Over 80 Air India Express Flights Cancelled After Crew's 'Mass Sick Leave', Aviation Ministry Seeks Report

Over 80 international and domestic flights of Air India Express were cancelled after the senior crew members of the airline went on mass ‘sick leave’.

The development came after several cabin crew members started reporting sick since Monday evening and as there are not enough cabin crew members, “scores of flights” have been cancelled at various airports, including Kochi, Calicut and Bangalore.

According to sources, the Civil Aviation authorities are looking into the issue to understand the cause of the sudden incident. Meanwhile, reports suggest that the flights were cancelled due to shortage of Air India Express staff members as a section of them are reporting sick to protest against alleged mismanagement at the Tata Group-owned airline.

Releasing a statement, the Air India Express said, “A section of our cabin crew has reported sick last minute, starting last night, resulting in flight delays and cancellations. While we are engaging with the crew to understand the reasons behind these occurrences our teams are actively addressing this issue to minimise any inconvenience caused.”

“We sincerely apologise to our guests…those impacted will be offered a full refund or rescheduling. Guests flying us today are requested to check if the flight is affected, before heading to the airport.,” the statement added.

AIXEU Writes To Airlines

A union representing a section of the airlines’ cabin crew, Air India Express Employees Union (AIXEU), also wrote to the Chairman of Air India Natarajan Chandrashekharan, talking about the grievances of employees and raised concerns regarding the current situation at Air India Express Limited, particularly following its acquisition by TATA.

The union alleged that the airline is being mismanaged and there is a lack of equality in the treatment of the staff and alleged that mismanagement of the affairs has affected the morale of the employees.

“It is with great disappointment that we address the growing unrest and dissatisfaction among the employees since the takeover by TATA. However, it appears that the reality on the ground does not align with these principles. Despite assurances of job security, salary maintenance, and respect for seniority and experience, there has been a stark departure from these commitments,” the letter read.

Civil Aviation Ministry Seeks Report

Hours after the news of Air India Express flights getting cancelled grabbed headlines, the Civil Aviation Ministry sought a report on the cancellations and asked the airlines to ensure facilities for passengers as per the norms laid down by the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA).

In addition to this, the ministry asked the carrier, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Air India, to resolve the issue “promptly”.

Passengers Remain Stranded

Many passengers took to social media on Wednesday complaining about the sudden cancellation of flights.

Tagging Civil Aviation Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia, a passenger took to X and wrote, “Sir disappointed with the service by air India express. My flight is at 11:30 pm from Bangalore to Delhi, while arriving airport on checking the attendant said delay by 2 hour. No message given of delay.”

“@AirIndiaX @TataCompanies around Four AirIndia Express Flights Delayed from Calicut… As per the officials, there is a strike happening from the Crew members. Only Muscat flight is boarded and other flights are not yet updated the time,” another X user wrote.

Another user wrote, “This is absolutely not Ok. My flight at Air India Express got cancelled just half an hour before departure. @AirIndiaX @AAI_Official and the carrier is providing juat a refund or another flight in next 7 days. Worst service and will never travel and recommend this to anyone.”