EXCLUSIVE! The saga continues- Is there a Cat and Mouse game being played?

 

Neelam Mathews

March 25, 2012

Frankly, I have to come downright and say it. As a customer I’m beginning to feel I’m being taken for quite a ride both by the government and what seems to be the fast sinking ship of Kingfisher.

Aerospace Diary is now hearing 28 stations of Kingfisher have been closed down since yesterday. A staff member told us, nothing had been indicated to them. Hyderabad is closed as is Kolkata and also all international destinations barring London till April 10. The ticket to London from Mumbai via Delhi, costs a meager Rs 65, 423, is available. Except ofcourse, if you try the toll free number- whether for booking a domestic or  international flight, the service has closed down! So good luck to all travelers facing delays or cancellations!

I tried booking to Hyderabad, the efficient website had a message saying “Please call our call center for details.” And lo and behold, when I tried the number, a message said “The number does not exist.” Being persistent, I tried another toll free number which said: “The number is not in service.”

So, if KFA is going to run a skeleton service from today, does it mean its customers do not deserve service? Or is there more wool being pulled over our eyes? Or are we back to talking FDI, Investors, cash infusion…….all over again?

The minister has said and said it often there is a concern for the 7000 people working for KFA- yet nothing is being done about it. He says there is a concern on the safety of aircraft flying in the air, and while I’m a die-hard proponent of the fact that no carrier will fly planes not maintained well in the sky, I’m beginning to think now that nobody really cares.

Looks like nobody is willing to bell the cat. The government, says an analyst, wants the airline to shut down and the airline wants the government to shut it down so it can turn around and absolve themselves of the blame. We can all speculate till the cows come home…

In all this, is nobody listening? Can we really afford to overlook the plight of common people? Guess that’s not new to India- except when its election time ofcourse.