Air India is not having a good time. First, there were reports that the national carrier is yet to be paid Rs 750 crore by the government for flying Very Very Important Persons and defence services. Now, it has been ranked as the third worst international airlines of 2016.
Every year, the aviation insights company FlightStats puts together a list of the international airlines with the best on-time performance records. According to Flight Stats, the worst 10 international airlines of 2016 feature the national carrier Air India.
As Bloomberg notes in a report, these are the 10 worst International Airlines of 2016
10. Hainan Airlines - 30.3 percent
9. Korean Air - 31.74 percent
8. Air China - 32.73 percent
7. Hong Kong Airlines - 33.42 percent
6. China Eastern Airlines - 35.8 percent
5. Asiana Airlines - 37.46 percent
4. Philippine Airlines - 38.33 percent
3. Air India - 38.71 percent
2. Icelandair - 41.05 percent
1. El Al - 56 percent
"We stitch data together from 500 different sources," said Jim Hetzel, vice president of aviation and distribution at FlightStats, likening the process to creating a giant quilt.
Meanwhile, Air India is a fighting a tough battle. "As on December 30, there are dues up to Rs 750 crore," a senior executive of the airline told Business Standard. However, the departments and ministries that owe the money had promised to clear these soon.
The airline is on an expansion mode and plans to purchase 30 aircraft this financial year. But, it is also suffering from a cash crunch. According to a PTI report, the airline was compelled to delay the salary of some employees in December.
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