Sick leave sickens Tata-owned Air India Express

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Air India Express faces mass sick leave protests of pilots

By Our Special Correspondent

New Delhi, May 8: After Vistara, it’s the turn of the Air India Express to face the music amid the unending anger in the ranks of the pilots. Reports stated that about 80 flights of the Air India Express were cancelled on Wednesday.

The affected flights of the airlines included operations in domestic and international routes. The Air India Express has offered to full reimburse the passengers. The flyer has also offered to reschedule the flights of the passengers.

However, there is no end to the agony of the passengers in the Tata-owned carriers. The flights were abruptly cancelled to leave the passengers stranded.

Also, the episode of the pilots going on mass sick leaves has become a new normal for Air India affiliated flights and also the Vistara. The pilots are protesting the terms of engagement post-merger of Vistara with Air India.

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The pilots reportedly are up in arms against the likely loss in ‘take-home’ after the merger of the two major airlines. The pilots flying the Vistara flights apprehend that they may lose the ‘take-home’ after merger with Air India.

Incidentally, dozens of pilots from Air India were rationed to Vistara to tide over the protests. The pilots were assigned to fly the two categories of flights with Vistara amid operational disruptions.

Ironically, the management of Vistara had said that they would amicably resolve the issue of the pilots. But even after two months of the protests affecting the Vistara operations, there appears no solutions in sight.

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Aviation experts argue that there already exists shortage of pilots in the country. They also state that the passengers are ultimate losers as they face unannounced disruptions in their schedules even after paying prices of tickets from their noses.

The Director General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) had also been found to be lacking in enforcing passenger-friendly norms for the airlines. Also, the airlines business in India has shrunken after a number of private flyers going bust in the last two decades.

Notably, Tata had acquired Air India from the government. This has led to teething challenges for the management as merger of Air India and Vistara was subsequently announced. Even after months of the announcement, reports suggest that the pilots of Vistara are yet to be convinced of benefits to join the ranks of the Air India.

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