Kingfisher Airlines flights were severely affected across the country on Monday as sections of its engineers went on strike protesting against non-payment of wages for the past seven months.
According to airport sources, there were no departures from either Delhi or Mumbai. This industrial action by sections of the airline’s staff left a number of passengers stranded.
In Delhi, Minister for Civil Aviation Ajit Singh told newspersons that the airline will not be allowed to operate an aircraft till it has been certified as safe by its engineers. “The Government, however, is not in the business of shutting down any business. But they will have to meet the safety requirements, apart from meeting the minimum requirement of having five aircraft and the prescribed paid-up equity capital,” Singh said.
The Minister added that the airline’s Chief Executive Officer and Chief Financial Officer are to meet the Director-General of Civil Aviation on Tuesday.
On Monday morning, the airline issued a statement saying it was “proactively” cancelling several services. It, however, did not give the number of flights cancelled.
Sources claim that the airline cancelled 10-11 flights from Delhi and an equal number from Mumbai. Bangalore, too, reported that flights were cancelled.
“It is not easy to put an exact number or percentage of flights that have been cancelled as the number of flights that the airline operates varies,” an airport official said.
The airline statement added that sections of staff members had been on strike for the past fortnight and over the last two days some of them had threatened and manhandled other employees who were reporting for work.
Stock nosedives
The airline’s stock plunged on the bourses on Monday after the company said it was cancelling flights. The shares hit the lower circuit and closed at Rs 15.35, down 4.78 per cent on the Bombay Stock Exchange.