KOCHI: Will Air Kerala ever be air borne?
Air Kerala International Services, or Air Kerala, has existed only on paper for over 18 years, still awaiting its takeoff.
Cochin International Airport Ltd (CIAL) announced the Air Kerala airline plan in 2006 as a fully owned subsidiary with much fanfare and applause, especially from the NRI community.
Ommen Chandy’s dream
Air Kerala plan was originally mooted by Oommen Chandy, the former Chief Minister of Kerala as a panacea for exorbitant airfares in the market, particularly for those working in the Gulf region.
The plan sincerely aimed to establish a state-owned airline to provide affordable international flights, but despite being proposed years ago, it has remained a dream for close to two decades, yet to come to fruition.
Talking to businessbenchmark.news, an airline expert said, “The project doesn’t seem to be in the pipeline, and is likely to remain a pipe dream forever.”
Referring to the airline plan, a chartered accountant friend of mine (not a conventional style of reporting?) said that starting an airline is ‘easier said than done’.
He pointed out that several airlines are struggling financially, citing the example of Air India, which experienced years of financial losses and continues to face challenges under the new management of the Tata Group.
He contextually referenced the humorous quote by Richard Branson, the founder of Virgin Group, “If you want to be a millionaire, start with a billion dollars and launch a new airline.”
Four subsidiaries
CIAL has four subsidiary companies, namely Cochin International Aviation Services Ltd (CIASL), Air Kerala International Services Ltd (AKISL), CIAL Infrastructures Ltd (CIL) and CIAL Dutyfree and Retail Services Ltd (CDRSL).
Consequent to the investment by Government of Kerala in the share capital of Kerala Waterways and Infrastructures Ltd (KWIL), the status of KWIL as subsidiary company of CIAL has been ceased. KWIL currently remains as an associate company.
Air Kerala delay
Every year, the CIAL repeats the same rhetoric as part of the annual report when describing Air Kerala as one of its subsidiaries.
CIAL, while referring to the Air Kerala project, thankfully acknowledged that the National Civil Aviation Policy of 2016 has done away with the requirement for airlines to have five years of domestic operations before becoming eligible to fly overseas.
“However, airlines must allocate 20 aircraft or 20 per cent of their total fleet, whichever is higher, to the domestic sector if they wish to operate internationally,” CIAL keeps explaining year after year, as if this is the ‘sole condition’ that prevents CIAL from venturing into the international airline business.
