"Strictly Follow": Court On Breath Analyser Testing Per Cent For Pilots

The high court issued the direction after it was informed by the DGCA that some airlines were testing more pilots and cabin crew than the 10 per cent limit set by the regulator.

The Delhi High Court has directed all airlines in India to "strictly abide" by the percentage of breath analyser (BA) testing mentioned in the April 27 order of aviation regulator DGCA and that no carrier should go beyond it for the safety of their pilots and cabin crew in view of the COVID-19 pandemic. The high court issued the direction after it was informed by the DGCA that some airlines were testing more pilots and cabin crew than the 10 per cent limit set by the regulator. Justice Prathiba M Singh also said that the court will not substitute its view with that of the medical committee, created by DGMS (Air) to examine whether BA tests could be substituted by blood tests to detect alcohol levels, which has said that blood alcohol testing was not feasible. The committee also said it was satisfied by the UV sanitation method used by DGCA for the BA test machines.