Airline’s Safety Rating Downgraded from 7 to 6 Stars After Incident
After causing significant embarrassment to both his employer SriLankan Airlines and his profession as an aviation pilot, Captain Wajira Wanasinghe, now famously known as Captain Lockpit, has tendered his resignation midway through the investigation into his actions. The incident involved locking his female First Officer, Anjali Fonseka, out of the cockpit during a recent flight from Sydney to Colombo due to a dispute over a toilet break. His resignation comes amidst the ongoing inquiry, which had already drawn considerable attention by hitting global news headlines causing much shame within the aviation industry.
Meanwhile, AirlineRatings.com has downgraded SriLankan Airlines’ safety rating from seven to six stars following the incident which took place during a 10-hour flight from Sydney to Colombo aboard an Airbus A330. This safety downgrade reflects growing concerns about the airline’s operational standards and the effectiveness of its crew management, raising alarm within the industry about the need for improvements in safety protocols.
This incident is bound to have severe repercussions on the airline and also the country’s tourism industry with many travellers frequently checking an airline’s safety record prior to making travel bookings.
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SriLankan Airlines: Pilot Who Turned Cock-pit into Lock-pit Makes International Headlines
He should lose his pilot lisence
he was following the correct procedure. A relief person must be at all times be at the cockpit if one of the pilot is not available. Get your facts straight before shooting in the dark.
Correct procedure of locking the other pilot out ?
Safety standards with Air Lanka is thee best in the world despite the lock-pit issue.
There war no major or minor crashes and posess a clear flying record.
How many airlines are above UL with at least a single crash.
This down grade is discrimination inspire of a 100% clean flight revird.
Very true, He should have been stood down pending a full investigation. There is no question about the safety standards of the airline. Not a single crash since its inauguration. Airline authorities should devise mechanisms to avoid these types of incidents ASAP. They should reinstate 7-star rating ASAP after its full implimentation.
There is always a first time with crashes. SL Airlines’ attitude and standards have gone down. Downgrading is appropriate until they earn back our trust.
In airline safety standards, not having a recent accident is not the only critereon used. Case in point: Air New Zealand edged out Qantas in the Forbes list of safest airlines because of a newer fleet. “Incidents” and near-misses are part of most safety criteria and “lockpit” is certainly a concerning incident which is presumed to reflect (rightly or wrongly) the prevailing safety culture in an airline. It is extremely difficult to be considered a very safe airline with an old fleet with a poor business standing (indicative of cutting corners when it comes to aircraft maintenance and safety). Many different entities provide various airline ratings. Airlineratings.com uses these 13 criteria: product rating; safety rating; passenger reviews; fleet age; operating profit; does the airline have premium economy; does it have flat beds in business class; investment grade rating; environmental report; industrial issues; serious incidents; is the airline an innovator and must be a top 50 airline. We must make sure our house is in order before invoking discrimination. See https://www.forbes.com/sites/laurabegleybloom/2024/01/03/ranked-the-25-safest-airlines-in-the-world-according-to-airlineratingscom/ and https://www.airlineratings.com/articles/worlds-best-airlines-criteria.
That’s perfect true.
The downgrade could harm the airline’s reputation, reduce passenger confidence, and impact Sri Lanka’s tourism industry, which relies on strong safety records. The global media attention highlights the need for SriLankan Airlines to address systemic issues, improve safety procedures, and rebuild trust with passengers and regulators.
If you watch AIRLIVE.NET you will see how many major airlines have issues on a daily basis. UL though its late does not have that kind of issues. The captain should have sorted it out in a different way.
This is a straight forward case that needs criminal proceedings. He should be sacked, not allowed to resign, and prevented from driving even Uber
“prevented from driving even Uber” then what would he do for his survival ?