PIONEER EDGE NEWS SERVICE/ Dehradun
The helicopter charter services to the Char Dham came to a grinding halt on Monday with the operators suspending charter services in protest against the Directorate General of Civil Aviation’s (DGCA) decision to make co-pilots mandatory for charter helicopter operations on this circuit. The operators also cancelled all the bookings for the rest of the Char Dham pilgrimage period this year. The non-charter services to the Dhams will however continue to operate.
The DGCA order regarding mandatory presence of co-pilot in the charter flights came in the aftermath of the October 30 helicopter accident near Badrinath, involving a helicopter operated by Trans Bharat Aviation while returning from Jyotirmath. In the accident all the six persons on board, including the pilot, died. Following the incident, the DGCA, in consultation with the Uttarakhand Civil Aviation Development Authority (UCADA) decided to introduce the co-pilot requirement for charter helicopter services for the Char Dham Yatra.
The sudden suspension of charter Heli services caused problems for thousands of people who had booked their seats for Char Dham Yatra. An estimated 80 charter flights operate in a day for Badrinath and Kedarnath dhams. The companies which offer charter helicopter services are Himalayan Heli service, Indocopters private limited, Rajas Aerosports, Thumby Aviation, Chipsan Aviation, Kan Aerofoil, Baramati Aviation and Heritage Aviation. These companies charge about Rs 1.15 lakh per passenger for two Dhams ( Badrinath and Kedarnath) and Rs 1.90 lakh per passenger for Char Dhams.
One of the charter helicopter services operators said that operating helicopter services under the new rules would not be financially viable. He also pointed out that passenger safety remains the industry’s highest priority and that operators are not opposed to safety regulations. He said that the additional operational costs and the requirement to accommodate a co-pilot would significantly affect the economics of charter services. The chief executive officer, UCADA, Prateek Jain said that the rules and safety standards governing helicopter operations are determined by DGCA. He clarified that the co-pilot requirement had been introduced keeping passenger safety in mind.
