An Akasa Air passenger aircraft. File.
| Photo Credit: Reuters

Newly launched budget carrier Akasa Air has moved the Delhi High Court seeking a direction to the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) to act against pilots who left the airline without serving their mandatory notice period.

Akasa Air, which operated its first commercial flight between Mumbai and Ahmedabad on August 7, 2022, has seen several pilots resign, affecting its operations. The airline told the High Court that it was in a “state of crisis” because of these resignations and had to cancel multiple flights every day this month.

The High Court has listed the airline’s plea for further hearing on September 22. The court also queried the DGCA as to what action it takes in case flights have to be cancelled due to pilots’ resignations.

‘Coercive action’

SNV Aviation Private Limited, which flies under the brand name Akasa Air, has sought a direction to the DGCA to “take coercive action against pilots who fail to comply with the mandatory notice period requirements, in terms of the Civil Aviation Requirement”.

“We have sought legal remedy only against a small set of pilots who abandoned their duties and left without serving their mandatory contractual notice period,” an Akasa Air statement said. “Not only is this illegal in law but also an unethical and selfish act that disrupted flights in August forcing last minute cancellations that stranded thousands of customers causing significant inconvenience to the travelling public,” it added.

(With PTI inputs)

Akasa Air, founded by CEO Vinay Dube and former IndiGo president Aditya Ghosh in 2022, had in June placed an order for four Boeing 737 Max jets to further its plans to fly internationally by the end of the year. File
| Photo Credit: PTI

Indian budget carrier Akasa Air is flying less and will give up market share in the short term to ensure it runs a reliable operation after some pilots quit the airline, CEO Vinay Dube told employees in an email late on September 20.

“When a small set of pilots abandoned their duties and left without serving their mandatory contractual notice period, it forced a disruption of flights between July and September, necessitating last-minute cancellations,” Mr. Dube said in the email reviewed by Reuters.

Akasa’s market share slipped to 4.2% in August from 5.2% a month earlier, according to latest available data from the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA), India’s aviation regulator.

The company has initiated legal action against the pilots who have quit without serving their mandatory contractual notice period, Mr. Dube said.

The airline, founded by Mr. Dube and former IndiGo president Aditya Ghosh in 2022, had in June placed an order for four Boeing 737 Max jets to further its plans to fly internationally by the end of the year.

The company is on track to announce a three-digit aircraft order before the end of the year, Mr. Dube said.

The Ministry of Civil Aviation (MOCA) designated the company as an International Scheduled operator, allowing Akasa to begin international flights, he said.

“The MOCA is now working on our request for traffic rights so you will have to wait a short while longer to know which international destination we will fly to first,” he added.

Akasa did not immediately respond to Reuters‘ request for a comment.

Shares of rival IndiGo, India’s largest airline by market share, reversed course to trade 0.5% higher after the report on Akasa.