Indian Airlines plans to catch ’em young

New Delhi: Indian Airlines will soon have a younger crew on board. It has come up with an attractive retirement scheme for crew above 40 years of age. FE was the first to report the move on February 15.
The board of Indian Airlines on Wednesday approved a scheme to allow cabin crew to voluntarily opt for retirement or ground duties. Referred to as the voluntary rehabilitation/rejuvenation scheme, it will help Indian Airlines delineate a youthful image in the extremely competitive aviation market.
The average age of airhostesses in Indian Airlines is well above the industry average, which is also due to the fact that a government ban on recruitment in the non-operational categories was put in place in 2000.
Cabin crew over 41 will have the option of retiring with a compensation package ranging between Rs 25 lakh and Rs13 lakh, depending on their age. This will be in addition to the existing post-retirement benefits.
Furthermore, cabin crew below 50 can opt for ground duties at the discretion of the company. They will receive the benefit of an additional monthly compensatory allowance ranging from Rs 15,000 to Rs 50,000.
At present, Indian Airlines has 1,420 personnel as cabin crew, of which 1,170 are air hostesses. Air hostesses draw an average salary of Rs 5 lakh a year. The starting salary for the flight crew ranges between Rs 20,000 and Rs 25,000 a month and can go up to Rs 35,000-40,000.
In Jet airways, the average age of cabin crew is 24 years, with an average initial salary of Rs 28,000 that can go up to Rs 38,000 for crew with more than five years of experience.
10/05/07 Financial Express