Indian regional airline TruJet is struggling to maintain its fleet, with one of its airplane lessors trying to recover aircraft. The airline is struggling to exist amid extreme financial woes that have seen its fleet being grounded and several employees leaving in the past. As confidence in TruJet’s ability to bounce back wanes, aircraft owners are closing in to secure their planes.

Lessor wants planes back

Dublin-based aircraft leasing company Elix Aviation is in the process of repossessing three ATR72-500 aircraft from beleaguered carrier TruJet. As reported by BusinessLine, Elix has sent a notice to the airline asking it to ground the three aircraft and is now in touch with India’s aviation regulator, the DGCA, for the deregistration of the planes.

The report cites documents sent by Elix to the DGCA, applying for the Irrevocable De-Registration and Export Request Authorisation (IDERA) deregistration earlier this month for the three ATRs registered VT-TMU, VT-TMP, and VT-TMK. As required, the DGCA has notified all the necessary parties involved.

The airline’s managing director Umesh V says that the airline is trying to resolve the issue, stating,

“They (Elix) applied for three, however, only one aircraft is getting deregistered but that also we are trying to get it resolved. We are paying Elix $1.2 million.”

Two aircraft (VT-TMP and VT-TMU) are currently stored in Hyderabad, and the third (VT-TMK) in Ahmedabad. The airline’s all-ATR fleet has three more planes – two ATR72-500s leased from Aergo Capital and a single ATR72-600 leased from DAE Capital. None have flown since February.

Swift decline

While TruJet has been battling financial issues for quite some time, it was only months ago when the carrier was in talks with Elix Aviation for leasing up to 10 airplanes. In October 2021, The airline had a change of ownership, going back to former promoter Vankayalapati Umesh who regained control from infrastructure giant Megha Engineering & Infrastructures Ltd (MEIL).

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Umesh informed at that time that he was in the process of restructuring the airline and highlighted that Elix was keen to become an equity partner and also lease 10 airplanes, with two almost immediately.

But things have not gone down too well for TruJet, which has taken quite a beating ever since the COVID pandemic began.

TruJet
The airline has been struggling with weak finances for quite some time. Photo: Atamvir Multani via Wikimedia Commons

Financial woes

According to the figures released by the DGCA, TruJet did not operate a single flight in March. The airline flew most routes under the Regional Connectivity Scheme – UDAN. But over time, as government subsidies reduced, it struggled to maintain a healthy balance sheet, particularly during the pandemic.

The figures released by the Parliament reveal that TruJet recorded an operating loss of Rs 143 crore (approx. $18.6 million) in FY21, Rs 10.1 crore (approx. $1.3 million) in FY20, and Rs 17.56 crore (approx. $2.2 million) in FY19.

TruJet began operations in 2015 with a flight from Hyderabad to Tirupati in South India using a fleet of ATR 72s. Over the next couple of years, the carrier expanded its network to various destinations across South and Central India, connecting several small cities under the Indian government's UDAN scheme.

What do you think about TruJet’s current woes? Do you think the carrier will be able to recover from it? Please share your opinions in the comment section.

Source: BusinessLine