Kingfisher Airlines to suspend all international flights: Mallya
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Kingfisher Airlines will suspend all international flights, and has submitted a new flight plan to the country's aviation regulator. The airline will operate up to 125 daily local flights with 20 planes.The promoter of the carrier, Vijay Mallya, with other top Kingfisher officials, met the civil aviation regulator in New Delhi today.
Kingfisher, which is scrambling to raise funds as banks have refused to lend the debt-laden carrier more for day-to-day operations, will discontinue all international operations by April 10.
Speaking to NDTV after the meeting, Mr Mallya said he was closing international operations because "...it does not make sense to operate international flights until our accounts are unfrozen."
Kingfisher has accumulated losses of Rs. 6,400 crore and debts of Rs. 7,000 crore. Tax authorities have frozen its accounts due to non-payment of dues and the government has also clearly said that it will not bail out the ailing company.
Civil Aviation minister Ajit Singh and the DGCA have taken a tough stance and said that the government could consider cancelling the licence. Director General of Civil Aviation Bharat Bhushan however said after the meeting that he has "no plans of cancelling (Kingfisher Airlines') licence right now".
Earlier in the day, Mr Singh said, "The problem is that he (Kingfisher owner Vijay Mallya) has given several plans but has not adhered to any of them. If Kingfisher is not able to pay for fuel, than how can this airline run? It now depends upon the to cancel its license,"
"The civil aviation ministry is concerned about the safety of passengers. If you don't pay your pilots and mechanics, stress in them can prove harmful for passengers," he added. Mr Bharat Bhushan, had also told NDTV that despite several warnings on different fronts, the airline has not been able to correct its mistakes. "The situation cannot continue like this," Mr Bhushan told NDTV. He pointed out that Kingfisher employees including pilots have not been paid for several months.
Flights are being cancelled without informing the aviation industry regulator, the DGCA. Mr Bhushan says that his team is auditing the airline almost every day to ensure safety is not being compromised.
The DGCA has the authority to suspend or cancel the airlines license, and is finalizing its report on Kingfisher this week.
Kingfisher Airlines, which has a debt of $1.3 billion, is facing collapse as banks have refused to lend more for day-to-day operations. Massive cutback in flights have reduced revenues, leaving the carrier with little cash to pay its employees, airports and tax authorities.
The carrier, controlled by flamboyant liquor baron Vijay Mallya, has almost halved its daily flights from the scheduled 200 after some pilots refused to report for work and a suspension by global industry body IATA from its settlement system restricted bookings through overseas agents. (Reuters)
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