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The pilot-in command of Air India Phuket-Delhi flight, that faced sudden loss of altitude and left several passengers injured, has tested positive for a psychoactive substance during a post-flight screening, sources were cited as saying by CNN-News18.
The pilot had gone through confirmatory testing after an initial psychoactive substance screening indicated that the result requires further analysis.
The Airbus A320, operating flight AI2379 from Phuket to Delhi on August 4, lost about 300 feet of altitude during cruise before stabilising and landing safely in Delhi.
At least 137 passengers were on board the flight. A few passengers and cabin crew members reported injuries during the incident. An initial statement from Air India had cited turbulence as the reason.
The incident has been classified as a serious incident and is being investigated by the Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB).
Outgoing CEO Campbell summoned
Earlier, Air India’s outgoing Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Campbell Wilson was summoned by the Ministry of Civil Aviation headquarters on Tuesday as the government intensified its scrutiny of the airline following the id-air incident.
After meeting with Air India’s outgoing CEO Campbell Wilson over Phuket-Delhi flight incident, Civil Aviation Minister Ram Mohan Naidu Kinjarapu said, "We wanted to get a direct update from Air India also on the incident. We wanted to see how they are taking this issue from their side. I have told time and again that from the Ministry, safety in aviation is the topmost priority."
"There shouldn't be any compromise from any side - even the regulators or airlines or anyone. So, this issue we have taken very seriously from the Ministry side also. We have spoken to him as a preliminary task, just to get an update. But AAIB (Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau) has been given the task to continue the investigation," he said.
On reports of the pilot failing the dope test, he said, "If it is anything related to substance abuse or substance using, I would say that from the Ministry we are taking it very seriously and if we find that there needs to be some tweaking in the existing regulation, we are ready to do that also."
