CEO: Go Airlines to check legal options to attach India assets

CHENNAI: The Wadia group’s low cost airline Go Airlines (India) Limited will look at all legal options, including that of freezing/attaching the Indian assets of the US-based aircraft engine maker Pratt & Whitney, said a top airline official.

He also categorically said the airline filing an insolvency petition with the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) is not a ruse to get loan write offs but mainly to safeguard/retain the aircraft so that the lessors do not repose them.

“We have started the steps for the execution of the award. We have filed a case in the US,” said Kaushik Khona.

Khona said the airline is also identifying jurisdictions in Japan, Singapore, Europe and the US to file cases against Pratt & Whitney which is refusing to comply with an award issued by an emergency arbitrator appointed in accordance with the 2016 Arbitration Rules of the Singapore International Arbitration Centre (SIAC).

Asked whether the company is looking at filing a case in India against Pratt & Whitney to attach its properties here, Khona said the company will evaluate that option as well.

He said the airline is to get the engines for the 27 aircraft that are now grounded due to engine faults and legal action will be taken in the jurisdictions where Pratt & Whitney has the engines.

According to Khona, we need the engines and for that the arbitration award has to be enforced and Pratt & Whitney does not have an MRO (maintenance, repair, overhaul) set up in India.

Go Airlines has filed a case in a court in Delaware in the US against Pratt & Whitney to enforce the arbitration award, and Khona said the case will be decided soon.

Dismissing the Pratt & Whitney’s charge that Go Airlines has a lengthy history of missing its financial obligations to it as false, Khona added that if that is the case why would the emergency arbitrator order that the engine maker should not ask for any deposit from the airline and give the engines without any cost.