Go First planes need parts; lessors to take longer to fly them out of India

Lessors are likely to take a longer time to fly the Go First's deregistered 54 planes out of the country as the majority of the planes require engine and spare parts, according to industry experts.

Out of the 54 planes, around 24 that were in a flying condition when the airline stopped operations last May have not undergone continued maintenance while 30 are without engines and spare parts.

The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) has deregistered all the 54 remaining aircraft of Go First after a Delhi High Court ruling on April 26 that allowed lessors to take back the leased planes.

While the insolvency resolution process is on, sources said the airline's revival looks an uphill task, considering that there are not many assets left after the deregistration of the planes.

Regarding these aircraft, one of the sources said lessors are likely to take more time to ferry the 54 planes out of the country as at least 30 of them will require replacement of engines.

Besides, the planes will require various approvals so that they are fit to fly as they remain grounded for a year now, the sources added.

Aircraft leasing company Vman's CEO Vishok Mansingh said that around 24 aircraft of Go First were in a flying condition when the airline stopped operations on May 3, 2023.

"Those aircraft have not undergone continuous maintenance work after July. So, the lessors will now have to get approvals from engine maker Pratt & Whitney and Airbus for the technical ferry of the aircraft so that they can be taken out of the country, possibly to a nearby Maintenance Repair and Overhaul (MRO)?? facility," he told PTI.

According to him, these aircraft can fly with minimum maintenance work, once approvals from P&W and Airbus are received. Once the approvals are there, the planes can be flown out by the lessors in three to four weeks.

About the remaining 30-odd aircraft, Mansingh said most of them do not have engines and spare parts. "So, flying them out will take a longer time that could be six months or even a year, depending on the availability of the engines and spares".

Vman is a GIFT City-based aircraft leasing company. Go First, which flew for more than 17 years, stopped operations from May 3 last year after persistent financial turbulence and Pratt & Whitney engine problems that had also resulted in the grounding of many of its aircraft.

The airline's voluntary insolvency resolution process is in progress and there are two shortlisted bidders -- Busy Bee Airways along with SpiceJet chief Ajay Singh have put in a bid while the other bid is by Sharjah-based aviation player Sky One.

On April 26, the Delhi High Court directed the DGCA to forthwith process the applications filed by the lessors for deregistration of 54 planes and also said the process should be done in not later than five working days.

Subsequently, the regulator has deregistered the 54 aircraft.