No Word on Salary Dues Yet, Jet Pilots Threaten to go on Strike From Monday

New Delhi: The pilots of embattled Jet Airways might stop flying from Monday, since the airline has not got the interim funding from lenders and as a result, have not been paid salary dues pending for last four months.

According to a report in Times of India, the only way the strike can be averted is by clearing the pilots' salary dues in next two days or by at-least clearing a part of their dues immediately.

"Dear Members, a part of the expected interim funding from SBI was supposed to be actioned on Friday (March 29). Unfortunately, the fund transfer has not taken place, hence no update on salary payment from the management. The collective decision of pilots taken at Mumbai and Delhi open house effective April 1 2019 prevails," the National Aviators' Guild (NAG), union of Jet Airways' Indian pilots said late on Friday night.
Cash-strapped Jet Airways, whose board has cleared a debt resolution plan, has grounded many planes and has also defaulted on repayment of debt, including External Commercial Borrowings (ECBs).

Reacting to the letter, a Jet spokesperson said that the airlines was in discussions with pilots to ensure the operating schedule is maintained. “The airline remains committed to honour its obligations towards all its employees, including Pilots, AMEs (aircraft maintenance engineers) and members of its senior management, and all other employees who have sacrificed more than their fair share to uphold Jet Airways' value,” the spokesperson said.
"The Board along with our lenders, are working continuously towards a strong turn around plan which will enable the airline to restore normalcy to its operations. Jet Airways remains grateful to its pilots, engineers and members of its senior management for their patience and understanding during these trying times. To our guests, we sincerely apologise for any inconvenience caused and would like to assure them that every measure is being taken to minimise the disruption to our operating flight schedule," the airline spokesperson added.
31/03/19 News18.com

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Have enough pilots, operations won't be impacted: Jet Airways

Even as it tries to stave off a proposed mass leave by a section of pilots, Jet Airways on Saturday said it has the requisite number of aviators to man its fleet currently under operation.

"Operations on Monday are unlikely to be impacted," an official said.

"We have taken note of the advisory sent by a section of the pilots. We are engaged with them and hope to receive their complete support," a senior airline official told IANS.

"Their dues will be paid. However, there is a delay due to the March fiscal end, severely compounded by the weekend. The dues might be delayed for some days but everyone will be paid."

According to the official, the airline currently has "enough" pilots to support its current level of operations.

"We have other categories of pilots to man our fleet. Operations on Monday are unlikely to be impacted," the official said.

In a statement, the airline said that it remained committed to honour its obligations towards all its employees, including pilots and engineers.

"The Board along with our lenders, are working continuously towards a strong turnaround plan, which will enable the airline to restore normalcy to its operations," the statement said.
30/03/19 IANS/CNBC TV18

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Hinting at Jet Crisis, Suresh Prabhu Says Airlines Responsible for Their Own Financial Performance

New Delhi: Efficient operations and financial performance are individual responsibilities of carriers, and the government cannot interfere in their day-to-day operations, Civil Aviation Minister Suresh Prabhu said amid Jet Airways crisis and turbulent times of the domestic airlines industry.

In view of intense competition, rising costs, shortage of pilots and grounding of planes hurting many domestic carriers, the minister also said the government has been constantly responding to industry conditions and cited measures taken, including reduction in central excise duty on jet fuel to 11 per cent from 14 per cent.

Cash-strapped Jet Airways has been forced to ground planes, cancel flights and delay payments, including salaries to pilots, while Air India continues to grapple with financial woes. On March 25, the board of ailing Jet Airways cleared a debt resolution plan whereby lenders would take control of the carrier.

Against this backdrop, Prabhu said that each airline prepares its own business plan on the basis of its own market assessment and financial resources. "Based on its business plan, the efficient operations and financial performance are the responsibilities of each individual airline and its shareholders.
"However, the government has constantly been responding to industry conditions and undertaking specific measures to facilitate and enable growth of the sector," he told PTI.

