Jet Airways, India’s premier international airline, has been awarded the “Regional Deal of the Year” for 2010 by the Airfinance Journal, a leading financial magazine serving the commercial aviation industry worldwide. The award to Jet Airways was for structuring an innovative operating lease for its six ATR aircraft, under a deal with Calyon Bank, France and Investec in London. Under this deal, the airline took delivery of six new ATR aircraft between October and December 2010. This is the second such award accorded to the airline by Airfinance journal.
The first such award received by Jet Airways, in 2002, was for the US exim guaranteed financing deal that the airline did with the Standard Chartered Bank, Mumbai, and SBI Bahrain, and accomplished the delivery of 10 B737s aircraft between February 2001 & May 2003.
Alasdair Whyte – Publisher, Airfinance Journal will present the award to Jet Airways at a ceremony in New York in April.
Receiving the news of the award Nikos Kardassis, CEO, Jet Airways said, “Given the cyclical nature of the aviation business, it is critical that airlines innovate their operations to stay ahead of the growth curve. Innovating to drive operational excellence and rationalize costs is a Continuous Strategic Imperative for us at Jet Airways, testimony to which is this award by the Airfinance Journal. The airline has been awarded for structuring a unique finance deal for six ATR aircraft, wherein finance was secured at the most competitive rates resulting in attractive lease rentals for us. With the delivery of these aircraft, Jet Airways has been able to replace the six JetLite CRJs and ensure that we continue to have one of the youngest aircraft fleet in the world.”
Airfinance Journal’s 2010 Awards recognize deals that were innovative; tapped new sources of finance or found new participants; and, as always, reward borrower ambition and lender commitment.
About Jet Airways
Jet Airways currently operates a fleet of 97 aircraft, which includes 10 Boeing 777-300 ER aircraft, 12 Airbus A330-200 aircraft, 55 next generation Boeing 737-700/800/900 aircraft and 20 modern ATR 72-500 turboprop aircraft. With an average fleet age of 4.95 years, the airline has one of the youngest aircraft fleets in the world. Flights to 71 destinations span the length and breadth of India and beyond, including New York (both JFK and Newark), Toronto, Brussels, London (Heathrow), Milan, Johannesburg, Hong Kong, Singapore, Kuala Lumpur, Colombo, Bangkok, Kathmandu, Dhaka, Kuwait, Bahrain, Muscat, Doha, Abu Dhabi, Dubai, Jeddah, Sharjah, Riyadh and Dammam.
About Jet Airways Konnect
Jet Airways' Konnect service operates on key domestic routes, and is designed to meet the needs of the low-fare segment with value-for-money fares. Jet Airways Konnect links seven major metros - Mumbai, Delhi, Chennai, Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Ahmedabad and Kolkata – with several destinations across India, operating over 170 flights daily. Konnect Select’ is a premium economy product introduced on certain Jet Airways Konnect flights. This new front cabin class features wider and more comfortable seats, with a 44-inch seat pitch. The services include complimentary in-flight reading material, a welcome drink, and complimentary hot meals on-board.
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About JetLite
JetLite is a subsidiary of Jet Airways India Ltd. and was acquired by Jet Airways in April 2007. Positioned as an all-economy, no-frills airline, JetLite operates a fleet of 19 aircraft, which includes 18 Boeing 737 series and 1 Canadian Regional Jets 200 Series aircraft. The airline flies to 27 domestic destinations and 1 international destination (Kathmandu), operating over 110 flights a day, on average.
Jet Airways, Jet Airways Konnect and JetLite have a combined fleet strength of 116 aircraft and operate over 500 flights daily.