The striking pilots of the National airlines Air India have on May 17, 2012 entered in to the tenth day of protest. With the continuation of the agitation between the pilots and the management, the carrier has reported losses of Rs. 188 crores.
A senior official from the Air India’s operation arms said, “We are currently operating under the contingency plan, in which we are operating a bare minimum number of international operations by clubbing flights to destinations in Europe and the US”. The official also revealed that the cancellations of tickets has caused a loss of Rs.188 crores.
The airbus family of aircraft like the A320, A321 and A330 have been deployed by the airline for the international routes. Just eight of its 17 Boeing 777 aircraft belong to the Indian Pilot’s Guild and are normally handled by the pilots who are striking.
Meanwhile, the low cost international wing, Air India Express is also facing the brunt of agitation. The never ending strikes and cancellation has disrupted the holiday and other travel plans of hundreds of passengers. A few days back, the agitation seemed to weaken as some of the pilots returned to work and the management said that it expected more to follow.
