India’s aviation regulator the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) has renewed Jet Airways’ flying permit just till September as the fate of the defunct airline still remains uncertain.
Jet has old, mostly defunct aircraft. JKC hasn’t purchased or leased a single plane.
Jet’s air operator’s certificate (AOC) lapsed after it shut operations in April 2019. The airline has been undergoing insolvency proceedings in India’s bankruptcy court.
The consortium that won the bid for Jet hasn’t repaid any of Jet’s dues. The future of India’s longest serving private airline is stuck in a chicken-and-egg fight wherein JKC said it will only repay once it has got possession of it while Jet’s lenders have thwarted any transfer or ownership saying it has neither made any repayment nor fulfilled conditions precedent such as getting Jet’s flight slots.
The National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) in Jan allowed the ownership of Jet Airways to be transferred to JKC which had won the bid to resurrect the grounded carrier in 2021.
The lenders appealed to the National Company Law Appellate Tribunal (NCLAT) saying the revival plan is unviable.
Th consortium has appealed to the Supreme Court against a separate ruling by the National Company Law Appellate Tribunal (NCLAT) directing it to clear unpaid provident fund dues of Rs 250 crore to employees.
JKC has said it will spend Rs 1,375 crore–Rs 900 crore as capital infusion and Rs 475 crore paid to creditors. Of that, Rs 380 crore will go to financial creditors. JKC is to have an 89.79% stake while 9.5% will go to lenders.
