SpiceJet board to meet on Monday over DGCA order

Airline says decision to withdraw 186 slots allotted to it is counter productive and will hurt it

SpiceJet board is meeting on Monday to take stock of the latest crisis hitting the airline. The meeting takes place in the backdrop of Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA)'s decision to withdraw 186 slots allotted to the airline and directive not to book tickets beyond 30 days. The airline says the booking restriction is counter productive and will hurt it.

"This is a routine update meeting.  No further comments at this point," SpiceJet chief operating officer Sanjiv Kapoor said in an email response. In an another interview today, Kapoor said aspects related to funding (the airline) are being handled by the board. Kalanathi Maran owns 53 percent in the airline.

SpiceJet announced on Friday it will operate 22-24 Boeing planes till middle of next summer and dropped plans to restore its fleet strength to 35 Boeing planes as announced earlier. It also increased the cancellations resulting the DGCA to initiate action.

Kapil Kaul, CAPA’s chief executive for South Asia, said the airline needed to raise at least $200 million (Rs 1,200 crore) to stabilise operations.  

"Spicejet needs to work on a realistic schedule for next few months which is operationally feasible for them to deliver. DGCA should remove the booking restrictions after a revised and realistic schedule is submitted to DGCA. This can be done immediately. Continuous disruptions will further hurt the brand and reputation. I  expect DGCA to be supportive in this crucial hour but without compromising safety related oversight as 4,000- 5,000 people will get seriously impacted. Post the recent ATF reduction and with further cuts likely and brent oil expected to stay around $75 a barrel for the near term , expect potential investors to get more confidence as turnaround post solid recapitalization is possible and feasible," he said.