Five crew members of Air India were recently put in a detainee cell at Zurich airport because they were not carrying an authorised crew member certificate, which is a substitute for a visa for flight crew.
Some of these five crew members were confined for an unspecified duration in a tiny cell for detainees, according to sources among the airline crew. These sources also said that the crew were allowed to step out only to use the toilet and were barred from even using their mobile phones until local airline staff intervened and got them help. Air India’s official sources said crew members were shifted to a transit hotel, and at least four of them were still in Zurich.
The incident occurred because the crew did not carry a valid crew member certificate. The five crew involved arrived in Zurich on two different flights over the past one week. According to sources, the four Air India crew member didn’t carry the CMC, while a fifth one arrived with an invalid CMC. Earlier, crew could also pay 10 Euros and obtain a CMC at the airport, but Zurich changed these rules on February 5.
A Crew Member Certificate (CMC) is an identification card issued by the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) to facilitate the movement of airline pilots and cabin crew members.
Published - February 07, 2025 03:14 pm IST
