Air India Express crisis: 74 flights canceled today, airline takes major action against crew

Updated on May 9, 2024 at 09:34 IST

The mass sick leave was reportedly prompted by employee dissatisfaction over the merger of Air India and Air Asia, leading to allegations of mistreatment against the crew. As a result, more than 100 flights were canceled between Tuesday evening and Wednesday, affecting around 15,000 passengers.

Air India Express has announced the reduction of its flight services until May 13.

New Delhi: Up to 74 flights with Air India Express were canceled today amid the ongoing crisis that erupted after more than 100 cabin crew took “collective sick leave” on Wednesday.

The massive sick leave was reportedly driven by employee discontent over the merger of Air India and Air Asia, leading to allegations of mistreatment against the crew. As a result, more than 100 flights were canceled on the first day, affecting around 15,000 passengers.

Earlier, the airline announced the reduction of its flight services until May 13. The airline’s CEO Aloke Singh said “disruptions have spread across the network, forcing us to reduce schedules over the coming days.”

Air India Express Firing employees

As the crisis deepened, the Tata group-owned airline terminated employees who had reported sick and sent layoff notices to at least 25 cabin crew members, sources said at Times Now. The airline, in its internal memo to terminated employees, said their act was “a premeditated and concerted abstention from work without any justifiable reason.”

“This refers to your employment with Air India Express Limited (“Company”) as Cabin Crew Manager. It has been reported that you were booked for a flight on 07.05.2024. However, you have informed the team from planning to “At the last minute you were sick and called in sick. It is noted that around the same time, an overwhelming number of other cabin crew also called in sick and did not report for duty,” the memo said.

“This clearly indicates a premeditated and concerted abstention from work without any justifiable reason. As a result of the above, a large number of flights had to be canceled, thereby disrupting the entire program, causing enormous inconvenience to the esteemed passengers of the company “Your act is not only subversive to the public interest, but has also caused embarrassment, serious reputational damage and serious monetary losses to the company,” he said. added.

The airline added: “Your act is not only subversive to the public interest, but has also caused embarrassment, serious reputational damage and serious monetary losses to the company. Your act of reporting illness at work amounts to concerted action with a common understanding. , not to exploit the theft and disrupt the Company’s services. This not only constitutes a violation of applicable laws but is also a violation of the Air India Express Limited Employee Service Rules applicable to you.

What to do if your flight is impacted?

The airline said in a message: “We sincerely apologize for the inconvenience caused by unprecedented flight delays and cancellations. While we work hard to minimize disruption, please check the status of your flight before you travel. return to the airport If your flight is impacted, please contact Tia on WhatsApp or http://airindiaexpress.com/support for refund and rescheduling assistance.

Meanwhile, the Union Ministry of Civil Aviation has asked the airline for a detailed report on flight delays and cancellations. He asked Air India Express to take prompt steps to resolve the crisis immediately.