- Saturday, March 01, 2025
By: Shubham Ghosh
Pilots, including many from Go First which has filed for bankruptcy, on Thursday (4) went for a walk-in interview with Air India, owned by Indian conglomerate Tata Group, at one of its hotels near Delhi, Reuters reported.
The cash-strapped airline cancelled all its flights till Tuesday (9), extending the suspension of operations beyond the initial three-day period by four days.
The Wadia Group-owned airline is also not taking fresh bookings till May 15.
The low-cost airline’s announcement on Tuesday (2) that it had filed for bankruptcy when demand for air travel in the post-pandemic times boomed in the South Asian nation has shocked many of its employees.
One of the pilots, who joined Go First just two years ago and attended the walk-in interview, told the news outlet that the development was very disheartening as the airline “was functioning as if everything was normal”.
The pilot added that they have to jump ship to ensure that their flying licenses remain current.
Air India, meanwhile, said the hiring drive in New Delhi and Mumbai would be extended by a day to Friday (5).
While airlines such as Air India, Vistara and IndiGo, India’s biggest carrier, have held similar hiring drives in the past, people Reuters spoke to said the turnout was more than normal and according to them, it was due to the plight of Go First, formerly called Go Airlines (India) Ltd, which has nearly 7,000 staff members.
Go First’s chief executive officer said earlier this week that the carrier is committed to its employees and is working round the clock to restore normalcy in its operations.
Air India has plans to hire more than 4,200 cabin crew and 900 pilots as part of a major revamp that also includes a gigantic order for more than 470 aircraft.
