Minister for Civil Aviation Ajit Singh said he hoped that for the sake of its employees, banks and passengers, Kingfisher Airlines was able to take to the skies again.
In an informal interaction with the media here on Wednesday, Singh said the airline had not renewed its licence when it expired on December 31, 2012.
“Kingfisher has two years to renew its licence. They will still have to apply again and satisfy the regulator, apart from ensuring financial stability before being allowed to fly. If they do not fly again, there will be collateral damage,” the Minister said.
Officials indicated that the collateral damage could be on banks (which have lent the airline close to Rs 7,000 crore), airports that are owed over Rs 250 crore and oil companies, which also not been paid by the now defunct airline.
The cash-strapped airline ceased operations on October 20 last year after it failed to pay employees salaries for close to eight months. The airline has about 4,000 employees on its rolls.