Air India asks commanders to greet passengers with 'Jai Hind'

CMD, Ashwani Lohani, says utterance of 'Jai Hind' before take off would make a tremendous impact on passengers in case of delays

Faced with numerous complaints from its customers of being 'inhospitable' and 'insensitive', especially in times of flight delays, Government-run Air India wants to address them with the nationalistic spirit.

According to carrier's Chairman and Managing Director, Ashwani Lohani, using the words 'Jai Hind,' (Victory to India or Long live India) by the flight commander before take off, would make a tremendous impact (on the passengers in case of delays).

"The captain of a flight should often connect with passengers during the journey and, at the end of first address, using the words 'Jai Hind' would make a tremendous impact," Lohani, who is trying to turnaround the loss-making flag carrier said in a recent communication to his employees.

Besides, Lohani in his communication has also asked the staff to be "courteous and polite" to passengers and said wearing a smile would be a "good thing".

In a lengthy message, Lohani also sought to sensitise the employees to the need of ensuring that passengers have a "good experience" with Air India, especially at a time when the carrier is looking to bring about a turnaround in its fortunes.

This comes against the backdrop of multiple incidents in recent times, ranging from controversies involving people with disabilities to bad quality of food, to quarrels among staff, resulting in flight delays.

"The cabin crew should greet the passengers while emplaning and deplaning with a 'namaskaar' as was the tradition. A smile on the face and conversing sweetly and politely without an iota of irritation would be a good thing," Lohani said.

During Aircraft on Ground (AOG) or progressive delay exceeding 30 minutes, Lohani said, the airport manager and the station manager should immediately reach the site and attend to the passengers.

"There should be adequate communication to the passengers and their boarding/lodging needs should be taken care of without delay," he said, adding that station manager and airport manager have to be proactive and positive with a problem solving approach.