Air India invites sacked pilots back

The Indian flag carrier has offered to re-instate pilots that were recently sacked if they agree to resume work.

Travel Insurance News - 24/05/2012

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The Indian flag carrier has offered to re-instate pilots that were recently sacked if they agree to resume work.

The news came on Thursday via the country’s aviation minister Ajit Singh, who said that if all terminated employees commit to remaining at work that each would be re-accepted on a case-by-case basis. He said that management would be willing to discuss looming issues after they rejoin operations, but not before.

The news comes more than two weeks into a bitter standoff between the state-backed carrier’s management and its senior pilots. The issue surrounds Air India's Boeing 787 Dreamliner training program, in which it had begun training former Indian Airlines pilots for the arrival of the cutting edge jet. The IA pilots had become part of Air India amid a 2007 merger, and now the company’s senior pilots say they should be trained to fly the new jets because the 787 was put on order prior to the tie-up.

More than 100 pilots were fired amid the ordeal last week and an Indian High Court has issued contempt notices for the majority of striking pilots. And despite today’s plea, no indication was given as to how long the re-instation offer would last.

Meanwhile, the Centre for Pacific Aviation said today that Air India would soon enter a “defining period” and even faces a possible shutdown.

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