Domestic airlines step up hiring across verticals to support ambitious expansion plans

With a team of over 2,500 employees, Akasa Air aims to expand its strength to over 3,000 employees by 2024 and is encouraging talent from various walks of life to apply for roles across verticals.

Despite the Go First insolvency, the airline industry is upbeat on hiring in big numbers with a focus on niche skills. Currently, there are around 1,000-8,000 active white-collar job vacancies with aviation-specific roles, data from various staffing firms showed.

The most sought-after roles include aviation engineers, customer engagement, and administrative staff, among others.

Vistara, which operates 60 aircraft, is on course to take the number up to 70 aircraft by the end of 2024. The full-service carrier has been rapidly hiring and said it remains committed to attracting and retaining competent talent to support its expanding operations.

“At present, we have a workforce of over 5,000 employees and we look forward to further strengthening our team by accelerating our hiring processes for various roles including cabin crew, pilots, engineers, security, ground services and customer engagement amongst others,” Deepa Chadha, SVP of HR and Corporate Affairs at Vistara, told Moneycontrol.

Beyond the essential skills and expertise, such as technical proficiency, communication skills, adaptability, and emotional intelligence, Chadha said Vistara aims to hire creative thinkers and those who can thrive under pressure.

Akasa plans

With a team of over 2,500 employees, Akasa Air aims to expand its strength to over 3,000 employees by 2024 and is encouraging talent from various walks of life to apply for roles across verticals.

On hiring, Akasa Air said it has received an “exceptionally positive response” from aviation professionals who have exhibited immense enthusiasm towards being part of the airline’s growth trajectory.

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“While core technical skills are required for specific roles like pilots or engineers but mostly we look for talent with great service orientation first, as ‘Service Excellence’ is one of our core culture ethos,” said Ritu Sinha, Head of HR at Akasa Air.

Job profiles in demand

The hiring strategy of aviation companies depends on various factors, including the organisation's size, the specific roles they are looking to fill, and their overall recruitment and talent acquisition strategy, said Sekhar Garisa, CEO of job portal foundit (previously Monster APAC & ME)

For example, retired professionals from the Indian Air Force and Navy are potential candidates in this sector. Also, companies look for candidates from schools and colleges that offer aviation programs.

Concerning roles, profiles in ‘Flight & Airport Operations’ and ‘Airline Services’ are most in-demand with 32 percent and 28 percent of jobs posted in the aviation category, respectively, showed data shared by foundit with Moneycontrol.

Some of the other most sought-after job profiles currently in aviation are aircraft maintenance engineers, aerospace engineers, flight engineers, pilots, flight attendants, ground staff, etc, as per staffing firm NLB Services, which expects each of these roles to have high demand over the year, ranging from 1,000 to 3,500 jobs.

Hiring strategy 

Amid rising competition for top talent, Sachin Alug, CEO of NLB Services, said the aviation industry has come to rely heavily on technologies like automation and artificial intelligence (AI) to rope in professionals for new roles.

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Skill-based assessments are gaining more focus from stakeholders so that both career and company roadmaps can be defined and aligned during recruitment, he said, adding that online training initiatives are being undertaken to boost competency.

“With soaring demand for both technical and non-technical roles in aviation, we anticipate 10.000 new jobs to open up in the country over the next two years,” Alug said.

Currently, the talent attraction strategy of aviation companies in India typically involves a mix of recruitment through job portals, campus placements, employee referrals, and social media, according to staffing firm Teamlease Services.

Balasubramanian A, VP and Business Head at Teamlease Services said that many aviation companies also partner with aviation training institutes to recruit fresh talent.

“Over the years, this has emerged as one of the most preferred hiring channels as it helps create a cohort effect as well,” he said.