Kingfisher to appeal against winding up petition by UK creditor

Grounded carrier Kingfisher Airlines said it would appeal against a court order accepting a winding-up petition by a UK-based creditor.

The carrier said in a statement today, that it would appeal against the Karnataka High Court's order admitting the petition by Aerotron Ltd. According to the airline, Aerotron was an unsecured creditor.

A spokesman of the low-cost airline declined further comment Reuters said.

The Vijay Mallya-owned airline has been grounded for over a year for want of funds.

The company owes over $1 billion to Indian state-run lenders, and additionally, hundreds of millions of dollars to airports and the tax office among others.

Though the airline had said several times in the past that it was trying to arrange funds and revive operations, it had met with little success so far.

In the absence of a formal bankruptcy process in India, liquidation pleas could take years before the delivery of a verdict.

In October 2012, the operating permit of the airline was suspended by aviation regulator Directorate General of Civil Aviation after the airline's employees struck work.

Its licence, which has expired since, can be renewed within two years.

The company had never made a profit since its inception in 2005.

In addition to Aerorton, five groups of creditors to the carrier, had filed winding-up petitions in the Karnataka high court against associate companies of its parent UB Group, which had given corporate guarantees for the airline's debt.

Meanwhile, the lenders to the carrier, including State Bank of India, had started selling pledged shares held in various UB Group companies and the headquarters of the airline to recover their dues.