Two Mumbai-bound Go First flights diverted to Gujarat's Surat
3 min read . Updated: 02 May 2023, 10:26 PM IST
PremiumBoth the Go First flights one from Srinagar to Mumbai and another from Delhi to Mumbai - diverted and landed at Surat airport between 6:30 pm to 7 pm
Two Mumbai-bound Go First flights on Tuesday were diverted to Gujarat's Surat. Both the flights one from Srinagar to Mumbai and another from Delhi to Mumbai - diverted and landed at Surat airport between 6:30 pm to 7 pm. “All the passengers are still on the aircraft. The cause of the landing is not clear," said Surat Airport Director to news agency ANI.
Later, the two Go First flights - one from Srinagar to Mumbai and another from Delhi to Mumbai - that were diverted to Surat airport, have departed from Surat said Surat Airport Director Rupesh Kumar.
Meanwhile, Go First which is facing a severe financial crunch as more than half of its fleet is grounded due to the non-availability of Pratt & Whitney engines, on Tuesday filed for voluntary insolvency resolution proceedings before the NCLT and has also decided to cancel all flights for May 3 and 4.
Against this backdrop, the senior government official said the ministry is keeping a close watch on the developments related to Go First, including the admission of the airline's application by the NCLT.
The country's civil aviation sector is strong and growing but the external issue of global supply chain disruptions is a primary reason for the Go First situation, the official added.
The latest move by the Wadia group-owned carrier, which has been flying for more than 17 years, came after arbitration proceedings in Singapore and a suit filed in a US court seeking enforcement of the arbitration award last month.
In a detailed statement shared with PTI, Go First said it has been forced to apply to the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) because of the recurring and persistent issues with the GTF (Geared Turbofan) engines supplied by P&W.
Also, Pratt & Whitney has failed to repair those engines and/or provide sufficient spare leased engines as it was required to do pursuant to its obligations under the relevant agreements between them.
Promoters have infused funds worth ₹3,200 crore into the airline in the last three years and out of the total amount, ₹2,400 crore was injected in the last 24 months. An amount of ₹290 crore was pumped in April this year.
"This brings the total investment in the airline since its inception to approximately ₹6,500 crore," the statement said.
Further, Go First said it has received significant support from the government's Emergency Credit Line Guarantee Scheme (ECLGS).
"Even this collective and significant support has not been adequate to prevent the enormous damage caused by Pratt & Whitney's defective engines.
"The grounding of close to 50 per cent of its fleet due to the serial failure of Pratt & Whitney's engines, while incurring 100% of its operational costs has set Go First back by ₹10,800 crore in lost revenues and additional expenses," it said.
According to the airline, it is no longer in a position to continue to meet its financial obligations and has taken the step to approach the NCLT "to protect the interests of all stakeholders".
*With agency inputs