Lured by the prospect of landing a highly remunerative and glamorous job as a pilot when the domestic aviation industry in India was on a roll, Abhishek decided to pursue a course for a pilot's licence.
He joined a flying school in South Africa after raising a bank loan. After having finished the course, he could not get a job with as the recession-hit airline industry has frozen recruitment of pilots. Abhishek has now joined a call centre in Bangalore. With a salary nowhere near that of a pilot, he has no idea how he will repay his loan.
Similar is the case of Mohammed Waseem, who took a loan of Rs. 25 lakh for a flying course in South Africa. He too has joined a call centre here.
Abhishek and Waseem are among scores of qualified commercial pilots in the country who are yet to find a berth in the aviation industry.
It is estimated there are around 5,000 jobless pilots in India. Associations like the Unemployed Pilots' Association of India and the Unemployed Pilots Welfare Association have mushroomed on social networking sites.
With their dreams in tatters, they have become objects of pity among friends and relatives. Many have left home and gone to other cities, mainly to avoid ridicule.
Abhishek said his salary of Rs. 15,000 at the call centre is not enough to repay the loan. “The EMI works out to around Rs. 40,000 for a loan of Rs. 25 lakh.”
If many pilots are working overtime at call centres, the families of some are selling property to repay debts.
Capt. Gopinath, whose airline Air Deccan propelled the growth of the Indian aviation sector, said youngsters took up flying courses hoping to land a pilot's job. “When Air Deccan started, it triggered a boom in the aviation sector. Many others started similar airlines.” A pilot's job was attractive as the starting salary was around Rs 1.5 lakh. Flight captains, with more than 1,500 flying hours, were paid about Rs. 5 lakh a month.
An official at the Bangalore-based Eagle Aviation Consultants, which advises students interested in aviation schools, said there was a decline in the number of students taking up flying courses in the last two years. “We sent around 30 students to various flying schools in 2008. In the last three years, we have sent only 20.”
Capt. Gopinath said the only way to improve the job prospects in the industry was by expanding airlines and deploying more aircraft.
“For this to happen, air travel should be made cheaper. As of today only 3 per cent of Indians can afford air travel. Airlines should make profits; only then can they think of expanding their business,” he said.
