Aviation

The Saudi king travels with 460 tons of luggage and a gold escalator

There are some who do not have to worry about exceeding the 23 kilos in the hold. 1,500 people and about 460 tons of luggage. This is what King Salman needs when he decides to go to Indonesia for an official visit of one month. Yes, the Saudi monarch knows how to travel light.

On Wednesday, 1 March 2016, King Salmane began his expedition, organized with the aim of strengthening the economic ties of Saudi Arabia and Indonesia, the most populous Muslim nation in the world. To do this, he surrounded himself with an official delegation of 800 people, 25 princes and 10 ministers.

It took no less than 27 planes to get all this beautiful people to Jakarta. In addition to this modest delegation, nearly 460 tons of luggage made the trip. How is it possible ? Easy, with some Mercedes limousines and gold escalators for airplane descent, the weight is quickly reached. Most of the affairs have already been dispatched to the island of Bali, the king having planned to rest after the first three days spent in Jakarta.

Aviation

No More Jet Airways. Supreme Court Says “No Choice”, Orders Liquidation

Jet Airways was once one of India’s leading airlines, known for its service and extensive network. Founded in 1993, it served millions of passengers, connecting cities across India and international destinations.

However, since grounding its flights in April 2019, Jet Airways has struggled to navigate financial turbulence, leading to years of efforts to revive the airline and return it to the skies.

On Thursday, the Supreme Court ordered the liquidation of Jet Airways, citing “no choice” but to take this decisive step after the resolution plan failed to meet creditor obligations. The court invoked its extraordinary powers under Article 142, which allows it to make orders for “complete justice” in any case, overriding previous tribunal rulings.

China Set to Debut New J-35A Stealth Fighter at Zhuhai Airshow

The Jalan-Kalrock Consortium (JKC), which had won the bid to revive Jet, faced criticism for not fulfilling payment commitments to creditors, which included major banks like the State Bank of India and Punjab National Bank.

The Supreme Court’s ruling pointed to “peculiar and alarming” issues surrounding the resolution plan’s implementation, leading to its conclusion that liquidation was the only feasible outcome.

HondaJet’s New Auto-Throttle: A Game-Changer for Luxury Aviation

Chief Justice DY Chandrachud, alongside Justices JB Pardiwala and Manoj Misra, emphasized that while liquidation should be a last resort, it was necessary as the resolution plan was “no longer capable of implementation.”

In line with this decision, the court ordered that the ₹200 crore already infused by JKC be forfeited and directed the National Company Law Appellate Tribunal (NCLAT) in Mumbai to appoint a liquidator to oversee the process.

JKC, a partnership between Murari Jalan, a UAE-based Indian entrepreneur, and Florian Fritsch, a Jet shareholder through Kalrock Capital Partners Limited, had taken ownership of Jet Airways two years after it was grounded. The consortium’s inability to fulfill its financial obligations has now led to this final verdict, marking the end of an era for Jet Airways in India.