Air India Pilots Go on Strike Demanding Clearance of Dues

Media reports say that Air India already cleared dues of 800 commercial pilots who had threatened to go on strike.

Air India aircraft. (Photo: Reuters)

Air India pilots refused to work post 10 May if their dues were not cleared by the company.

Air India, which recently reported an increase in its profit for the first time in a decade, failed to pay 800 pilots.

The Indian Commercial Pilots Association (ICPA) threatened to go on a strike in a letter to Air India Chairman and Managing Director Ashwani Lohani.

The letter, written by the General Secretary of ICPA, Captain T Praveen Keerthi read as follows:

We have got written commitment from your office that the flying allowance will be paid on May 5, 2016 but looks like the management has gone back to its old feat of defaulting on commitments. This is greatly affecting our livelihood, defaulting on EMIs and further commitments. In lieu of the above, we will be directing our members:

• 1. Not to undertake any flying duties till our legitimate payment rewards flying allowance is made as per MoCA approval.
  
• 2. Effective 10 May 2016, we will not undertake any international layover flight if the international layover allowance is not paid.
  

The management had signed an agreement with the pilots in January 2016 agreeing to pay them by 10 April. The date of payment was later shifted to 2 May, 3 May and finally to 5 May.

However, according to a News18 report, Air India paid the due account to the pilots on 6 May, within hours of the threat of the strike.