Air India Express on Wednesday canceled more than 70 international and domestic airlines. According to the sources, the air carrier has said that the move has come after several senior crew members applied for leave after falling sick. It is worth to be noted that this has raised serious concerns, with the Ministry of Civil Aviation, which is closely monitoring the situation.According to the sources, the cancellations and delays started on Tuesday night and continued till Wednesday morning affecting both national and international routes. It has been reported that senior crew members switched off their mobile phones just before the flights, citing health reasons. Notably, the sudden shortage of crew members led the passengers stranded at the airports.Up to 300 Air India Express (AIX) crew reported sick for work : Around 78 Air India Express flights cancelled on domestic, international routes owing to mass sick leave.Air India Express : A section of cabin crew has reported sick at the last minute, starting last night, Teams… pic.twitter.com/numDb58nbV— FL360aero (@fl360aero) May 8, 2024Reports also claim that there was no alternate staff which led to the cancellation of the flights. Meanwhile, the spokesperson of the air carrier apologized to the passengers and said, “Guests impacted by cancellations will be offered a full refund or complimentary rescheduling to another date.” He further requested the guest to check if their flight was affected, before heading to the airport.It should be highlighted that the sudden sick leave from the senior crew members came shortly after Vistara Airlines encountered the same issue on April 1, when more several flights got canceled after employees called for sick leave.
