Air India begins restoring salaries to pre-pandemic levels gradually

Air India is restoring salaries of employees in a phased manner to pre-pandemic levels as the aviation sector is recovering with the decline of COVID-19 cases in the country, according to the airline’s official document.

The Indian aviation sector was badly hit due to the pandemic-induced travel restrictions during the last two years and therefore, all airlines in India had cut salaries. All Pilots available for flying will continue to be paid a fixed 20 hours of flying allowance or actuals, whichever is higher in a month.

Air India’s document said pilots’ flying allowance, special pay and wide-body allowance were cut by 35%, 40% and 40%, respectively, after the onset of the pandemic.

From April 1 this year, flying allowance, special pay and wide-body allowance of pilots are being restored by 20%, 25% and 25%, respectively, the document stated.

Cabin crew members’ flying allowance and wide-body allowance were cut by 15% and 20%, respectively, during the peak of the pandemic, the document noted. Flying allowance and wide-body allowance of cabin crew members are being restored by 10 and 5%, respectively, from April 1.

The allowances given to officers and other staff members were cut by 50% and 30%, respectively, during the pandemic, it mentioned.

While officers’ allowances are being restored by 25% from April 1, other staff members’ allowances are being restored to the pre-pandemic level from April 1, it noted.

Air India begins restoring salaries to pre-pandemic levels gradually

Gross emoluments given to Indian employees who are based at foreign locations were cut by 10% at a maximum of USD 300 during the pandemic, it said. These gross emoluments are being restored by 5% at a maximum of USD 150.

Similarly, India-based officers’ gross emoluments were cut by USD 300 during the pandemic, and it is being restored by USD 150 from April 1, it mentioned.

All the aforementioned components of salaries of employees will be restored to their pre-pandemic levels on April 1 next year, it said.

ALSO READ - Air India pilots request restoration of full pay and other benefits from N Chandrasekaran

“As the hope of a post-pandemic world seems within reach and the aviation sector takes off once again with some visible changes in our performance, we are happy to inform you that your salary cuts have been reviewed and the restoration of salaries will happen in a phased manner… changes will be implemented from April 1, 2022.For pilots and cabin crew, international and domestic layover allowance remain unchanged and rates applicable in March 2022 will continue. For pilots, cabin crew and other employees - all specific allowances attached to a post or role and other contingent allowances remain unchanged and rates applicable in March 2022 will continue to be applicable.All deductions will be reviewed again in coming few months and changes will be communicated to you… We will also be soon releasing pilot and cabin crew handbook with details on performance guidelines and other policies…As we embark upon this journey to make Air lndia a world-class airline, each of you is key to fulfilling this vision. With customer centricity, performance orientation, and accountability as our bedrock, let us all look ahead, fly higher and make Air India the best and most loved airline."Amrita Sharan, Personnel Director, Air India

This announcement comes days after the Air India pilot association - Indian Commercial Pilots' Association (ICPA)- had written to the new chief, Tata Sons' Chairman N Chandrasekaran, to restore their emoluments. 

Meanwhile, Tatas have also begun reversing Air India employees’ steep pandemic-time pay cuts. Other airlines like IndiGo and Vistara have also partially rolled back pay cuts following widespread discontentment among employees.

ALSO READ - IndiGo partially restores pilot salaries by 8% from April 1

These airlines have promised to further review pay cuts in the coming months depending on business recovery and whether there are any more disruptions to traffic for any reason.

The Adani Group-managed Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel International Airport (SVPIA) at Ahmedabad on Thursday, April 14 announced completing recarpeting--a work to resurface roads with fresh asphalt--the 3.5-kilometre-long runway in 75 days.

