INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
it to a manageable state before selling it to new promoters, a senior finance ministry source said on Friday."Only after securing
substantial stake in the airline, the lenders are planning to sell Jet Airways, and the existing promoters need to exit before new buyers
can be roped in," he said.After defaulting on interest payments and delaying salaries to pilots, with Jet Airways now flying just about a
third of its fleet following the recent grounding of many aircraft, the full service carrier is currently in a near standstill
situation."The lenders will take over the airline for the time being and try to give some comfort in terms of paying the salaries, and no
new promoters are likely to come in for 2-3 months
Jet promoters need to exit before new promoters are roped in and need a clean deal to sell Jet Airways," the source said.Jet Airways has a
debt of over Rs 8,200 crore and needs to make repayments of up to Rs 1,700 crore by the end of March
In case the airline collapses, 23,500 jobs could be at stake.Jet Airways is headed by Naresh Goyal, who currently holds a 51 per cent stake,
while Abu Dhabi-based Etihad Airways has another 24 per-cent.There are reports of Etihad reaching out to state-run State Bank of India (SBI)
union had, on Tuesday, threatened to stop flying from April 1 if their salaries are not paid by March 31.Aviation regulator DGCA or
Directorate General of Civil Aviation has said that only 41 aircraft of Jet Airways are currently available for operation, and there may be
"further attrition" of flights "in coming weeks"
Forty one aircraft is just one-third of Jet's fleet of 119 planes.The urgency to resolve the Jet issue became clear last week when the
Prime Minister's Office signalled its direct involvement after Principal Secretary Nripendra Mishra, along with SBI chairman Rajnish Kumar
and Avilation Secretary Pradeep Singh Kharola, met Finance Minister Arun Jaitley to work out a revival plan.Mr Mishra's involvement in
discussions to revive an airline is to be seen in the context of a poll year where the government would not want job losses and airfare
hikes, as well as losses to for state-run lenders trying hard to recover their bad loansQueried by reporters if there is a new promoter in
the offing for Jet Airways, the SBI chairman had said: "No possibility is ruled out."Get the latest election news, live updates and election
schedule for Lok Sabha Elections 2019 on TheIndianSubcontinent.com/elections
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