Budget airlines SpiceJet, IndiGo and all-business carrier Paramount Airways will hire more than 500 pilots, cabin crew and ground staff Coming to terms with lay-off
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this fiscal as they expand operations after turning in surprise profits in the first quarter.
The move comes as a surprise as global tourist inflow is expected remain low during the traditional peak season of October-March due to the global recession, swine flu fear and drought in several parts of the country, according to tour operators.
Also, airlines are under pressure to hike fares due to increasing jet fuel prices that has surged to nearly $150 levels over the past two years. Fuel constitutes 45% of an airline’s operational cost. Any hike in fares may impact air travel.
SpiceJet, which posted Rs 26-crore net profit in the first quarter, will hire 84 cabin crew and 24 pilots this calendar. The airline will increase capacity in non-metro cities and add four new aircraft to its fleet this fiscal, CEO Sanjay Aggarwal said.
IndiGo, the country’s largest low-cost carrier with a market share of 14%, will hire 50-60 pilots and add five aircraft to its fleet of 19. It will also be hiring ticketing staff and cabin crew, said a senior IndiGo official who requested not to be named.
Paramount Airways will hire 80 foreign and 200 local pilots over the next one year, as reported by ET recently. The Chennai-based airline, which closed a Rs 4,000-crore fleet order in June, is adding 10 aircraft to the existing fleet of six and will increase services to 2,500 flights per month by October.
GoAir inducted three new aircraft between March and June, increasing its fleet size to eight planes.
According to consultants, it’s a good time to hire as salary levels have gone down with full carriers Jet , Kingfisher Airlines and Air India staying away from job market. Airlines are now offering packages of less than Rs 4 lakh per month to domestic pilot, much below the industry benchmark of Rs 6 lakh.
Full carriers, meanwhile, are trimming their operations, retrenching employees and cancelling aircraft orders to stay afloat after record losses in the first quarter.
Naresh Goyal-promoted Jet Airways, which has reduced capacity by 20% on domestic routes, has issued termination notices to 43 cabin crew on probation and terminated contracts of 110 employees. It reported a loss of Rs 225 crore in the first quarter ended June.
Vijay Mallya’s Kingfisher Airlines recently warned its 6,000 employees of a delay in salary payment after reporting a first quarter loss of Rs 240 crore. It has trimmed its fleet to 69 from 89 aircraft to cut costs.
National carrier Air India is waiting for a government bailout after running up losses of Rs 7,200 crore in the last two years.
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