Phuket-Delhi flight incident: Air India terminates pilot after tested positive for psychoactive substance

New Delhi: Air India on Friday said that it terminated the services of a pilot after he tested positive for a psychoactive substance in a confirmatory test conducted following a serious in-flight incident on a Phuket-Delhi service.

“Safety remains Air India's highest priority. The pilot-in-command of the Phuket-Delhi flight tested positive for a psychoactive substance. In line with Air India's zero-tolerance approach to violation of safety, fitness or regulatory requirements, the pilot's employment has been terminated with immediate effect,” an Air India spokesperson said.

The airline's action comes after the Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB), in a preliminary report released earlier in the day flagged the positive test result as a serious concern and recommended that the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) take appropriate action on priority.

According to the report, the pilot-in-command (PIC) of Air India flight AI-2379 from Phuket to Delhi tested positive for a psychoactive substance in both the initial screening and subsequent confirmatory laboratory examination.

The probe agency said both pilots underwent post-flight medical screening in Delhi after the incident. While breathalyser tests of both crew members were found satisfactory, the psychoactive substance detection test returned a non-negative result for the PIC.

“The sample of PIC was found non-negative. Subsequently, blood samples of both the flight crew were sent to the pathological laboratory for confirmatory test. The confirmatory test report of PIC was found non-negative whereas the sample of the Co-Pilot was found negative in both the tests,” the AAIB report stated.

The agency said detailed investigations into technical and other aspects of the occurrence are continuing.

The preliminary report said the Airbus A320, operating as flight AI-2379 on August 4, suffered a loss of all three hydraulic systems while cruising at 36,000 feet over Odisha.

The aircraft initially climbed 372 feet above its assigned altitude before descending 292 feet, resulting in what investigators described as an altitude upset during the cruise phase of the flight.

There were 145 people on board, including 137 passengers, six cabin crew members and two pilots.

In addition, at least 20 passengers and four crew members sustained injuries in the incident.

The AAIB report noted that no discrepancies were reported by the flight crew during the walk-around inspection, while the aircraft's pre-flight inspection at Phuket also did not reveal any abnormalities apart from an already invoked Minimum Equipment List (MEL) item.

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