AI pilots call off stir,normalcy in operations yet to return

After the meeting,Capt R L Mathur,an executive pilot and General Manager (Operations),and Bhalla announced that the stir was being called off in deference to government’s decision to maintain status quo on cost-cutting measures like cut in productivity-linked incentive (PLI) and flying allowance.

While only 23 pilots had reported for duty till afternoon due to the confusion,the two leaders maintained that all pilots had started reporting for duty by 1600 hours after getting the fitness certificates from doctors especially stationed at various airports across the country by Air India.

An Air India spokesperson,while expressing regrets to passengers for the inconvenience caused,said normalcy in operations would be restored gradually,but all international flights,barring two non-stop ones to New York from Delhi and Mumbai,would be operated from tonight.

At the meeting,Jadhav informed the agitating pilots that an order has been issued in the afternoon keeping in abeyance the controversial September 24 order announcing a cut in the productivity-linked incentive and flying allowance.

The latest order,issued by Executive Director (Industrial Relations) T R Ramachandran,said the September 24 order was being “kept in abeyance until a Board Sub-Committee,comprising the CMD,Joint Secretary and Financial Advisor and the Joint Secretary of the Civil Aviation Ministry,examines all issues and submit its recommendations to the Board”.

Mathur said the CMD has “assured us very clearly that all problems raised by the executive pilots will be considered and that he would take personal interest in the matter”.

With about 200 pilots reporting sick over the past five days to protest the decision to cut their PLI and allowances,over 240 flights were cancelled and the national carrier is estimated to have incurred a loss of over Rs 100 crore during the past five days.

The government had issued an ultimatum to the pilots to resume duty from midnight last night or face action. The deadline was later extended till 1700 hours today by when the final resolution had been arrived at.

Air India also opened bookings for its flights which had remained suspended from Monday and started implementing a flight restoration plan to ensure normal operations on trunk routes with immediate effect.

Air India sources said the airline had been operating a truncated flight schedule in the past four days and had announced cancellation of 111 out of 200 domestic flights originally scheduled for today in advance so that passengers were not inconvenience.

In the five days of the pilots’ agitation,almost 400 flights had been cancelled. As per the truncated schedule,30 flights were operated till 2000 hours today from Delhi.

The national carrier was operating its flights to London,Chicago and Newark in this period despite the stir,the sources said,adding that the non-stop flights to New York from Delhi and Mumbai will resume from tomorrow.

Air India as per a contingency plan had cancelled most of its morning domestic flights and those to Southeast Asia from the national capital. The airline operates around 56 domestic flights each day from Delhi.