Unhappy with the selection process of Air India, 68 young pilots have moved the Delhi High Court against the airline, alleging foul play in its recruitment procedure.
The young pilots, who have spent millions of rupees in obtaining commercial pilot licences, filed a petition in the court Friday.
They have alleged that Alliance Air, the low cost wing of Air India, has withheld the results of the job interview they had taken over 10 months ago. The petition is to be heard Monday.
In their petition, filed through advocate Praneet Ranjan, the pilots alleged that the selection process for trainee pilots is not correct. The pilots had appeared in the airline’s selection test and interview in 2008, but were not informed of the results. Instead, the airline put out another advertisement for the same posts in June this year.
The pilots claim the new advertisement is an eyewash and the airline is trying to make backdoor entries of certain pilots from other airlines.
“They (private airline pilots) do not have the required type-rating of the aircraft for which the airline has advertised. They are being recruited and given an opportunity to obtain type-rating certificate of the advertised aircraft at the cost of the airline,” the petition stated.
The pilots say that if Air India had told them earlier that it wanted to hire “type-rated pilots” then they would have readily undergone the required training.
The dispute started in April 2008, when Air India invited applications for trainee pilots in Alliance Air. The written test was held on May 25, for which 260 candidates were invited. Of these, 92 were selected and appeared for an interview held in Delhi between Sep 2 and 12.
The pilots allege that none of the 92 were informed of the test results. After the airline advertised again last month to fill up the vacancies, 68 of the pilots approached the court against the airline.
Source: The Times of India
By: KabirT - 8th July 2009 at 07:36
oh alright..here you go..
lol
🙂
By: steve rowell - 8th July 2009 at 06:51
Yes yes..i meant the report by Times of India
I know you did…it was my attempt at humour!!!
By: KabirT - 8th July 2009 at 06:50
Yes yes..i meant the report by Times of India
By: steve rowell - 8th July 2009 at 00:23
As far as the story posted by Steve goes, it has been articulated poorly.
Please watch what you type and what you stereotype, its not a healthy habit to have!
Don’t shoot me …i’m only the messenger!!!
By: Grey Area - 7th July 2009 at 06:43
Corruption is a way of life in these parts.
Hmmm…. whereas here in the saintly West, corruption is quite unheard of. :rolleyes:
It’s best not to indulge too freely in stereotypes in these parts.
By: KabirT - 7th July 2009 at 06:36
Corruption is a way of life in these parts.
If these “back door entry” pilots end up crewing flights in and out of western/developed airspace then we are all in danger.
Will it happen ? – Yes and is already happening.
That is the biggest bunch of baloney I have read on this forum in a long time.
How well are you versed with Air India’s recruitment procedures?
The “back-door entry” pilots that were singled out a few months back, numbering just 3 were all ex-Kingfisher pilots who had been flying with IT for 3 years at least.
Air India jobs are supposed to be one of the most rewarding and well protected jobs in the Indian aviation scene. Most new pilots have Air India’s as there top preference as the employer.
In 2003 14 newly qualified pilots sought back door entry to Air India’s pilot recruitment scheme via the very strong pilots union at Air India. But Air India instead went for professional and more qualified international pilots because most of the new recruits were required for new long haul routes and aircraft.
The Unions create unnecessary mess at Air India, an already struggling airline.
As far as the story posted by Steve goes, it has been articulated poorly.
For example…
They have alleged that Alliance Air, the low cost wing of Air India, has withheld the results of the job interview they had taken over 10 months ago. The petition is to be heard Monday.
Alliance Air has no say in pilot recruitment since the merger between IC and AI, which created NACIL, an independent body which runs the integrated AI.
May I also point out hat Air India has a fantastic safety record with only one major incident, which was also out caused by external factors and not issues related to AI.
Please watch what you type and what you stereotype, its not a healthy habit to have!
By: nJayM - 6th July 2009 at 19:26
Corruption is a way of life in these parts.
If these “back door entry” pilots end up crewing flights in and out of western/developed airspace then we are all in danger.
Will it happen ? – Yes and is already happening.
The aircraft may meet safety requirements to enter EU and US airspace but are the pilots totally competetnt – who knows?
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July 6, 2009 at 11:00 am