Airline crew suspended for allowing Sonu Nigam’s ‘concert’ in air

Sonu Nigam’s concert on Jet Airways may have bowled passengers over and left others jealous but Indian aviation regulator was far from impressed and took strict action against it.

Following the incident, Directorate General of Civil Aviation asked the airline to suspend the five air hostesses on board for allowing the singer to use the in-flight intercom, Times of India reported.

Subsequently, the airline has been warned and directed to ensure this does not happen again in the future.

A statement issued by Jet confirmed the action. “All cabin crew on the flight have been taken off flight duty for enquiry and corrective training to reinforce strict adherence to operating procedures,” read the statement.

The aviation regulatory system has termed the act as a misuse of the in-flight announcement system and is keeping a check on all air hostesses who allow passengers to use the in-flight announcement system.

Upon hearing the news, Sonu told IANS: “I have witnessed an elaborate fashion show in an aircraft. I have heard of small concerts happening in an aircraft. I have seen pilots and crew members cracking humorous jokes to loosen up passengers in other countries, which is so cool.”

“To suspend crew members for asking me to sing on the address system, when the seat belt signs were off, and no announcements were to be made, is nothing less than punishing someone for spreading happiness,” he wrote.

He called the act “real intolerance” stating that Indians “need to loosen up”. “Pity there’s no one to question such harshness except the media perhaps. Indians, need to loosen up. According to me, this act is a lack of common sense and is real intolerance,” he added.

Twitter saw mixed reactions to the incident.

The in-flight concert took place during a chartered flight from Jodhpur to Mumbai on January 4. Where passengers on board had requested Sonu Nigam to sing.