Pilots cannot be trained to fly Boeing 737 MAXs safely if the stick shaker in a simulator is faulty, the plane manufacturer has informed the Director-General of Civil Aviation, which barred 90 SpiceJet pilots from flying these planes following an inspection of a training facility of the airline.
Boeing has also said that it will be grounding the simulator until the stick shaker is replaced. A stick shaker is a mechanical device that rapidly moves the control yoke (the stick) of an aircraft to warn the pilot of an imminent stall, or the plane falling when there is a drastic reduction in a plane’s speed that gives it lift.
The training was being conducted at a third-party simulator centre, CAE Simulation Training Centre, in Greater Noida. It is jointly owned by IndiGo promoter Rahul Bhatia and Canadian manufacturer of simulation technologies CAE. However, the training was being imparted by instructors from SpiceJet.
Show cause notice
The DGCA discovered the lapses on an inspection of the centre on March 30. The DGCA has issued show-cause notices to SpiceJet and the training centre for not imparting proper training to 90 pilots on the 737 Max simulator, officials said on Thursday.
According to DGCA sources, when SpiceJet was confronted with Boeing’s response, the airline replied that it had had taken an “in-house measure” to continue such training, though Boeing was not consulted by it.
SpiceJet was conducting the training as part of MAXs return to service after the aircraft type was grounded globally for over two years following two crashes that killed more than 300 people. The training is to familiarise pilots with the modifications carried out by Boeing. The DGCA lifted the ban on 737 MAXs in August 2021. SpiceJet has 13 MAXs, out of which 11 are in operation.
According to DGCA's rules or Civil Aviation Requirements," No person may knowingly use or allow the use of or misrepresent the capability of a Flight Simulation Training Devise for any maneuver, procedure, or task that is to be accomplished to meet training...when there is a missing, malfunctioning, or inoperative component."
Senior pilots in-charge of training say that in case of a malfunctioning device, the simulator training center and the airline are supposed to maintain a "defect log" and the DGCA inquiry will reveal if there was a failure to record the fault with the stick shaker and if CAE also needs to be punished.
"Most of the times these problems go unrecorded. The DGCA must be applauded for its vigilance and the inspectors who detected the snag have done a commendable job," said a senior trainer.
SpiceJet responded to these fresh revelations from the DGCA and said, "we have received a communication from the regulator on the matter and the airline shall submit its reply within the specified period."
“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,” Boeing said in response to a query.
(With PTI inputs)
