Click to play videoNew Delhi: The global financial meltdown has taken its inevitable toll in the Indian aviation industry with staff from major airlines companies being sacked and in the process of being sacked in a bid to cut cost.
CNN-IBN correspondent Karma Paljor spoke to India's CEO for Centre for Asia-Pacific Aviation, Kapil Kaul in Hyderabad on the future of the industry and if Wednesday’s lay-offs were just the first casualties of an industry in crisis.
Karma Paljor: It is a terrible, terrible time for the aviation sector. How long will this pain go on for?
Kapil Kaul: Our assessment is the next 12 to 18 months, roughly about next 2 years. We will see very difficult and turbulent times, especially from the financial perspective for the entire industry.
Karma Paljor: We saw Jet Airways laying off 800 to 1000 staff on Tuesday, are more lay offs from other airlines likely to follow?
Kapil Kaul: Apart from the current retrenchment, a couple of thousand more would follow in the next couple of days. The next set of right sizing will happen at Kingfisher. The combined combination is looking at cutting capacity drastically. Since they are not expanding, they will have a surplus workforce which would need to be right sized. There will be retrenchment from both sides. The retrenchment could even be in the technical side because so far the pilots and engineers have been away from it, but once they consolidate and engage themselves more deeply, the pilots and engineers would also be right sized.
Karma Paljor: What about other low cost airlines such as SpiceJet and Indigo?
Kapil Kaul: Spicejet has already curtailed expansion. If they want to curtail more expansion, then they would have surplus staff. Indigo is looking at expanding about six planes next year. So I am not very sure about whether they are retrenching. So mostly the retrenchment would be from these carriers. We don't expect the public sector to retrench. Some slight right sizing at the other ones, but more or less you can expect from Jet Airways and Kingfisher Airlines.
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