In written replies to PTI queries, Prabhu said the airline industry is a dynamic industry which requires continuous adjustment according to global and domestic needs. "It is our endeavour to support the industry, however, as stated we cannot interfere in day to-day operations of the airlines," he noted.
31/03/19 PTI/News18.com

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A K Purwar likely to chair Jet Airways' interim management committee

The consortium of lenders to Jet Airways is considering roping in former SBI chief A K Purwar as chairman of the interim management committee as the cash-strapped airline looks for a new investor, a senior official said.

The official of the State Bank of India (SBI) also said the lenders are in the process of appointing SBI Capital as advisor in efforts for finding a the new investor.

As the full service carrier struggling to stay afloat, its board on March 25 approved a debt resolution plan that would see immediate fund infusion of Rs 1,500 crore and lenders taking control of the airline.

According to the official, Purwar is expected to be soon appointed as chairman of the interim management committee.
Purwar was the chairman of the State Bank of India between 2002 and 2006. The bank is also the lead lender to Jet Airways.

Apart from monitoring the daily operations and cash flow of the company, the committee would also oversee the process for roping in a new investor, the official said.

With the implementation of the resolution plan, SBI would next month invite expression of interest (EoI) from potential entities willing to invest in the airline. A finality about the new investor or investors is expected by the end of May.

"My expectation is May 31... market is open for everyone whosoever wants to come in. There will be expression of interest (EoI) which will be given by April 9 and binding bids by April 30," SBI Chairman Rajnish Kumar said last week.
31/03/19 PTI/moneycontrol.com

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Jet Airways releases 87.5% of Dec. salary dues

Jet Airways CEO Vinay Dube, on Saturday, wrote to employees of the airline seeking their continued support, as pilots, aircraft maintenance engineers and the senior management received a part of their pending salaries.

The airline on Saturday evening paid 87.5% of the December salaries that were outstanding. Salaries for January and February have not been paid yet, with March salaries due on April 1. The letter and part payment of dues came in the backdrop of a strike call given by the National Aviators Guild from April 1.

“Our pilots, aircraft maintenance engineers and senior management team in particular have persevered despite the adverse personal and financial impact it has had on each individual and their respective families. We understand the hardship, anxiety and uncertainty which each of you have endured and for that you have our deepest, heartfelt gratitude,” Mr. Dube said. Upon receiving the CEO’s e-mail, the National Aviators Guild called for open houses in Mumbai and Delhi to discuss the issue on Sunday.
30/03/19 Aditya Anand/The Hindu

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Jet Airways operations may get hit from Monday; engineers, pilots still unpaid

In a fresh bout of turbulence for Jet Airways, the engineers of the airline have now indicated that they will stop maintaining the inactive fleet of over 80 planes from April 1 as pending salary dues have still not been paid.

Sources close the development have told CNBC-TV18 that the engineering department held a meeting today and decided that they will no longer "work for free."

This would put a question mark on the lease agreements of 54 planes which are grounded on account of non-payment of lease rentals by the airline.
This would put a question mark on the lease agreements of 54 planes which are grounded on account of non-payment of lease rentals by the airline.

“The engineers have said that they will not maintain the inactive fleet from April 1 as they are not willing to work for free. While 30-odd planes are not airworthy and need heavy maintenance, the remaining inactive fleet also needs some light maintenance on a daily scale. This could potentially lead to grounding of the entire airline," one of the sources aware of the development said.

The airline currently has an active fleet of 35 planes with two-thirds of its total count of 119 planes on the ground. The beleaguered airline recently made an ambitious claim to the union civil aviation ministry of adding 40 more planes to its fleet by April end.

"With engineers not ready to maintain the grounded planes, the lessors are likely to get more anxious and the negotiations for activating those planes may face more hurdles," another source said on condition of anonymity.
30/03/19 Anu Sharma/CNBC TV18

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With no update on salary, Jet Airways pilots to go on strike from April 1

It's one storm after another for ailing airline Jet Airways. Just days after lenders agreed to infuse Rs 1,500 crore as part of an immediate relief measure, the pilot union of Jet Airways says there is no update on the status of salary payment yet.

