Kingfisher commences cash-and-carry operations at Mumbai
03 Dec 2011
Mumbai: Near-bankrupt Kingfisher Airlines has paid Mumbai International Airport Ltd (MIAL) the first instalment of Rs50 lakh in order to continue operations from the city from Saturday. MIAL has put the carrier on cash-and-carry basis on its failure to clear outstanding dues, which, according to reports, may total as much as Rs90 crore.
Kingfisher will now have to deposit Rs50 lakh on a daily basis till all dues are cleared or a settlement is mutually arrived at. Previously, the carrier was depositing a fixed amount every fortnight, but began to default on these payments over the last six months.
According to airport officials, the daily payments are meant to clear the airport's landing fee and aircraft parking charges as well as previous dues.
Meanwhile, on Friday, the airport operator also issued a notice to the airline over bounced cheques. According to airport sources, cheques worth Rs85 crore issued by the airline had bounced.
The carrier has said it would operate all flights as per schedule.
''We would like to reassure our guests that all our flights will continue to operate as normal as per the revised schedule published on our website,'' read a statement by the airline.
