Employee Union Reveals Major Fumble of Air India Express With Crew Rostering

Airlines under TATA Group since the start of the restructuring process have been stuck in one or another management issues. From the pilot’s mass leave at Vistara to the cabin crew strike at Air India Express, the mismanagement of the airline continues. The newest in the fray is a major blunder in the crew rostering system of Air India Express, which is heavily affecting the airline’s scheduled operations.

Air India Express: Fumble in Crew Rostering System

This time, Air India Express has messed up badly in the Crew Rostering System. In a letter written to the Chief Labour Commissioner in Delhi, the President of the Air India Express Employees Union (AIXEU) has revealed major issues with the airline’s crew scheduling system.

Recently, Air India Express shifted its crew rostering system from ARMS to new CAE software. Amid this process, the airline allegedly lost the data of all its cabin crew members. Because of this, it is unable to schedule the crew rosters now. It has directed all the crew members to provide their data separately to submit in the new system.

To cover up this situation, the airline is manually scheduling its crew members depending on their bases. The crew members are doing their best to make sure that the number of flight cancellations remains minimal.

In April month, Air India CEO Campbell Wilson announced the implementation of the new rostering system from CAE. This new application is accompanied by the CAE Crew Access App, which provides real-time information and has the ability to swap flights.

President of AIXEU, Onkar Sharma writes that the cabin crew members had ended their strike on May 10, and almost all of them resumed their duties from the very next day. But the flight cancellations have not stopped. On May 8, the members started an unplanned strike against the mispractices of airline management, which ended after 3 days.

Cabin Crew Members Are Sitting Idle

To access the restricted areas within the airport premises for operational purposes, a staff member needs an Airport Entry Pass (AEP). After authorization from airport authorities, AEP is issued under the jurisdiction of the Bureau of Civil Aviation Security (BCAS).

According to the Union President, more than 100 cabin crew members of Air India Express are yet to receive their Airport Entry Passes (AEP). Because of this reason, they are sitting idle. Because of the decreased number of departures, the monthly pay of crew members is being reduced.

People who are aware of this matter told media houses that despite the takedown of the strike by cabin crew members, the flight cancellations continued. A crew member said that soon after we joined back, the airline came up with the new rostering application from CAE. It has lost all previous data which was in the older system.

Because of this, it is calling all the crew members manually. Staffers are helping each other by telling the scheduling department who will be available. The scheduling department is even calling those staff members, who are not present at the base. The airline management has messed up here. This mess has resulted in the cancellation of 350 flights between May 10 and 20.

The next conciliation proceeding at the Labour Commission Office is on May 28, when the airline management and members of the AIXEU Union will hold a meeting regarding cabin crew issues.

Conclusion

Despite the end of the strike from Air India Express cabin crew members, the airline has not witnessed a slowdown in cancellations. In a letter to CLC Delhi, the President of AIXEU has revealed major fumbles from the airline management. The majority of these are related to the crew rostering system.

What do you think about this mistake from the airline management? Discuss in the comment section.