Go First crisis: Disheartened pilots rush to Air India's walk-in job drive
By Team Newsable | First Published May 5, 2023, 9:27 AM ISTGo First crisis: Air India, a Tata Group company, is doing walk-in interviews and a hiring drive to locate 4,200 cabin personnel and 900 pilots. The recruiting push comes after Go First, India's third biggest airline, declared bankruptcy after being caught off guard by a surge in post-pandemic travel, forcing it to lay off almost 7,000 staff.
Dozens of pilots, many from crisis-hit Go First, flocked to a Tata group hotel near Delhi on Thursday for walk-in interviews with the conglomerate’s Air India airline. Many employees were taken aback by Go First's announcement on Tuesday that it had filed for bankruptcy as demand for post-pandemic air travel in the world's most populous country surged.
"It's very disheartening, the airline was functioning as if everything was normal," said a pilot who joined Go First two years ago and was waiting in queue at Tata's Taj Hotel. "We need to jump ship to keep our pilot's licences current," he added.
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While Air India, Vistara, and the country's largest airline, IndiGo, have all held similar hiring drives in the past, but the turnout was higher than usual. They linked the figures to the predicament of Go First, formerly known as Go Airlines (India) Ltd, which employs around 7,000 people.
Air India said on Twitter that the recruiting drive in Delhi and Mumbai will be extended to Friday. The airline, bought back from the government last year by salt-to-software Tata group, plans to hire more than 4,200 cabin crew and 900 pilots this year as part of a major revamp which also includes orders for a record 470 jets.
Go First's CEO stated earlier this week that the airline is devoted to its workers and is working relentlessly to restore normal operations. Meanwhile, the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) instructed GoFirst, a cash-strapped airline, to compensate customers who had bought tickets for cancelled or suspended flights on Thursday.
"DGCA has examined the response of Go First and has issued an order under the prevailing regulations directing them to process the refunds to passengers as per the timelines specifically stipulated in the relevant regulation," it added.
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