Jet Airways stalemate with pilots continues

New Delhi, Sep 12 (ANI): The stalemate between the striking pilots of the Jet Airways and its management continues for the fifth day on Saturday, as talks held between the two factions remained inconclusive on Friday.

Jet Airways cancelled 180 flights, including 25 international today.

After a marathon session, the National Aviators Guild refused to give in to the management's demand of disbanding the pilots' union.

The two sides held talks before the Chief Labour Commissioner to break the deadlock that has severely disrupted flights affecting thousands of passengers.

While the two sides agreed on a conciliatory draft, which included the issue of reinstating the four sacked pilots, there was disagreement over the future of the contentious newly formed union.

The mnagement has lodged a complaint with the registrar office about the illegality of the union. The pilots have agreed to let the registrar decide if their union is illegal, and have said that they will abide by the registrar's decision.

The strike has led to the cancellation of nearly 700 flights, costing hardships to over 28,000 passengers.

Jet Airways today tried to accommodate some of its passengers in its low-cost arm JetLite by combining the flights on Mumbai- Ahmedabad, Mumbai-Vadodara, Mumbai-Kochi, Mumbai-Mangalore, Kolkata-Bangalore, Kolkata-Guwahati, Mumbai-Mangalore and Kolkata-Agartala sectors. (ANI)