Kingfisher, India’s third-largest airline by market share, said on Thursday that lessor AerCap Holdings NV would take back two of its aircraft in coming months as the companies could not agree on extension terms.
“AerCap had two aircraft coming up for renewal in the next three months where we could not agree on mutually acceptable extension terms,” a spokesman for Kingfisher said.
“The aircraft will soon be in a MRO (maintenance, repair and overhaul) for preparation and redelivery,” he added. Asset flight
Kingfisher, which has cancelled scores of flights in November and now has around 300 flights daily including international, would add a new aircraft to the fleet in December to replace one of these two.
A majority of its fleet of 66 aircraft are taken on lease.
The spokesman also said lessors have the contractual right to access documents for all their aircraft on an as-needed basis.
The Wall Street Journal on Thursday reported at least two lessors have agents at Kingfisher’s offices copying documents relating to their planes.
Cash-strapped Kingfisher, controlled by flamboyant liquor tycoon Vijay Mallya, is struggling to raise funds.
{{/usCountry}}Cash-strapped Kingfisher, controlled by flamboyant liquor tycoon Vijay Mallya, is struggling to raise funds.
{{/usCountry}}The Kingfisher Airline stock ended Thursday at 25.2 or 3.5% up on Bombay Stock Exchange. The stock has lost more than 63% value so far in 2011, compared with a 23% fall in Sensex.