The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) found multiple safety violations in Turkish Airlines operations during surprise inspections carried out between May 29 and June 2 at four major Indian airports - Delhi, Hyderabad, Chennai, and Bengaluru.
The inspections, conducted under international aviation rules, focused on the airline's passenger and cargo flights to check compliance with Indian and global safety standards, the Civil Aviation Ministry said in a statement today.
The rules fall under Article 16 of the Convention on International Civil Aviation (ICAO).
One of the major lapses was reported at Bengaluru airport, where the marshaller - the person guiding aircraft on the ground - was found untrained and without a 'competency card' to do the task.
In another serious breach, a technician, instead of a certified aircraft maintenance engineer (AME), handled the aircraft's arrival checks. This goes against aviation safety norms. Airworks, the authorised service provider, was not present at the time.
Cargo checks found that Turkish Airlines was carrying dangerous goods, including explosives, without mandatory permission from the DGCA. The required documents were either missing or incomplete.
Ground handling practices also raised red flags. There was no formal service-level agreement (SLA) between Turkish Airlines and its ground handling partner, Globe Ground India, at Hyderabad and Bengaluru airports.
Equipment such as ladders, trolleys, and power units were found with no clear record or accountability.
Following these findings, the DGCA directed Turkish Airlines to take immediate corrective action and comply fully with ICAO and DGCA regulations. Further inspections will be carried out to ensure continued oversight and passenger safety, the DGCA said.
Turkey's decision to back Pakistan during Operation Sindoor has led to massive outrage in India.
