Once a major player in the Indian aviation sector, Jet Airways has not taken off since April 17, 2019, and is being revived under the ownership of the Jalan-Kalrock consortium. Last month, it got its air operator certificate re-validated by aviation safety regulator DGCA. According to sources, the airline is currently in discussions with aircraft manufacturers and lessors to lease 6-8 aircraft, some of which were to be delivered to Russian carriers before the Ukraine war, as it would be ready for relaunch. is ready.
Besides this, the airline is also in talks with airport operators to secure slots with “good” timings, he said. A source told PTI, “Availability of aircraft is always an issue, but now due to the Russo-Ukraine war, the aircraft which were to be delivered to Russia are also available in the market, along with those leased aircraft which are not available in the market.” Were flying over Russia.”
He said the airline is in talks with Boeing, Airbus and lessors, adding that “discussions are at a very high level and an announcement is expected very soon.” According to the source, Jet Airways is planning to lease 6-8 aircraft by December. Jet Airways confirmed that the airline is in “advanced discussions” with lessors and original equipment manufacturers (OEMs), but did not share specific details.
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Jet Airways CEO Sanjeev Kapoor told PTI, “We do not have any comment on this, except that we will share after finalizing our fleet plans and we are ready to share. We are in advanced discussions with the lessors and all three OEMs.”
“However, it will be Airbus or Boeing’s only single-type fleet. Both are in contention at this stage,” the source said, adding that once the aircraft deal is signed, the airline could resume operations in early September. .
The acquisition of a large number of aircraft would first require a preliminary agreement with the aircraft manufacturer because the “competition” between Boeing and Airbus is very clear, he said.
He said, ‘It is yet to be decided. But when it is taken up it will be implemented quickly. According to the source, the airline has also decided that the aircraft will not be kept in its fleet for the time being and instead they will be disposed of.
Stating that it will be domestic services only initially, the source said that Jet Airways is looking at flying to Mumbai, Goa and Bengaluru, from its new base in Delhi, adding that the network plan is yet to be finalised. The rest is because the airline is looking for airport slots.
As per the source, “We have got some slots but some fine-tuning like work is being done at an opportune time and the airline may announce the same. So everything is in a positive direction.” In aviation parlance, a slot is an authorization to take off or land at a particular airport on a particular day during a specified time period.
(with inputs from PTI)