Air India Delhi to Bengaluru flight: This pilot gets suspended even though he was not to fly the jet

Country's largest air passenger carrier, Air India has suspended its pilot for three months after he tested positive in a pre-flight breath analyser (BA) test here on Saturday. The pilot wanted to fly as a passenger from Delhi to Bengaluru and since the flight was full, he requested to fly in the cockpit as an additional crew member. Here are highlights in brief:

1. "As per DGCA rules Pilot of Air India has been suspended for three months," an Air India official told ANI. The pilot was deplaned after he failed the test and the matter was reported to the Director General of Civil Aviation.

2. Air India allows cockpit staff to fly in an emergency situation but the crew is needed to go through the mandatory breath analyser test which the pilot failed.

3. Sources in DGCA said that the suspended employee was a senior Airbus A320 pilot and should have been aware of all the rules of flying, the pilot has been grounded for three months as there is no compromise with safety.