Air India gets over 700 applications for pilots

New Delhi: Air India on Thursday said it has received an overwhelming response for its recruitment drive for pilots and has got more than 700 applications in the past week.

The airline, which currently has more than 1,800 pilots, has placed orders for 470 aircraft with Boeing and Airbus, including for wide-body planes.

On April 27, the carrier issued an advertisement for more than 1,000 pilots. It is looking for captains, first officers and trainers across A320, B777, B787 and B737 fleet.

In a statement on Thursday, an Air India spokesperson said the airline has received an overwhelming response to its recruitment advertisement for pilots released late last week.

“The recruitment of pilots is in preparation for the augmented large fleet of 470 aircraft. We have already received over 700 applications in the last few days as response to the advertisement which is under process. As continuation of this recruitment process we are conducting walk-in interviews in Mumbai, Delhi and Bengaluru,” it said.

Many pilots of cash-strapped Go First, which has filed for voluntary insolvency resolution proceedings, are also looking for other opportunities, including at Air India, according to industry sources.

Tata Group has four airlines — Air India, Air India Express, AIX Connect and Vistara, which is a joint venture with Singapore Airlines. The group is in the process of merging Air India Express and AIX Connect as well as Vistara with Air India.