The group said that an asphalt equivalent to a 200 km stretch of road was used for re-carpeting along with concrete sufficient to build a 40-storied structure. It said the work was an all-time best for a brownfield runway in India.

https://twitter.com/ahmairport/status/1514871669822611464

The busiest airport in Gujarat with over 200 flights every day before the coronavirus pandemic, SVPIA kept the runway open daily for 160 flights on an average during the remaining 15 hours of the day during the 75 days of re-carpeting work

ALSO READ - Ahmedabad Airport to remain close for 9 hours every day until May 31

The challenge of re-carpeting the runway without impacting the operations of scheduled flights was tackled by Adani Airport Holdings Ltd (AAHL) by using only 9 hours of notice to airmen (NOTAM) daily, the group stated.

The actual duration of 75 days for recarpeting stands against an earlier planned timeline of 200 working days starting November 10, 2021, which was later reduced to a target of 90 days by Adani Group by increasing resources.

"Subsequently, SVPIA’s project team completed the work in just 75 days. The project entailed the support of one million safe manhours and 600 individuals featuring staff and workmen along with over 200 sophisticated pieces of equipment," the group stated.

The runway recarpeting project was estimated to be completed in two phases, spanning three calendar years, as per industry standards even as AAHL completed the work in 75 days.

In addition to other upgrading works completed at SVPIA, the airport now has a complete airfield lighting system in the runway and connecting taxiways that is equivalent to lighting an entire district of 12 to 14 villages.

With the resumption of regular international flights, a new phenomenon has emerged. If Indians do not have a transit/regular Schengen visa, they will be denied boarding at the origin in India on European Union (EU) carriers such as Lufthansa, Air France, and KLM, who are supposed to travel to the UK via these airlines' hubs in Frankfurt/Munich, Paris, and Amsterdam, respectively.

According to top airline officials, this is because, following Brexit, the EU has decided to "punish" the UK by requiring non-EU citizens to obtain a transit Schengen visa in order to fly to the UK on transit flights operated by its carriers. Switzerland, despite not being a member of the EU, is exempt from this rule for its airline Swiss.

Indian travellers must have a Schengen visa to fly to the UK on EU carriers post Brexit

On one-stop flights from India to the United Kingdom, passengers can pass through the Gulf and Switzerland without needing a transit visa. Nonstop flights from Air India, Vistara, British Airways, and Virgin Atlantic are the other option.

The change took place on January 1, 2021, in the midst of the pandemic. India had a bubble system for international connectivity at the time, with strict rules about which nationalities could travel on which flights and how many one-stops they could make.

The bubble system was designed primarily for point-to-point travel between India and other countries, with some conditional connections permitted.

Switzerland, despite not being a member of the EU, is exempt from this rule for its airline Swiss.

So at that time, travel between India and the UK happened mainly on direct flights or via places like the Gulf whose airlines did not strictly follow the no-transit rule for Indian travellers.

Now as regular flights resumed, many travellers — those without transit Schengen visas and booked on Lufthansa, Air France-KLM to fly from India to the UK — are being caught off guard when denied boarding at the origin airport in India.

“Passengers should be aware of the travel requirements, so refund depends on the conditions of the ticket bought,” said an EU airline official. Afraid of losing business, some EU carriers are learnt to have requested foreign governments to raise this issue with the Union.

Afraid of losing business, some EU carriers are learnt to have requested foreign governments to raise this issue with the Union.

After the resumption of scheduled international flights by India, foreign airlines can again offer one-stops between India and the rest of the world. This one-stop business has substantially gone up in the India-US-India sector after Russia’s war on Ukraine.

ALSO READ - United Airlines halts 2 Indian routes as it ends using the Russian airspace

Due to longer routes and expensive jet fuel, US carrier United has reduced India non-stops by half; Delta has not resumed India flights it had suspended in March 2020 and American Airlinea has only one daily (Delhi-New York).

ALSO READ - Tata negotiating aircraft order for Air India with Airbus and Boeing

Till its fleet is augmented, Air India says it can’t add more non-stops to the US. As a result, the Gulf and European are getting a lot of business for this route.

Brexit was the withdrawal of the United Kingdom (UK) from the European Union (EU) at 23:00 GMT on 31 January 2020.

