"We all decide to import ATF rather than buy domestically if it brings down our costs...The actual user of imported ATF will not be subject to sales tax. This is certainly an option we are considering," Kingfisher Airlines' Chairman, Vijay Mallya, told reporters here.
This will, however, require several logistical issues to be resolved before ATF can be actually imported, Mallya added.
The cost-structure and regulatory issues, if any, remains to be worked out, said Jet's Executive Director, Saroj Datta.
Imports would attract customs duty and hence "we will have to see how the costs ultimately work out," he said.
Newly elected as the Federation of Indian Airlines Chairman, Mallya has been mandated by airline operators in the country to represent them at various fora to take up their cause and especially on the issue of taxes which is hitting their bottomlines hard.
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Mallya said that the domestic airline industry was likely to incur losses of around $ 2 billion. This also translates into a loss of revenue for the Government, he said.
"As an industry, we stand to lose around $ 2 billion and the ironical fact is that this revenue is earned by government either through taxation or ATF pricing," he said.