Jet Airways, which was grounded in April 2019 due to financial troubles, made a significant announcement on Thursday regarding its leadership team. The airline has appointed two new Whole Time Directors and a Non-Executive Director, as reported in a regulatory filing.
Sundaram Ramesh has been assigned the role of Whole Time Director and Chief Financial Officer, bringing with him over 40 years of experience in finance, accounts, and taxation. Gautam Acharya, an aviation professional specialising in commercial aviation for two decades, has also been appointed as a Whole Time Director. Additionally, Rajesh Prasad joins as a Non-Executive Director, boasting around 40 years of diversified experience. These appointments were officially approved by the airline’s monitoring committee and are effective as of Thursday.
According to the regulatory filing, these appointments were made to ensure compliance with relevant laws, facilitate filings with the Registrar of Companies, and support the implementation of the resolution plan.
Major Challenges
Jet Airways faced further challenges earlier this year when its CEO-Designate, Sanjiv Kapoor, resigned, and several other senior executives left the company. The airline had been grounded for more than 25 years before the Jalan Kalrock Consortium (JKC) emerged as the winning bidder in the insolvency resolution process in June 2021.
Despite the NCLT’s approval of the consortium’s resolution plan, the ownership transfer process has encountered delays. As a consequence, Jet Airways’ shares dropped by 4.19 per cent to close at Rs 37.02 on the BSE.
The recent appointments aim to strengthen the airline’s leadership team and navigate through the ongoing challenges it faces as it strives to regain its position in the aviation industry.