New Delhi: In what comes as a fresh trouble for the Kingfisher Airlines, the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) has summoned its CEO Sanjay Aggarwal to appear before the aviation regulator on Tuesday.
Meanwhile, Kingfisher on Monday cancelled 21 more flights in Mumbai and Bangalore while it rescheduled two others. Kingfisher operations at the Kolkata airport were also shut till March 3.
The move by the airlines came a day after it cancelled around 30 flights, leaving passengers stranded without any prior information.
According to sources, Kingfisher is operating just 16 of the 64 aircraft at present. Half of its senior pilots have quit in the last thee months, while other employees haven't received their salaries for nearly three months.
Talking about the crisis, Union Civil Aviation Minister Ajit Singh has said that the government cannot give a bailout to private airlines, however, the banks can give money to the airlines under RBI norms.
He said, "Everyone knew about Kingfisher's financial problems. Our first concern is passengers' safety, which should not be compromised. DGCA is looking into it."
Referring to the strike by the Kingfisher employees, the minister said, "Kingfisher has not given salaries to their staff and that is why there is a strike."
The series of flight cancellations have landed Kingfisher airlines in trouble with the DGCA, which has initiated an inquiry, asking for a full report.
The DGCA is yet to receive a reply from Kingfisher and the airline may even face cancellation of its licence.
The cash strapped airline has been cancelling flights without even informing the travelers and this has prompted the DGCA to initiate an enquiry.
According to sources, the top aviation regulator has asked for a full report, maintaining that cancelling scheduled flights without informing the regulator is a clear violation of rules.
Even while the termination of Kingfisher's license is possible if the situation deteriorates further, the airline has expressed hopes that situation will soon be under control.
"We are not going to pull out operations from any base and about 10 aircraft will be back in service soon. We are in talks with investors and the airline will soon get recapitalized," said CEO Sanjay Aggarwal.
Kingfisher airlines have grounded over 30 aircrafts leading to cancellations across the country.
The Kingfisher Airlines is already crippled after tax authorities attached its bank accounts over non-payment of dues last week. Unpaid employees also went on a flash strike in Kolkata. Services in other metros and tier 2 cities have been hit as well.
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