The Civil Aviation Ministry has sought some more information from AirAsia regarding its proposal to set up a new domestic airline.
K.N. Shrivastava, Secretary, Civil Aviation, said here on Tuesday that the Ministry had sought some information, such as the names of those who will be appointed to run the airline.
When asked, Civil Aviation Minister Ajit Singh said “I do not see any problem in the airline proposal going through, provided Home Ministry and other Ministries do not have any problem.”
The Minister indicated that Etihad’s buyout of a stake in Jet Airways will need to be cleared by the Cabinet Committee on Investment apart from getting the nod of Securities and Exchange of India and Foreign Investment Promotion Board.
In April, Etihad Airways invested $379 million (Rs 2,050 crore) to acquire 24 per cent stake in Jet Airways.
This was part of a $600-million commitment to strengthen the partnership between the two airlines. The current deal values Jet at around Rs 8,500 crore. Under the agreement, Etihad will subscribe to 2.72 crore new shares of Jet Airways at Rs 754.74 a share.
Chennai, Kolkata airports
The Union Cabinet will have to give its nod before the proposal to engage private partners to professionally manage the newly developed Chennai and Kolkata airports is implemented, the Civil Aviation Minister said on Tuesday.
“A professional consultant will be appointed to look at the proposal. The report of the consultant will be sent to the Cabinet. It is for the Cabinet to take a final call on how this proposal should be taken forward,” Singh said.