India's Jet Airways, which is in talks with Etihad Airways for a potential stake sale, said that it had reduced its debt by about US$400 million since the end of last March, when debt stood at about 143 billion rupees (Dh9.86bn).
Jet said it planned to continuing reducing its debt and pay off about $400m (Dh1.46bn) in the next financial year.
Sudheer Raghavan, the chief commercial officer for Jet, said that the carrier had reduced costs by cutting the number of foreign pilots and replacing them with Indian pilots. On Friday, Jet posted a profit of 850m rupees in the quarter between October and December, compared with a loss of more than 1bn rupees a year earlier.
Airlines in India have faced a challenging operating environment amid competition, high fuel prices and taxes.
"All of our efforts on revenues, costs and [the] network side have resulted in turning around the airline operations," said Nikos Kardassis, the chief executive of Jet, commenting on the airline's results.
"This is despite higher fuel prices and [the] rupee depreciation impact that we have had in the last few months.
"We continue in our endeavour on cost cutting measures."
Etihad on Monday said that it planned to present the proposal for a deal with Jet to its board and would make a decision on whether to invest in the carrier within the next few weeks.
The Indian government opened up the aviation sector to foreign direct investment by overseas carriers only last September, allowing foreign airlines to buy stakes of up to 49 per cent.
The fortunes of one of Jet's rivals, however, seem to be diverging from its own.
Kingfisher Airlines yesterday posted a loss of 7.55bn rupees for the three months to the end of December, as the indebted Indian carrier's operations remain suspended and authorities have yet to renew its flying licence. Auditors for the airline noted in the quarterly report that the loss would have been greater, at 10.9bn rupees, had Kingfisher calculated its costs for major repairs and aircraft maintenance "in accordance with generally accepted accounting standards prevalent in India", and not added a deferred tax credit, which did not satisfy conditions for recognition, according to BK Ramadhyani & Co, the auditors.
The airline, which has never turned a profit since its launch in 2005, is estimated to have up to US$2.5bn of debt (Dh9.18bn), owing money not just to banks, but also to staff, oil companies aircraft leasing firms, and airports.
Kingfisher's fleet of aircraft has been grounded since the beginning of October, when labour unrest broke out over unpaid salaries. The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) suspended its licence later that month.
The licence then expired at the end of the year. "Kingfisher has made significant progress towards complying with the DGCA's requirements," the airline said yesterday.
The airline is hopeful that it will be flying again by the summer, with plans to inject funds into the business from its parent company, UB Group. Some analysts, however, have raised doubts over whether it will fly again.
business@thenational.ae
BEETLEJUICE BEETLEJUICE
Starring: Winona Ryder, Michael Keaton, Jenny Ortega
Director: Tim Burton
Rating: 3/5
You Were Never Really Here
Director: Lynne Ramsay
Starring: Joaquim Phoenix, Ekaterina Samsonov
Four stars
Israel Palestine on Swedish TV 1958-1989
Director: Goran Hugo Olsson
Rating: 5/5
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Company Profile
Name: Thndr
Started: 2019
Co-founders: Ahmad Hammouda and Seif Amr
Sector: FinTech
Headquarters: Egypt
UAE base: Hub71, Abu Dhabi
Current number of staff: More than 150
Funds raised: $22 million
The%20Boy%20and%20the%20Heron
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The biog
Title: General Practitioner with a speciality in cardiology
Previous jobs: Worked in well-known hospitals Jaslok and Breach Candy in Mumbai, India
Education: Medical degree from the Government Medical College in Nagpur
How it all began: opened his first clinic in Ajman in 1993
Family: a 90-year-old mother, wife and two daughters
Remembers a time when medicines from India were purchased per kilo
My Country: A Syrian Memoir
Kassem Eid, Bloomsbury
PROFILE OF SWVL
Started: April 2017
Founders: Mostafa Kandil, Ahmed Sabbah and Mahmoud Nouh
Based: Cairo, Egypt
Sector: transport
Size: 450 employees
Investment: approximately $80 million
Investors include: Dubai’s Beco Capital, US’s Endeavor Catalyst, China’s MSA, Egypt’s Sawari Ventures, Sweden’s Vostok New Ventures, Property Finder CEO Michael Lahyani
UAE SQUAD
Omar Abdulrahman (Al Hilal), Ali Khaseif, Ali Mabkhout, Salem Rashed, Khalifa Al Hammadi, Khalfan Mubarak, Zayed Al Ameri, Mohammed Al Attas (Al Jazira), Khalid Essa, Ahmed Barman, Ryan Yaslam, Bandar Al Ahbabi (Al Ain), Habib Fardan, Tariq Ahmed, Mohammed Al Akbari (Al Nasr), Ali Saleh, Ali Salmin (Al Wasl), Adel Al Hosani, Ali Hassan Saleh, Majed Suroor (Sharjah), Ahmed Khalil, Walid Abbas, Majed Hassan, Ismail Al Hammadi (Shabab Al Ahli), Hassan Al Muharrami, Fahad Al Dhahani (Bani Yas), Mohammed Al Shaker (Ajman)
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Kibsons%20Cares
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Company%20Profile
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The specs
Engine: Long-range single or dual motor with 200kW or 400kW battery
Transmission: Single-speed automatic
Max touring range: 620km / 590km
Price: From Dh250,000 (estimated)
THE%20STRANGERS'%20CASE
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Super 30
Produced: Sajid Nadiadwala and Phantom Productions
Directed: Vikas Bahl
Cast: Hrithik Roshan, Pankaj Tripathi, Aditya Srivastav, Mrinal Thakur
Rating: 3.5 /5
Milestones on the road to union
1970
October 26: Bahrain withdraws from a proposal to create a federation of nine with the seven Trucial States and Qatar.
December: Ahmed Al Suwaidi visits New York to discuss potential UN membership.
1971
March 1: Alex Douglas Hume, Conservative foreign secretary confirms that Britain will leave the Gulf and “strongly supports” the creation of a Union of Arab Emirates.
July 12: Historic meeting at which Sheikh Zayed and Sheikh Rashid make a binding agreement to create what will become the UAE.
July 18: It is announced that the UAE will be formed from six emirates, with a proposed constitution signed. RAK is not yet part of the agreement.
August 6: The fifth anniversary of Sheikh Zayed becoming Ruler of Abu Dhabi, with official celebrations deferred until later in the year.
August 15: Bahrain becomes independent.
September 3: Qatar becomes independent.
November 23-25: Meeting with Sheikh Zayed and Sheikh Rashid and senior British officials to fix December 2 as date of creation of the UAE.
November 29: At 5.30pm Iranian forces seize the Greater and Lesser Tunbs by force.
November 30: Despite a power sharing agreement, Tehran takes full control of Abu Musa.
November 31: UK officials visit all six participating Emirates to formally end the Trucial States treaties
December 2: 11am, Dubai. New Supreme Council formally elects Sheikh Zayed as President. Treaty of Friendship signed with the UK. 11.30am. Flag raising ceremony at Union House and Al Manhal Palace in Abu Dhabi witnessed by Sheikh Khalifa, then Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi.
December 6: Arab League formally admits the UAE. The first British Ambassador presents his credentials to Sheikh Zayed.
December 9: UAE joins the United Nations.