The crew, the investigation found, did not pay attention to taxiway markings

The civil aviation regulator DGCA on Tuesday suspended two pilots of IndiGo airlines for three months over a runway incursion at Indira Gandhi International Airport in Delhi.

Captain Rahul Dhar was commanding IndiGo's Delhi-Udaipur flight while Amit Kumar was the first officer when the aircraft breached "Holding Point RWY 10" and reached near the active runway, when a landing aircraft had "already crossed the threshold of active RWYIO" on June 2.

An investigation found that the crew did not follow the "hold at holding point RWY10" instruction from the air traffic control (ATC).

The crew, the investigation found, did not pay attention to taxiway markings and brakes were applied when they saw the landing aircraft was on "short final".

On September 5, the Directorate General of Civil Aviation had issued a show cause notice to the pilots to explain within 15 days as to why action should not be taken against them for "endangering the safety of aircraft and passengers onboard".

In his reply, captain Dhar accepted his lapses and explained that it happened due to "distraction for a while by the aircraft holding and taking off" from RWY09. Captain Amit Kumar, the first officer, also accepted his lapses and said it happened "due to the head down activity during the critical moment".

The DGCA, in its order, said the pilots' action "jeopardised the safety of the aircraft and the passengers".