GMR to enter into air charter services

GMR Infrastructure is foraying into air charter services and will enter into the corporate jet market with a capital expenditure plan of Rs 7 billion, reports Economic Times.

GMR Aviation, set up to drive this charter venture, will have an initial fleet size of 6 nine-seater aircraft and two choppers. The company is looking at tapping the growing corporate jet market in India. The company has already obtained a license to operate charter services and has met with encouraging response in its test-marketing phase.

The company, which has already acquired two nine-seater Falcons, will have a total fleet size of six aircraft and two choppers. The company will spend Rs 1.20 billion on each of the four Falcons, Rs 1.60 billion on two other aircraft and Rs 600 million on two choppers. The Rs 7-billion fleet acquisition would be funded through debt: equity in the mix of 80:20. The company has already placed the orders for enhancing the fleet strength.

The charter services for a nine seater Falcon aircraft will be priced at Rs 2,50,000 per hour. Two of the Falcons are high-end and long-range aircraft. Apart from long haul, the company is also pitching the services for the domestic circuit. So routes such as Bangalore-Chennai/Hyderabad are very much on the radar and so are intra-city routes such as connectivity to upcoming BIAL airport in Devanahalli in Bangalore.