(APRIL,
2003)
Another
18 pilots suspended
Mumbai,
Apr 29: Air-India on Tuesday suspended 18
more pilots for turning down and "abandoning"
flights at various stations. With this, 45 pilots
owing allegiance to the Indian Pilots' Guild have
been suspended so far since April 26. They have
been refusing to operate flights, demanding a
certificate that no accompanying crew, cockpit
or cabin, had flown to Sars-affected regions.
A-I suspends
15 more pilots
New
Delhi, Apr 27: Air-India on Sunday suspended
15 more agitating pilots, taking the total number
of suspensions so far to 27. Twelve pilots were
suspended on Saturday. The pilots are refusing
to fly with any crew who has been to a Sars-affected
region in the past 10 days. But the demand has
been outrightly rejected by the civil aviation
ministry. Even as the strike continued, most of
the AI flights were cancelled on Sunday. Only
two of the eight early morning flights took off
from New Delhi's Indira Gandhi International Airport
and were re-routed through Mumbai.
As a contingency plan the airline operated two
special Boeing 747 flights out of Delhi. The airline
is also contemplating to hire six-seven retired
pilots to augment the strength of its executive
pilots that number around 160. The Pilots Guild
had asked its members not to fly to countries
such as Hong Kong and Singapore to reduce their
chances of exposure to the flu-like Sars virus.
The move had forced the airline to cancel several
flights to South-east Asia, which has been hit
hard by the virus. Jitendra Bhargava, A-I spokesman,
accused the Guild of being unfair in several cases
in the past.
Air India
gets tough with pilots (Go
To Top)
Mumbai,
Apr 26: State-owned Air India on Saturday
asked its pilots' union to withdraw all directives
against operating flights to Sars-affected region.
The 200-member strong Indian Pilots Guild (IPG)
had earlier this month refused to fly to Sars-affected
countries. The pilots have refused to operate
other flights as well unless they are provided
with a certificate that the accompanying crew
had not travelled to Sars-affected regions during
the past 10 days. After talks broke down with
the pilots' guild in Mumbai, airline management
termed the IPG's directives as unreasonable. The
Indian Pilots Guild (IPG) was told in categorical
terms that various directives issued by IPG in
the past three weeks like merits and justification
were totally unreasonable. These directives should
therefore be withdrawn forthwith for restoration
of normalcy in Air India's operations. It was
explained to the IPG that their directives have
no justification considering that premier international
organisations like World Health Organisation and
health authorities of Government of India have
been categorical that there is no risk involved
to a crew member while operating a flight to Hong
Kong or Singapore." Jitendra Bhargava, Public
Relations Officer, Air India, later told reporters.
The pilots have been asked to resume duty till
late Saturday evening or face disciplinary action.
The state carrier had been managing with its 159
non-unionised executive pilots but the crisis
escalated last Wednesday when the non-union members
joined in the agitation as well. Hundreds of passengers
across India have been left stranded but Air India
says it is making alternative arrangements and
normal flights would be restored soon. "Some flights
have been cancelled by us to Hong Kong and Singapore
as passengers going to those countries have come
down. But if we cancel all flights from there,
our operations will be hit by 50 per cent. We
will announce through advertisements in newspapers
about whatever alternative arrangements we make,"
Bhargava said. Air India flights to Hong Kong,
where 109 people have died from Sars, were curtailed
earlier this month.
Airline officials have affirmed that flights to
the United States and Europe will operate normally
but short-haul flights will be affected because
of the new directive. India has so far confirmed
five cases of Sars. Experts say the country's
overloaded health system is ill-equipped to deal
with a major outbreak.
AI suspends
flights to Singapore (Go
To Top)
Mumbai, Apr 19: Air India has temporarily
suspended its flights from Delhi and Hyderabad
to Singapore with effect from Monday due to the
increasing scare about Sars (severe acute respiratory
syndrome), a company release said on Saturday.
The release also stated that the airline will
now operate 10 instead of 14 flights a week out
of Mumbai and Chennai. Flights to Kuala Lumpur
and Jakarta, to which some of the Singapore flights
are extended in the normal schedule, will also
be discontinued for some time.
AI
has been compelled to effect these changes in
the schedule keeping in view the availability
of executive pilots to operate services to Singapore,
an AI spokesman said. The Indian Pilots Guild
had earlier this month directed its members not
to operate flights to Hong Kong due to SARS.
IA pilots
reluctant to fly to Sars-infected countries (Go
To Top)
New Delhi, Apr 9: Indian Airlines pilots are
unmilling to fly to countries reeling under the
SARS virus threat. They have reportedly written
to the management and the Ministry of Civil Aviation
to this effect. Singapore and Hong Kong are primarily
included in the list. A large number of people
there have been afflicted with SARS and there
has been little check in the spread of the virus.
The pilots have given a detailed proposal to the
ministry listing out various alternatives, including
a layover in a neighbouring country.
Indira
Gandhi International Airport Under CISF Umbrella
(Go
To Top)
New
Delhi, Apr 2: The Central Industrial
Security Force took charge of security of the
Indira Gandhi International Airport here on Wednesday.
The CISF will be in charge of access control to
the terminal buildings, perimeter security, anti-hijacking
activities and of guarding vital points and installations.
Union civil aviation minister Syed Shahnawaz Hussain
presided over the function. Until now, Delhi police
was looking after security of the airport.
With
an annual volume of half a million passengers
and more than 35 airlines operating to major cities
across the world, the Indira Gandhi International
Airport is the second busiest airport in India.
The airport has also become the 46th airport in
the country whose security is being put under
the direct control of the CISF. Set up in 1969
with a strength of around 2,800 personnel, CISF
is now one of the largest paramilitary forces
of the nation with a strength of over 95,485 personnel.
At present, it is providing security cover to
over 267 public sector undertakigns located all
over the country which includes vital industrial
sectors like atomic power plants, space installations
and defence production units.
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