JOIN USAviation personnel may soon have to undergo stringent drug tests
Pilots, cabin crew and air traffic controllers in the country may soon have to undergo drug tests to ensure that they are not addicts and are mindful of aviation safety if a draft rule is implemented.
Aspiring pilots will also have to undergo tests for consumption of psychoactive substances, according to the draft Civil Aviation Rules published by the office of the Director-General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) on August 25
The drugs to be tested are amphetamine, methamphetamine, cannabis, cocaine, opioids, barbiturates, benzodizipine and MDMA or ecstasy tablets. At present, flight crew and other key persons involved in flight operations have to undergo breath analyser tests to identify those who are under the influence of alcohol.
If any among the personnel is found positive in the dope test, they should be immediately removed from safety-sensitive duty and upon confirmation, he or she should be referred to a de-addiction centre. Such an employee could return to work after getting a negative report for drugs.
Those persons who have been confirmed positive for the second time, their licence will be suspended for three years and a third positive test would mean cancellation of licences.
According to the draft, the aircraft operators, maintenance and repair organisation (MROs), flying training organisations (FTO) and air navigation service providers will have to carry out "random drug testing" of at least 5 per cent of its flight crew members and air traffic controllers.
Aircraft operators and others should also carry out such tests before employing a person, before admitting a trainee pilot in an FTO and follow-up testing of confirmed cases, as per the draft rules.
Any employee will have to take the test within three days and refusing to do so would licence suspension for a year. The employee will also have to undergo a rehabilitation process before returning to active roles.
Those refusing a test a second time or test positive after the first occasion of refusal for testing, their licence will be suspended for three years and any subsequent violation will lead to cancellation of licence.
The move comes as the most recent official national data available showed that 2.8 per cent of the population has used any cannabis product in the previous year, 0.25 per cent suffered from cannabis dependence, 2.1 per cent used opioids like opium and its variants like heroin.
The Federal Aviation Agency (FAA) of the United States and the European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) have also developed their policy for detection of consumption of psychoactive substances by personnel engaged in safety-sensitive functions.