The CEO who was overseeing the planned relaunch of India’s Jet Airways has stepped down, as crucial milestones loom in the carrier’s efforts to begin operations.
The Jalan-Kalrock consortium, which is the financial backer of Jet Airways, announced that CEO-designate Sanjiv Kapoor would depart the airline effective May 1. Kapoor is an airline industry veteran who was appointed in April 2022 to lead the revival of Jet Airways.
A new CEO will be announced soon, a representative of the consortium said. Until then, the consortium’s executive committee will “oversee CEO-designate responsibilities until a suitable replacement is in place.”
Jet Airways was one of India’s largest full-service carriers, but it shut down in April 2019 due to financial issues. Creditors selected Jalan-Kalrock to take over the carrier in October 2020, and a court approved the plan in June 2021.
However, plans to relaunch operations have been postponed multiple times. There have been disputes with the creditors over the terms of the takeover agreement and debt payment commitments.
On Jan. 13, India’s National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) ordered that ownership of Jet Airways should be transferred from the creditors to Jalan-Kalrock, and the court set a deadline for the new owners to make agreed payments to the creditors.
This deadline is due to expire in mid-May. An air operators’ certificate that was granted to Jet Airways in May 2022 is also due to expire in May.
In its statement regarding Kapoor’s departure, Jalan-Kalrock admitted the airline’s relaunch has taken more time than originally estimated. However, the consortium also stressed that it remains committed to reviving the airline.
“We are in the last leg of closing the transfer of ownership of Jet Airways to [the consortium], subsequent to which we will settle outstanding amounts payable to previous creditors as per our approved resolution plan and shall, soon thereafter, recommence the commercial operations of Jet Airways as per our pre-launch plans,” Jalan-Kalrock said in its statement.
Jet Airways would confront a challenging business environment if it does resume operations. LCCs dominate the domestic market, particularly IndiGo, which has hundreds of aircraft on order. A revitalized Air India is the largest full-service carrier, and it recently placed major aircraft orders with a view to expand operations.
