NEW DELHI: The Directorate General of Civil Aviation ( DGCA) on Tuesday informed a parliamentary panel that it is working on a mechanism to curb sharp increases in airfares during times of high demand and may fix a price ceiling on certain routes during periods like festive seasons.
Top officials from the civil aviation ministry and senior executives from airlines appeared before Parliament's Public Accounts Committee, where its members raised concerns about the pricing and flight safety. Some MPs also demanded an audit of the Bureau of Civil Aviation Security.
Sources said the Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau has not yet submitted its report on the Air India plane crash in Ahmedabad on June 12 that killed 274 people including 241 of the 242 on board the Boeing 787 Dreamliner. The analysis is still ongoing and the bureau is within the 30-day period to submit the report, they said.
Civil aviation secretary Samir Sinha, DGCA chief Faiz Ahmed Kidwai, Air India chief executive Campbell Wilson as well as top executives of Indigo, SpiceJet and Akasa appeared before the Parliament committee chaired by Congress MP KC Venugopal.
Wilson told the parliamentary panel that Air India will complete retrofitting of its fleet in two years to address frequent complaints about its seats and other facilities, and underscored the airline's commitment to flight safety, sources said.
Discussing the Air India flight crash in Ahmedabad, several members of the committee demanded an audit of the Bureau of Civil Aviation Security. They also cited a spate of other incidents concerning operational safety and wanted to know from the bureau when its report on the Air India plane crash would be ready.
In the meeting, it was also informed that safety audits of Boeing 787 Dreamliners operated by various lines have been completed, sources said.
Talking to reporters after the meeting, former civil aviation minister Praful Patel, a member of the committee, suggested the DGCA take measures to strengthen air safety. There is an issue of understaffing in the civil aviation regulator, and it can recruit retired personnel for short-term contacts, he said.
Members from across party lines grilled officials and airlines operators over an "arbitrary" surge in air ticket prices and cited a host of examples, including a steep hike in fares for planes flying from Srinagar after the Pahalgam terror attack and during the Maha Kumbh in Prayagraj, according to the sources.
When an official said the DGCA will be talking to airlines to have a consensus on developing a mechanism against such price increases, a BJP member shot back wondering if the unfair practice will continue for want of consensus. Some other MPs said the aviation regulator has the remit to take action.
The DGCA said it will be putting guidelines in place to curb any unreasonable surge in prices, the sources said.
Top officials from the civil aviation ministry and senior executives from airlines appeared before Parliament's Public Accounts Committee, where its members raised concerns about the pricing and flight safety. Some MPs also demanded an audit of the Bureau of Civil Aviation Security.
Sources said the Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau has not yet submitted its report on the Air India plane crash in Ahmedabad on June 12 that killed 274 people including 241 of the 242 on board the Boeing 787 Dreamliner. The analysis is still ongoing and the bureau is within the 30-day period to submit the report, they said.
Civil aviation secretary Samir Sinha, DGCA chief Faiz Ahmed Kidwai, Air India chief executive Campbell Wilson as well as top executives of Indigo, SpiceJet and Akasa appeared before the Parliament committee chaired by Congress MP KC Venugopal.
Wilson told the parliamentary panel that Air India will complete retrofitting of its fleet in two years to address frequent complaints about its seats and other facilities, and underscored the airline's commitment to flight safety, sources said.
Discussing the Air India flight crash in Ahmedabad, several members of the committee demanded an audit of the Bureau of Civil Aviation Security. They also cited a spate of other incidents concerning operational safety and wanted to know from the bureau when its report on the Air India plane crash would be ready.
In the meeting, it was also informed that safety audits of Boeing 787 Dreamliners operated by various lines have been completed, sources said.
Talking to reporters after the meeting, former civil aviation minister Praful Patel, a member of the committee, suggested the DGCA take measures to strengthen air safety. There is an issue of understaffing in the civil aviation regulator, and it can recruit retired personnel for short-term contacts, he said.
Members from across party lines grilled officials and airlines operators over an "arbitrary" surge in air ticket prices and cited a host of examples, including a steep hike in fares for planes flying from Srinagar after the Pahalgam terror attack and during the Maha Kumbh in Prayagraj, according to the sources.
When an official said the DGCA will be talking to airlines to have a consensus on developing a mechanism against such price increases, a BJP member shot back wondering if the unfair practice will continue for want of consensus. Some other MPs said the aviation regulator has the remit to take action.
The DGCA said it will be putting guidelines in place to curb any unreasonable surge in prices, the sources said.
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