New Delhi : The pilots of financially-strapped Jet Airways have urged Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Civil Aviation Minister Suresh Prabhu to intervene and instruct the management to release their pending salaries.
"We fear that the airline is on the verge of collapse. This will leave thousands of people unemployed. It will change the dynamics of aviation as fares will increase due to a reduction in capacity, and travelling public will face major inconvenience," said the National Aviators Guild (NAG), the registered trade union of Jet Airways' Indian pilots.Two days ago, they had threatened to stop flying from April 1 if their pending salaries are not cleared by March 31.
While the airline is going through a tough financial phase, all employees except for pilots and engineers are getting paid on time, claimed the NAG in communication to Modi and Prabhu.
"The pilots and engineers are now almost three months behind salaries and facing a lot of financial hardships with no relief in sight. Our repeated pleas to the management have gone unheard. The pilots have maintained professionalism and not hampered operations of the airline as that would have had a catastrophic effect on passengers' travel plans," read the letter.
