India's second-biggest carrier, loss-making Kingfisher Airlines, plans to cancel 31 flights daily for the next 12 days in a further sign of operational problems, a media report said Tuesday.
The firm has decided to cancel 27 domestic flights on key inter-city routes as well as four overseas flights to Bangkok, Mint newspaper quoted an airline official and travel agency websites as saying.
"Extreme situations call for extreme measures," the company official said on condition of anonymity, without specifying a reason for the move, Mint reported.
"About five to seven per cent of flights are being cut," the airline official said.
Executives of the airline did not immediately respond to telephone calls or emails from AFP.
Kingfisher Airlines, founded by liquor baron Vijay Mallya -- known as the "King of Good Times" -- announced last month it was axing its low-cost service, saying it was getting better revenues from the premium carrier.
The airline has been having trouble making payments to oil companies and airports, and had delayed salaries to its employees for August and September.
Kingfisher flies to 59 cities in India and eight international destinations with 325 daily departures on a fleet of 66 aircraft.
The airline, which has not posted a profit since its founding in 2005, reported in July that quarterly net losses widened by more than 40 percent year-on-year to 2.63 billion rupees ($A51 million), hit by high fuel prices, fierce competition, heavy interest costs and unprofitable operations.
Last week, Kingfisher aid it was in talks with bankers to reduce high interest rates on its $A1.1-billion debt.
Kingfisher is hoping the Indian government approves a proposal to allow foreign airlines to buy stakes in domestic carriers, which could result in a fresh influx of money for the cash-strapped company.
No comments:
Post a Comment