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Journalism of Courage
State-owned Airports Authority of India (AAI) is scheduled to meet senior executives of SpiceJet next week to discuss payment of dues mounting up to Rs 235 crore.
The meeting comes in the wake of the budget carrier seeking a deferment of three years in clearing outstanding dues to AAI. A senior official in AAI said, “SpiceJet has asked for a three-year moratorium on payment of dues besides a complete waiver on the interest payables. It is not likely that we will give them such an extension for clearing outstanding dues because the airline is now far more financially stable than the last year.”
AAI’s per-day billing to SpiceJet towards landing, parking and other support services currently stands at around Rs 75 lakh. The airline is making additional payment of Rs 25 lakh per day to clear pending dues.
The airline has already cleared dues of other creditors such as oil companies and aircraft lessors after it received Rs 800 crore in investment from its new promoter and CMD, Ajay Singh. Singh has since said that he would utilise resources to fund the airline’s expansion plans rather than its losses.
Last month, SpiceJet said it will expand fleet size to 45-50 aircraft by the end of the current financial year. The airline currently has an operational fleet of 20 Boeing 737 s, 14 Bombardier Q400s and one Airbus A319. The airline plans to add seven Boeing 737s by October 2015 taking total available Boeing aircraft to 27. Of this three leased planes would be returned to lessors. The airline will add another 7-12 Boeing 737s to its fleet by the end of this financial year. It is also planning to induct another A319 aircraft.
Ajay Singh came on board SpiceJet at a time when the airline was briefly forced to shut operations due to a major cash crunch. Oil marketing companies had refused to let the airline refuel on credit holding up flights.
