Mumbai, May 20: A Mumbai-based jeweller, Birju Kishore Salla, is the first to be put on the no-fly-list (NFL) -- a registry maintained by Indian carriers to bar disruptive passengers from boarding their flights.
Salla has drawn the wrath of private flyer, Jet Airways, as he had left a hoax hijack message on a Mumbai-Delhi flight he had boarded on October 20, 2017. He has been barred from boarding any Jet flight for the next five years.
The miscreant, who occupied seat 1A of flight 9W 339, had left a note of terror in the business class lavatory. "9W 339 is covered by hijackers and a/c (aircraft) should not land and (be) flown straight to POK (Pakistan-occupied Kashmir). 12 ppl (sic) on board. If you put landing you can hear the noise of people dying. Don't take it as a joke. Cargo area contains explosive bombs and will blast if you land in DEL (Delhi)," he had written.
Reacting to the situation, the flight crew had diverted the plane to Ahmedabad. However, no explosive materials were found on-board in the search conducted by the bomb squad.
An inquiry conducted by the Jet Airways found Salla to have left the hoax note which led to massive inconvenience for his fellow passengers.
The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) has confirmed Salla's case to be the first of a passenger being included in the no-fly-list. The regulatory authority said other carriers would be given the option to extend the ban imposed on Salla.
Salla has been barred under the highest category - level three of on-board unruly passengers. Those offences included in this category are "damage to aircraft operating systems, serious physical violence and attempted or actual breach of cockpit". The violators could be grounded from a range of three years to a lifetime.
(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on May 20, 2018 09:52 AM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).