A-I pilot drops passenger to pick up wife

When contacted, Capt Mayadev pointed out that no passengers were inconvenienced in the incident. “She travelled from Hong Kong to India on one of the aircraft’s jump seats,” Mayadev told Express Newsline. He however admitted there were problems because of something “done by the manager at Hong Kong.” He refused to speak further on the grounds that the matter was under investigation by the management.

Senior A-I officials who confirmed the incident however refused to go on record lest the powerful IPG be offended. “Both Mayadev and Mathur have given their versions of the incident. The management is investigating the incident,” Jitendra Bhargava, A-I’s spokesman said. He said all the passengers scheduled to take the flight were accommodated though some like Mayadev’s wife were allotted jump seats.

Mathur’s complaint reveals that the incident was only a tip of the iceberg. “There have been a few cases, of late, when the operating commanders have been insistent and adamant that their families be accommodated in first class…in preference to executive class revenue passengers required to be upgraded strictly on involuntary basis due to overbooking and not on commercial basis,” his note to A-I’s top brass in Mumbai said.

Mathur’s note also made it clear that what was once the exception is fast becoming the norm. “In normal circumstances when the flight is not overbooked, it is perhaps understandable that an SOL (free ticket holder) holding a higher class ticket may get priority in preference to upgrading of a revenue passenger on commercial basis.

This, however, cannot be resorted to when the flight is overbooked and we would have no choice but to deny boarding to the revenue passenger thereby incurring heavy expenditure in terms of making alternative travel arrangements/hotel accommodation, etc…,” he said in his complaint. As per A-I rules, free and discounted tickets to employees and their relatives may only be used if there are empty seats on a flight. Every A-I employee is entitled to two free and two 90 per cent concessional tickets to travel on any flight annually.

A-I sources said the airline’s past managing director, Brijesh Kumar set a precedent last June when he allowed another commander to off-load a passenger in order to accommodate his wife on an international flight. Kumar had intervened on the commander’s behalf after A-I’s airport manager refused accede to his request, sources said.