Akasa Air pilots resign: The sudden resignation of the pilots has forced the carrier to cancel 24 flights per day in September.
The newly launched Akasa Air is in a state of crisis and might have to shut down, following the resignations of 43 pilots, the airline told Delhi High Court on Tuesday. The sudden resignation of the pilots has forced the carrier to cancel 24 flights per day in September. Akasa Air, later in a statement, added that they are prepared for “unforeseen circumstances and have contingency management strategies”. They also said that they have a strong financial profile.
According to a report in Business Standard, since the pilots did not serve their mandatory notice period of 6 months (for first officers) or 1 year (for captains), Akasa Air was forced to cancel scores of flights each day, the airline’s counsel told Justice Manmeet Pritam Singh Arora.
The pilots have reportedly joined Akasa Air’s rival airlines. The report, citing sources, stated that a top executive wrote a letter to a rival group expressing the airline’s concerns over the pilots’ exit and called it unethical.
As it stands, Akasa Air, that operates 120 flights a day, is expecting to cancel 600-700 flights this month alone if the resignations continue. It had cancelled 700 flights in August. The airline has requested the court to empower Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) to enforce the mandatory notice period rules.