Under Section 8(2), if the Chairperson is unable to attend a meeting of the Authority for any reason, the meeting shall be presided over by:

Section 8(2) provides that if the Chairperson cannot attend a particular meeting, the members PRESENT AT THAT MEETING shall choose any other member from among themselves to preside - a meeting-specific, ad hoc selection process, not an automatic succession by the ex officio DGCA member, not a seniority-by-tenure rule, not involvement of a retired Chairperson, and not a Central-Government-observer default. This flexible, meeting-by-meeting presiding-member selection mechanism ensures the Authority's business continues smoothly even in the Chairperson's absence, and the presiding member so chosen also exercises the casting vote under Section 8(3) in case of a tied vote at that specific meeting.