Air India Express has been forced to cancel 74 flights due to a shortage of cabin crew. In response, the airline has announced that Air India will step in to operate services on 20 of its routes to mitigate disruptions. The cancellations come after a portion of the cabin crew reported sick, purportedly to protest against what they claim is mismanagement within the airline. This recent development has led to the cancellation of over 90 flights since Tuesday night.
"We will be operating 292 flights today. We have mobilised all resources and Air India will support us by operating on 20 of our routes. However, 74 of our flights stand cancelled and we urge our guests booked to fly with us to check if their flight is affected by the disruption before heading to the airport," the airline said in a statement.
If a flight is cancelled or delayed beyond three hours, Air India Express has assured passengers that they have the option to receive a full refund or reschedule their journey to a later date without incurring any fees. With 74 flights cancelled, this accounts for approximately 20 percent of the airline's daily scheduled flights.
Earlier in the day, sources said the airline had issued termination notices to 25 cabin crew members who had reported sick and asked others to join back for duty by 4 pm on Thursday.