‘Revival plan’. GoFirst likely to get a nod from DGCA soon

GoFirst is likely to get a nod from the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA). The company’s Resolution Professional Shailendra Ajmera is set to present the revised and Committee of Creditors (CoC) approved plan to the aviation regulator this week.

A Civil Aviation Ministry official told businessline: “The airline’s revival plan was alright per se. However, to run an airline, one needs the post holders that coordinate with the DGCA, required funds, aircraft among other things. One of the major things the DGCA had sought was a nod from the creditors on additional funding.” 

• Read: Airfares take to the sky as Go First hits the ground

Additional funding

businessline had reported that the airline had sought an additional funding of approximately ₹400-600 crore. Late night on Saturday, the airline received a nod for the said funding. 

Banking sources had said the airline planned to use this funding for the CIRP costs including salaries to employees, rentals to lessors and cash and carry payments to the airports among other vendors. 

Also read

GoFirst secures interim finance approval from creditors to revive operations

With the funding piece in place, Ajmera will now have to present the revived plan to the DGCA. Government sources, told businessline: “GoFirst, unlike Jet Airways, is better placed. GoFirst now has the backing from the lenders in the very initial stage which is very critical for the revival of the airline.”

• Also read: Go First’s bankruptcy disrupts airline industry

To restart operations

GoFirst plans to restart its operations on July 1. However, banking officials had told this newspaper that it was unlikely that the operations could resume on July 1. As per its plan, the airline planned to restart operations with 22 aircraft.

However, the company will still have hurdles to cross. “The officials will also need a diligence report on the aircraft’s airworthiness, the condition of the engines, the number of pilots on board, along with the post holders,” said sources.

Go First had accused Pratt and Whitney for its downfall. It had claimed that PW did no provide spare engines as ordered by an emergency arbitrator. As a result, Go First had to ground half of its Airbus A320neo fleet, which consists of 25 aircraft, as of May 1. Go First has 29 A320 aircraft in service, 26 in storage, and 88 on order, according to Cirium.

The person said that this issue also emphasises the need for a stronger MRO base within the country as the Indian aviation sector is now becoming larger than ever and a lax on this part can cause a cascading effect on the industry’s growth.

• Also read: Air fares may stay sky-high, say industry experts

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