Around 30 airports assures slot availability to new Jet Airways owners

Mumbai: Around 30 airports have given Jet Airways’ new owners, The Kalrock-Jalan consortium, an assurance of 170 pairs of slots if the airline restarts operations.

Whether Jet Airways is given the slots or not will depend on the National Company Law Tribunal’s (NCLT) order, Business Standard has reported.

The airline’s new management believes it is vital for some of these slots to be restored or the plan to operate to airline will not be viable, sources told the paper.

Biz Samachar could not independently verify the story.

Before it was shut operations in April 2019, Jet Airways had close to 700 slot pairs, including 116 and 214 in prime airports of Delhi and Mumbai, Business Standard reported. The slots were allotted to other domestic carriers.

“A team from the Jalan-Kalrock consortium visited all airports and has been informed that there is no constraint of slots except in Mumbai and somewhat in Delhi. Due to the pandemic, the airports expect that airlines will operate reduced capacity for at least two years, which will make slots freely available. More slots will be available at Delhi after the new fourth runway is operational by early next year,” a source told the publication. The airline’s new owners plan to restart operations with 30 narrow-body and five wide-body aircraft, the report said.

In an affidavit submitted to the bankruptcy court, The Ministry of Civil Aviation (MCA) and the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) have said Jet Airways cannot claim historicity to obtain the slots.

The government and aviation regulator said allocation of slots will happen in accordance with the existing guidelines