On August 5, the Gadgil met President A.P.J. Abdul Kalam to seek his intervention on the issue. In their petition submitted to the President, they have proposed an action plan for the IAF and the defence ministry: accept that there is indeed a problem with the MiG fleet and tackle it on a war footing; carry out a squadron-by-squadron audit of aircraft serviceablility by an independent board of experts; get good, high quality simulators on priority or send the pilots where these facilities can be obtained; get modern safety equipment like Zero-Zero ejection seats, high quality flight data recorders; conduct a cost-benefit analysis of cannibalizations of the fleet; make accident investigation more transparent and prevention-oriented instead of resorting to a blame game.
The defence minister has now agreed to meet Kavita. "It is just a beginning, the doors seem to be opening," she said. "I want to tell all affected families that though the face is mine the cause is common to us all." |
