Jet employees hoping for a quick resolution

Ground staff at BIA are feeling the heat

While most said that they were shocked that such a situation would occur, they hoped it would resolve soon. "Since the time I joined the airlines, this is the first time such a situation has taken place. The newcomers are feeling demoralised because of this. The pilots should realise that the airlines is the bread and butter for other employees," said Gladwyn Mascarenhas, customer service supervisor, who has been working for the airline for the last 11 years.

Praveen Ganapathy, duty officer, who has been with the airlines for a decade now, said, "We have had crisis situation before and the company has taken care of us. I hope they come to a solution soon," he said. Duty officer Steven Saldanha, who has been with Jet Airways for nine and a half years, said that pilots had done was a kind of a strike and it was not good for the organisation. “We have worked hard to build the airline. Now all over careers are jeopardised by this,” he said.

Costly fare
To make sure that the Jet passengers are not put to any inconvenience, the airlines has been offering alternative arrangements. "We are tying up with other airlines and endorsing the passengers. In case, the flights are cancelled, we are refunding the entire ticket amount," said Deepti, supervisor in reservations counter. However, the airline is suffering with high fare charges. "The other airlines are fully cooperative but the ticket fares are really high," said Ranjitha Ramakrishnan, a customer service assistant.
Apart from this, the employees are working overtime. "Normally, we work nine and a half hours but with the flights grounded, we are coordinating with other airlines are working nearly 12-13 hours," said Sheni John, another customer service assistant.

Flights cancelled
While on September 8, 11 flights were cancelled, 20 were grounded on September 9 and 18 on Thursday. However, 14 flights were operational today. Some of the sectors which have been affected by this were Goa, Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata, Pune and Chennai and Mangalore. Normally, 30 to 32 Jet flights are operational at any given day.