PTI NEW DELHI THREE Air India pilots, who had reported sick, resumed duty on Wednesday in the first sign of an end to the nine-day stir by over 200 pilots, whose union said they were open to talks with the government to resolve the deadlock.

An Air India spokesperson said, “Three sick pilots have resumed duty today”, but the Indian Pilots Guild, spearheading the agitation, claimed that they were not its members and accused the management of trying to create a rift and confusion among their ranks.

With Civil Aviation Minister Ajit Singh offering to hold talks unconditionally and promising that the airline would not be vindictive, the IPG said in a statement it was “open to meeting with officials of the management and/or Ministry at any place at any time in order to resolve these issues and bring an end to the current impasse.” Hit by the pilots stir, the airline put into operation curtailed international services to Europe and North America as part of a contingency plan.

There was no end to the woes of passengers who either could not find a seat in another airline or found the ticket cost prohibitive.

“The strike continues... We don’t want pilots to be martyred,” IPG president and NCP MLA Jitendra Ahwad said when asked whether they were willing to call off their agitation that has led to a revenue loss of over Rs 150 crore to the lossmaking carrier besides causing inconvenience to passengers.

Singh had on Tuesday promised to hear the pilots’ grievances and appealed to them to return to work, saying they had the “last chance” to revive the “almost bankrupt” airline.