’Why did he apologise if he hadn’t done anything?’

Asks colleague of the 'molested' Air India airhostess of the flight's co-pilot

'Why did he apologise if he hadn't done anything?'

Asks colleague of the 'molested' Air India airhostess of the flight's co-pilot

It seems Aditya Chopra, the co-pilot of the Sharjah-Lucknow Air India flight, had accepted his 'guilt' even before the aircraft had landed in Delhi.

"The airhostess told the committee that the co-pilot, accused along with the flight commander, of molesting a 24-year-old airhostess, had stepped out of the cockpit after the scuffle and apologised for his behaviour," said a senior Air India official, wishing anonymity.

"One of the female crew members told in her statement they had only heard loud voices from the cockpit and could not see who was shouting at whom.

However, it was not Amit Khanna, the purser as she said she recognised his voice. She also said after the incident, co-pilot Aditya Chopra stepped out of the cockpit and apologised to Amit for his misbehaviour," the official added.

According to the official, the airhostess said in her statement, "At Lucknow airport, he (Aditya Chopra) again came to us and apologised. He said he didn't want any confrontation and was in favour of settling the matter there itself. If he was not at fault, why did he apologise?"

She also said after Chopra had apologised, purser Amit Khanna rebuked him. Khanna reportedly said that even though Chopra had apologised, he shouldn't have 'touched' the air hostess.

The enquiry report was submitted before the Air India management on Monday. The management is likely to take action today, after taking into account versions of pilots, crew members and other witnesses.

Air India sources also said IC 884 Flight Commander Ranbir Arora, in his statement to the committee, has blamed flight purser Amit Khanna for the scuffle and has charged that he endangered lives of passengers.u00a0

Meanwhile, in a statement, Air India said, "The committee constituted to inquire into the IC 884 incident has concluded that the cockpit was not left unmanned at any point of time during the flight."

Monday's update
The 24-year-old airhostess, who has accused the pilots of molesting her, approached the National Commission for Women (NCW), seeking justice. Following her complaint, the NCW plans to form a committee to investigate the matter.

The Other Side
Commenting on Aditya Chopra's reported on-air apology, Air India Spokesperson Jitendra Bhargava said, "Let us wait for the enquiry report. It is difficult to say anything when so many charges and counter-charges are being leveled by both sides."

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