The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) on Friday issued a showcause notice to beleaguered Kingfisher Airlines (KFA) asking why its flying permit should not be suspended or cancelled as it has failed to establish a safe, efficient and reliable service.

In the notice, DGCA Chief Arun Mishra said it had been observed that the airline was not adhering to its flight schedule and "abruptly cancelling their flights time and again during the last 10 months", causing great inconvenience to the travelling public.

The operations of KFA are under suspension since September 30, 2012 due to strike by its employees and the airline has declared a lockout till October 12 cancelling all its flight schedule.

The aviation regulator has given 15 days time to the airline to reply. Earlier, the cash-strapped airline had declared a lockout till October four, but extended it till October 12 Thursday night.

The lockout was declared after the management failed to resolve the deadlock, including engineers and pilots, over non-payment of salaries for last seven months.
License cancellation

The aviation regulator is seeking legal opinion on cancelling the licence of beleaguered carrier Kingfisher Airlines, which has grounded its fleet since Monday, civil aviation minister Ajit Singh said on Friday.

"Whether (aviation regulator) can suspend the licence or not, we will not allow Kingfisher to fly unless they meet the concerns that the DGCA has on safety and on the ability to maintain their operations," the minister told a business news channel.

Fund release on 'humanitarian grounds'

 State Bank of India (SBI) today said lenders have decided to release funds to the airline on "humanitarian grounds" since its employees have not been paid for last many months.
"The money released by the tax authorities, 80 per cent of that will be made available to the company specifically to pay salaries of the employees," SBI Chairman Pratip Chaudhuri said.