DGCA told to deregister 2 aircraft leased out to Kingfisher

Court says DGCA cannot withhold the deregistration of the aircraft on the ground that the airlines owe money to the government and its agencies

German aircraft leasing firm DVB Aviation Finance Asia PTE Ltd today won a legal battle against grounded Kingfisher Airlines with the Delhi High Court asking aviation regulator DGCA to deregister two leased-out planes lying at Istanbul in Turkey.

"The petition is allowed. DGCA is directed to deregister the two aircraft which are lying outside the jurisdiction of this court," Justice Rajiv Shakdher said and asked the Vijay Mallya-owned airlines to furnish original documents of two leased aircraft to the German firm within four weeks.

Citing a previous judgement on the issue, the court said the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) cannot withhold the deregistration of the aircraft on the ground that the airlines owe money to the government and its agencies.

"It is made clear that if any dues remain payable from the airlines, the respondent (DGCA) can take recourse to appropriate measures against respondent 2 (Kingfisher)," Justice Shakdher said.