Debt-ridden Kingfisher Airlines put on a brave face on Thursday after announcing a record loss for the second quarter, saying a recovery plan is in the works and its grounded jets will take to the skies soon.
The airline, which has struggled to pay its staff for most of the year and has not flown for over a month due to protests and safety concerns, has never turned a profit in its eight-year history. According to one estimate, it is saddled with roughly $2.5 billion in debt.
The figures got even worse on Thursday for a company that has been on life support for months.
Second-quarter results showed a loss of 7.54 billion rupees, compared with a loss of 4.69 billion rupees a year earlier. Revenue declined 87 percent to 2 billion rupees.
Despite the company's pledge on Thursday to produce a comprehensive recovery plan, some analysts doubt that what was once India's second-largest carrier will fly again.
Creditors have set a November 30 deadline for Kingfisher to bring in fresh equity or an investor, the chairman of State Bank of India, its lead lender, told Reuters. He did not say what would happen if the demand was not met.
"Options? It is already bankrupt, I don't think there is any option," said a Mumbai-based aviation analyst with a local brokerage.
"If a promoter can put in money, then possibly the company can be revived, but we are talking about very large amounts of money, 30-40 billion rupees," said the analyst, who did not wish to be identified because he no longer covers the company.
A Kingfisher spokesman refused to comment.
Kingfisher has been scrambling without success to find fresh investment. No global airline has publicly expressed an interest in buying a stake.
The Centre for Asia Pacific Aviation has said a fully funded turnaround for Kingfisher would cost at least $1 billion.
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