Amid turbulence, 15 pilots quit Vistara

Mumbai: As a section of Vistara pilots continue to protest against pay revision, at least 15 senior first officers resigned from the airline recently, sources said on Tuesday.

The airline operates a little over 300 flights daily and has a fleet of 70 planes comprising A320-family aircraft and Boeing 787s.

Over the past few weeks, the Tata Group airline has been grappling with simmering discontent among pilots, with many first officers of its A320 fleet reporting sick.

The sources said at least 15 senior first officers resigned from Vistara and joined a domestic budget carrier.

A Vistara spokesperson declined to comment on the resignations.

The airline has around 800 pilots and the senior first officers who resigned had completed their conversion training that allowed them to operate wide-body Boeing 787 planes. However, they did not get the duty for flying the 787 aircraft, the sources said.

The airline, which is in the process of merging with Air India, has introduced new contracts for its pilots that seek to bring pay parity with those from Air India. However, many Vistara pilots have been protesting as the fixed component of compensation has been reduced and there are more flying-linked incentives that are subject to certain conditions.

With the non-availability of crew hitting Vistara’s operations resulting in significant flight cancellations over the last few weeks, aviation regulator DGCA has asked the airline to submit a daily report on flight cancellations and delays. The civil aviation ministry is also monitoring the situation.