M'lore Crash: Capt Glusica was Not Scheduled to Fly AI Plane: Report

Daijiworld Media Network - Mangalore

Mangalore, Jun 21: A new detail about the Mangalore air crash has come up, which gives way to a suspicion that Air India might have 'tampered' with the pilots' flight roster and forced Capt Zlatko Glusica to fly despite fatigue.

The Times of India has reported that Air India had kept details about its flight roster 'under wraps'. According to the report, Capt Glusica was not rostered to fly the IX812 flight on that day, and it is uncertain as to when he was informed about the same. The detail might well explain the sleep factor that nailed Capt Glusica as the villain, and if Air India did coerce him to operate the flight despite fatigue and did not allow him enough rest between flights, it could find itself in troubled waters with the DGCA.

The Times of India further quoted Alexander Glusica, the pilot's son who said that his father was just back from vacation and was called at the last minute to operate the flight. He claimed the original crew roster in his father's laptop had not marked him to fly the plane.

According to records, Capt Glusica landed in Mumbai on May 18 after his vacation in Serbia. He was not scheduled to operate any flight till May 23, according to the Air India roster.

"My father called me on my mobile phone on May 20 around 6.30 pm IST, that is a day before he went for his last flight," Alexander Glusica told TOI, "He said that he had not unpacked yet and was tired. If he had to operate a flight the next day, he would have told me. He always did, especially when it was a Dubai flight as he always shopped for my sister's kids from there."

Alexander found access to the Air India roster through his dad's email account, to which he knew the password. The list makes no mention of his father, he said, but does mention Capt Ahluwalia's name against the same flight.

The flight operator in fact was marked 'TRG', which means a training instructor or a training captain, an examiner or a senior pilot was scheduled to fly the plane. Capt Glusica was none of these.

Capt Glusica landed in Mangalore on May 19, but it is unclear as to when exactly he was asked to operate the Dubai-bound flight.

However, an Air India official denied Alexander's claim saying that Capt Glusica was posted in Mangalore and was aware of the schedule, TOI reported.

The official clarified that rosters are 'subject to change' according to changing situations. Capt Glusica knew about the changes before he left for Mangalore, he added.

Nevertheless, airlines are supposed to keep the pilots informed about the roster a month in advance. The roster is rarely changed, but Air India changes its roster even on weekly basis. It may be recalled that Air India's pilots' union had claimed that the airline had forced them to work even during sickness. The union had even complained to the DGCA and the ministry of civil aviation about this.

Another practice, which speaks volumes of the unprofessional approach of Air India, as reported by TOI, is that it does its rostering not on computers, but with a 'pencil, paper and eraser'!

"A crew scheduling officer fills in the flight number against each pilot's name in a calender-column in a ledger using a pencil. The officer could erase, modify the schedule for pilots any time and there is no paper trail of changes and corrections. The Mangalore aircrash investigation report had noted that this practice is against the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) norms. The DGCA itself, in its lenient manner, has been hauling up the airline for its pencil-eraser practice for last four years," TOI said.

Moreover, contrary to protocol, the investigators did not find it necessary to speak to the pilot's family or his doctor to find out if he was under any medication or stress.

The finding may throw new light into not only the investigation into Mangalore air crash, but also expose some of the unprofessional practices of Air India. However, if the DGCA had already been aware of the airline's 'pencil-paper' method of scheduling charts, not much can be hoped in the way of introducing changes in the manner it works.