Naresh Goyal, who stepped down as chairman of Jet Airways on Monday,said that looking back, he would not want to change a thing.

In an e-mail to employees, Mr. Goyal said that Jet Airways had been a way of life for his wife Anita and him. “Very few people are fortunate enough to live their dreams and we have been truly blessed to be one among those few,” he said.

“My dream started out as the simple yearning of a simple man, a desire to bring the joy of flying to every Indian. Two and a half decades later, what we have built together, far exceeds anything I dared to imagine back then.” Mr. Goyal said that he watched with pride as the airline had grown from a fleet of just four aircraft flying to 12 destinations in its first year, to a peak of 124 aircraft connecting guests to over 550 destinations worldwide.

Gold standard

Mr. Goyal, who is based in London, attributed this to the tireless, unrelenting efforts of each and every employee who set guest service benchmarks to the envy of competitors, helping Jet Airways emerge as a global gold standard of warm Indian hospitality.

“It has truly been a labour of love that Anita and I, together with all of you, have built collectively with our blood, toil and tears. Looking back, I would not want to change a thing. Not the triumphs, nor the trials and tribulations, challenges nor sweat equity,” he said.

“But, today, as I ponder on the past and look to the future, I do realise that there must come a day when the torch that we have carried all this while, will need to be passed on. Today, I would like to take a moment to appreciate and acknowledge the beautiful people in my life: the ones I have laughed with and cried with, the ones I have shared my deepest thoughts with, as well as the ones that have recently appeared full of kindness and compassion, and I know, without a doubt, that I have been blessed beyond words. I would also like to take this moment, to acknowledge the contribution of my wife, confidant and partner Anita without whom this journey would just not have been possible,” he wrote. Mr. Goyal said that there is light at the end of the tunnel and that is why the time was right to hand over the reins to a new generation of leaders. “I am certain [they] will take Jet Airways to even greater heights,” he said.