NEW DELHI: While the government is ready with a revival plan for ailing Air India, it also owes over 1,000 crore as of November 30 to the debt-laden national carrier for VVIP charter flights. The outstanding amount of 1,000.62 crore for special extra section flights is due from the ministry of external affairs, ministry of defence and ministry of home affairs. In a written reply to the Lok Sabha, minister of civil aviation Jayant Sinha said, “Regular follow-ups for the same are made by Air India and Ministry of Civil Aviation, and normally such dues are cleared from time to time.”
The quantum of dues is almost double of what it was two years ago. The government has prepared a revival plan for Air India which is focused on building a competitive and profitable airline group. The plan comprises several major elements, including a comprehensive financial package, as approved by the Government of India - this includes transferring non-core debt and assets to a special purpose vehicle (SPV).
The plan also involves achieving higher levels of operational efficiency by strengthening management and implementing best practice business processes and robust organizational and governance reforms to be implemented by an eminent Board. Apart from this, differentiated business strategies for each of Air India”s core businesses will be adopted for better results and world-class HR practices to ensure a talented and motivated workforce.
Moreover, sale of non-core real estate assets and strategic disinvestment of subsidiaries such as Air India Air Transport Services Ltd will also be implemented in a phased manner. The monetisation of assets has also been expedited. Till date, properties worth 410.32 crore have been monetized. Air India had placed an order for 27 A320 New aircraft, out of which 22 aircraft have already been inducted in the fleet. A number of new destinations have been introduced in the international and domestic sectors with better utilisation of aircraft.