captain.And not to forget , you should be able to pass the selection process and skill test as well.:ok:

[powerstall]

Same old, same old.... nothing would really change here... and the saying continues Look people, i have ATPL... I am now Commander!!!..

[SmoothCriminal]

I thought Commander status was dished out once solo in a 152.,., or is it only a "El'Capitano" at that stage :}

Smoothie.,., :ok:

[WOW99]

Two more pilots land in trouble for fake licences - The Times of India (http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/Two-more-pilots-land-in-trouble-for-fake-licences/articleshow/7658947.cms)

Mar 9, 2011

NEW DELHI: Fasten your seat belts, the captain of your plane may have fudged his papers to get a flying licence. Investigations by the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA), initiated after a woman pilot was found repeatedly landing wrongly on the nosewheel of the plane, have thrown up two more pilots who forged their qualifying papers. Fake captains are fast emerging as the biggest threat to safe flying in India.

The duo was commandeering aircraft after allegedly forging papers that showed they had cleared the tests to graduate from co-pilot to the captain's seat. One of the allegedly fake commanders, Meenakshi Sehgal, was flying with IndiGo, which has since grounded her. The other, Swaran Singh Talwar, was a commander with MDLR, an airline that has not been operational for months now.

What's worrying the aviation industry is that the new cases have tumbled out within a week of DGCA chief Bharat Bhushan ordering an unprecedented drive to verify pilot licences.

The action was sparked by suspicions about a woman commander of IndiGo who often landed the aircraft with the nosewheels touching down before the belly tyres.

The pilot, Parminder Kaur, was grounded for refresher training as per rules, but alongside a regulatory probe of her papers revealed that she had allegedly become a commander by giving fake marksheets of the airline transport pilot licence (ATPL) exam, which is mandatory for co-pilots to clear to become commanders. The DGCA issues this licence only after co-pilots complete 1,500 hours of flying, irrespective of when they clear it. And airlines consider even those who clear ATPL for command only after they fly for 2,000-3,000 hours as co-pilots.

The discovery of fake ATPL commanders has left the aviation ministry deeply worried due to its immense safety implications. "We are examining pilot licences and have found two more cases (of fake ATPL papers). While the licences have been revoked, these cases have also been referred to the police for further action," Bharat Bhushan said, adding that there would be no compromise on safety. Airlines share this concern as they rely only on DGCA papers to employ co-pilots and commanders.

"We have off-rostered her (Sehgal) since Sunday. We are very happy that the DGCA is investigating all its past licences. There should be a thorough check of all licences given by the DGCA, irrespective of which airline someone is working with. There can be no compromise on safety. Unfortunately, airlines can only rely on the authenticity of DGCA documents," IndiGo president Aditya Ghosh said.

Industry sources say such fudging of DGCA marksheets is unlikely to happen without insider help. It is learnt that some sections within the DGCA wanted only the fake licences to be cancelled and were opposing the move to refer the matter to police. The reason: a police probe might lead right up to them. But with no-nonsense bosses such as aviation secretary Nasim Zaidi and Bharat Bhushan, this request fell on deaf ears.

"Having a fake commander in a flight is like having a quack heading the team of doctors performing an operation," said a senior commander. What will such a person's knowledge or experience be? God save such flyers. This is as big a safety issue as can be."

As per HEADLINES TODAY the pilot from INDIGO is MEENAKSHI SINGHAL not SEHGAL.

[PiTrouble]

;)The DGCA should now go ahead and reveal the name of the Air India Express co-Pilot who couldn't control the aircraft for even 2 minutes when the Commander went to the toilet and the auto-pilot accidentally disengaged.
We would also like to know what action was taken against this Pilot?
If DGCA hides information on this Pilot it will expose itself of the charge of being biased. Let's wait and see.

[PiTrouble]

Parminder Kaur submitted a fake marksheet of her DGCA result to DGCA itself for verification and issue of an ALTP licence. The DGCa verified this marksheet and issued the ALTP. Now if, on one side, Parminder Kaur is guilty, then on the other side, who among the DGCA staff is guilty.
Taking action against Kaur alone would be unfair, some one from DGCA staff should also be held responsible and punished.
It is said that 'Gohain', the erstwhile DGCA, was totally corrupt:cool:, he made sure that the corrupt prospered under him. Investigators should focus on his role in aiding, abetting & institutionalising corruption in the DGCA.

[IAC_Pilot]

All those who are affected with this corruption I request you to join the

India Against Corruption initiative on India Against Corruption | Facebook (http://www.facebook.com/IndiACor) and those who are Indian citizen can pledge thier vote against corruption on this website http://voteforindia.org/ (http://voteforindia.org/)

Just go visit these websites and show your support. Those who want show more support are welcome to join the Dandi March II (http://dandimarch2.org/) in thier respective cities. You don't have to walk all the 240 miles. You can join anywhere leave anywhere. Walk one mile, two mile, as much as your health permits.

For the most people in India such an opportunity to participate in an initiative to revolt may not come again in thier lives. For those who missed being in Egypt, India Against Corruption is perfect place.

Join Us.

[PiTrouble]

In the present case it will be interesting to know why the Airline-Indigo- had no problem with Captain Ms. Gulati. Afterall no operator will allow a sub standard Pilot to Fly its Aircraft.
It is plain common sense that no Airline can risk loosing its aircraft, passenger confidence and thereby jeopardise its survival by encouraging a poor Pilot to fly as Pilot I/C of its Aircraft.
Hold it! There is more to this thing then meets the eye. Is some kind of a witch hunt going on?

[SeniorEagle]

I tend to agree with the line that this could possibly be a case of Witch Hunt?
Airline she works for has no problem with her-Yes
Did she not pay the touts once the work was done? Possible
Was she rude or arrogant towards someone powerful in the DGCA? Could be.

[SeniorEagle]

When a Pilot applies for a Flying licence endorsement he or she pays a fee for the job to be done. The Fee is paid for the D.G.C.A. to do its job meticulously. If the D.G.C.A. guys can't detect a forged certificate issued by their own organisation then what do they do holding on to the application for months on end.
In any case it is a dereliction of duty by the D.G.C.A. towards a paying consumer of its services. As such D.G.C.A. is liable to pay damages to the consumer-in this case the arrested Pilot Ms. Gulati:{

[IAC_Pilot]

Was she rude or arrogant towards someone powerful in the DGCA? Could be.

Apparently her Ex Husband is a high level Police Officer. Matrimonial happiness is often a key to successful career.

[rdr]

its very simple, all holders of Indian licences, should be banned from flying internationally until this fiasco is sorted out. let them kill their own people domestically.

[ilovfly]

I have flown Indigo as a passenger an umpteen number of times. It was a smooth flight always. Wonder where Indigo hides these so called fake pilots ?
Wonder if these so called fakes are essentially good Pilots forced to do fake stuff to satisfy a corrupt system?