by LAUREN CODLING
THOUSANDS of passengers travelling between the UK and south Asia have endured disruption to their plans this week as Indian carrier Jet Airways cancelled all international flights until Thursday (18).
The debt-ridden airline suspended all international flights last week over alleged debts of more than £900 million. It emerged on Monday (15) that the airline failed to secure emergency funding from its lenders State Bank of India (SBI).
Reports said Jet’s chief executive Vinay Dube called an urgent board meeting after the bank failed to agree to provide much-needed emergency cash.
“The management will seek guidance from the board on the next steps forward,” Dube said in an email to staff late on Monday as he announced that the cancellation of international flights was being extended.
The move left thousands stranded, and passengers took to social media to express their frustration at the airline. Many complained they could not get in touch with customer services, while others claimed employees hung up the phone on them mid-conversation.
Drew Morten, 27, was on a nine-day trip to Sri Lanka when – on the second day of her holiday – she received a text message from the airline informing her that the flight had been cancelled.
Speaking to Eastern Eye on Monday, Morten said she had been continuously ringing customer
services, but had been put on hold numerous times.
When she did eventually get through to an advisor, after several hours, she was told they
could only offer a partial refund. When she protested, the advisor allegedly hung up the phone.
She was not offered an alternative flight to the UK.
“No one is helping, no one has contacted me,” she said. “I’m going to have to cut my trip short and go to Colombo airport, which is four hours away, to try to speak to someone in person.
“The experience has been absolutely awful – they don’t seem to care.” As Eastern Eye went to press, Morten was still unsure of her route back to London.
Jessica Sparkes had booked flights to Mumbai and was due to leave on Thursday. However,
since the news broke that all international journeys had been cancelled, she has attempted to
contact Jet Airways.
As of Monday, she had no response to direct messages on social media and claimed she was
unable to get through to their customer services.
“It’s left me in a position where I will have to abandon my trip as it’s now exceptionally expensive to travel with another airline,” she told Eastern Eye. “It feels like (Jet Airways) want to retain passenger’s money and by being uncontactable and dishonest about cancellations, they provide no options for us.”
Pravin Acharya, from Leicester, flew with Jet Airways last Monday (8). His domestic flight from Mumbai to Ahmedabad was cancelled, although he said the airline quickly rearranged a new flight for passengers.
“We were worried,” he told Eastern Eye. “I had a phone call when we were at Ahmedabad to say we might be delayed and if we couldn’t fly, we would get compensation.
“But I thought, if they couldn’t pay their own pilots, how will they get compensation to us? We were concerned we would have to buy a new ticket.”
When Eastern Eye contacted several UK-based travel agents, they said they were unclear on
the situation, but were trying their best to assist customers.
One leading UK travel agent described the Jet Airways situation as “extremely fluid,” while
another said they were trying to help customers book new flights.
Another said many passengers who had not commenced their journey were eligible for refunds, although this could take up to four weeks to process.
Jet Airways has been facing financial difficulties for several months. According to reports, it
had defaulted on loans and most employees have not been paid.
On Monday, pilots gathered outside Jet Airways headquarters in Mumbai to demand pay.
One pilot told the BBC: “We haven’t been paid for the last four months. It’s been a really difficult period. Many people here are the sole breadwinners for their families. We’re hoping the lenders would agree to give money to keep the airline going.”
Last Saturday (13), several hundred staff also staged a protest at the Delhi International Airport demanding to be paid.
The Business Standard quoted sources saying the airline had only enough fuel to keep its seven remaining jets running until Tuesday afternoon.
An official from the National Aviation Guild, the union for Jet Airways pilots, said: “The airline
is flying seven planes right now. The minimum number to keep its scheduled operations licence.”
A consortium of lenders took control of Jet Airways in March, pledging to give “immediate
funding support” as part of a debt resolution plan.
A deadline passed last Friday (12) for prospective bidders to express an interest in acquiring a
75 per cent stake in the carrier.
Etihad Airways, which owns a 24 per cent stake, has reportedly submitted an expression of interest to buy a controlling stake.
It was reported that Jet Airways founder Naresh Goyal had pulled out of bidding, deciding not to try to retake control of the airline that he ran until last month.
As Eastern Eye went to press, SBI was expected to announce a shortlist of prospective bidders later on Tuesday. They would then have until April 30 to submit formal bids.
In response to the latest troubles, a Jet Airways spokesperson said: “The airline’s management and its key stakeholders including its consortium of lenders, continue to work closely towards resolving the current situation.”
In relation to the cancellation, the spokesperson added: “The airline regrets the inconvenience caused to its guests.”
(With agencies)
