Page 8 - Akasa Air

Stabilising the talent battle

CEOs grappling with talent challenges could draw inspiration from the structured transfer window system used in European football leagues

Chief executives of Air India, Akasa joust over poaching of pilots

The rare verbal and written confrontations between the airlines' chief executives were detailed in the letter, sent by Campbell Wilson of Air India, which is owned by the Tata Group conglomerate

Akasa Air plans to list on bourses by end of the decade: CEO Vinay Dube

India's newest airline Akasa Air, which is set to soon fly on international routes and will be placing a three-digit aircraft order, plans to list on the bourses by the end of the decade, its Chief Executive Officer Vinay Dube told PTI. The 14-month-old Akasa Air, which already operates more than 750 weekly flights across 16 domestic destinations, including Mumbai, Ahmedabad, Bengaluru and Delhi, is looking at "gathering a little more history" before launching an initial public offering (IPO), he said. The airline plans to start international services by the end of this fiscal and has placed a firm order for 76 Boeing 737 MAX aeroplanes, all of which will join its fleet by mid-2027. Currently, Akasa Air has a fleet of 20 aircraft and is looking to place an order for three-digit aircraft before the end of 2023, he noted. Dube, the founder and CEO, said the airline is already generating free cash from operations and is well-funded for the new aircraft order it is going to place. Abo

Looking at a mix of int'l destinations, not just West Asia: Akasa Air CEO

(Pilot row) one of the things we didn't plan for because it is unimaginable, says Vinay Dube

Airline dead set against no-poaching pact for pilots: Akasa Air CEO

Akasa Air might be slowly coming out of the turbulence caused by sudden pilots' exits but the airline's chief Vinay Dube is "dead set against" the idea of having any kind of no-poaching agreement between airlines, asserting that it will not be right. The airline, which has been flying for more than a year, has more than 450 pilots and the number will go up as it expands the fleet from 20 aircraft now. "We had about 330 pilots in April. Approximately, 40 went away without (serving) notice period or with one day, two days or less than 24 hours. Today, we have little over 450 pilots... between April and today, we have probably added about a third of additional pilots despite a small number leaving," Akasa Air Founder and CEO Vinay Dube told PTI. Following the sudden exit of pilots, many of whom apparently joined another carrier, Akasa Air had to cancel some flights in July and August. The carrier's market share also took a hit due to the cancellations. Also, the airline has initiated

Akasa cancels flights from Bengaluru, airline says network 'rationalised'

Akasa Air, which is facing headwinds due to pilot issues, has cancelled some flights from Bengaluru, sources said on Thursday, while the airline stated it has rationalised the network to ensure high operational reliability. Bengaluru is the hub for the carrier, which operates around 700 flights daily. Sources said the airline, which has been flying for more than a year, has cancelled some flights from Bengaluru. However, specific details could not be immediately ascertained. "As we have mentioned before in the July-August 2023 timeframe, when a small set of pilots abandoned their duties and left the organisation without serving their mandatory contractual notice period, we were forced to cancel a number of flights. "Since then, we have rationalised our network to ensure that we offer our customers the highest levels of operational reliability, as we did for the first 11 months of our operation," an Akasa Air spokesperson said in a statement. The airline flies to 16 cities. Accord

On-time performance of all Indian carriers falls in September, shows data

An airline executive mentioned that key cities like Delhi and Mumbai experienced heavy rainfall on certain days in September, compelling the airlines to either cancel or postpone flights

Pilot exodus: Akasa stops flights on 8 routes, reduces service on 10 others

The airline's spokesperson said that the airline is poised to take delivery of additional aircraft from Boeing in the remainder of 2023-24

Bomb threat triggers emergency landing of Akasa flight in Varanasi

The aircraft landed on a separate runway and passengers were disembarked immediately. CISF personnel conducted a thorough search of the plane for about an hour. Nothing was found during checking

Weekend Bites: Akasa pilots, Netflix, Byju's woes, AI's fear and loathing

In which we munch over the week's platter of news and views

Bomb threat: Akasa Air plane makes emergency landing at Varanasi airport

An Akasa aircraft from Mumbai with 166 people onboard made an emergency landing at Varanasi airport on Friday after the airline received a bomb threat message on social media, according to an airline spokesperson. The airline said the captain of the flight QP 1498 received an "emergency alert" from the Varanasi Air Traffic Controller and followed all required emergency procedures and landed the plane safely at Varanasi. "At 1130 am, Akasa Air got a bomb threat message on social media. We informed the local police in Mumbai and initiated the procedure for filing an FIR," the spokesperson said. Subsequently, the emergency response mechanism was put in place and as part of the security protocol, the airline informed all the 16 airports from where it operates about the bomb threat and put them on alert, the spokesperson said. The spokesperson said the threat was later categorised as "non-specific". According to the airline, there were 166 people onboard, including 159 passengers, 1 .

Air India crafts action plan to resolve spectrum of pilot concerns

In light of pilots identifying errors in flight plans, the airline will randomly scrutinise five per cent of dispatched flight plans for enhanced oversight

Bombay HC allows Akasa Air to proceed with suit against former pilots

Rejecting the pilots' plea, the court stated that the cause of action, including the act of resignation, fell within its jurisdiction

Bombay HC allows Akasa Air to proceed with case against pilots in Mumbai

Justice SM Modak said that the actions rose within its jurisdiction as resignations were accepted by the company in Mumbai

Notice period only justified if airline invested in training: Air India CEO

The comment comes at a time when India's youngest carrier Akasa Air has taken legal action against its 43 former Boeing 737 pilots who resigned without serving the notice period of six months

Delhi HC to pass order on Sept 27 on Akasa's plea for action against pilots

Delhi High Court is scheduled to pass an order on September 27, 2023, on a plea moved by Akasa Air against pilots who have resigned without serving the mandatory notice period

Akasa Air in the middle of crisis: How bad could the pilot shortage be?

With Indian aviation staring at a potential scramble for pilots, airlines such as Akasa can feel deflated

Amid pilot turmoil, Akasa Air mulling raising up to $400 million

The fundraising plan could involve fresh equity issuances of $75-100 million each and is set to be carried out over the next 12-18 months

Bombay HC reserves order on plea maintainability in Akasa-pilot matter

The order, which will now be pronounced on 27 September, will decide if the troubled airline can proceed with the case before the Bombay High Court

Can't interfere in employment pact between Akasa, pilots: DGCA in Delhi HC

The bench of Justice Manmeet Pritam Arora recently kept the order reserved and asked the concerned parties to file their written synopsis