Air India Needs Government Funds As It Continues To Grapple With Debt, Says Chairman Ashwani Lohani

Air India Ltd. has sought help from the government as the national carrier continues to grapple with mounting debt, its chairman and managing director said Thursday.

“We definitely require some funds from government to meet the gap,” said Ashwani Lohani said. While the airline expects to post operating profit this year, debt servicing will remain a huge problem, he added. On how long Air India can continue without equity infusion, he said, “It is a difficult question to answer.”

Net debt of Air India stands at nearly Rs 60,000 crore, with every year debt interest of Rs 5,000-6,000 crore, he told reporters. “Debt servicing is so high that even if we become the finest airline in the world, we will not be able to handle that kind of debt servicing. Debt keeps on piling on itself. That is the biggest issue.”

While Air India has been launching new flights and will be expanding, it has not leased any new aircraft to start a flight, Lohani said.

Meanwhile, Civil Aviation Minister Hardeep Singh Puri said that the government is determined on Air India privatisation. Many prospective buyers are interested, he said in the same event. The government has been planning to sell its stake in the debt-laden carrier but hasn’t tasted success yet.

Responding to the prime minister’s call to curb use of single-use plastic, Lohani said, "We are going to ban plastic use in Air India Express and Alliance Air from Oct. 2. The (plastic) ban Air India flights will be done after that in various phases.”