After the airline ceased operations, Delhi HC had, in April 2024, directed DGCA to de-register its aircraft and facilitate transfer
A GoAir aircraft at Mumbai airport. File Pic/Rane Ashish
Of the 54 grounded aircraft in defunct carrier GoAir’s fleet, 28 have already flown out of India with some already being taken into service by global airlines. Encumbered by engine issues, a dispute with the engine manufacturer and mounting groundings, GoAir’s management decided to get out of the airline business. What ensued was a long-drawn battle in the courts over possession of the entire grounded fleet which the airline had procured through lease and had stopped paying its lease rentals.
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According to Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) records, the airline had five A320ceo and 49 A320neo aircraft at the time of grounding. In April 2024, the Delhi High Court directed the DGCA to de-register the planes and facilitate transfer. The condition of the grounded aircraft had subsequently deteriorated. Things on the deregistration front meant a lot of work for lessors to get the aircraft airworthy and then fly them out of India.
A senior DGCA official said, “By October 2024, one-fourth of the erstwhile fleet was out of India. In the next three months, the speed at which the aircraft are returning has gone up with over half the fleet of 54 planes having flown out of India by December 31, 2024.” The official added, “Interestingly, at least two A320ceo aircraft have already started flying for other carriers. One with Air Arabia and one with Fly Jinnah are already showing up on flight-tracking websites.”
An Air India Engineering Services Limited official disclosed, “The first lot started moving out of India in July last year, with the others following soon after. This has meant work for Maintainance, Repair and Overhaul in India, with a lot of aircraft being made airworthy by us [AESL] as well as private MROs in the country.”
How many aircraft flew out of India
A senior DGCA official said that as of the end of December 2024, 28 out of 54 grounded aircraft had flown out. This includes both grounded aircraft at Hyderabad and the sole grounded aircraft at Ahmedabad and Goa–Mopa having flown out. Kannur and Bengaluru have also seen more than half of the planes being flown out. Kannur had five aircraft with three now flown out, while Bengaluru had nine, five of which are now out of India. Delhi had 23 aircraft of GoAir grounded which is the highest across the nation. Eleven are now out of India. “This is a relief for Delhi airport which is making new peaks in traffic but is constrained by availability of bays due to aircraft of GoFirst. While it took seven months for the first 13 aircraft to fly out, the next three months saw another 15 aircraft being flown out. 24 A320neo and four A320ceo have flown out of India till December 2024 end,” the official said.
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