BELEAGURED Kingfisher Airlines said today it had made arrangements for passengers to book tickets after it was suspended from the airline industry’s global payments and booking system.
“Customers can continue to book and purchase tickets through some travel agents and their network of partners, besides using Kingfisher’s website or its ticketing offices and call centres,” the airline said in a statement.
The loss-making carrier, controlled by Indian liquor baron Vijay Mallya, owes suppliers, lenders and staff millions of dollars and has recently scrapped scores of scheduled flights.
The International Air Transport Association (IATA) suspended Kingfisher from its payment system for non-payment of arrears on Wednesday (March 7) and has now blocked it from its billing and settlement plan (BSP) which is used by travel agents.
The airline blamed its failure to pay dues to IATA on India’s tax authorities which have frozen its bank accounts over non-payment of taxes.
“All possible efforts are being made to remedy this temporary situation,” the airline said today, without giving a timeframe.
A company spokesman said that “flight operations would operate as normal”.
Kingfisher has made losses since it started operations in 2005 and is hoping for a crucial injection of funds from its lenders – a consortium of over a dozen banks.
