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Jet Airways will restart domestic operations by the first quarter of 2022 and short haul international flights by the last quarter of the next year, Jalan Kalrock Consortium, the winning bidder for the grounded airline, stated on Monday.
The first flight of Jet Airways would be on Delhi-Mumbai route, it mentioned, adding that the airline would now be headquartered in Delhi instead of Mumbai.
The National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) in June this year had approved the Jalan Kalrock Consortium's resolution plan for Jet Airways, two years after the once-storied full-service carrier went into insolvency proceedings.
In a statement, Murari Lal Jalan, Lead Member of the Jalan Kalrock Consortium, said, "Jet Airways 2.0 aims at restarting domestic operations by Q1-2022, and short haul international operations by Q3/Q4 2022."
Our plan is to have 50-plus aircraft in three years and 100 plus planes in five years, which also fits perfectly well with the short-term and long-term business plan of the Consortium, he noted.
"The aircraft are being selected based on competitive long term leasing solutions.
"It is the first time in the history of aviation that an airline grounded for more than two years is being revived and we are looking forward to being a part of this historic journey," he said.
The Consortium's statement read that the revival plan for Jet Airways is being implemented as approved by NCLT and all the creditors will be settled according to the plan in the coming months.
The process of reviving the grounded carrier is on track with the existing Air Operator Certificate (AOC) already under process for revalidation, it mentioned.
The Consortium is working closely with the relevant authorities and airport coordinators on slot allocation, required airport infrastructure, and night parking, according to the statement.
"Senior Members of the Jalan Kalrock Consortium along with Jet 2.0 Operations Team led by the newly appointed Capt.
"Sudhir Gaur, Accountable Manager, and acting CEO visited key airports last month and held productive meetings with them," it noted.
Captain Gaur said, "We will start with domestic operations on an all narrow-body aircraft fleet leased from major global aircraft lessors who have approached us, and with whom we continue to engage."
"Jet Airways has already hired 150+ full time employees on its payroll and we are looking to onboard another 1,000+ employees FY 2021-22 across categories," he mentioned.
The airline was grounded in April 2019 due to fund crunch and high debt.
Photograph: Francis Mascarenhas/Reuters