As stated earlier, pilots at the cash-strapped will go on a strike from April 1, announced the pilot union in a late night development.

Pilots at the airline had asked it to clear a substantial chunk of their salary before the end of the month, adding that they would stop flying if their demands are not met.

Arrears of 1,100 Jet pilots, which have accumulated over the past few months, have not been disbursed even after a rescue plan was initiated by lenders after Naresh Goyal resigned from the airline's board.

The National Aviators Guild (NAG) confirmed in a statement that a part of the expected interim funding from State Bank of India was supposed to be "actioned" on March 29 but the fund transfer has not yet taken place.

"Hence, there is no update on salary payment from the management. The collective decision of pilots taken at Mumbai and Delhi open house effective April 1, 2019, IST prevails."

This is another huge blow for the airline in a matter of just a few days. According to reports, the airline has also let go of many expat pilots to cut down on extra operational costs.

As of now, the airline is operating less than half of its operational fleet, much of which has been grounded due to non-payment of lease rentals.
30/03/19 Pankaj Upadhyay/India Today

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Jet Airways likely to resume two international flights in April-end

Pune: The two international flights of Jet Airways from the city to Abu Dhabi and Singapore are expected to resume operations by April-end, leaving Puneites to make do with just two overseas connections — one each of SpiceJet and Air India Express to Dubai — till then.
“We expect the two international flights of Jet Airways to resume services by April-end. Following the recent developments in the airline, we hope most of their flights (including domestic destinations) to resume operations within two-three months,” an airport official told TOI.

The spokespersons of the airline did not respond to queries on the revival of its cancelled international flights from Pune. But sources claimed that the airline was expected to revive its flights to international destinations first with things slowly getting back in line.

Of its 21 flights to different destinations from Pune, the airline is presently operating just four — two each to Delhi and Mumbai. The airline has cancelled its flights from Pune to Singapore and Abu Dhabi till March 30.
Bhooshan Pandit, who was set to travel to Singapore on April 2 on the Jet Airways flight, said he got a call from the airline’s customer care about its cancellation in mid-March. He wrote to Jet on March 24 that he had applied for a full refund but was yet to get it.
30/03/19 Joy Sengupta/Times of India

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Jet Airways faces new hurdles

The last week of financial year 2018-19 saw lenders racing against time to finalise some major debt resolutions including that of the beleaguered Jet Airways. Banks battled hard against the promoters and won majority stake in the airline. However, the challenging journey of reviving the debt-ridden airline has just begun.
Meanwhile, the central bank conducted its first dollar-rupee swap auction worth $5 billion to ease some pain for banks facing year-end liquidity crunch. It is expected to continue with more such auctions going forward.
Earlier this week, Jet Airways founder and promoter Naresh Goyal and his wife Anita stepped down from the board to make way for new owners, a consortium of lenders led by the State Bank of India (SBI). The move would allow Jet Airways access to Rs 1,500 crore in emergency funding from banks and get some of its fleet off the ground.
However, there doesn’t seem to be an end to the airline’s problems. Its pilots have now threatened to go on strike from April 1, if their salaries are not paid. Saddled with a debt of over $1 billion of debt, Jet Airways has been struggling to stay afloat. It has delayed payments to banks, suppliers, pilots and lessors - some of which have forced the airline to ground most of its fleet. Of total 119, only about 35 are flying currently.
30/03/19 Moneycontrol.com

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Vistara gets Jet landing and take-off slots for Delhi-Raipur flights

Crises-ridden Jet Airways has lost valuable flight slots to Vistara at Delhi and Raipur airports.
The joint venture carrier of Tata Sons and Singapore Airlines is starting two new flights on Delhi-Raipur-Delhi sector from March 31. Vistara has been allotted the same slots in which Jet operated its flights before terminating the services last month due to financial crisis.
30/03/19 R Krishna Das/Business Standard

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Rescue deal is no panacea for India's struggling Jet Airways

New Delhi: Jet Airways’ investors are cheering this week’s government-led rescue deal, but the cash-strapped Indian airline’s future looks mired in uncertainty as convincing a new investor to come on board may not be easy.

