Air India pilots’ unions claim shortage of pilots at airline

Two pilot unions at Air India have claimed that there is a shortage of pilots to operate the airline’s long-haul and ultra-long haul flights.

The concerns raised by the Indian Pilots Guild (IPG) and Indian Commercial Pilots Association (ICPA) also come against the backdrop of the Tatas-owned airline recently cancelling and rescheduling certain flights to and from THE North American region due to crew shortage.

In a joint letter written to Air India’s Chief Human Resources Officer Suresh Dutt Tripathi on December 13, the unions said, “…we cannot maintain the printed planned roster due to a shortage of pilots, as CMS (crew management system) does not have standby pilots.” There was no immediate comment from Air India on the letter.