Photography on flights not restricted, DGCA clarifies
Air travelers can keep clicking pictures onboard airplane and the existing exceptions like doing so at a defence airfield during taxi will proceed.
- Reporters and cameramen were bumping and bunching up to get a comment from Kangana Ranaut.
- According to Rule 13 of the Aircraft Rules 1937, no person is allowed to take any photographs inside a flight.
Flying regulator DGCA clarified on Sunday travelers can take photographs and recordings inside flights however can’t use any recording equipment that makes chaos, disturbs flight operations, abuses safety norms or is prohibited by the crew members.
On Saturday, the controller had said that a scheduled flight will be suspended for a time of about fourteen days if anyone is found taking photos inside the plane.
Two days back, the Directorate General of Civil Aviation had requested IndiGo to take “proper action” after it found affirmed violation of security and social distancing norms by media persons in the airline’s Chandigarh-Mumbai flight that had actress Kangana Ranaut as a traveler.
“Nonetheless, this permission does exclude use of any recording equipment which risks or compromises air safety; abuses prevalent norms; creates chaos or disturbance during operation of flight or expressly prohibited by crew. Action may be started against those people found in violation of above rule,” Sunday’s clarification says.
Photography on flights not banned, DGCA clarifies https://t.co/ET3BQCzWxg
— TOI Top Stories (@TOITopStories) September 13, 2020
As per a video of the incident that occurred inside the trip on September 9, reporters and cameramen were bumping and bunching up to get a comment from Ranaut, who was sitting in one of the first rows of the plane.
The Saturday order stated that according to Rule 13 of the Aircraft Rules 1937, no person is permitted to take any photos inside a flight except when permission is granted by the DGCA or the Civil Aviation Ministry.
A senior authority said the purpose behind Saturday's order was not to prevent people from photography at airports and inflight (wherever permitted). “The idea isn’t to leave safety protocol be violated because of a free for all and stop interruption of privacy inflight for anybody,” said a senior official.
