Commercial flight nod for made-in-India plane

NEW DELHI: You may soon be flying regional routes on board a made-in-India aircraft. The Directorate General of Civil Aviation + (DGCA) has allowed Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd (HAL)-manufactured Dornier 228 to be used for civilian flights.
The 19-seater aircraft has, till now, been used by defence forces and is the first plane to be made in the country for commercial flights.
The DGCA has given type certification to this aircraft and also given certificate of airworthiness to HAL’s Dornier 228. Now, HAL can sell this plane to airlines in India and it can be used by them for regional flights under the Modi’s government’s ambitious UDAN scheme+ , a senior aviation official said. “Some special incentives may be given to operators using this plane. Apart from airlines in India,” the official added.