Jet Airways woes deepen as Avolon seeks to de-register two planes

Avolon, one of the world’s biggest aircraft lessors, applied to de-register two planes it had placed with Jet Airways Ltd, making it the first lessor to do so on a non-consensual basis with the struggling Indian airline.

Two subsidiaries of Dublin-based Avolon applied to Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) to de-register two Boeing 737-800s, according to notices published on the regulator’s website. Avolon has terminated the leases on the planes and currently has five more aircraft placed with Jet, said sources who declined to be identified due to the sensitivity of the matter. A spokesman for Avolon declined comment on the matter.

The move by Avolon indicates an escalation of a crisis for Jet. The airline, now controlled by its lenders, has had to ground more than three-quarters of its fleet of 119 planes, many due to non-payment to lessors, leading to hundreds of flight cancellations.