DGCA to audit cash-strapped Go First for resumption of services
2 min read . Updated: 24 May 2023, 02:52 PM IST
PremiumThe Directorate General of Civil Aviation, will soon conduct audit of Go First airlines before the airline resumes its service
Prior to the resumption of services of Go First Airlines, the Directorate General of Civil Aviation(DGCA) will conduct an audit of the cash-strapped company to check its preparedness in the coming days. Go First airline in its memo to employees said that flight operations will resume after the approval of DGCA post audit, reported Reuters.
Also Read: Go First’s flight restart plan in limbo
The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) will conduct the audit in the coming days, with operations commencing following the regulator's approval, Rajit Ranjan, vice president of flight operations, told employees in the memo, which was sent on Tuesday night. In the memo, pilots were requested to be available for flying on the audit day for the smooth relaunch of the company's services.
"You are requested to be available for flying so that the relaunch is smooth and we start flying as soon as possible," the memo said. As of now there has been no official statement by the Go First Chairman Varun Berry on the issue.
The memo has come after an appeals tribunal upheld insolvency proceedings against Go First. Due to the insolvency proceedings, it has become difficut for airline lessors to take back their planes.
The airline blamed Raytheon-owned Pratt & Whitney for supplying faulty engines which affected its flight operations. The airline had also highlighted the government's support in resolving the issue.
The company was planning to launch its IPO worth ₹36 billion in the coming years, but ended up filing for bankruptcy due to faulty airplane engines issue. The company temporarily closed its operations on 3 May, 2023 due to issues with its Pratt & Whitney GTF high-bypass turbofan engines. The airline company had fitted the engine in its entire A320 neo fleet.
Notably, this is the 11th private airline which grounded in a decade in India. The long list of such airlines indicate a highly competitive environment of the aviation industry in the country.
(With inputs from Reuters)