Akasa Air pilots are set to receive a huge boost to their salary after the airline reportedly increased their pay by 40%.
The airline industry in India is witnessing massive growth as multiple carriers look to increase their aircraft fleet.
However, with the expansion of jet numbers it is crucial that airlines are positioned to retain pilots and attract more staff.
At the 2023 Paris Air Show, IndiGo broke the record for the number of planes ordered by one airline when it announced the purchase of 500 Airbus A320neo family aircraft.
Notably, Air India also finalized a major order that the carrier initially announced in February 2023. The newly privatized airline group purchased 140 A320neo, 70 A321neo, 34 A350-1000, and six A350-900 aircraft.
Additionally, Air India finalized an agreement with Boeing, which was also signed in February 2023 for 240 737 MAX (including 50 options), 40 787 (20 options), and 10 777X aircraft.
Akasa Air also announced it is increasing its order for Boeing 737 MAX aircraft with the purchase of a further four 737-8 jets
With such eye-watering order numbers it is clear that the Indian carriers are going to be locked in a race to bring pilots on board.
Air India and SpiceJet themselves increased their pilots’ salaries and benefits earlier in 2023.
According to Economic Times, Air Akasa senior first officers will get Rs 3.40 lakh ($4,143) per month instead of the current Rs 2.75 lakh ($3,351).
Senior captains will get Rs 6.25 lakh ($7,617) per month from July as opposed to the current Rs 5.75 ($7,008) lakh per month.
The base hours will also be reduced from 45 hours to 40 hours. If a senior first officer stretched his hours to 60 a week, they could earn a salary of Rs 4.30 lakh ($5,241).
The new salaries will come into effect on July 1, 2023.