Wadia Group Chief Points Finger At P&W For Go First Woes

Nusli Wadia, the chairman of the Wadia Group, has attributed the grounding of Go First to Pratt & Whitney (P&W), which filed for voluntary bankruptcy in May, as per a report by the Economic Times. He estimates the financial impact on the airline due to the defective engines from the US company to be over Rs 10,000 crore, relying on assessments from international experts.

In the last two years, Pratt & Whitney's inaction and contractual breaches significantly damaged Go First financially, risking employees and a crucial national asset. In an interview with ET, Wadia said that Go First was forced to seek NCLT intervention for revival, legal obstacles prevented the airline's recovery despite being poised for it.

When Go First turned to NCLT in May, around 65 per cent of its aircraft were already out of operation. Lessors were actively issuing notices to ground the remaining planes and had also contacted the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) to seek deregistration for flying the planes out of India. Given the circumstances, the board opted for voluntary insolvency to safeguard assets from potential seizure, as stated by Wadia.

Following the acceptance of Go First's petition by NCLT in May, the board was disbanded. The resolution professional (RP) currently managing the airline is collaborating with the committee of creditors to identify a purchaser for the financially troubled carrier.

SpiceJet, along with Safrik Investments operating in Africa and Sky One based in Sharjah, has recently shown interest in acquiring Go First. This development occurred after the proposal deadline had lapsed, and lenders began contemplating the liquidation of Go First.