CAA & PIA on watch list

At a time when the air safety violations by PIA and waivers granted in Air Navigation Orders (ANOs) by Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) have put both on the watch list of international safety organisations, restoring the credibility of CAA would be a daunting task for the newly inducted Director General, CAA, Captain Nadeem Yusufzai, a 55 year old PIA pilot.
The auditors of International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) has already flagged CAA as "conflict of interest" for employing five other PIA pilots for regulatory work as they have to check their own airline for safety violations and other issues. A close friend of President, Captain Yusufzai has replaced another friend of President, Junaid Amin, who has served CAA as DG for two years.
The biggest challenge that he would be facing constantly during his tenure would be a moral one, as he would regulate the same airline where he is serving as pilot. The Director of Flight Safety Standard of CAA is already under question for allowing amendments in ANO to facilitate the airlines while jeopardising safety in many instances.
He will also have to ensure comprehensive investigations in the Airblue Airbus crash, impartial tackling of PALPA-PIA row, emerging conflict of interest between the regulator and operator, imposition of Essential Services (Maintenance) Act of 1952 on the cockpit crew, ANO (12)(IV) and above all the credibility of CAA.
As a pilot he has sided with PIA which has constantly been indulging in air safety violations that blatantly endangering the safety of equipment, crew and passengers. The need for impeccable investigation in the wake of the catastrophic tragedy of an Islamabad-bound Airblue Airbus which crashed in the Margalla Hills on July 28, killing all 152 people on board will also become exceedingly imperative for the new DG, as his community's reputation is at stake, while aviation experts are questioning role of CAA in the incident.
The CAA is finding it difficult to explain in the face of the views expressed by some aviation expert that the Authority is not following prescribed safety measures, particularly those related to the duties and functions of pilots, other flight crew and staff at Air Traffic Control etc.
The Authority will also have to conduct a full-scale inquiry into any violation of relevant regulations such as ANO (12)(IV) that sets the rest time period of pilots and duration of flights both inside the country and abroad. While the new DG is faced with these challenges his colleagues working in the Authority are already under question as the Director Flight Safety Standards are reported to have violated the rules last year by operating a long range flight of more than 14 hours without a second Captain on board, an international "MUST" for long range flights.
And of-course yet another challenge for him is the imposition of Essential Services (Maintenance) Act of 1952 on the cockpit crew of the national flag carrier. With the Act in place, cockpit crew will be forced to perform duty more than allowed span of time in the working agreement owing to which safety will certainly be compromised.
The erroneous impression that PIA management has been streamlined by passing of the services act as baseless as the delays in flights continue to occur in both the domestic and international flights schedule even today due to the technical bankruptcy of the management.
Air safety rules negotiated world-wide by airlines with its pilots are sacred ANO prescribed by CAA is the last limit. The violations falling under the agreement between pilots and airline are managed within the organisation, while waivers are sought from CAA by the airline when it violates CAA's ANO under operational requirements. The CAA has not yet clarified its position regarding such air safety violations, which is a big question mark on the performance of CAA. Had the CAA taken notice of the past incidents, such sheer negligence of flight safety rules would not have happened again saving the airline from virtual loss of credibility, aviation experts believe.