Over the last year India’s Naresh Goyal, known for his “ruthless passion” for his airline, has had to let go–of a lot. Selling 24% of Jet Airways’ equity as well as a majority stake in its frequent-flier program, which houses data about premium passengers. Selling slots at London’s Heathrow airport to Etihad Airways. Sidelining or firing key board members and staffers, including his wife, Neeta, who had helped him steer the company through financial, regulatory and legal minefields.
But these painful changes, made with the intent of staging a semblance of recovery, have not restored Jet’s fortunes in any significant way. Financial year 2014 was in many ways the lowest point for what was once India’s most powerful service brand. Loss for the year is expected to be around $330 million. Until Q3, revenue fell 10% over the previous year and losses stood at $250 million. Add the woes of subsidiary company Jet Lite (formerly Sahara Airlines) and the problem gets compounded.
These numbers are chilling, but it isn’t yet time to pen an epitaph. However, there is certainly a cautionary tale to be told, deconstructing the tailspin that the 21-year-old airline finds itself in.
Goyal has typically administered Jet Airways closely, albeit away from the notorious traffic jams around his airline’s corporate headquarters at Andheri East in Mumbai. For close to two decades he worked from his home office in London. More recently it’s been from his new base in Dubai, where he bought a posh 18,000-square-foot penthouse overlooking the marina.
01/05/14 Cuckoo Paul/Forbes
To Read the News in full at Source, Click the Headline
But these painful changes, made with the intent of staging a semblance of recovery, have not restored Jet’s fortunes in any significant way. Financial year 2014 was in many ways the lowest point for what was once India’s most powerful service brand. Loss for the year is expected to be around $330 million. Until Q3, revenue fell 10% over the previous year and losses stood at $250 million. Add the woes of subsidiary company Jet Lite (formerly Sahara Airlines) and the problem gets compounded.
These numbers are chilling, but it isn’t yet time to pen an epitaph. However, there is certainly a cautionary tale to be told, deconstructing the tailspin that the 21-year-old airline finds itself in.
Goyal has typically administered Jet Airways closely, albeit away from the notorious traffic jams around his airline’s corporate headquarters at Andheri East in Mumbai. For close to two decades he worked from his home office in London. More recently it’s been from his new base in Dubai, where he bought a posh 18,000-square-foot penthouse overlooking the marina.
01/05/14 Cuckoo Paul/Forbes
