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Eight Air India Express crew members — four pilots and four cabin crew — have been suspended for three months after missing the deadline for a mandatory post-flight breath-analyser test, sources said.
The incident reportedly took place on August 2 after flight AX-192 from Dubai landed at Amritsar’s Sri Guru Ram Das Ji International Airport at 9:50 am.
Under DGCA rules, crew members operating international flights for Indian carriers must complete a post-flight alcohol test within two hours of landing in India, regardless of individual circumstances during that window.
The eight-member crew, however, returned for testing two hours and 35 minutes after the flight landed. All eight tested negative for alcohol.
Why Was The Test Delayed?
According to a source cited by The New
Indian Express, the crew left for their allotted hotel after completing post-arrival formalities as one member was unwell. They later returned to the airport for the mandatory breathalyser test.
“The crew on board the flight checked into their allotted hotel immediately as one of them had a health issue. The group later returned to the airport to take their breathalyser test. However, they took it only 2 hours and 35 minutes later,” the source said.
The delay meant the crew missed the prescribed two-hour testing window by 35 minutes.
Air India Express subsequently reported the lapse to the DGCA and suspended the crew in line with regulatory requirements.
“In line with the regulations spelt out by the DGCA, the airline immediately took them off duty and placed them under a three-month suspension,” the source added.
The identities and details of the crew members are not yet known.
