Etihad Airways (EY, Abu Dhabi International) has rejected reports claiming it is planning to divest itself of its 24% stake in Jet Airways (JAI, Mumbai International).

CAPA last week surmised that the Emirati carrier could exit Jet Airways "possibly by Q3 of FY2019" leading to a "rationalisation of capacity between India and the Gulf, particularly Abu Dhabi International".

However, in a follow-up statement to the Press Trust of India (PTI), an Etihad spokesperson said the claim was "false" and that "Jet Airways is a valuable partner of Etihad Airways, and we have no plans to divest".

Concerns about the future of Etihad's ties with Jet Airways have been raised in the wake of the Indian carrier's move to sign an Enhanced Cooperation Agreement with Air France-KLM for the development of their operations between Europe and India in November last year.

Aside from giving Jet Airways unrestricted access to Europe and North America, thereby resulting in a potential 40% increase in traffic between Europe and India for both airlines, the agreement will also see the parties align their inventory, networks and sale of each other’s tickets while also cooperating on cargo operations.