Strike delays pilot, Delhi-London flight waits

Kolkata: A total of 222 passengers, including an infant, got stranded for over an hour at the Indira Gandhi International Airport in the Capital on Saturday because the London-bound Air India flight from New Delhi kept waiting for the 61 passengers from Kolkata, who were to be flown in by a connecting flight.
That flight from Kolkata could not take off on time as Citu members driving pick-up cars for pilots didn't report for duty. But the transport strike didn't come in the way of Citu officebearers, who reached the CPM state headquarters on Alimuddin Street for a meeting in chauffeur-driven cars. But rules differ.
Car rental agency Indus, which supplies vehicles to pick up crew members, informed airline officials at Kolkata on Friday it would not provide vehicles on a strike day, fearing the cars would be damaged by demonstrators. Air India mobilised its own fleet of cars attached to other departments — including commercial, engineering and ground support — to bail out the operations department on Saturday. But another problem cropped up. The drivers of these vehicles did not know the way to the homes of the crew members and needed guidance.
27/06/10 Times of India

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Categories: Airports Jun 2010