Lighter Side: Staff dance leads to suspension

Busting a move may have provided this organization's customers some enjoyment; however the industry regulator has told the staff responsible their synchronized boogie was an endangerment to the customers’ safety.

A cabin crew busting out some flash Bollywood dance moves mid-air has resulted in the plane’s two pilots being suspended and the airline threatened with being grounded.

The cabin crew of a SpiceJet flight from Goa to Bangalore were filmed dancing down the aisles in a two-and-a-half-minute routine to hit Bollywood song Balam Pichkari to celebrate the Hindu festival Holi. Passengers can be seen clapping along and the footage also shows what appears to be one of the pilots filming the dance.

When the footage went viral the Directorate General Of Civil Aviation (DGCA) issued a show-cause notice to SpiceJet, saying the dancing on board the flight endangered aircraft safety and created an 'unruly environment'.

According to the Daily Mail the DGCA notice states: “Cabin crew acts had drawn the attention of other crew on duty, thus reducing their preparedness/alertness. 

“The frequent movement of the dancing crew may have affected the aircraft's centre of gravity during flight and created turbulence.”

A spokesman for SpiceJet has issued a statement saying that it had put on extra staff for the flight and that the cockpit was manned at all time “as per DGCA regulations that govern the situation when one pilot is outside for example to use the lavatory”.

The airline now has several days to respond to the notice and state their defence before the DGCA decides on what action, if any, to take against them.