One of India’s largest airlines has ceased operations over 26 years after its inaugural flight.
Naresh Goyal, who started his career as a sales salesman for Lebanese Airlines in 1967, launched the airline. For nearly a decade, Goyal worked for numerous other airlines before starting Jetair in 1974 to provide sales and marketing services to foreign airlines in India.
When India’s economy liberalized in 1991, it opened up its aviation sector to private companies, Goyal jumped at the opportunity, and Jet Airways launched in May 1993. He built it into one of India’s leading airlines during the next two decades, adding international destinations such as Singapore, London, and Amsterdam.
In the early 2000s, however, newer firms like SpiceJet and IndiGo emerged as millions more Indians began to take to the skies. The upstart airlines’ no-frills approach allowed them to slash expenses and lower ticket rates, giving India’s budget-conscious first-time fliers far more affordable options than Jet Airways could provide with its premium service.
The difficulties intensified in the years that followed. India’s airports grew increasingly congested, foreign airlines competed fiercely on international routes, and government fuel levies increased expenses. Jet Airways clawed to life despite rising losses and a debt of $1.2 billion, according to reports. In 2013, Abu Dhabi’s national carrier, Etihad Airways, purchased a 24 percent share in Jet, and the airline ordered hundreds of new planes to meet up with demand. However, an increasingly uncertain economy — India’s currency plummeted to record lows in 2018, exacerbating the rise in oil prices — became too much of a barrier, and Jet began to fall behind on payments to employees and creditors.
Things got much worse when the airline was forced to ground its jets due to a lack of funds to pay its aircraft leasing businesses. After a consortium of lenders led by the government-run State Bank of India acquired control of the airline that Goyal had developed over two decades, he was forced to depart.
However, a planned bank rescue fell through due to concerns over the airline’s long-term viability, and Jet’s wings were finally cut.
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