New Delhi: Indian aviation regulator Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) on Wednesday said that it will take "some time" to give its nod for flying Boeing 737 MAX planes in the country after the planemaker won U.S. Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) approval to fly them again after a gap of nearly two years.
DGCA official said, "We will study the FAA approval order and the react. It will take some sometime." In India, SpiceJet is the only operator of B737 MAX planes. The airline has taken delivery of 12 Boeing 737 MAX 8 plans so far.
Earlier, a DGCA official had said that if India gives the approval to fly B737 Max then pilots flying these aircraft will mandatorily have to undergo simulated training before being allowed to operate them.
As per the Aviation Ministry officials, Boeing has placed a 737 MAX simulator at Noida in Uttar Pradesh and it is being managed by Canada-based civil aviation training company CAE Inc.
"The FAA has identified the required return-to-service activities for operators of the 737 Max and heightened surveillance and tracking of those related activities for aviation safety inspectors (ASI)," the FAA said on Wednesday.
After the FAA approval, Boeing Commercial Airplanes president and CEO Stan Deal said, "The FAA's directive is an important milestone we will continue to work with regulators around the world and our customers to return the aeroplane back into service worldwide."
The Boeing 737 Max planes had been grounded since March 2019 after two fatal crashes killed 346 people. The B737 Max was grounded by the Indian aviation regulator on 13 March after Global aviation regulator did the same following the deadly crashes of Ethiopian Airlines and Lion aeroplane on 10 March 2019 and 29 October 2018 respectively.
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