The standoff between Kingfisher Airlines management and employees, agitating over delayed salaries, ended on Tuesday with the protesters accepting the assurance given by the beleaguered carrier's promoter Vijay Mallya and deciding to withdraw their agitation from Wednesday.

Mallya, who had a meeting with the employees including pilots and engineers late on Monday night, had assured them that their dues would be paid in a staggered manner by April 10.

"The employees accepted the assurance Mallya had given in his letter and decided that they would not go ahead with their ultimatum of an agitation if a part of their dues were not paid by 8 PM on Tuesday, airline sources said.

After a day-long meeting between the employees and the management on Monday, Mallya made a last ditch effort and met the agitators at his residence late last night.

He is understood to have warned them that any agitation could lead to cancellation of Kingfisher's flying permit by aviation regulator DGCA if its services were disrupted any further.

The crisis-ridden carrier was in any case operating a curtailed summer schedule of about 100 daily flights with 16 planes.

Urging the employees not to press their ultimatum, Mallya reiterated his promise of clearing the salary dues of junior staff, including those involved in ground handling and security, by Wednesday and that of the pilots and engineers by April nine and ten. The staffers have not been paid salaries since December.