The airline, which was on the brink of bankruptcy, was bailed out on Monday by state-run banks, which have temporarily taken a majority stake in the company, given it a new loan of $218 million and forced its chairman, Naresh Goyal, to step down from the board of the airline he founded 25 years ago.

Jet shares have rallied 20 percent since news of the rescue on hopes that the airline would now be able to clear salaries, redeploy grounded planes and claw back market share.

Its future is far from certain though, as a consortium of banks led by State Bank of India now rushes to find a new investor and sell its stake in the airline.

This may not be easy especially with Goyal still holding a 25.5 percent share in Jet, which gives him the legal right to block key decisions including raising capital, issuing new shares and diluting equity.

If a deep-pocketed investor is not found soon, Jet may struggle for funds again as the interim loan given by the banks will not last for very long, say lessors and analysts.

“Right now Jet is in survival mode, there is no strategy,” said an executive at one of Jet’s lessors. Jet has been in talks with the lessor since securing the deal but it has given few details on settling pending lease payments and on its turnaround plans, he said.
29/03/19 Aditi Shah/Aftab Ahmed/Reuters

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SBI Reaches Out To Tata Group, TPG Capital To Invest In Jet Airways

Lenders to Jet Airways (India) Ltd., led by State Bank of India, have reached out to two potential investors, just days after they became majority equity holders in the airline.
According to two people familiar with the matter, lenders have reached out to U.S.-based private equity investor TPG Capital and the Tata Group for a potential investment in Jet Airways. The two people spoke on condition of anonymity as the talks are confidential.
According to the two people quoted above, lenders reached out to the two bidders since they had previously showed interest in Jet Airways but talks had fallen through. Even now, the conversations are at preliminary stages and no formal bid has been prepared by either parties, the people quoted above said.
According to the first person quoted above, TPG Capital would likely come in with a strategic partner if they choose to invest. The Tata Group already has a tie up with Singapore Airlines since 2013, through which it manages Vistara Airlines. As such, any investment in Jet Airways would have to be in keeping with the group’s broader strategy for the aviation sector.
A spokesperson for the Tata Group said the group does not comment on market speculation. A TPG Capital spokesperson declined to comment. Jet Airways and SBI are yet to respond to queries mailed on Thursday.
28/03/19 Viswanath Nair/Bloomberg Quint

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Jet Airways misses paying $109 million loan

Troubled Jet Airways India Ltd. missed a $109 million loan repayment due to HSBC Bank this week, people with knowledge of the matter said.

The money was due on March 28, and was part of a two-tranche facility totaling $140 million that the company took from HSBC in 2014, according to the people, who asked not to be identified because the details are private. Jet had also missed payment on the other $31 million tranche that was due on March 11, and hasn't repaid any of the loan, the people said.

That adds to a string of missed deadlines at the Indian carrier, which has grounded about two-thirds of its fleet. The company's credit rating was cut to default in January after it failed to honor obligations to India lenders.

The fate of the debt-laden airline, which has struggled to keep up with a slew of budget carriers, is crucial for India's government. Its collapse could put about 23,000 jobs at risk and dent Prime Minister Narendra Modi's image ahead of his re-election bid.
Lenders committed this month to infuse as much as 15 billion rupees ($217 million) in emergency debt funding, conditional on the resignation of Jet Chairman Naresh Goyal. The former ticketing agent who went on to build one of India's biggest airlines stepped down under pressure this week.
29/03/19 Bloomberg/Gulf News

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TPG, Etihad Airways show interest in bidding for Jet Airways

Abu-Dhabi based Etihad Airways has shown interest in bidding for Jet Airways, sources aware of the development told CNBC-TV18 on Thursday, adding that the UAE's second largest airline has already approached the SBI-led consortium regarding the same.

