GoAir cancels 18 domestic flights; budget carrier faces non-availability of aircraft, cockpit crew crunch

Mumbai: GoAir has cancelled 18 domestic flights from cities including Delhi, Mumbai, Bengaluru, Kolkata and Patna due to non-availability of aircraft and adequate cockpit crew, a source said. The budget carrier has reported a series of incidents involving engine glitches, mainly in its A320 Neo planes, which has resulted in non-availability of some of such planes for operations, the source said. “GoAir has cancelled flights 18 flights from Mumbai, Goa, Bengaluru, Delhi, Srinagar, Jammu, Patna, Indore and Kolkata on Monday. The cancellations have come as the airline is facing both aircraft and crew problem,” the source said. [caption id=“attachment_2579288” align=“alignleft” width=“380”] Representational image. Reuters[/caption] GoAir, however, in a statement said that the disruption in services was on account of protests against the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) coupled with the duty norms of the operating crew. But the airline did not specify the number of cancelled flights on Monday. “A combination of factors such as inclement weather, low visibility and anti-CAA protests in certain parts of the country have disrupted multiple flights across GoAir’s network. This was further aggravated with flight duty time limitations (FDTL) of the crew,” a GoAir spokesperson said in a statement to PTI. The abrupt cancellations of their flights are causing a lot of inconvenience to passengers. “GoAir texted me at 1.43 am for a flight at 4.55 am and ‘informs’ me that my flight is cancelled… and says they will contact me within 24 hours… What am I to do till then?? Helpline no one answers!!,” tweeted a passenger. The airline, however, said it has initiated all possible steps to minimise inconvenience to the passengers. “Alternate flight arrangements are being explored to minimise the impact. Free cancellation and re-booking options have been offered to all those affected,” the spokesperson added in the statement.