Govt, AI striking pilots meet, to again talk today

After seven days of standoff, Air India pilots finally came to the negotiating table today. Joint secretary (civil aviation) Prashant Sukul and ministry officials met representatives of the Indian Commercial Pilots Association (ICPA) in a bid to end the strike, which has disrupted the government-owned carrier’s domestic service.

However, the first such meeting between pilots and the government remained inconclusive. Civil Aviation Secretary Nasim Zaidi said ground had been prepared to take the talks to the next level tomorrow, so that the airline management may also take part. ‘’There was no conclusion to the talks today but most points have been covered. The rest will be addressed in tomorrow’s talks,’’ he said.

This was a day after the high court here had issued contempt notices to nine of the strike leaders. As they’d also been dismissed before this, the court also asked the AI management to consider reinstating them. Far from calling off the strike, the pilots sent another letter to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh yesterday, demanding his intervention and to probe corruption in the airline.

Meanwhile, as AI services remained crippled for the eighth day today, the airline is preparing to induct capacity on a wet lease (the term for a short-term lease, whereby aircraft is borrowed for a specified period from another airline, with the crew, maintenance and insurance). An advertisement in this regard is being issued tomorrow, a statement said.

The airline operated only 40 of the 320 daily normal flights. It said it had taken a number of measures till date, including flying 18 chartered flights — 16 domestic and two international — with aircraft taken from Kingfisher Airlines and Air Arabia.

“Over 12,000 Air India passengers have been transferred to other domestic and international carriers at the four metros. Operations of all international flights, Gulf flights and regional flights are 100 per cent normal,” added the release.

About 800 pilots of the ICPA and around 200 executive pilots who were with the now-defunct Indian Airlines are on strike since April 26 midnight, demanding parity in wages with their counterparts from the erstwhile Air India.

IA was merged with AI in 2007. The carrier has suffered estimated revenue losses of at least Rs 100 crore during the strike. So far, nine pilots have been dismissed and six suspended. The HC yesterday slapped contempt notices on nine office bearers of the ICPA for disobeying its order to call off the strike, while deciding to take up the matter on May 25.