The Hindu Business Line : More senior Jet Air officials resign

New Delhi April 4 Jet Airways lost two senior level officials on Wednesday including the Vice-President, Corporate Affairs, Ms Nandini Verma. Sources said one more Vice-President looking after international operations and three General Manager level officials had resigned in the recent past.

Almost eight months ago, the airline had lost two other Vice-Presidents. The resigning personnel mainly attribute their decision to poor management practices and centralised decision making process in the company.

The airline, however, still has at least five other Vice-Presidents looking after diverse portfolios and last month the company informed the BSE that it was appointing Mr Jay Shelat as the Vice-President, Cargo. Various attempts to contact Jet Airways yielded no results.

The latest spate of resignations comes close on the heels of the start of arbitration proceedings on the failed buy-out bid of Air Sahara by Jet Airways. The airline has also seen a steady decline in its market share that fell from 34.9 per cent at the end of the first quarter of 2006 to 30.4 per cent during the third quarter of the same year. The airline posted a net profit of Rs 40.04 crore for the quarter ended December 31, 2006, compared with Rs 61.01 crore for the quarter ended December 31, 2005.

Despite these set backs, the airline, which has ordered 10 Airbus and 10 Boeing aircraft, has drawn up an ambitious plan that would see it not only roll out new livery but also expand its footprint in the international market.

The airline has already been permitted by the Government to operate regular flights between India and the US and is expected to start operations to Newark (US) later this year.

More Stories on : Airlines | People | Jet Airways (India) Ltd

Article E-Mail :: Comment :: Syndication :: Printer Friendly Page