Go First cancels flights till May 19

Budget carrier Go First on Wednesday cancelled all scheduled flights till May 19 citing 'operational reasons' as India's bankruptcy tribunal admitted the airline's insolvency plea.

The Wadia Group-owned airline said it will issue a full refund for the flight cancellations to the original mode of payment shortly. Go First had earlier suspended the sale of flight tickets till May 15.

"The company has filed an application for immediate resolution and revival of operations. We will be able to resume bookings shortly," the cash-strapped carrier said.

India's aviation regulator last week ordered the airline to process refunds for the cancelled flights to flyers.

To be sure, as per data released by the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA), Go First received zero passenger complaints in March 2023.

The cancellation of flights by Go First during the peak summer holiday season is likely to aid other airlines and burn a bigger hole in air passengers' pockets.

Meanwhile, more Go First's lessors have approached DGCA, seeking de-registration of aircraft operated by the Nusli Wadia-owned carrier.

Lessors, which are mostly based out of Ireland, have sought de-registration of 42 aircraft operated by Go First.

These Airbus jets include A320neo airplanes which are powered by Pratt & Whitney engines.

With the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) admitting Go First's insolvency plea, the airline's creditors and lessors will now have to submit claims to the resolution professional who will take over the affairs of the company.

The beleaguered carrier had a market share of 7.8% in the January-March quarter and flew 29.11 lakh passengers in the first three months of 2023, as per DGCA data.

Go First has blamed Pratt & Whitney's 'defective' and 'failing' engines for its financial troubles. The grounding of close to 50% of its A320neo fleet due to the 'serial failure' of Pratt & Whitney engines has set the airline back by ₹10,800 crore in lost revenues and additional expenses, it said in a statement on May 2.

"The percentage of grounded aircraft due to Pratt & Whitney's faulty engines has grown from 7% in December 2019 to 31% in December 2020 to 50% in December 2022," the budget carrier said.

Go First claims it was forced to file for insolvency at the NCLT after Pratt & Whitney, the engine supplier for Go First's Airbus A320neo aircraft fleet, refused to comply with an award issued by an emergency arbitrator. The order directed Pratt & Whitney to release and dispatch without delay at least 10 serviceable spare leased engines to Go First by April 27, 2023 and a further 10 spare leased engines per month until December 2023.

The airline has also filed an emergency petition in Delaware court against Pratt & Whitney, seeking enforcement of two arbitral awards.

Go First, which began operations 17 years ago, had a debt of ₹3,513 crore as of March 2023.