Produced by: Smriti
Designed by: Manoj Kumar
Akasa Air, the latest entrant in the Indian civil aviation space, has been forced to cut flights in the short-term after many of its pilots quit abruptly, without serving the mandatory notice period
Reportedly, 40 of more than 450 pilots have quit recently, leading to cancellations of around 18 per cent of the 3,500 flights it usually runs a month in August. The budget airline is suing some of the pilots, many of who have reportedly joined rival Air India Express, for alleged contractual violations
The low-cost airline has also warned in Court that it might have to shut down if the exits continue. Under Indian aviation regulations, pilots are required to serve notice periods of 6-12 months, a rule that has faced legal challenges from pilot organization
Amid headwinds, the airline accused aviation regulator Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) of causing it "significant financial and operational hardship" by not intervening to stop pilots from abruptly quitting and disrupting operations, according to a Reuters report
"We have chosen to fly less and give up market share... these are only short-term constraints," the company's CEO Vinay Dube told employees in an e-mail, according to the Reuters report. He also expressed confidence in the company's "strong finances"
It may be noted that Akasa Air's domestic market share declined to 4.2 per cent in August from 5.2 per cent in July as pilot shortage led to cancellation of many flights last month. The low-cost airline reportedly flew just 5.27 lakh passengers last month whereas it ferried 6.42 lakh people in July
The low-budget carrier was started by billionaire trader Rakesh Jhunjhunwala, CEO Vinay Dube and former IndiGo president Aditya Ghosh in 2022. Jhunjhunwala passed away soon after the airline commenced operations on August 7. The airline has now said it expects to cancel over 700 flights in September
The airline, which currently has a fleet of 20 aircraft, recently received approval from the civil aviation ministry for starting international flights and the first overseas flight is likely by year-end. With the current crisis, it remains to be seen how the plan folds out
The trouble at Akasa Air comes at a time of deep polarisation in India's aviation industry with IndiGo, the country's biggest carrier, and Tata-owned Air India controlling nearly two-thirds of the market, while Go Air struggles to come out of bankruptcy and SpiceJet faces a funding crunch