Royal Airways all set for its first flight

NEW DELHI, AUGUST 14, 2003
TIMES NEWS NETWORK

: Royal Airways, previously known as Modiluft, is all set to take wings in India. The airline, promoted by a group of NRIs, on Thursday announced that the customs department has granted it a no-objection certificate (NoC) to operate scheduled air transport services, enabling the airline to commence operations within nine months.

This will make Royal the fourth private airline after Jet, Sahara and Jagson, to ferry passengers across the Indian skies.

Royal has also got the permission from the civil aviation ministry to import aircraft after obtaining confirmation from agencies like Airports Authority of India (AAI), Customs, and oil companies.

Airline officials told The Times of India that the customs has directed Royal to pay Rs 6 crore in six monthly instalments before commencing operations. “We will start paying from this month and will alongside start work on commencing operations in India. We expect to launch our first flight in India within nine months.”

The department of Customs has agreed for settlement of old Inland Air Travel Tax (IATT) dues of Modiluft, and, on fulfilment of certain conditions, would issue a NoC to re-launch airline operations after having fully paid pending dues, the officials said.

"With major legal hurdles behind us, we are seriously planning to get the airline started again," an airline spokesman said. The board would firm up the date for the resumption of operations of the airline, he added.

Royal Airways is promoted by Royal Holding Services Ltd (RHSL), which holds close to 58 per cent of equity in the company and is registered in the US. In 1999, the Foreign Investment Promotion Board (FIPB) gave RHSL permission to invest $35 million for reviving the erstwhile ModiLuft which ceased operations in 1996 under huge debts. While RHSL is promoted by a consortium of non-resident Indians (NRIs), Royal Airways is a board-managed company.

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