India's struggling carrier Akasa blames regulator "inaction" as pilots quit

Spicejet

21/09/2023 12:08

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      Akasa Air asks regulator to act against pilots -filing
    

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      Pilot exits led to 632 flight cancellations in Aug -filing
    

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      Aviation regulator will respond in court to Akasa's plea
    

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      More than 40 pilots have resigned in recent months
    

  
    By Arpan  Chaturvedi
       NEW DELHI, Sept 21 (Reuters) - Indian budget carrier
Akasa Air has accused the aviation regulator of causing it
"significant financial and operational hardship" by not
intervening to stop pilots from abruptly quitting and disrupting
operations, legal filings showed.
    Over 40 of more than 450 pilots have recently quit Akasa
without serving their notice, leading to cancellations of around
18% of the 3,500 flights it usually runs a month in August. 
    Akasa is suing some of the pilots for alleged contractual
violations, and has warned in court that it might have to shut
down if the exits continue. 
    India mandates a notice period of 6-12 months for pilots
which some pilot organisations are challenging in court. Akasa
argues its contractual obligations with pilots remain in force,
and is suing the regulator for not intervening in the public
interest.
        In its 265-page legal filing, made on Sept. 14 and seen
by Reuters, Akasa accused the Directorate General of Civil
Aviation (DGCA) of being "unwilling to take any action", which
resulted in "significant financial and operational hardship" as
well as "reputational loss".
    The DGCA's inaction has a "cascading effect on the
stability" of the Indian aviation sector, it added.
    A DGCA official said the regulator cannot comment, as the
case was being heard in court. An Akasa spokesperson said the
airline was in discussion with the DGCA on the matter.
    The DGCA will present its response at a hearing on Friday.
    Launched in August 2022, Akasa is India's newest airline but
it is not the only one dealing with challenges. Go Air, which is
grounded, is facing bankruptcy, and SpiceJet  SPJT.BO  is
struggling amid a funding crunch.
    Akasa's market share in August fell to 4.2% from 5.2% in
July. 
    The filings showed that before going to court, Akasa wrote
to Aviation Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia, saying sudden pilot
resignations would "encourage" foreign airlines to resort to
similar poaching practices, and given the global shortage of
pilots, the "impact in India will be felt very soon". 
    Akasa also told the court it had made alternate bookings for
passengers whose flights were cancelled, saying it was "absurd"
that it was buying tickets from airlines to which its pilots are
"defecting".
    The aviation ministry did not immediately respond to a
request for comment.

 (Reporting by Arpan  Chaturvedi; Additional reporting by Aditi
Shah; editing by Aditya Kalra and Jason Neely and Miral Fahmy)
 ((Arpan.Chaturvedi@thomsonreuters.com;))