Much has been written about the economic fallout of the COVID-19 situation and how it is going to impact the growth of the Indian economy and the job situation in the coming times. One thing is for sure; no one is going to escape the impact of this pandemic! The aviation, hospitality and the travel/tourism industries are going to be the most severely affected and will take the longest time to get back on their feet, as per most experts. These sectors are staring at phenomenal job losses, with large scale distress all around. However, as with every adverse situation, there will be opportunities and new ways of doing business, which need to be considered. There will be a new definition of how things were done earlier and how they will be done in the future. A sort of “Before COVID-19” (BC) and “After Disease” (AD).

I will limit this article to the Business Aviation (BA) industry, the impact of COVID-19 pandemic on this sector and how we need to reorient ourselves to survive. I will also cover a section on the initiatives that need to be taken by the government to ease the pain and help the industry to survive.

BUSINESS AVIATION INDUSTRY: AN OVERVIEW

The term Business Aviation (BA) is unique, and not found in the ICAO terminology. However, it is used by the NBAA and other industry bodies. NBAA defines Business Aviation (BA) as “The use of any general aviation aircraft for a business purpose”. The Federal Aviation Administration defines general aviation as all flights that are not conducted by the military or the scheduled airlines. As such, business aviation is a part of general aviation that focuses on the business use of airplanes and helicopters.

In India, BA consists of the following:

• All aircraft and helicopters being used by air charter companies operating under Non-Scheduled Operator’s Permit (NSOP).
• All aircraft and helicopters being used by business houses for the transportation of their own management and employees, in the private category.
• Smaller aircraft being used by individuals who are ownerpilots. These are extremely limited in number, hence not discussed here any further.

EFFECT OF COVID-19 PANDEMIC IN THE AD ERA

The Charter (NSOP) Companies

There are approximately 130 companies operating under this segment, which is also called NSOP (Non-Scheduled Operator’s Permit), and these have a total of about 350 aircraft and helicopters operating in this category. The figures are approximate and a slight variation is not relevant here. The aircraft fleet consists of large, medium and small business jets as also single-engine and twin-engine helicopters. All of these are used for charter operations on day-to-day basis, for international and domestic air charters. Some of these companies are subsidiaries of large corporates and their use is captive for the charter of their own group companies. Some NSOP operators are pure helicopter companies, which are used for religious pilgrimage or oil and gas exploration.

For most charter companies, the present situation is grim. The NSOP operations survive on tight cash flows and since all operations have come to a grinding halt, they have major cash flow issues in continuing to pay salaries to the their employees, including pilots and engineers, who are all highly skilled and high salaried personnel. The helicopter companies are in dire straits, as the religious tourism has stopped completely. The present season of Shri Kedarnath Yatra, Shri Amarnath Yatra, Mata Vaishno Devi operations etc, have all ceased, with a high probability that the entire season will be lost. Even if the lockdown is lifted, chances of pilgrims returning for religious pilgrimage in crowded places, seem bleak. Survival of these companies, especially the small ones, looks difficult. Most of them have helicopters that are on lease for which rentals must be paid. With their present cash flows, this is a huge challenge. The larger companies may scrape out of it due to their cash flow reserves.

Every private aircraft that is used efficiently, creates employment and adds to profitability of the company, which in turn adds to the GDP of the country

For fixed-wing charters, the situation seems somewhat better. Once the lockdown is lifted, their operation can start again. In fact, there may be a spike in their flying, as some people who used to fly commercially in the BC era, may prefer to travel by chartering aircraft. Commercial flying is going to become even more painful, with long waiting time at airports, which will be the likely norm, once flying operations resume. If the fixed-wing charters can survive this period of the lockdown in terms of cash flows, their recovery will be much faster. However, they will need support from the government for some time till things returns to normal. These are discussed later. NSOPs that are subsidiaries of large corporations and are used for captive flying, will resume normal operations once the lockdown ends as they are supported by the deep pockets of their parent companies.

Private Operations

Most aircraft that are operated by companies in the private category, are being used by the senior management and company employees for their transportation needs and for efficient access to remote areas for business opportunities. Most of these will resume normal operations once the lockdown is lifted. Some companies will find themselves under financial distress and may decide to sell their aircraft, since the company profitability may not allow the use of private aircraft or helicopters. However, the need of the hour will be for the government to encourage use of private aircraft, as the efficiency that it brings to businesses is well proven. To get the economy back on track, the government needs to address the challenges of this segment. Every private aircraft that is used efficiently, creates employment and adds to profitability of the company, which in turn adds to the GDP of the country.

Reorientation of Business

The first lesson that seems clear is that for aviation companies to survive, they need to focus on cash flows and profitability. Gone are the days of reckless competition, where companies competed on unsustainable margins just to capture market share. The charter rates of some of the aircraft and helicopters have remained constant for the last decade and in some cases, have even gone lower, while the input costs have gone up many times over. The bubble had to burst at some stage, and it has. From now onwards, companies will have to either do business with profits and ethics in mind or else get out of the business. They will not be able to survive otherwise. The good news is that some of the operators, who were muddying the waters by irrational pricing, may not survive at all. Now is the time to clean up.

