Indian budget airline Go First files for bankruptcy, grounds flights

The Go First service to Delhi departed leaving a bus load of passengers behind. Photo / Praveen Thirumurugan, Unsplash

No-frills Indian air carrier Go First, formerly Go Air, filed for bankruptcy and suspended its flights for three days starting Wednesday, causing hardships for thousands of fliers.

A statement on the carrier’s website on Tuesday said the cancellations were caused by operational reasons. “A full refund will be issued to the original mode of payment shortly,” the statement said.

In a message to employees on Tuesday, airline chief Kaushik Khona said Pratt & Whitney had failed to supply it with replacements for faulty aircraft engines, the Press Trust of India news agency said. Pratt & Whitney, an American aerospace manufacturer with global operations, had no immediate comment.

Khona said the carrier was doing everything possible to navigate the situation with utmost care and concern for all staff.

Go First had an average of 30,000 daily domestic flyers in March, so the disruption in flights is expected to affect about 90,000 passengers, media reports said.

Nitesh Jain, a businessman, was attempting to buy tickets for his family on another airline at a higher price.

“I booked tickets four months back to save money and now the tickets have been canceled. It’s the airline’s responsibility to arrange alternate flights for us.”

The airline is owned by India’s Wadia group.

Civil Aviation Minister Jyotiraditya Scindi said the government was helping the airline.

“Go First has been faced with critical supply chain issues with regard to its engines. The government has been assisting the airline in every possible manner,” he said.

The Indian Express daily said the company’s trouble with engines forced it to ground half of its fleet of about 60 aircraft.

The airline which was founded as Go Air in 2005 went a drastic re-brand in 2021 to become Go First after the pandemic.

Bankruptcy filing showed the airline owed financial creditors 65.21 billion Indian rupees ($1280 million). Prior to April 30, Go First had not defaulted on any of those loans, reported Reuters.

- AP with additional reporting