Air India hikes salaries of pilots by up to 15%
What's the story
Air India has announced a significant salary hike for its pilots, with an increase ranging from 8% to 15%. The highest increments have been given to commanders, while the increases taper off by rank. The move is part of Air India's strategy to make Air India Express more attractive through better pay and address shortages on the B737 fleet.
Career advancement
New career progression plan for pilots introduced
Along with the salary hike, Air India has also introduced a new career progression plan for its pilots.
Under this scheme, first officers or co-pilots will get command upgrades in AI Express before moving to AI.
The latter has wide-body aircraft with higher pay, thus ensuring a clear progression path within the group.
Pay revision
Pay structure revised under new framework
Air India's pay structure has also been revised under the new framework.
The airline will continue to offer guaranteed pay for 40 flying hours but has increased flying allowance rates.
The changes are in line with industry benchmarks and reward productivity.
Meanwhile, Air India is also restoring international flights that were cut after the West Asia crisis, expecting to return to January-February levels next month.
Increase
Senior commander's pay increased to ₹8.3L
The new salary structure sees a senior commander flying 55 hours a month earning ₹8.3 lakh, up from ₹7.5 lakh.
A first officer's pay has also been increased to ₹3.3 lakh from just over ₹3 lakh.
However, privilege leave has been reduced from 30 to 24 days under the revised framework, although weekly offs will not be counted as leave.