Vistara likely to cut flights amid pilot shortage: Sources

Tata Group and Singapore Airlines-owned Vistara Airlines CEO Vinod Kannan informed employees in an April 3 meeting that the airline will be revising crew rosters and may reduce flight schedules, as per sources.

The announcement comes as the airline faces operational challenges due to a sudden shortage of pilots. 

Vistara has reportedly cancelled over 125 flights since April 1 due to several pilots taking sick leave at the end of March. 

Kannan said the shortage was primarily due to pilots reaching their flight duty time limits rather than a mere sick leave.

Some pilots had cited dissatisfaction over pay revisions ahead of a merger with Tata-owned Air India as a reason for going on leave. 

Kannan assured employees that measures would be taken to alleviate pressure on pilots, with visible improvements in rostering expected from May onwards. 

The management it also considering to scale back the airline's network, although specific plans are yet to be finalised.

Vistara, which operates over 300 flights on a daily basis, has faced scrutiny from India's civil aviation ministry and regulatory authorities due to the recent flight cancellations and delays.

The airline attributed the disruptions to various factors including the issue of crew availability, undertaking steps such as deploying widebody jets on domestic routes to minimise disruptions.

Vistara did not issue a statement on the matter or respond to Reuters’ queries  made after business hours.

(With Reuters Inputs)