Pvt aviation soaring, JetSetGo to raise $50 mn to expand fleet: CEO

The demand for private aviation continues to rise and business jet service provider JetSetGo plans to raise $50 million to purchase additional aircraft and expand its electric vertical take-off and landing (eVTOL) aircraft business in India, said Kanika Tekriwal, the company’s founder and chief executive officer (CEO).

Tekriwal told Business Standard that the funds would be generated through the sale of a small percentage of the company’s equity.

JetSetGo currently owns 11 of the 28 aircraft in its fleet, with the rest being either leased or managed by external parties.

“As the demand for private aviation continues to rise, JetSetGo is quickly increasing its owned aircraft fleet capacity. The company has primarily financed fleet acquisitions through accruals and innovative financing structures. And, it is now seeking to raise up to $50 million through a significant minority equity divestment process,” Tekriwal said.

Compared to FY22, the number of business jet movements in India rose by 29.2 per cent to 306,388 in FY23, with each arrival or departure of a business jet being counted as a single “movement.”

In addition to its core business, Tekriwal said that JetSetGo is actively working on developing market models for urban air mobility using eVTOLs.

In May last year, Civil Aviation Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia announced that the Centre was exploring the potential of bringing eVTOL aircraft manufacturers into the Indian market. He also said a manufacturing base for such aircraft could also be established.

Tekriwal said that, “As the technology matures, eVTOL offers significant potential to help solve urban congestion and bring short-haul on-demand air mobility in a sustainable way with zero emissions. However, much work needs to be done before various eVTOL concepts and vehicles are certified and available for operations.”

“In that timeframe, we will also need to address a range of operational challenges — from infrastructure to airspace management, to regulation. First operations are, therefore, several years away, but we are working collaboratively with all stakeholders to identify how and where the first operations could begin,” she added.

eVTOL aircraft are emerging as a potential solution as environmental concerns rise over the high-carbon emissions associated with air travel and major cities become increasingly congested and polluted.

JetSetGo is currently profitable, Tekriwal said. She added that, “Our EBITDA (earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortisation) for FY21 was Rs 7.77 crore, and for FY22, it was Rs 49.63 crore.”

She said the company is optimistic and expects a net profit of Rs 75 crore for FY23. In 2021, JetSetGo operated 4,312 flights, while in 2022, it operated 4,513 flights.

“We are pleased to report a steady increase in the number of flights operated. We expect to operate approximately 5,000 flights in 2023,” she said.