With lenders rejecting a lifeline of Rs 400 crore, Jet Airways, which has been on a wing and prayer since January, is left with no other option but to ground operations – at least temporarily.
On Wednesday, 17 April, the cash-strapped airline cancelled all its domestic and international flights with immediate effect. The last flight reportedly operated at 10:30 pm from Mumbai to Amritsar.
Meanwhile, on Thursday, 18 April, said they are reasonably hopeful of a successful bidding process for stake sale. The announcement from the lenders came early morning ahead of market opening.
Since the 25 March resolution to infuse Rs 1,500 crore into the airline is yet to fructify, the once leading airline has been defaulting on payments, forcing its lessors to retake almost all its planes and was operating just about six planes as of Tuesday.
“The Jet Airways management’s request for Rs 400 crore emergency funds has been rejected. The airline has failed to garner the funds it was desperately looking for to continue operations,” banking sources told PTI.
According to sources, the government is maintaining distance from the Jet affairs, citing the matter is a commercial decision of banks.
In an official statement, the airline announced the temporary grounding of operations.
The Jet Airways board had authorised chief executive Vinay Dube to make one last appeal to the SBI-led consortium to get a lifeline of Rs 400 crore before taking a final call on the future.
In it response to the airline, the lenders said, “Banks are actively working to try and ensure the bidding process leads to a viable solution for company.”
The bidding process will conclude on 10 May.
Jet will be the seventh airline to go down since May 2014 and the 13th one after East West was shuttered.
During the past five years airlines like Air Pegasus, Air Costa, Air Carnival, Air Deccan, Air Odisha and Zoom Air have all gone belly up even as the government boasts of double-digits growth for more than four years in tow.
