The Wadias don’t want the 5/20 aviation rule to be scrapped, even if it means huge losses to close friends, the Tatas

Last month, we told you how the Indian Civil aviation industry was all set to bid goodbye to the 5/20 formula. However, looks like there might be some opposition regarding this change.

Apparently, the Wadia group is opposing the decision of the civil aviation ministry to dismantle the 'five years and 20 aircraft' (5/20) norm for domestic carriers to be able to fly international.

The promoters of GoAir, Nusli Wadia and Jeh Wadia, were part of a delegation that met Mahesh Sharma, the Minister of State for Civil Aviation on Tuesday. The delegation was as part of a Federation of Indian Airlines (FIA) team and SpiceJet Chairman Ajay Singh was also present for the meeting.

As per ET sources, the Wadias argued before the minister that a lot of foreign nations respect their domestic airlines and give them priority over foreign carriers, and this being a new government should know the expectations that people have.

As per the existing guidelines, only those airlines that have been flying within India for five years or have more than 20 aircraft are allowed to fly on international routes, but the civil aviation ministry is considering scrapping the rule, which would benefit two Tata Group-promoted airline companies - Vistara and AirAsia India. However, Nusli Wadia-owned GoAir, IndiGo and SpiceJet are more likely to benefit if the rule stays as is. Therefore, even though the Tatas and the Wadias have been close allies for a long time, this issue is seeing them standing on opposite sides.

Image source