A section of pilots of the national carrier Air India (formed after the merger of Indian Airlines and Air India) has served a strike notice to the management of the airline. The pilots plan to go on strike from March 9.

The pilots under Indian Commercial Pilots Association (ICPA), which constitutes pilots of erstwhile Indian Airlines, sent the notice on Wednesday saying the company had not honoured their demands of parity in the salaries of erstwhile Indian Airlines and Air India employees, while delay in payment of salaries and disparity in working conditions between the two entities continued to exist.

The pilots say they met the management on Tuesday, but the discussions were inconclusive.

Air India in a statement said, “Air India has advised ICPA to desist from any action which would breach peace and harmony and cause inconvenience to our valued passengers. Air India is seriously engaged in turning-around the company and any such actions would only jeopardise these efforts.”

intervention

The airline has also sought the intervention of the Chief Labour Commissioner in the matter, said the statement.

The ICPA claims it has around 800 non-executive pilots under its umbrella.

Besides operating on the domestic routes, erstwhile Indian Airlines also flies on international destinations such as Kuwait, Muscat, Sharjah, Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Singapore, Bangkok and Kuala Lumpur.

In 2009, executive pilots and the members of ICPA had struck work for close to a week on similar demands causing disruption of several flights.

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