The Jalan-Kalrock consortium, Jet Airways’ protective new owner, said on Friday that it has completed a fresh injection of 100 crore into the insolvent airline, bringing its total commitment to 350 crore.
Jet Airways was the country’s first privately owned airline. It first opened in 1993 and quickly became a popular destination for Indian tourists. Jet Airways operated 124 planes on over 1,000 local and international flights. It was well-known for its slogan “The Joy of Flying” as well as excellent customer service.
On August 28, the National Company Appellate Tribunal (NCLAT) handed the Jalan-Kalrock partnership till September 30 to pay 350 crore in debts to the grounded airline’s lenders.
“With this infusion, the Jalan-Kalrock consortium has now fulfilled its total financial commitment of ₹350 crore equity as per the court-approved resolution plan, and all commitments by JKC now stand fulfilled to take control of the iconic airline. The consortium’s strategy to revive the airline remains unaltered,” the consortium said in a statement.
Jalan Kalrock said it aims to have Jet Airways up and running in 2024. “Further announcements regarding the launch date of Jet Airways will be made in the coming weeks,” it added. The consortium had infused ₹100 crore into Jet Airways last week as well.
Jet Airways had a fleet of 124 narrow- and wide-body aircraft and served more than 65 local and international destinations until ceasing operations in April 2019.
On July 5, the Committee of Creditors (CoC) of Jet Airways, chaired by the State Bank of India, informed the Supreme Court that the company’s debts had not been settled and no cash had been put into the debt-laden carrier. Lenders have injected around 400 crore of public funds into the airline, which includes the payment of airport dues.
The National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) approved the transfer of the troubled airline to the consortium on January 13. However, the airline’s financiers were opposed to the move.
Earlier this month, Jet Airways founder Naresh Goyal was arrested and held in judicial custody for 14 days in connection with a 538 crore bank fraud case. After interviewing him for hours at its Mumbai office, the Enforcement Directorate (ED) detained Goyal on September 1 under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA). Naresh Goyal, 78, is accused of syphoning monies from India by establishing several trusts and utilizing them to purchase properties in other countries.
