Washington, May 4 (IANS) India’s national carrier Air India has been slapped a civil penalty of $80,000 by the US Transportation Department for failure to comply with rules concerning extended delays on airport runways.
The department imposed the so-called tarmac rules on foreign airlines in August 2011 in an attempt to prevent incidents of passengers stuck for hours in planes in which takeoffs were delayed. US carriers have been covered by this requirement since April 29, 2010.
Air India was fined “for failing to post customer service and tarmac delay contingency plans on its website as well as failing to adequately inform passengers about its optional fees”, the department said.
It’s the first foreign airline to be fined under the new rules.
“Our new airline consumer rules help ensure that passengers are fully informed about airline services and fees and what to expect if their flight is delayed on the tarmac,” US Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood said.
“We will continue to monitor carriers to make sure they comply with our rules and take enforcement action when they do not,” he said.
The new rules apply to foreign carriers operating to the United States with at least one aircraft of 30 or more seats.
(Arun Kumar can be contacted at arun.kumar@ians.in)
