Mumbai/Delhi:
Vijay Mallya-controlled
Kingfisher
Airlines Ltd extended its lockout to 20
October, continuing the shut-down that began on 1 October because of employee
unrest over unpaid salaries.
The
lockout was to have ended Friday but that had looked unlikely as the airline
hadn’t submitted a revival plan that the regulator had sought before being
allowed to resume services.
“Kingfisher
Airlines regrets to announce that the partial lockout declared on October 1st,
2012, as a result of employee-related issues is being extended until October 20th,
2012,” the airline said in a release on Friday. “The company is continuing to
work with and
appeal to the employees striking work to return to work so that the
airline can share its resumption plan with DGCA (Directorate General of Civil
Aviation) and gain their concurrence.”
The
carrier said it was hopeful of resuming operations on 21 October.
Mint
reported on 10 October that Kingfisher Airlines was likely to
extend its lockout and had suspended ticket sales until 20 October. The
management has written to the employees seeking a meeting on Monday.
“In
an effort to bring closure to the current situation, we would like to invite a
representative from each base to meet senior officials from UB Group on
Monday,” Hitesh Patel,
vice-president, engineering, Kingfisher, said in a late Friday email referring
to the Bangalore, Mumbai, Chennai and Delhi bases. “The meeting will take place
in Mumbai. The time and location will be communicated shortly.”
Kingfisher
had been selling tickets for flights from 13 October onwards, when DGCA asked
it to stop doing so on 9 October.
DGCA
sent a show-cause notice on 5 October to Kingfisher asking the carrier why its
licence should not be cancelled. The airline has to reply to that by 20
October.
“All
flights are subject to regulatory approval,” the Kingfisher Airlines website
cautions fliers.
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