Mumbai: It is difficult times for the aviation industry, there is no doubt about it. While they struggle to keep their losses at bay incurred due to CoronaVirus, the airlines are also working hard to answer queries of its flyers. It is estimated that customers’ queries have soared triple-digit.
Speaking to The Free Press Journal, a Kolkata resident, Dutta, who travelled recently to Mumbai, said, “I cannot rely on planes anymore as they are canceling flights. I have to return home. So, I will take a train instead. Even if it means it will take longer to get home.”
Due to the cancellation of some domestic and most international flights, flyers are not just worried but stranded too. While people like Dutta are still in their homeland, there is a large number of Indian nationals stuck in other countries.
This has resulted in airlines back office or call centers going on an overdrive. In an email, Indigo informed its passengers, “We are requesting your patience if you are trying to reach us, as our incoming emails and calls have spiked five times in volume in the last few days.
This is a consequence of the spate of travel advisories that governments have issued across the globe, which have resulted in a change of travel plans by many of our customers.”
This is the same in the case of GoAir as well. The company in its statement revealed that the volume of calls in relation to Covid 19 at GoAir's customer centers has increased by 500-700 per cent in the last three-four weeks.
Like the tourism sector and other allied sectors, the airline sector is also working round the clock to address complaints of its passengers. For instance, Indigo has requested its team in customer relations to work six days a week instead of five and are moving a large number of airport staff into their customer relations department.