Etihad may look at acquiring an additional 37 percent stake in the airline to take its stake to 49 percent, said the sources, who did not want to be named.

Etihad currently owns 24 percent in Jet Airways, however, once lenders take up a majority stake in the airline, Etihad’s stake will fall to around 12 percent.

Jet Airways chairman Naresh Goyal and his wife Anita Goyal stepped down from the board of the airline on March 25, giving in to pressure from lenders amid the growing debt crisis and the airlines' inability to pay its staff and lessors.

Apart from Etihad, American investment firm TPG has also shown interest in the debt-laden airline, said the sources. The company may bid with a partner fund or strategic player. It had last year shown interest in acquiring a stake in Jet Privilege.

NIIF or National Infrastructure Investment Fund, which was expected to pick up about 20 percent stake in the airline as per the initial resolution plan, may still be interested and could consider picking up a substantial stake in the airline along with a strategic player, the sources pointed.

The Tata Group, which had also expressed interest in the beleaguered airline earlier, has not yet approached lenders directly, the banking sources confirmed.
28/03/19 Ritu Singh/CNBC TV18

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Jet Airways’ desperate search for a new investor takes it to the US, Singapore and UAE

Ahead of a potential exit by Etihad Airways at the end of this month, Jet Airways’ main creditor, the State Bank of India, and its founder Naresh Goyal, who recently resigned, have reportedly ramped up the search for a new investor.

In fact, the hunt has taken SBI and Goyal, who owns a minority stake, to the US, according to media reports. SBI is said to be in preliminary talks with TPG Capital, a private equity major, while Goyal is pursuing an investment from Delta Airlines, which has an operational alliance with Jet in India.
Interestingly, private equity firm TPG Capital was said to be eyeing a stake in Jet’s loyalty programme Jet Privilege in August last year, although a deal never materialised.

A new investor is “critical” to Jet’s future, the airline’s CFO, Amit Agarwal, told ET earlier this week. Jet desperately needs a cash infusion. An official at the company told Moneycontrol that a buyer would have to pump ₹45 billion as part of the airline’s turnaround plan.

In addition to TPG and Delta, Singapore’s private equity fund Temasek and the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority (ADIA) are also said to be in talks to purchase a stake in the airline.
29/03/19 Dilsher Dhillon/Business Insider

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Etihad in talks with partner to bid for Jet

Mumbai: Etihad Airways is in talks with a partner to jointly bid for Jet Airways which has been put up for sale by banks which have taken control of the financially-troubled airline.

Government sources said Etihad has not given up on Jet in which it held 24% stake. After banks acquired 50.1% stake in Jet, shareholding of all existing investors fell by half with Etihad left holding 12% stake.

“Etihad will not bid alone. They are in talks with an investor for jointly bidding for Jet Airways,” said the sources. Aviation rules allow a foreign investor to pick up a maximum of 49% stake in an airline.

People familiar with the development said that Etihad Airways, though now financially-constrained on account of its years of losses, is keen on increasing its holding in Jet to protect its investment as well as to ensure traffic flow into its network from India.
So far, Etihad had invested or arranged more than $1 billion in/for Jet Airways and since 2014, Jet had been sending passengers from across India to the Abu Dhabi hub of Etihad.

With its two main demands namely the removal of promoter Naresh Goyal and his spouse Anita Goyal from the board and bringing down their stake to below 10% having been met through the new bank-led provisional resolution plan, Etihad Airways is believed to be considering increasing its stake to a maximum of 49% and rope in a partner to operate the airline.

As per foreign direct investment rules, the effective control of Indian carriers has to remain with Indians.

So, even if Etihad increases its holding to 49% it cannot control Jet Airways and would need a reliable Indian partner to do so, according to analysts.

The partner is believed to be National Investment and Infrastructure Fund (NIIF) in which Abu Dhabi Investment Authority has a stake.

