Cancellation of Air India Express flights puts passengers in difficult situation

KOCHI

Air India Express canceled four international flights scheduled early on May 8 (Wednesday), triggering protests from stranded passengers at the Cochin International Airport. Many passengers demanded alternative flight arrangements on May 8 (Wednesday) itself to enable them to join their duties and avoid possible job loss.

According to Wednesday’s schedule available online, a flight to Sharjah, Bahrain, Dammam and Muscat from Kochi between 2:05 a.m. and 8:50 a.m. was canceled. A previous flight to Dubai took off after midnight on Tuesday. Among the canceled flights was one to Bangalore, scheduled for 7 a.m. on Wednesday. It is unclear whether the cancellation of domestic flights has anything to do with the disruptions in the international sector.

A communication from the airline indicates that some cabin crew called in sick at the last minute, starting yesterday evening, leading to flight delays and cancellations. “While we speak with crew to understand the reasons for these events, our teams are actively addressing this issue to minimize any inconvenience caused to our guests.” It is learned that a section of Air India Express employees resorted to a flash strike, taking the airline by surprise.

The communication added: “We sincerely apologize to our customers for this unexpected disruption and emphasize that this situation does not reflect the level of service we strive to provide. Customers affected by cancellations will be offered a full refund or free rescheduling to another date. Customers traveling with us today are asked to check whether their flight is affected before traveling to the airport.

Airline industry sources said Air India Express was going through a transition period and it appeared that issues were still being resolved. Some employees also expressed their dissatisfaction with the salary scales, which could be the cause of unexpected industrial action.

Eom/Mka