Centre issues stricter rules for Air India pilots

A Jan 1 directive by the civil aviation ministry to Air India helps take salaries of some of the airline’s pilots to market levels but also imposes several penalties on them, including pay cuts, for reporting late or for missing flights. “The way this has been drafted and pushed through, if the unions take a stand, it will lead to industrial disputes and disruptions,” said one aviation safety consultant who has negotiated with the management as part of Air India’s unions in the past. One of the airline’s pilot groupings, the Indian Pilot Guild (IPG) said it has told Air India chairman Ashwini Lohani that it would like to hold on to its old 2007 agreement. The airline’s pilot union Indian Commercial Pilot’s Association (ICPA), which has been fighting to bring ICPA pilots to IPG levels, said it would accept the order, as it raises pay scales to market levels. <br/>