Vistara woes: Air India weighs sending narrow-body A320 pilots on deputation to fix shortage

The pilots will be sent to Vistara on deputation, subject to getting necessary regulatory approvals, said the report citing sources. Vistara and Air India are two airlines of Tata Group.

The number of narrow-body aircraft pilots likely to be deputed to Vistara could be a little over 30, it added. 

ALSO READ: At Vistara, some employees are caught in merger turbulence

“For operating Vistara’s wide-body Boeing 787 planes, around 24 pilots are already on deputation from Air India. They include 16 commanders and eight first officers,” the report also said.

Recently, the Tata Group airline faced significant flight disruptions as many pilots reported sick, resulting in cancellations.

Pilots are protesting against the new contract that will result in pay revisions and roster issues.

On April 7, Vistara had announced a cut of 10 per cent in capacity or 25-30 flights daily. 

ALSO READ: Vistara to curtail flights in April as it stabilises operations

“We are carefully scaling back our operations by around 25-30 flights per day, i.e. roughly 10 per cent of the capacity we were operating. This will take us back to the same level of flight operations as at the end of February 2024, and provide the much-needed resilience and buffer in the rosters,” Vistara had said in a statement.

On Friday, Vistara CEO Vinod Kannan had said that a stretched roster was the key reason for the flight disruptions.

Vistara is a joint venture between the Tata Group and Singapore Airlines. 

The airline has around 6,500 staff, including 1,000 pilots and 2,500 cabin crew. It is in the process of merging with Air India.

Vistara owns a fleet of 70 aircraft, including 53 Airbus A320 neos, 10 Airbus A321s, and 7 Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner.

The airline has a domestic market share of 9.9 per cent.

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Published: 10 Apr 2024, 06:05 PM IST