Brexit was the withdrawal of the United Kingdom (UK) from the European Union (EU) at 23:00 GMT on 31 January 2020. The UK is the only sovereign country to have left the EU. It had been a member state of the union and its predecessor the European Communities (EC) since 1 January 1973.

Following Brexit, EU law and the Court of Justice of the European Union no longer have primacy over British laws, except in select areas in relation to Northern Ireland. The European Union (Withdrawal) Act 2018 retains relevant EU law as domestic law, which the UK can now amend or repeal.

Aviation minister Jyotiraditya Scindia said on Thursday, April 14 that while he is in constant touch with the 12 state governments that still levy VAT in the range of 10-30%, he has requested the finance ministry to rationalise excise on jet fuel.

Prices of aviation turbine fuel (ATF), or jet fuel, have risen "inexorably" in recent times and are putting a "tremendous amount of pressure" on Indian carriers.

The high base price of ATF - it kept rising even as politically sensitive petrol and diesel was untouched during the recent state election times - coupled with even higher rates of VAT and excise duty has made jet fuel for domestic flights in India among the most expensive globally.

Jyotiraditya Scindia requests the finance ministry to rationalise excise on jet fuel

"Till a few months back, 11 states charged VAT ranging 1-4% on ATF, while 25 did so in the range of 10-30%. Our efforts have now led to a reversal of the situation where today 24 states charge 1-4% and 12 charges 10-30%. We are working on the remaining states also," Scindia said.

ALSO READ - Jyotiraditya Scindia pitches for rationalisation of tax rates on jet fuel

However, states with the biggest metro hubs like Delhi and Mumbai are yet to lower their taxes. If those states are not agreeing, then why does the Centre not reduce excise on ATF, a demand constantly raised by struggling-to-survive airlines?

"We have met with the finance minister. It is under her active consideration (reduction of excise)," he said. Seven bimonthly hikes so far this calendar year have led to ATF prices increasing by almost 50% to all-time highs.

In Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai and Kolkata, for instance, ATF cost INR 1.1-1.2 lakh per kilolitre (1,000 litres)

In Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai and Kolkata, for instance, ATF cost INR 1.1-1.2 lakh per kilolitre (1,000 litres) for domestic flights as of Thursday, April 14.

On the other hand, domestic fare bands, decided by the aviation ministry, have not been revised upwards for many months, despite the relentless hike in jet fuel prices.

Asked if the domestic fare bands are being done away with and why they have not kept pace with ATF, the minister said, "The fare bands have a low and upper-end of fares. The range is still large enough to (factor in enhanced operating cost due to ATF)."

ill the six metros reduce ATF price, not much will change for airlines in terms of survivability

While no Indian airline (except IndiGo) had a healthy balance sheet in the past few years, the pandemic's crippling blow has left them all struggling to survive. Russia's war on Ukraine - leading to fuel price hikes and weakening of the rupee vis-a-vis the dollar - has added to woes.

"Airlines are not a cost-plus industry. We have hardly passed on half of the enhanced increase in operating cost to passengers. Due to increased fares, recovery in domestic traffic has taken a hit. Till the six metros reduce ATF price, not much will change for airlines in terms of survivability," said an airline official.

"The rupee weakening against the dollar by every INR 1 means an enhanced expense of INR 75-80 crore for a mid-sized airline and INR 150-200 crore for a large airline in India. About 65-70% of our costs are dollar-denominated like aircraft lease/maintenance, foreign stations and GDS," said another airline official.

Air India has been barred from flying dangerous goods in and out of Delhi for a fortnight from April 7 after lapses were found during a recent audit by the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) at the airline’s IGI Airport cargo facility.

“A routine DGCA audit was carried out for various departments at Delhi. The regulator has some observations regarding our domestic cargo unit in Delhi. The same is being complied with,” said an Air India spokesperson.

