An Air India pilot has been arrested in the capital for allegedly using forged marksheets to procure a licence from country's airline regulator, the second such incident in the past four days.
An Air India pilot has been arrested in the capital for allegedly using forged marksheets to procure a licence, the second pilot to be nabbed in the last four days, as a worried DGCA set in motion fresh scrutiny of licenses of nearly 4,000 pilots.
Close on the heels of arrest of a suspended Indigo woman pilot, Delhi police apprehended Captain JK Verma in New Delhi late last night following investigations into a complaint filed by the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) which claimed that some of the pilots had faked marksheets to get their licence.
"We have arrested Verma. Investigations are on. We have been provided more names by the DGCA. The scanner is on two more pilots Meenakshi Sehgal of Indigo and Swaran Singh Talwar of MDLR," a senior police official said. Verma is in his 40s.
In the wake of the fake pilot scare, licenses of 3,000 to 4,000 pilots are being scrutinised by the DGCA, according to civil aviation secretary Nasim Zaidi.
Verma allegedly forged marksheets of pilot license examination for obtaining the licence.
The official said Sehgal, a resident of North Delhi, and Talwar, a resident of Jaipur, were absconding.
Delhi Police's Crime Branch had on March 8 arrested Parminder Kaur Gulati (38), a suspended pilot of Indigo, for allegedly obtained the mandatory Airlines Transport Pilot License (ALTP) using on forged documents.
"Commercial pilot licenses are being scrutinised following this incident," Zaidi said following her arrest.
With ATPL, one can become a co-pilot and to get a full fledged commercial pilot licence one should have ATPL with adequate flying hours. Gulati was grounded on January 11 following an incident of hard landing of an Indigo flight in Goa.
During initial enquiry by DGCA, it was found that she had allegedly submitted forged result card of pilot license examination of January 2009 for obtaining ALTP. On the basis of the complaint, a case was registered.
"It emerged that the result card of pilot license examination submitted by Gulati as proof of passing Air Navigation and Radio Aids and Instruments subjects in January 2009 session for obtaining ALTP license was forged," the police official said.
Actually, he said, she had failed in Air Navigation and was absent in the other paper of Radio Aids and Instruments.
She again appeared for the above subjects in April 2009 session and July 2009 session but on the both the occasions, she could not clear the papers.
In order to obtain ATPL, a pilot has to clear three subjects - Aviation Meterology, Air Navigation and Radio Aids & Instruments.
Gulati had cleared Aviation Meterology in April 2008 but inspite of repeated attempts, she could not clear Air Navigation and Radio Aids & Instruments.
"She submitted forged result card of passing Air Navigation and Radio Aids & Instruments to DGCA in November 2009 and she was issued ATPL License," he said.
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