There may also be an opportunity to set up a new business model as was done with the advent of Low-Cost Carriers (LCCs), which disrupted the scheduled airline business in the early 2000s. We need to a create a new segment called the Low-Cost Business Aircraft (LCBA). This is the segment that will cater to the new entrants who are moving from commercial to business aviation and do not want to pay as much as they would for a regular charter. This can be achieved by some of the following:

• Using smaller and more fuel-efficient aircraft, than the bigger jets.
• Use of pre-owned aircraft. The limit of 18 years vintage for import of aircraft needs a re-look and has no rationality in the present context.
• Selling of seats rather than the whole aircraft. DGCA rules allow this under certain circumstances. This needs to be expanded.
• Operations on regular schedule and the permission to publish the schedule for such flights, just as it was done in the case of UDAN. Imagine if there is regular service from Delhi to Mumbai, and vice versa, with LCBAs, which can sell individual seats at a cost that may be 25 per cent higher than a business class ticket! I am confident that such a venture will have many takers.

Allow Fractional Ownership of aircraft. The Fractional Ownership model is accepted world-wide, which allows individuals to purchase a fraction of an aircraft and file the interest of each owner as an individual entity for all purposes, including taxation and depreciation benefits. This will allow first time buyers to use BA, without major financial commitment. Net Jets, owned by Berkshire Hathaway, is one of the largest fractional ownership company in the world, with over 700 aircraft in operations.

Allow aircraft management companies to flourish in India. Again, this is a business model used across the world and allows consolidation and efficiency for the companies. Single aircraft owners can utilise the services of aircraft management companies to operate more efficiently and safely, while keeping all benefits that accrue to them from the taxation perspective. Jet Aviation and Lux Aviation are some of the big names that are global aircraft management companies.

All the above measure will bring more efficiency and accountability in the system. This will allow better profitability for the operators, while encouraging transparency and safety.

It is also an imperative that all stakeholders of the industry come together to support the government in this endeavour by constant dialogue

GOVERNMENT INTERVENTION

Apart from the issues discussed above, the following additional measures are suggested:

• Rationalisation of GST on import of private aircraft and helicopters. This is a long pending demand. The present rate of 28 per cent is unsustainable and needs to be brought down to five per cent to be on a par with NSOP holders.
• DGCA Restructuring. Now than ever before, the DGCA needs to get on to the e-platform to minimise contact with the operators. The project has been in the pipeline for the past six years and even now, the end is not in sight. The DGCA Charter also lays down timelines for response to operators. This charter is seldom adhered to, with many aircraft left standing on the ground due to delay in clearances by the DGCA. The DGCA charter must be strictly implemented and DGCA officials must be held accountable for the same. Minimum downtime of aircraft should be the motto for all.
• Waiving off all parking charges and royalties at all airports till December 31, 2020.
• Waive off all taxes on Aviation Turbine Fuel (ATF) for a period of two years and thereafter bring it under the GST regime.
• Reduce GST on charters to five per cent from 18 immediately.
• Allow 100 per cent depreciation to companies on purchase of aircraft in the first year itself. This will provide more liquidity in the hands of the companies and encourage them to buy aircraft, which in turn has a domino effect on the economy and employment. This is being done in the United States and a few other countries.
• All Bank Guarantees given to government agencies by Charter Operators should be released immediately to improve cash flow situations in companies.
• Moratorium for DGCA on the requirement for DGCA officials to visit OEMs/Training facilities/MROs for the purpose of audit and clearances and type certification. All of this can be done remotely for a period of two years to save on time and money and enhance efficiency of the system.
• Rationalising of training requirements for all skilled personnel of the industry. This would include pilots, AMEs, GH staff etc. While safety is of paramount concern, a more efficient way can be devised that will require minimum travel requirements for people, especially to international destinations. Online training for theory, with practical OJT within the country to be encouraged.
• Needless to say that all other intervention that the government plans for MSMEs, should also be implemented for the Charter industry, as all of them fall in this category. This should include tax holiday, moratorium on EMIS, soft terms for business loans, tax refunds, easier financing, and leasing terms etc.

CONCLUSION

To conclude, the present situation is unprecedented and it is unlikely that anyone who is presently active in the business environment has experienced anything like this before. The need of the hour is for the government to work with greater empathy and trust towards the industry, and to ensure that the businesses are given an immediate blood transfusion so that they can survive, and then nurtured back to good health, slowly and steadily. It will require a collaborative approach to take this forward, without which the consequences will be bleak for the industry. It is also an imperative that all stakeholders of the industry come together to support the government in this endeavour by constant dialogue and transparent actions. Their employees need to be protected, at all costs. Unfortunately, there are no easy answers.

The author of this article is President Asia at JetHQ. He is also the former President, BAOA.