NEW DELHI: Tata Group-owned
Air India Express
has
sacked
around 25 of its employees who reported ‘sick leave’ on Wednesday leading to the cancellation of over 90 flights.
“Around 25 employees (
cabin crew
members) of Air India Express Airlines have been terminated after they didn’t report to work, and due to their behaviour, thousands of passengers suffered.
The airline will be issuing a statement in the next 20 minutes”, news agency ANI reported quoting sources.
The crisis at Air India Express occurred at a crucial time, coinciding with the ongoing
merger
process with AIX Connect (formerly AirAsia India). The unrest has added another layer of complexity to the merger, as cabin crew members continue to protest against perceived injustices in their employment terms.
The sudden disruption in operations caused chaos at Delhi Airport as the Air India Express cancelled flights to Goa, Guwahati and Srinagar at the last moment.
The announcement led to a state of confusion and distress among the affected travellers, who congregated around the airline’s counter, visibly upset and demanding explanations. Passengers were seen crowding in front of an Air India Express desk.
Soon after the chaos broke out, the airline asked passengers scheduled to fly Wednesday “to check if their flight is affected before heading” to the airport.
“The situation is dynamic as senior cabin crew are reporting sick at the last minute, just before they are to operate flights. While we are proactively cancelling flights till next Monday, the actual number may differ depending on crew turnout. We are minimising international disruptions and less than 20% of the cancellations will be of our overseas flights,” airline sources said.
The spokesperson said on Wednesday, “While we are engaging with the crew to understand the reasons behind these occurrences, our teams are actively addressing this issue to minimise any inconvenience caused to our guests as a result.”
Passengers affected by the flight cancellations will be offered a
refund
or the option to reschedule their travel at no additional cost, according to the Air India Express spokesperson.
With over 80% aircraft occupancy these days, about 13,000 passengers were affected by the cancellations.
Later, the Tata Group’s airline merger – which operates 350-400 flights daily, of which over 250 are domestic and 120 international – declared to cut about 40 flights daily till May 13.
AI Express cancellations in peak summer are bound to affect travellers as capacity is already constrained – over 75 IndiGo planes are grounded due to snag-ridden Pratt & Whitney engines, GoAir has shutdown, struggling SpiceJet is operating few flights, and deliveries of new aircraft from Airbus and crisis-ridden Boeing have been slower than expected.
