Jet Airways will always hold a special place in aviation history as it redefined the premium air travel industry in India. Let us take you through its journey from its glory days as a full-time scheduled airline to bankruptcy – never ending series of court cases to finally marking the end of an era.

April 1, 1992- Inception of Jet Airways, Jet Airways (India) Limited, known as Jet Airways, emerged as a prominent figure in the Indian aviation industry

1993 - commenced its operations as an air taxi operator

1995 - expanded into full-fledged airline operations

2003 – the airline had a fleet of 41 aircraft that operated over 250 flights daily. 

2004 – commenced international flights

December 28, 2004 - Jet Airways was listed on the Bombay Stock Exchange and became a public company

2007 – Acquired Air Sahara

2013 - forged a strategic alliance with Etihad Airways, becoming the first beneficiary of a policy change that allowed foreign airlines to invest in domestic ones. Etihad Airways bought 24% stake for $379 million

2016 - cemented its status as one of India's largest airlines, commanding a substantial market share and operating an extensive network of flights both domestically and internationally operating over 300 flights daily to 74 destinations worldwide

November 2017 - signs an ‘Enhanced Cooperation Agreement’ with codeshare partners Air France and KLM Royal Dutch Airlines

March 2018 - posts a net loss of INR 1,036 crore

June 2018 – posts a net loss of INR 1,323 crore

August 13, 2018 - KPMG India affiliate BSR & Co refuses to sign on the first quarter results of Jet. The audit firm raises doubts over the airline’s ability to continue operations.

September 19, 2018 - Jet's offices are raided by Income Tax officials

September 20, 2018 - 30 passengers on board its Mumbai-Jaipur flight complain of nose and ear bleeding after its crew fails to activate the aircraft's internal pressure control.

October 2018 - airline defers the payment of salaries, despite threats of ‘non-cooperation’ from pilots.

October 18: Tatas carry out talks with Naresh Goyal for a possible investment in Jet Airways. But talks with Tatas and Delta Air Lines stall over Goyal’s future role. Prospective investors want Goyal to cede control.

November 19: Ten flights from Mumbai are cancelled. As per reports, pilots refused to turn up on duty but the airline blames a “rostering” problem.

December 2, 2018: More flights are cancelled as pilots call in sick.

December 3, 2018 - The airline closes services across seven Gulf routes. Up to 40 flights a week are cancelled.

December 31, 2018 - Jet Airways defaults on debt repayments for the first time.

December 2018 – posts a net loss of INR 1,297.46 crore

Early 2019 - could not pay the salaries to pilots, engineers and senior management on time since August 2018. As of date, all employees are unpaid since March 2018 while pilots, engineers and senior management have not been paid since January 2018.

February 2019 – airline starts grounding its aircraft due to inability to pay lease rentals

March 25, 2019 - Naresh Goyal and his wife Anita Goyal and Etihad nominees step down from the board of directors

April 17, 2019 – Amidst stiff competition from players like IndiGo and SpiceJet coupled with some bad management decision leading to losses, airline files for indefinite bankrupcy

April 17, 2019 — Cash-starved Jet Airways suspends operations

June 20, 2019 — National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) insolvency petition filed by SBI-led lenders’ consortium

March 13, 2020 — Jet Airways seek more time for resolution process from NCLT after failing to attract any bidders

March 18, 2020 — NCLT allows more time for resolution process

June 14, 2020 — NCLT allows Jet Airways to sell its premises in Bandra Kurla Complex (BKC), Mumbai to settle claims, clear overseas debt

October 17, 2020 — Committee of Creditors (CoC) approves Jalan Kalrock Consortium’s resolution plan. Entrepreneur Murari Lal Jalan and asset management firm Kalrock acquired the airline with plans to relaunch its operations. The consortium also asks for restoration of slots on the basis of historicity.

February 25, 2021 — NCLT grants more time to aviation regulator DGCA to respond to airline’s request for slots

June 3, 2021 — Ministry tells NCLT that Jet Airways does not qualify for grant of slots on the basis of historic precedence

June 22, 2021 — National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) approves Jalan Kalrock Consortium’s resolution plan; says slot allocations will be decided by the ministry or appropriate authority.

