Jet Airways sacks expat pilot who ‘beat up’ trainer

Mumbai: Jet Airways has sacked the foreign pilot who allegedly assaulted a trainer during a simulator training session last month, an incident that triggered a call for boycott of all expat pilots in the private airline.

The pilot, an American, was a commander on Jet Airways wide-body Boeing 777 aircraft. “The pilot in question has been removed from the job after a thorough internal investigation into the incident,” a Jet source said.

The action against the pilot was taken after a trainer alleged the expat commander physically assaulted him during a simulator training session at the airline’s Bengaluru facility in early April.

“The airline carried out a thorough investigation into the incident after it received a complaint from the trainer. After the probe, it was decided to terminate his service contract,” the source said.

A senior Jet official confirmed the development. Significantly, after the incident,

Jet’s pilot body National Aviators Guild (NAG) directed its members not to fly with the expats in the cockpit from May 1. It also demanded the ouster of all expat pilots from the airline immediately. However, the NAG later kept its directive in “abeyance”, saying it wants to give some more time to the Jet management to address their concerns. The guild claims representation of around 1,000 of the total 1,500 pilots in the leading Indian carrier.