Jet Airways has suspended all its international operations till Monday afternoon, PS Kharola, Civil Aviation Secretary, said on Friday night. He was speaking to the media after a conference call with the Jet management.
The airline, which is seeing it fleet deplete almost every day, has assured the government that it will operate at least 40 daily flights this weekend, he added. Jet is said to have started the winter schedule (October 2018 to March 2019) with about 450 daily domestic flights and around 200 daily international flights.
The airline operated 11 aircraft on Friday, which will fall to six on Saturday. At its peak, it had around 120 aircraft and, besides India, flew to Europe, America, Canada and South-East Asia among other international destinations.
Interim funding
Meanwhile, the airline’s management met with bankers on Friday, who advised it to send a revised proposal so that interim funding can be made available to it. Jet will meet again with the bankers on Monday afternoon. Kharola declined to divulge the amount that Jet is seeking as interim funding.
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Asked how the airline is being allowed to fly on international routes despite the 0/20 norm, he said stopping international operations is a long process, as a notice first has to be served. The airline has debt of over ₹8,500 crore and the board on February 14 agreed to let bankers led by SBI to become the largest shareholders of the company. Currently bids for picking up a stake in the airline are being evaluated.
PMO’s urgent meeting
Meanwhile, PTI reported that the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) has called an urgent meeting to discuss the Jet crisis. Sources said the meeting was called after Civil Aviation Minister Suresh Prabhu asked the Secretary of the department to review the issues concerning Jet Airways.