More than 70 Air India Express flights were cancelled on Thursday as a result of the Air India Express cabin crew’s widespread sick leave, news agency IANS quoted sources as saying. Speaking to IANS, soruces said that while 292 AIX flights are scheduled to operate today, 74 are cancelled. The airline’s cabin crew took a mass sick leave, alleging that there had been a discernible break from their promises of job security, salary preservation, and seniority and expertise recognition.

In a previous letter to Tata Sons Chairman N. Chandrasekaran, the Air India Express Employees Union (AIXEU), which represents a portion of the cabin crew, addressed employee grievances and expressed concerns about the current state of affairs within Air India Express Limited, particularly following Tata’s acquisition of the company.

The union has accused the airline of mismanagement and unequal treatment of its employees, claiming that these issues have had a negative impact on morale.

Meanwhile, in a letter to his colleagues, Air India Express CEO Aloke Singh stated that the act does not represent the company’s 2,000-odd cabin crew colleagues who continue to respond to the call of duty and serve our guests with dedication and pride.

“Since last evening, more than 100 of our cabin crew colleagues have reported sick prior to their scheduled flight duty, severely disrupting our operations. Because this action was primarily taken by colleagues assigned to the L1 role, the impact was disproportionate, disrupting 90+ flights despite the fact that other colleagues reported for duty,” according to the letter sent on Wednesday.