Jet Airways Boeing 737 MAX 8
Taken by @theaviators.in
Jet Airways is seeking bids for the airline for the fourth time after they were forced to ground their fleet in April 2019 after running out of funds. This was accelerated by the grounding of their 8 new Boeing 737 MAX aircraft in March 2019. Ever since April 2019, the airline has been trying to attract investors to take on their debts and help reestablish Jet Airways.
In early 2020, the airline appeared to be on the verge of bankruptcy. They were expected to finally shut down after three separate attempts of bidding to attract investors. Instead, the airlines’ creditors requested a three month extension to see some possible bids. Thankfully, three investors have taken interest in Jet Airways. They are the Prudent ARC firm, Far East Development Fund and the Synergy Group. None have yet shown any resolution plan which is the first step in the formal bidding process. The deadline for submitting a bid is the 28th of May, with a list of bidders published on the 10th of June. The airline hopes that over the coming weeks more companies will be setting bids.
Since the airline’s prospects of a new investor is very unlikely, this might be because Jet Airways already has a strong buyer. The Resolution Professional appointed for the sake of the airline back in March tweeted how it looks like the end for Jet Airways. This would be a pity as the airline was founded all the ways back in 1992 and provided essential links to India and the rest of Asia.
However, is this realistic? With the Coronavirus situation it will be very unlikely that anyone will be placing bids anytime soon, especially in an airline deep in debts. Other airlines are currently struggling with lack of demand and travel restrictions. Jet Airways also doesn’t have many assets and has problems keeping their slots. One airlines that are taking the spotlight from Jet Airways is Air India. They have recently been struggling with privatisation. The Indian government has extended their bids until late June. This does not look good for the airline, however, it could just be extra time for their investors to finalise their finances. Air India provides crucial links between Britain and India, securing slots leased from Garuda Indonesia in early April this year. This airline seems more promising in terms of investments.
Overall, creditors have still pushed ahead with their bids. This could mean that the creditors have an interested buyer or they are simply begging for bids to arrive in the near future. For now, we must wait and see what will happen on the 10th of June. Is the end near for the airline?
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