Cabin crew shortage hits Air India flight operations
The information about crew shortage has been floating since last year. Air India pilots, in fact, in December had threatened strike over long working hours and unfair compensation by the management
At least two ultra-long-haul Air India flights were delayed on Sunday allegedly due to the shortage of cabin crew and airline pilots, officials aware of the matter told HT.
“Air India flights to Chicago and Toronto operating on Sunday have been delayed for around 14 hours and one flight to San Francisco has been cancelled due to the cockpit and cabin crew constraints,” an official close to the matter said.
According to an airline official, they were working towards resolving the matter soon.
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“The airline is aware of the issues created due to cockpit and cabin crew shortage and is working to sort the matter,” said the official, adding that the airline has faced some major flight disruptions since last month.
Speaking to airline officials, it was learnt that the crew was unable to manage constant pullouts and changes in the roster.
“Both, pilots and cabin crew are overworked and yet to receive the pay hike that has been promised for several months now,” another airline official said.
The information about crew shortage has been floating since last year. Air India pilots, in fact, in December had threatened strike over long working hours and unfair compensation by the management.
In a letter written to the Air India management, pilots alleged that Air India has been hiring Expat pilots with 80% salary hikes whereas their salaries have not been restored to the pre-COVID levels.
Expat pilots come at a higher cost compared to those pilots working in India.
In November last year, the Tata group-owned Air India announced plans to hire expat pilots for its Boeing 777 planes as the airline is facing a shortage of pilots amid plans to expand its fleet as well as international operations.