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Indian Airlines to Employ Real-Time Plane Tracking; Orders DGCA

The civil aviation regulator of India has issued a directive, ordering the airlines to use real-time tracking for locating the planes.

In the directive, the Director General Prabhat Kumar has obligated the airlines to track all of their aircrafts with the on-board Aircraft Communications Addressing and Reporting System (ACARS) or Automatic Dependent Surveillance – Broadcast (ADS-B). In areas where these two systems do not have coverage, the airlines will be required to devise other mechanisms to ensure real-time tracking. Operators will also need to ensure that the real-time tracking systems are in working condition before the flight.

The order has been issued in context of the preliminary report released by Malaysian authorities, which revealed that the flight 370 could not be located because the aircraft did not transmit its coordinates in real-time.

According to the statement released by the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA), “While commercial air transport aircrafts spend considerable amount of time operating over remote areas, there is currently no international requirement for real time tracking of the aircraft. This uncertainty resulted in significant difficulty in locating the aircraft in a timely manner.”

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    In George’s Point of View


    What does it mean that the Indian Civil Aviation Ministry is formulating new policies?

    The existing policies are not working, but we wonder if the new policies are being rewritten to fit in better with the workings of business and the status quo. Will the changes begin to address safety issues, pilot training, and crucial concerns of passengers rather than stakeholders in the business end?

    Will the policies be conceived and written by people involved in the mechanics of planes and technology, or will they reflect an infrastructure concerned only about maintaining a “bottom line?”

    The current perspective has resulted in dangerous new rest rules. (Pilots are not allowed to get fatigued till they have completed 10 hours of flying during the night; and the airline’s director of operations can extend that time another hour and a half.) The work ceiling for Indian pilots is 25% higher than that set for US or British pilots.

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    Global Aviation Facing Critical Issues; Conclude Panelists at 20th World Routes Development Forum

    Renowned panelists in the first panel discussion at the 20th World Routes Development Forum, which was held in Chicago on September 21, concluded that the global aviation industry is currently facing 5 critical challenges.

    As per the results of live polling moderated by BBC World News presenter, Aaron Heslehurst, the delegates regarded infrastructure as the most critical challenge, with aviation profitability, safety/security, taxation and oil price stability being the other 4.

    At the start of the session, the issue of safety and security was discussed, particularly in context of the recent incidents of MH17 and MH370. Managing director of Malaysia Airports Holdings Berhad (MAHB), Datuk Badlisham Ghazali appreciated the actions taken by the ICAO and other bodies in order to improve aviation safety, however, he emphasized on the need of enhanced visibility from global aviation bodies regarding the industrial developments aimed at increasing safety. Referring to MH17 tragedy, he said, “The industry needs to move forward in more visible way. Response has not been as visible as what I had hoped for.”

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