- By Radha Basnet
- Tue, 02 Apr 2024 01:05 PM (IST)
- Source:JND
Vistara Flights Crisis: Vistara is expected to cancel around 70 flights on Tuesday as the airline grapples with a shortage of pilots. Taking cognisance of the flight delays and cancellations, the Directorate General Of Civil Aviation (DGCA) has asked Vistara Airlines to submit a daily report and directed the air carrier to ensure minimum inconvenience to passengers. Earlier today, the Ministry of Civil Aviation (MoCA) sought a detailed report from Vistara regarding flight cancellations and major delays. Over 100 flights have been cancelled or delayed in the past week.
"We have had a significant number of flight cancellations and delays in the past few days due to various reasons including crew unavailability. We acknowledge and are deeply concerned about the inconvenience this has caused to our customers," a spokesperson of Vistara said in a statement as reported by news agency ANI.
5O Flights Cancelled On Monday
On April 1, the airline cancelled over 50 flights and delayed at least 160 more. In addition, Vistara said it will cancel flights over the coming days as the shortage of pilots deepens further. While issuing an apology for the inconvenience caused to the customers, the airline said that they are temporarily reducing the number of flights and are also offering alternate flight options or refunds to affected customers.
"We have decided to temporarily reduce the number of flights we operate, to ensure adequate connectivity across our network. We have also deployed larger aircraft like our B787-9 Dreamliner and A321neo on select domestic routes to combine flights or accommodate more number of customers, wherever possible," the spokesperson added.
Vistara-Air India Merge Deal
In November 2022, it was announced that Vistara and Air India would merge under a deal wherein Singapore Airlines would buy a 25.1 per cent share in Air India. Vistara is a joint venture between Tata Group and Singapore Airlines.
Why Pilots Are Unhappy?
Currently, the Vistara airline is undergoing a merger with Air India. The two airlines were brought under a uniform pay structure in March. Under the new structure, Vistara pilots will now receive a fixed income for 40 flying hours instead of the prior 70 hours.
When asked, several pilots expressed dissatisfaction following the merger order, citing concerns about pay parity issues arising soon after the process of merger with Air India.
However, a Vistara official denies these claims, stating that, "they are not true." Later, in an official statement, a Vistara spokesperson emphasised that flight delays and cancellations are not solely due to pilot shortages but also other issues.
(With Agencies Inputs)