15 May 2022 to 17 May 2022 – Jet Airways successfully conducted a number of proving flights with key DGCA officials onboard

August 2022 - Sanjiv Kapoor receives necessary security clearance from the civil aviation ministry to become CEO-designate for Jet Airways.

January 13, 2023 - NCLT gives Jalan-Kalrock consortium six more months to make payment and take over Jet Airways.

February 2023 - the lenders approached the NCLAT against the NCLT’s order on the transfer of ownership. The NCLAT, however, refused to issue any injunction in favour of the lenders on the issue.

March 12, 2023 - NCLAT upheld the transfer of ownership of the grounded airline to JKC by refusing to grant an interim stay on the implementation of JKC’s plan to revive Jet Airway

April 28, 2023 – Jet Airways CEO designate, Sanjeev Kapoor quits

May 2023 – Bitter fight in the court between lawyers for the lenders of Jet Airways and its successful resolution applicant JKC.

July 28, 2023 - Jalan Kalrock consortium successfully obtains renewal for the Airport Operator Certificate (AOC) of Jet Airways from the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA)

August 31, 2023 – JKC agrees to deposit INR100 crores as a part of resolution plan

September 14, 2023 - Jet Airways founder Naresh Goyal sent to 14-day judicial custody in a money laundering case linked to an alleged fraud of INR 538 crore at the Canara Bank.

September 2023 – JKC agrees to deposit another INR 100 crores. The lenders in the NCLAT questions the source of the money and claim that it is non-compliant with the resolution plan.

October 2023 - NCLT allows the sale of three Jet Airways aircraft to a Malta-based Ace Aviation. JKC challenges this order in the NCLAT.

December 2023 - Appellate tribunal refused to interfere with the sale of Jet Airways aircraft as no rights of any party would be affected. According to the NCLAT, the sale proceeds of INR 400 crore could subsequently be adjusted and apportioned as per the resolution plan.

January 18, 2024 - Supreme Court ordered JKC to deposit Rs 150 crore in an escrow account jointly held by the State Bank of India and JKC

January 2024 - The Supreme Court asks the NCLAT to decide on the lenders’ plea challenging the ownership of the grounded Airways to JKC, urged the NCLAT to decide the issue by March 31, 2024.

February 2024 – Supreme Court dismisses JKC plea seeking a seven-day extension of the deadline to pay INR 150 crore. SC also orders JKC to deposit the amount before January 31, failing which, it will be non-compliant with the resolution plan to take over Jet Airways.

March 2024 –September 2024 - The SBI, Punjab National Bank (PNB) and JC Flowers Asset Reconstruction Private Private Limited have challenged the March 12, 2023 verdict of the NCLAT. Consortium lawyers’ content that the creditors, including the SBI, were unjustifiably seeking liquidation

October 15 2024 – The consortium opposed the submissions of the law officer and says it was the creditors who had delayed the resolution process.

November 7, 2024 – Supreme Court orders liquidation of Jet Airways due to the non-implementation of the bankruptcy resolution plan by JKC.  Supreme Court invokes its extraordinary powers under Article 142 of the Constitution to order this liquidation.

The decision comes in view of ‘peculiar and alarming’ circumstance that the resolution plan has not been implemented for five years. “The consortium failed to infuse even the first tranche money within stipulated time as mandated by resolution plan,” the Supreme Court said.

Meanwhile the Jet Airways insolvency process started on the June 20, 2019 culminating today involving a total of 1967 days, not to mention the loss of time, money and effort of many stake holders in the industry who tried to recover the airline, tried to claim and purchase from the airline. Looking at this, Nitin Sarin, Managing Partner at Sarin & Co asks in a social media post: “What are we left with? A pile of aircraft assets lying scattered around India which could have been utilized while they were in their prime. This is not something for us to be proud of and in fact, we must use this as an example to mend our insolvency law as far as aviation is concerned.”

He further goes on to urge the MoCA to liaise with stake holders to ensure proper regulations are put in place for speedy rehabilitation of airlines in India.

Jet and GoFirst may have been some of the first instances in India, but they are not going to be the last. Its time we take a hard look in this matter.