The crisis in Jet Airways has deepened as the airline on Tuesday grounded 15 more aircraft after its failure to pay lessors. This is the 14th time Jet Airways has grounded aircraft this year.
The airline had 119 aircraft in its fleet, but only about 20 may be flying. Meanwhile, the airline asked its Boeing 737 pilots to go on a sabbatical from April 26 to beginning of September.
In a BSE filing, Jet Airways said it has grounded 15 more aircraft as it failed to make payments to its lessors. The airline owes over Rs. 8,400 crore to a consortium of banks led by State Bank of India (SBI). As part of a resolution, the State-run bank had promised an interim funding of Rs. 1,500 crore, but that hasn’t been transferred. The lenders are looking for a new strategic investor for which bidding is set to start on April 9.
