Vistara merger: Air India pilots unhappy over differing retirement age

A section of Air India pilots is unhappy in the run-up to the Vistara merger over different retirement age limits for pilots of the two Tata Group-owned airlines as the management is yet to address the issue, according to sources.

At Air India, which was owned by the government since the 1950s and came into the Tata fold in 2022, the retirement age for pilots and other staff is 58 years, whereas at Vistara it is 60 years.

Vistara -- jointly owned by Tata Group and Singapore Airlines -- is set to be merged with Air India on November 11 as part of the salt-to-steel conglomerate's consolidation of its aviation business.

The sources said resentment is brewing among a section of Air India pilots as the management is yet to formulate a common superannuation age for the integrated entity.

Air India did not comment on the issue.

"There is a lot of resentment among a section of Air India pilots ahead of the Vistara merger over the retirement age limit.

"While the management was prompt in bringing parity in terms of salary structure and other working conditions of the employees of the two airlines as part of the merger process, it is yet to address the issue of two different retirement age limits," a source said on the condition of anonymity.

The sources said the anomaly puts the Air India pilots at a "disadvantage" vis-a-vis their Vistara counterparts, who will be getting two more years of service.

Under the current DGCA regulations, a pilot can serve up to the age of 65 years.

In August this year, Air India announced a policy stating that it will retain select pilots on a contract basis for a period of five years after retirement with provision to extend it till the age of 65 years.

"Air India management needs to fix this anomaly by raising the retirement age limit of its employees also to 60 years.

"Air India pilots have already got a raw deal with the common seniority list, where many pilots have become junior in the seniority list compared to the Vistara pilots despite being more experienced and having more years in service," the source claimed.

In January 2022, Tata Group took control of Air India, along with its international budget subsidiary Air India Express.