Air Costa will add three more Embraer aircraft in its fleet between September and January and plans to raise funds through a stake sale to a private equity investor in the next three months, the director and chief executive of its parent LEPL Group said.
The Vijaywada-based regional carrier currently has four Embraer jets — 67-seater E-170s and 112-seater E-190s — and operates 34 daily flights to south Indian cities from Vijaywada and Chennai. It started operations in October 2013.
Air Costa posted a loss of Rs 90 crore in the first nine months of FY15. The airline has been trying various cost cutting measures through more efficient operations and plane maintenance as well as tweaks in its network. It has, however, recently seen the exit of 2-3 executives from the top and middle management, including its vice president commercial and airport services R Pramod, sources said. At least six pilots left the airline recently, they added.
LEPL Group will shortly launch a 16-acre Rs 27-crore mixed deveopment realty project; six acres of which will be for housing projects while the rest will be commercial space for hotels, etc. It is also awaiting financial closure on a Rs 650-crore EPC power plant, Rajasekhar added.