In a relief for those flying with Air India, the national carrier said on Wednesday it would not levy any cancellation or refund fee on passengers affected by the ongoing strike by a section of its pilots.
"In the event of flight disruptions/cancellation/combination/delay of over an hour, full refund will be given to passengers, irrespective of the fare rules," the state-run airline said on Wednesday evening.
The airline has also decided that no penalties will be levied on tickets refunded/re-validated/re-issued/re-booked on a subsequent flight, due to flight disruptions, cancellation or combination or over-flying/delay of over an hour, it said.
About 800 pilots of Air India, representing the union of the erstwhile India Airlines, have struck work from midnight.
So far 12 per cent of the flights have been canceled across the country.
Till 1600 hrs, the airline had to cancel 12 flights from Mumbai and 24 from Delhi, its main hubs, an official said.
To overcome the crisis, AI has drawn up a contingency plan, which includes roping in executive pilots, and it will be put into effect from tomorrow, the official said.
The 800-odd striking pilots owe allegiance to the Indian Commercial Pilot's Association. The merged entity -- Indian Airlines and Air India -- has about 1,200 pilots.
The remaining 400 pilots who mostly operate international flights belong to the Indian Pilots Guild.
The ICPA had given a strike notice late Tuesday night demanding higher emoluments and parity in pay and allowances with erstwhile pilots belonging to erstwhile Air India.
The average earning of a co-pilot of erstwhile Indian Airlines range between Rs 225,000 and Rs 325,000 per month and for a commander it is Rs 400,000 to 500,000 per month, the airline said.