Solve AI issue till June, else national carrier won't be able to run: Senior Air India official

If some concrete solution of the Air India (AI) issue is not found till June next year, then the national carrier will not be able to run, said a senior official of AI on Monday.

"If some concrete solution of the Air India issue is not found till June next year, then the national carrier will not be able to run. May shut the airline," the official told ANI.

The development comes days after the Indian Commercial Pilots Association (ICPA) wrote to Civil Aviation Minister Hardeep Singh Puri, asking him to clear pending dues of pilots and commanders of AI, who, they claimed, have not been paid flying allowances and salaries on time for the last 2-3 years.

In the letter dated December 23, ICPA said: "We humbly request you to clear our legitimate dues without any further delay as stated by you as our patience is running thin and we are in no position to continue working with uncertainty looming large at Air India."

"We do not want to face the same fate as other employees of 21 private carriers that have shut down and further add to the rising unemployment in India. We hope the Government of India will be sensitive towards our concerns and ensure our livelihood is not affected," reads the letter further.