NEW DELHI - Employees of India's largest airline have threatened to go on strike after management delayed their salaries by two weeks because of a cash crisis, a report said Thursday.

About 20,000 employees, more than two-thirds of Air India's workforce, are pushing for a "no pay, no work" walkout if the airline fails to pay regular salaries by June 30, said Dinakar Shetty, president of the carrier's largest union, the Air Corporation Employees' Union (ACEU).

"We've issued a notice to the airline and sought a meeting," Shetty was quoted as saying by the Hindustan Times newspaper.

An Air India spokesman refused to comment.

Management of the struggling state-run airline - which merged with government-run domestic carrier Indian Airlines last year - sent a notice to its employees earlier in the week saying it would defer 73 million dollars in monthly wages until July 15.

A combination of high fuel prices, fewer passengers and the global financial meltdown have left Air India with an estimated 800 million dollars in losses for the past year and debt of four billion dollars, according to the Centre for Asia Pacific Aviation.

The flagship carrier is expected to follow in the footsteps of privately-held Jet Airways and Kingfisher Airlines by increasing fares in line with global oil prices, and has reportedly asked the government for a bailout package.