Holidaymakers hit as Air India, Kingfisher flights cancelled

Mumbai -  Holiday plans of thousands of people across the country were ruined as Air India pilots continued their strike for the fourth day, while a section of pilots of the private Kingfisher Airlines (KFA) also went on a strike since midnight, officials said here Friday.

While Air India cancelled six flights, including one of the Air India (AI) Express, and rescheduled over a dozen others on its network, there were at least 12 cancellations by KFA mostly on the northern sectors.

The flights cancelled by Air India include Seoul-Hongkong-New Delhi, New Delhi-Toronto, Mumbai-Newark, Mumbai-London and AI Express's Mumbai-Mangalore and Mangalore-Mumbai.

After more than four dozen pilots reported 'sick' Thursday, the KFA cancelled services mainly in the north Indian sectors. This could ruin the holiday plans of travellers going to the cool climes of Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand and Jammu and Kashmir.

As the Air India pilots' continued to be adamant, the carrier moved the Supreme Court seeking action against the striking pilots for failing to join duty.

On its part, the Indian Pilots Guild (IPG), while accusing Air India management of backtracking on its commitments, have sought Civil Aviation Minister Ajit Singh's intervention and appealed him to "open negotiation channels" to resolve the crises.

The pilots of the cash-strapped KFA, who have been demanding salaries on time, claim that the airline management went back on its commitment of paying up from May 9, and hence they resorted to the agitation.

Despite several attempts, KFA officials remained unavailable for their comments.