Synergy Aerospace has requested more time to finalise its bid for Jet Airways (JAI, Mumbai International) after it missed a court-imposed deadline of November 15, 2019, Indian media have reported.

According to Live Mint, the South American holding requested an extension of the deadline through December 2019, while the Business Standard reported that it sought an extension through February 2020. Both cited insider sources but lacked an official statement.

Jet Airways' creditor committee is due to meet and decide on a possible extension on November 19. While creditors must first agree to the extension, it would then need to be approved by the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT), which is supervising the carrier's liquidation proceedings.

Synergy Aerospace is reportedly seeking more clarity on the status of Jet Airways' slots at its busiest gateways, particularly at London Heathrow and Indian hubs such as Mumbai International and Delhi International. The holding is also still looking for an Indian partner, a prerequisite given India's foreign ownership rules for local airlines.

The deadline has already been extended once - from October 14 to November 15. Those potential investors that failed to submit a bid by October 28 are now facing an uphill battle to retrieve slots previously held by Jet Airways, at least in India, where they were already largely taken over by rivals for the current Winter 2019/20 season.

The NCLT initially gave Jet Airways' creditors only 90 days from the commencement of liquidations proceedings in mid-June 2019 to either come up with a resolution plan or close down the airline, citing the size of the company and its impact on the economy and labour market.

According to Indian law, resolution professionals are usually given 180 days, which can then be extended by a further 90 days. In Jet Airways' case, the full 270-day-long period would expire in mid-March 2020.

German Efromovich's vehicle, Synergy Aerospace, is the only potential bidder for Jet Airways. It held a 78.1% stake in Avianca Holdings until May this year when another vehicle used to warehouse the shareholding, BRW Aviation LLC, defaulted on a USD456 million loan extended by United Airlines (UA, Chicago O'Hare) in November 2018.