Flight delayed for two hours after fight broke out in the cockpit between pilot and engineer

An Air India pilot and the flight engineer who signed off on the plane's airworthiness, had a 'disagreement' in the cockpit and came to blows, with the plane loaded with passengers and ready for takeoff. As a result, the plane stood on the tarmac for over two hours before a replacement pilot was called in to handle the flight. On Saturday morning, AI 143 was scheduled to take off from Chennai to Delhi and from there on to Paris.

When the plane had arrived in Chennai from Mumbai, the pilot, identified as Captain Manik Lal, had landed and asked the engineering team to fix a minor snag in the plane before he began the long haul run, "When he returned, the engineer is believed to have said that it would be fine and certified the plane ready to fly. The pilot was not happy about this and refused to take off unless the fault was rectified. This boiled into an argument which ended in fisticuffs," said an airport source. At 9.45am, the incident triggered a protest from the flight engineers and ground staff who rallied against the pilot.



"They demanded that he come out and apologise or they not allow the plane to go. We intervened and got him to leave the cockpit and escorted him to the airport terminal," said a CISF official. Kannan, the flight engineer is believed to have sustained minor bruises. Along with other engineers, they are believed to have spoken to the police to file a complaint against the pilot, "The matter is being discussed but no formal complaint has been given yet," said an official at the Airport S2 Police Station. In damage control mode AI quickly mobilied a back-up pilot, Captain Krishnakumar and somehow managed to have the flight operate by 11.45am.

 "We have managed to operate the flight without any additional issues. The engineers are cooperating with us," said an Air India spokesperson. Though airline sources have described the pilot as having had similar run-ins with staff in the past, pilots and colleagues have rallied behind him, "He is a very straightforward pilot who takes flying by the book very seriously. It remains to be seen what the real issue was, " said another Air India pilot, associated with the Madras Flying Club. Air India also said that a formal complaint has been lodged with the DGCA and a detailed enquiry will be held, "For now he is off the roster, and will not be cleared to fly until the investigation is done. No such action has been taken on the other party as of now," said the spokesperson.