'Stop Treating Kerala As Afterthought', Shashi Tharoor Slams Air India Express
In a post on X, Tharoor cited "widely-circulated media" accounts, "a significant number of flights are being withdrawn from parts of Kerala between late October and March."
Lok Sabha member and senior Congress leader Shashi Tharoor on Monday expressed deep concerns over reports of large-scale cancellations of Air India Express services from Kerala's airports in the forthcoming winter schedule.
In a post on X, Tharoor cited "widely-circulated media" accounts, "a significant number of flights are being withdrawn from parts of Kerala between late October and March."
He wrote, "I have written to Air India MD Campbell Wilson to express my deep concern over reports of large-scale cancellations of Air India Express services from Kerala's airports in the forthcoming winter schedule. According to widely-circulated media accounts, a significant number of flights are being withdrawn from Thiruvananthapuram, Kochi, Kozhikode and Kannur between late October and March."
ALSO READ
'Sublime, Ethereal And Weightless Morsel': Shashi Tharoor Praises Idli As Culinary Masterpiece
Tharoor, who represents Thiruvananthapuram constituency, said Kerala is one of the busiest aviation hubs in the country, with exceptionally high international passenger traffic, particularly to the Gulf region.
Any curtailment of services at this stage will inevitably cause severe hardship to migrant workers, students, tourists and families, while also hampering trade and tourism, he said, asserting that Air India must stop treating Kerala as an "afterthought."
"Withdrawing business-class services on the longest single-sector flight in India (Delhi to Thiruvananthapuram) has already added insult to injury," he added.
The winter schedule for scheduled flights, which is yet to be officially announced by the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA), starts from late October.
According to Tharoor, if Air India continues its disregard for Kerala's interests, IndiGo and Akasa Air are waiting in the wings "and many of us will have no compunction about switching our allegiance to those who give us the attention we deserve". [sic]
"I had publicly hailed @airindia as my favourite airline. But when facts change, opinions can change too. I hope all concerned will pay due attention. @TataCompanies," he said in the post.
There were no comments from the Air India Group. Air India Express is the low-cost arm of the Tata-owned Air India Group.
