Sameer Dixit
New Delhi: The Civil Aviation Ministry has asked national carrier Air India to pull up its socks if it wants to remain in the sector.
The Aviation Ministry has asked Air India to reduce loss and generate income from the property either by leasing or commercial development.
After a long spell of losses, national carrier Air India recorded a net profit of Rs 14.6 crore in December last, driven by a healthy growth in both passenger and cargo revenue.
According to reports, the airline has also planned to cut costs by Rs 1,400 crore to reduce losses.
The aviation ministry also asked the national carrier to attain highest percentage in on time performance (OTP) as to competitive airlines. Between June and November last year the national carrier had cancelled 763 flights and delayed 6,513 flights.
The ministry has also asked Air India to rationalize the air fares as per the route.
To reduce losses, Air India plans to deploy narrow body aircraft on domestic route while wide body aircraft on international route.
Air India had recently announced a slew of cost-cutting measures which include plans to cut reimbursables by 10 percent and abolition of posts from non-operational areas.
The national carrier has also decided to discontinue loss-making routes, among others steps, to rein in the spending and return to break-even.
