New Delhi:
The strike by Air India pilots is in its third day and neither side is willing to blink first. On Friday, Air India warned that it would fire pilots who did not report to work by 5 pm. With not much time before the deadline elapses, the striking pilots have said all 800 or so of them are ready to get terminated and go to jail but are not willing to return to work.
The pilots have received a text message from the management that says, "All pilots participating directly or indirectly in the illegal strike of ICPA (Indian Commercial Pilots Association) are hereby advised to report back for duties latest by 5pm today." The angry pilots say they shall "tear termination letters as toilet paper."
Refusing to capitulate, they had earlier said they did not want to work in "such a hostile environment" - unless they got an assurance that their raises will be reviewed within a specific time period, they would not head back to office.
The Delhi High Court has meanwhile decided suo motu to initiate contempt proceedings against the striking pilots of the ICPA for flouting its order to resume work. It had yesterday castigated the pilots for defying its order to call off the strike and had issued notices to ICPA office-bearers asking why contempt proceedings should not be initiated against them. A court will hear the matter on Monday.
As the stand-off continues, the patience of passengers is being tested - the airline has been forced to operate just 50 of 320 scheduled flights for today. The strike has already caused the airline a revenue loss of Rs. 26.5 crore till now.
(Read Air India's statement)
The management of the airline declared yesterday that no bookings for domestic flights would be taken till May 3 - an ominous sign as both pilots and the management fail to find common ground. Other airlines are cashing in by hiking their fares - adding a new dimension to passengers' nightmares.
Flights into and out of Delhi and Mumbai are hit the worst. Twelve out of 56 flights are operating out of Mumbai today; 15 of Delhi's 66 flights will take off. So today, the airline has coopted planes from its cheaper strain - Air India Express - to fly passengers from Kerala to the Gulf this morning.
(Read: Air India special flights to clear backlog)
At the heart of the battle is the issue of how much pilots are paid. In 2007, the government merged Air India with Indian Airlines, assuming it would lead to a more cost-efficient national carrier. The desired results are nowhere on the horizon, despite 2000 crore rupees being infused into operations.
The pilots on strike were all originally hired by Indian Airlines; they say that four years after the merger, they are still paid significantly less than the pilots who joined them from Air India. Civil Aviation Minister Vayalar Ravi is not moved by their plight. He said 1600 pilots make 800 crore rupees. "Many of them are plus two, not even graduates, and they are getting Rs. 3.8 lakh a month...I hope sense will prevail upon these people. Are they starving?'' he added.
The Indian Commercial Pilots Association has been derecognised by the airline.
Executive pilots - who handle administrative jobs - and had been asked by the management to fill in for those on strike have begun calling in sick - a thinly-veiled gesture of support for the ICPA.
(With PTI inputs)