An Indian bankruptcy court ruled Jet Airways India Ltd. can resume operations under a new owner more than two years after it collapsed, according to Ashish Chhawchharia, the court-appointed professional running the carrier’s insolvency.
Jet Airways, once India’s biggest private carrier, fell into bankruptcy in 2019 under mounting debts. Dubai-based businessman Murari Lal Jalan and Kalrock Capital Management Ltd. in London laid out a rescue plan, pledging in December that the airline would fly again by this summer, operating its historic domestic slots as well restarting international routes.
The revival plan also included a dedicated freighter service and hubs in smaller cities beyond Delhi, Mumbai and Bengaluru.
CNBC-TV18 reported earlier Tuesday that Jet Airways needs to apply for slots within 90 days and the aviation regulator will make a final decision on allotting them.
Even before Covid-19 crushed demand for air travel, India was a tough place to make money in aviation. Bruising fare wars and high costs made it difficult for many carriers to survive. Kingfisher Airlines Ltd., once the country’s second-largest domestic carrier, collapsed in 2012, and flag carrier Air India Ltd. is saddled with debt and has been searching for a buyer for years.
Jet Airways has almost 21,000 creditors seeking claims of around $6 billion. It lost most of its landing slots in the time it hasn’t being flying.
Investors remained optimistic about the airline successfully emerging from a restructuring, sending its shares up 316% in 2020 despite the crisis in aviation. Still, they remained far off peaks hit during the previous decade. Jet Airways rose 5% on Tuesday following a similar gain the previous day.
“It’s a certainly very satisfactory and favorable ruling,” Chhawchharia said.