Moving away from corrupt practices and the impending deal, the issue looks at the uprising in Libya and the effects it has had on geopolitical considerations and also on movement of oil prices

Social activist Anna Hazare has taken the fight against corruption to the Capital and the nation has rallied behind him in a spontaneous manner. The disease of corruption has infected all systems of the Indian polity and bureaucracy and is so deep-rooted that it is threatening the very fabric of the nation. Around the same time, the sunrise sector of aviation has had some shocking revelations—how “fake pilots” were churned out in real quick time. In cahoots have been the powers that be.

In this issue, we are highlighting the malaise and the urgency to find remedial solutions. Heads rolling is fine, but there needs to be a system of checks and balances. Air Marshal (Retd) B.K. Pandey mentions that some 14,000 pilots are likely to come under the scanner, but the root of the problem is the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA), especially its licensing and vigilance departments. Suggesting that serving officers from the Indian Air Force should be deputed to the DGCA for effective controls, the author at the same time calls for improved facilities for civil aviation training which at the moment are at pathetic levels.

Echoing similar concern, Air Marshal (Retd) V.K. Bhatia wonders what is happening on the Indian civil aviation scene and if “fake pilots” were the norm then the sound of falling apples would certainly be confused with engine trouble and a jetliner could land on its nose gear. While the cleansing of DGCA has been recommended, he advocates that the DGCA should be enthused with a sense of probity and excellence similar to that of the Central Medical Establishment of the IAF.

The focus in this issue is also on the fast closing medium multi-role combat aircraft (MMRCA) deal. Air Marshal (Retd) Pandey states that unless the Ministry of Defence is able to formulate a template for offset investment, the tendering process may not progress to the next level of opening commercial bids. Meanwhile, the grapevine has it that the number of contenders may be downsized from six to two or three and senior Boeing officials confirmed that they too had heard these rumours. Now whether the government is going to downsize or not, the urgency to close the deal has never been so important, considering the armed forces have been on a modernisation drive.

Moving away from corrupt practices and the impending deal, the issue looks at the uprising in Libya and the effects it has had on geopolitical considerations and also on movement of oil prices. As the price of aviation turbine fuel (ATF) has gone past the $100 per barrel mark (partly due to the unrest in Libya and Egypt), the airlines are squeezed majorly for margins. In India, the ATF price is much more than in South East Asia and the Middle East and R. Chandrakanth talks about high taxation driving prices up further north.

In another article, Chandrakanth writes about the economics of regional jet as the nation is going through the throes of pan-India connectivity, calling for a right mix of aircraft. There is a lot of euphoria on how the aviation industry is growing in India and SP’s Aviation continues to capture the growth story.