Vistara Airlines announced on Sunday that it would reduce flight operations by approximately 10 percent, equivalent to around 25-30 flights daily, in response to a crisis stemming from a shortage of pilots and crew.
The joint venture of the Tata Group and Singapore Airlines had originally planned to operate over 300 flights daily for the summer schedule. However, pilot absenteeism, as part of a protest against extended work hours and revised salary structures ahead of Vistara's merger with Air India, led to disruptions in flight schedules.
In a statement, the company noted that they were scaling back operations to the same level as at the end of February 2024, representing about a 10% reduction in capacity. This adjustment is aimed at providing resilience and flexibility in managing crew rosters.
The flight cancellations primarily affect the domestic network and are being announced well in advance to minimize inconvenience to passengers. Vistara assured that affected passengers have been re-accommodated on other flights.
The airline recently canceled over 125 flights within three days starting from April 1, prompting the aviation regulator DGCA to request daily reports on cancellations and delays.
CEO Vinod Kannan expressed hope that operations would stabilize before May, emphasizing that over 98 percent of pilots have accepted the new contract terms.
Vistara, with a staff strength of 6,500 including 1,000 pilots and 2,500 cabin crew, is currently in the process of merging with Air India.
