Spicejet Staff Layoff: More than 500 employees will be laid off, salary not received since January, only 13 own planes left

Business Desk – Spicejet Staff Layoff: The country’s private airline SpiceJet is facing a serious crisis. Due to reduced operational efficiency, the company has decided to reduce its staff by 20%. With this step, more than 500 employees can be sent on leave without pay.

The airline currently has a workforce of 6,800 employees. It now has only 13 aircraft left, which include 10 Boeing jets and 3 Q400. Apart from this, 14 aircraft are currently operating under wet-lease agreements (including crew).

Senior executives have not received their salaries since January, while other employees are facing a delay of 2-3 months in getting their salaries. The company has outstanding dues of more than Rs 100 crore related to GST, TDS and PF contribution. TDS payments have not been deposited since April 2025. GST payment is pending for five months.

Losing market share to Akasa

The airline has waived the three-month notice period of dozens of engineers who had resigned. Following an order issued on March 31, these employees have been directed to leave their jobs immediately.

SpiceJet’s share in the domestic market has fallen to only 3.9%. In comparison, the new airline, Akasa, has a fleet of 37 aircraft and a workforce of 5,000 employees. Market share is 4.9%. Former employees are also expressing their displeasure over not receiving their full and final settlement dues.

Salary cut for pilots; Work limited to 21 days

A new policy has been started for pilots. Under the new rules, they will have to work for 21 days and take 9 days off. Due to this, the monthly salary of the Captain will reduce from Rs 7.5 lakh to Rs 6 lakh.

Airline’s loss increased to Rs 621 crore in July-September quarter

For the July–September quarter (Q2FY26), low-cost airline SpiceJet’s consolidated net loss widened 35% year-on-year to Rs 621 crore. In the same quarter of last year, this figure was Rs 458 crore. The operational revenue of the company also declined by 13% to Rs 792 crore. In the same quarter of last year, this figure was Rs 915 crore.