SpiceJet (SG, Delhi International) has tapped India's Emergency Credit Line Guarantee Scheme (ECLGS) to secure INR4 billion Indian rupees (USD49 million), which will fund the return to service of 25 aircraft in the wake of competitor Go First (GOW, Mumbai International) suspending all flights
SpiceJet chairman and managing director Ajay Singh said via a media statement that the airline was working "meticulously" on returning parked planes to service. "(The) majority of the ECLGS funding received by the airline would be utilized for the same," he said. The ECLGS provides financial assistance to Indian businesses impacted by Covid-19. Airlines can access ECLGS for loans totalling INR15 billion (USD183.7 million).
According to the ch-aviation fleets module, SpiceJet has parked two B737-700s, one B737-700(BDSF), two B737-8s, seven B737-800s, two B737-900ERs, and twenty DHC-8-Q400s. Singh did not say when the parked aircraft would start resuming revenue operations. Nor did he say the portion of the return to service expenses that would be funded by ECLGS, and what portion would be funded by accrued capital, although he did confirm that at least some of the expenses would be funded by internal cash reserves.
Singh's announcement follows competitor Go First suspending flights in early May and filing for insolvency. The airline blamed "defective and failing" Pratt & Whitney engines for causing a cash flow crisis and leaving it unable to pay its day-to-day bills. Reports in Indian media suggest that SpiceJet is keen to snap up Go First's market share.