NIIF is majority owned by Indian government and some Indian financial institutions.
28/03/19 Lalatendu Mishra/The Hindu

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Indigo to reap maximum benefit as Jet Airways, SpiceJet woes mount

IndiGo, the largest domestic carrier, is poised to reap the maximum benefit in terms of market share and better yields, as domestic airlines’ capacity has contracted sharply due to grounding of aircraft by Jet Airways and Boeing 737 Max fleet of SpiceJet, analysts maintain. Domestic traffic growth at 5.6% year-on-year was at 53-month low during February as aircraft groundings and repair work at second-busiest Mumbai airport kept airfares high.
Fares on key metro city routes have been up by around 25% y-o-y due to curtailed capacity of the carriers in March. Due to rise in airfares following cost escalations in H1FY19, the domestic passenger growth has significantly lagged behind the capacity expansion by airlines so far this fiscal.

According to analysts, domestic aggregate passenger growth has been lower than the capacity growth in 9 out of the first 11 months of FY19. “It (the imbalance) intensified over the past 2-3 months as prices remained firm in the face of ex-IndiGo capacity contraction due to grounding of Jet and MAX fleet,” analysts at ICICI Securities noted. While IndiGo has reduced its flying schedule by more than 30 flights per day, its low-cost rival SpiceJet was forced to ground 12 Boeing 737 Max aircraft over safety concerns this month. Cash-strapped Jet Airways is flying just 35 aircraft from fleet of 119 planes due to groundings by lessors for non-payment of rentals.
29/03/19 Financial Express

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Major airlines may choose to not bid for Jet Airways

Companies in the aviation space are unlikely to invest in cash-strapped Jet Airways, which will be put up for auction soon, Business Standard reports.

Tata group, SpiceJet and InterGlobe Aviation (Indigo) will most likely skip bidding for Jet Airways, sources told the publication.

Major Indian airlines will not be participating in the bid due to the high cost of acquisition, uncertainty over corporate governance and weak financial conditions, they stated.

Moneycontrol could not independently verify the news.
Companies in the aviation space are unlikely to invest in cash-strapped Jet Airways, which will be put up for auction soon, Business Standard reports.

Tata group, SpiceJet and InterGlobe Aviation (Indigo) will most likely skip bidding for Jet Airways, sources told the publication.

Major Indian airlines will not be participating in the bid due to the high cost of acquisition, uncertainty over corporate governance and weak financial conditions, they stated.

Moneycontrol could not independently verify the news.

Tata Sons, the holding company of Tata Group, has decided that there will be no negotiations for a deal with Jet Airways without a complete due diligence, the report said.

'Legacy issues' and the origin of the airlines funding have been said to be cited as issues by the Tata Group. The conglomerate already operates Vistara and AirAsia India along with foreign players.
28/03/19 Moneycontrol.com

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From being India's top airline to near banruptcy: The Jet Airways crisis explained

What was once India’s most popular full-service airline is now struggling to stay afloat. The reins of Jet Airways, which is facing a debt of over $1 billion, now have been given to its lenders, led by State Bank of India. Its founder and chairman Naresh Goyal and his wife Anita stepped down from the board on Monday, paving the way for debt resolution.

The last few months have been extremely tough not only for the airline but also for passengers who chose to fly it. Non-payment of dues resulted in over 40 aircraft being grounded, leading to flight cancellations and soaring airfare. But with banks now taking over the airline and infusing money, are things starting to look up for the beleaguered airline and for passengers as well?

Read here a lowdown on what led to the downfall of Jet Airways and what could be the way forward.

28/03/19 Shipla S Ranipeta/News Minute

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End of an era in Indian aviation as Goyal bows out

Jet Airways founder Naresh Goyal rose from humble beginnings to be undisputed king of India's skies. But now, at 69, massive debts have forced him to cede control of the pioneering airline he founded.

Goyal stepped down as Jet chairman Monday and quit its board as part of a rescue plan for the beleaguered carrier, marking the end of an era in Indian aviation.

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27/03/19 Phys.org

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