New Delhi: After facing significant flight disruptions due to crew unavailability, Vistara chief Vinod Kannan said the airline will review the current rostering system after discussions with pilots and stressed that the number of employees There is no abnormal growth.
The Tata group airline, which is in the process of merging with AI India, has temporarily reduced flight operations to ensure availability of adequate pilot buffer and the situation is expected to return to normal by May.
According to the airline, the increased roster due to high utilization of pilots is the main reason for the recent disruptions, while there are also concerns among a section of pilots about the new contract, which will also result in wage revision.
In an interview with PTI on Friday, Kannan said that during a town hall with pilots, some concerns were raised about rostering and pilots were told that the airline will look into how to review the rostering process. Can.
Of the airline's total workforce of approximately 6,500 people, 1,000 are pilots.
Within the pilot group, there are people with different profiles and pilots bidding for different lifestyles on the airline's advanced rostering system.Kannan said, among others, there are some who like to fly more and there are some who do not want to stop.
"We're going back to the pilots to get their views and input, to see how it (the rostering system) is working, and what their thoughts are... whether it should be modified, whether they Improvements should be made.
"So that conversation will happen. Obviously, we cannot have different roster systems for different groups of pilots. We have to adopt what the majority agrees with. So, we are working on that," the Vistara chief said. .,
For the May roster, he said the airline would try to incorporate some feedback from pilots to the extent possible.
On the question of some first executives leaving the job and joining other airlines, he said the airline has not seen any unusual increase in attrition.
Recently, about 15 first officers left the carrier.
"We've always had a certain level of layoffs that happen..., including pilots. We haven't seen any unusual increase compared to that... We're continuing to hire," Kannan said.
Kannan said in a statement on Saturday that more than 98 percent of the pilots have signed the new contract.He said in the statement, "We are aware that some pilots have some concerns and questions regarding the contract. We are in dialogue with them to clarify and resolve this. However, this will not cause any increase in tension among the pilots. happened."
Asked whether pilots were facing uncertainties due to the proposed merger with Air India, Kannan on Friday insisted that the merger is largely about growth.
“If you look at the opportunities available in the merged entity, there are 400 to 500 aircraft coming in... From a pilot's perspective, I don't think it is easy enough to find that kind of opportunity to move forward, Be it for command progression or going into detailed bodies.
He said, “In fact, the process has already started, some of our pilots have already moved to Air India, for example, to move (to operate) on the A350.,
The merger is expected to be completed by mid-2025.
Vistara is jointly owned by Tata and Singapore Airlines.
The Tata group airline, which is in the process of merging with AI India, has temporarily reduced flight operations to ensure availability of adequate pilot buffer and the situation is expected to return to normal by May.
According to the airline, the increased roster due to high utilization of pilots is the main reason for the recent disruptions, while there are also concerns among a section of pilots about the new contract, which will also result in wage revision.
In an interview with PTI on Friday, Kannan said that during a town hall with pilots, some concerns were raised about rostering and pilots were told that the airline will look into how to review the rostering process. Can.
Of the airline's total workforce of approximately 6,500 people, 1,000 are pilots.
Within the pilot group, there are people with different profiles and pilots bidding for different lifestyles on the airline's advanced rostering system.Kannan said, among others, there are some who like to fly more and there are some who do not want to stop.
"We're going back to the pilots to get their views and input, to see how it (the rostering system) is working, and what their thoughts are... whether it should be modified, whether they Improvements should be made.
"So that conversation will happen. Obviously, we cannot have different roster systems for different groups of pilots. We have to adopt what the majority agrees with. So, we are working on that," the Vistara chief said. .,
For the May roster, he said the airline would try to incorporate some feedback from pilots to the extent possible.
On the question of some first executives leaving the job and joining other airlines, he said the airline has not seen any unusual increase in attrition.
Recently, about 15 first officers left the carrier.
"We've always had a certain level of layoffs that happen..., including pilots. We haven't seen any unusual increase compared to that... We're continuing to hire," Kannan said.
Kannan said in a statement on Saturday that more than 98 percent of the pilots have signed the new contract.He said in the statement, "We are aware that some pilots have some concerns and questions regarding the contract. We are in dialogue with them to clarify and resolve this. However, this will not cause any increase in tension among the pilots. happened."
Asked whether pilots were facing uncertainties due to the proposed merger with Air India, Kannan on Friday insisted that the merger is largely about growth.
“If you look at the opportunities available in the merged entity, there are 400 to 500 aircraft coming in... From a pilot's perspective, I don't think it is easy enough to find that kind of opportunity to move forward, Be it for command progression or going into detailed bodies.
He said, “In fact, the process has already started, some of our pilots have already moved to Air India, for example, to move (to operate) on the A350.,
The merger is expected to be completed by mid-2025.
Vistara is jointly owned by Tata and Singapore Airlines.