Air India was prohibited from transporting dangerous goods to and from Delhi airport by DGCA

Sources said the DGCA inspection had found that “the handling of dangerous goods was not in order and as per International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO), the UN’s aviation agency, requirements mandated in its technical instructions”.

Among the lapses were the non-availability of storage space with proper facilities to segregate dangerous goods and radioactive materials, untrained staff for accepting cargo other than dangerous goods, and the non-availability of the emergency management system and ground emergency drills at cargo facilities, they added.

"Dangerous goods can be carried safely by air transport providing certain principles are adopted. These principles have been used in developing technical instructions. They are intended to facilitate transport while providing a level of safety such that dangerous goods can be carried without placing an aircraft or its occupants at risk, providing all the requirements are fulfilled. They try to ensure that should an incident occur it cannot lead to an accident. Dangerous goods are carried regularly and routinely by air all over the world. To ensure they do not put an aircraft and its occupants at risk there are international Standards which each State, under the provisions of the Chicago Convention, are required to introduce into national legislation. This system ensures governmental control over the carriage of dangerous goods by air and gives world-wide harmonisation of safety standards."International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO)

Air India now has 15 days, from April 7 to April 23, to correct the mistakes found in the audit and apply for its suspension to be lifted. The airline will likely fix its issues, given how such a ban could impact the lucrative cargo shipments on its flights.

ALSO READ - SpiceJet’s licence to transport dangerous commodities provisionally suspended by the DGCA

In October 2021, DGCA had suspended a private budget airline’s licence to carry dangerous goods across its network for 30 days after finding a violation of norms in the handling of such cargo.

The Airports Authority of India (AAI) has equipped its 14 airports with ambulift facilities to help flyers with reduced mobility in boarding an aircraft.

Made-in-India ambulifts have been deployed at these airports as they do not have aerobridge facilities, the AAI said in a statement on Wednesday, April 13.

Ambulifts can cater to six wheelchairs as well as two stretchers along with an attendant at a time and are fitted with heating, ventilation and AC system

The 14 airports where this facility is available are Dehradun, Gorakhpur, Patna, Bagdogra, Darbhanga, Imphal, Vijayawada, Port Blair, Jodhpur, Belgaum, Silchar, Jharsuguda, Rajkot and Hubli, it mentioned.

Airports in Dimapur, Jorhat, Leh, Jamnagar, Bhuj and Kanpur will have this facility by the end of this month, it stated.

"The ambulifts can cater to six wheelchairs and two stretchers with an attendant at a time and is fitted with heating, ventilation and air-conditioning system," it mentioned.

AAI provides ambulift service to Divyang passengers at 14 airports

According to the authority, the ambulifts can cater to six wheelchairs as well as two stretchers along with an attendant at a time and are fitted with heating, ventilation and AC system. Procured for INR 63 lakh per unit, the AAI is providing ambulift facility at a nominal token charge to the operating airlines, it noted.

“The government of India has been working to take forward the vision of the Sugamya Bharat Abhiyaan to ensure fully accessible public infrastructure, including airports, railways stations and public transport systems. This new addition of Ambulift at various AAI airports will strengthen Transportation System Accessibility, which is an important vertical of the Accessible India Campaign,” it said.

Made-in-India ambulifts have been deployed at these airports as they do not have aerobridge facilities

The AAI has taken the initiative of providing ambulifts under the central government's Accessible India campaign to facilitate passengers with reduced mobility, divyang travellers on wheelchairs and passengers on stretchers during their air travel, it mentioned.

Ambulift is a medical high loader or highlifter, Passenger Boarding Lift (PBL), also called ambulance lift or ambilift, used as a boarding vehicle for disabled passengers (pax), passengers with reduced mobility (PRM) or disabled air-travellers, mainly people using wheelchairs (WCHC) or elderly people with difficulties in climbing stairs.

The ambilift vehicle is used by the special assistance or mobility service for passengers with reduced mobility or handicapped air travellers at the airport.