Worst is behind us, says Vistara CEO to employees as airline trims network

Now, the company expects stable operations going ahead, said Vinod Kannan, chief executive officer of the company, in an internal message to its employees. “I assure you that the worst is behind us, and we have already stabilized our operations, with our on-time performance increasing to 89% on 9 April (second highest among all Indian airlines),” he wrote, in a memo that has been reviewed by Mint.

The Delhi-based airline has cancelled 30-50 flights every day for the past two weeks, citing reasons such as poor rostering, and a large number of unplanned sick leaves by its pilots. This had reduced the number of pilots available as back up, while the remaining pilots were already rostered to their maximum permissible limits.

As per the latest data available, Akasa was the most punctual airline on 10 April, with its on-time performance coming in at 91.8%, followed by IndiGo at 81.9%. SpiceJet and Air India recorded a punctuality rate of 77.6% and 76.5%, respectively, while Vistara’s performance was at 77.3% for the day.

“There were multitude of reasons behind this, including ATC (air traffic control) delays, bird hits, and maintenance activities early last month; all of which had a cascading effect on a highly optimized network. We were stretched in our pilot rosters and there was not enough resilience to withstand injects that we could otherwise have weathered,” Kannan wrote in the memo.

Now, Vistara has reduced its network by 10%, or by around 30 flights per day in a bid to stabilize its operations. Sources have also said that the airline has co-opted a number of pilots from Tata group company Air India to operate its narrow body A320 family aircraft. But they will need to get the necessary regulatory approvals before they can be rostered with Vistara. The company has not yet confirmed such a move.

“We are working on the plans for May 2024 and beyond. As we emerge from this difficult phase, it is the commitment to being a customer-oriented airline that will help us bounce back stronger. I trust each of you to continue to put in all efforts to ensure that we do not let our brand, and our customer, down,” Kannan wrote.

Overall, Vistara has its task cut out to mend the soured relationship with some of its pilots, who were unhappy over the implementation of a uniform pay structure, which has effectively reduced their salaries by bringing them at par with Air India pilots. Vistara pilots now get a fixed salary for 40 hours, instead of 70 hours earlier. In addition, they receive payment in lieu of extra flying hours, plus rewards based on the years of service with the airline.

While the company works to stabilize its operations ahead of its merger with Air India, and mends its relationship with its pilots, it will have to take care not to lose the goodwill of its passengers in India’s cut-throat aviation market that has seen many airlines go belly up for not course correcting on time.

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Published: 11 Apr 2024, 01:58 PM IST