DGCA warning for Malaysian carrier

MUMBAI: The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) on Tuesday warned Malaysian Airlines that its Indian operations would be stopped if selected Indian carriers were barred from using Malaysian airspace.

Russian carriers Aeroflot and Transco were also told that their “Indian operations had to stop with effect from Tuesday”. The order was later retracted when Russian authorities informed the DGCA that “Indian carriers would not be stopped from using Russian airspace”, a civil aviation ministry spokesperson said.

According to a bilateral agreement last year, 12 frequencies are allowed over Moscow and Delhi and five between Moscow and Mumbai. The agreement will be reviewed by June 15.

Malaysia has been barring Air-India Express and Air Sahara from operating in its airspace. Wolfgang Prock-Schauer, CEO, Jet Airways, said, “Sahara is a designated airline from the Indian side. We cannot understand why such an objection should come from the Malaysian side.”

Christopher Yek, spokesperson for Malaysian Airlines, said he had not seen any notification.