Delhi High Court rejects Go First's appeal against lessor aircraft inspection

Go First Delhi HC

A division bench of the Delhi High Court refused to entertain an appeal by Go First's Resolution Professional (RP) challenging a previous order that had allowed lessors to conduct inspections of 30 aircraft and their parts at regular intervals. The court upheld the decision, granting permission to the lessors to carry out inspections regularly.

The court however permitted Go First to continue maintaining the aircrafts.

The division bench led by Chief Justice of Delhi High Court asked Justice Tara Vitasta Ganju to decide the case expeditiously. The bench has also permitted the parties to move an appropriate application to advance the hearing before the Justice Ganju, which is currently scheduled for August 3.

Additionally, the court directed the Director General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) to proceed with considering the resumption plan of Go First, taking into account the rights and contentions of the lessors. The court justified this direction based on the DGCA's stand that it would take at least 15 days to provide the necessary permissions for Go First to resume operations.

A senior DGCA official told Moneycontrol that shortcomings in Go First's proposal to restart operations included the lack of clarity on the availability of spare parts to maintain aircraft operations and an uncertain timeline for deliveries of engines to expand operations.

"Once Go First responds to queries pointed out in their proposal to restart operations. The DGCA will take around 15 days to clear the airline to restart operations," the DGCA official said.

He added that Go First will first be permitted to sell tickets to customers after carrying out a proving flight and a week after ticket sales are permitted the airline will be permitted to fly again, if Go First meets all required criteria.

The official also said that the DGCA will ensure that lessors of Go First are permitted timely inspection of their aircraft based on the order by the Delhi High Court.

On July 5, a single-judge bench of the Delhi High Court granted permission to the lessors to inspect and perform maintenance work on their 30 leased aircraft and their parts twice a month. The order also prohibited Go First's resolution professionals and employees from removing, replacing, or taking out any part or component of the leased aircraft without the explicit permission of the lessors.

The aircraft lessors, including Pembroke Aviation, Accipiter Investments Aircraft 2 Ltd, EOS Aviation, and SMBC Aviation, filed a writ with the Delhi High Court, seeking instructions to release the planes leased to Go First, which is currently facing financial distress.

On May 22, the National Company Law Appellate Tribunal (NCLAT) upheld the National Company Law Tribunal's (NCLT) order to admit Go First's plea for insolvency.

On May 10, the principal bench of the NCLT in Delhi accepted Go First's voluntary plea to initiate an insolvency resolution process. As a result, the tribunal appointed an Insolvency Resolution Professional (IRP), suspended the board, and imposed a moratorium on the airline's financial obligations.