CEO of India?s SpiceJet leaves amid Gulf rumours

The head of India?s SpiceJet is said to have left amid speculation that a Gulf airline is seeking to acquire a stake in the low-cost carrier.

Neil Mills, who was formerly CFO of flyDubai, had led the loss-making Chennai-based airline for just under two years. His departure has not yet been confirmed by SpiceJet, and it is not clear whether Mills has resigned or been fired, India?s Economic Times said.

During his time at the helm, accountant Mills launched new routes to Guangzhou in China and Afghan capital Kabul, while also increasing its focus on connecting smaller Indian cities by buying narrow-body Bombardier Q-400s.

Mills told Arabian Business late last year that SpiceJet had held ?preliminary discussions? with airlines in the Gulf who were interested in acquiring a stake in the carrier, although these talks have yet to come to fruition. A source told Arabian Business that one of these was Qatar Airways, while Kuwait Airways have also been linked with SpiceJet.

Indian civil aviation authorities earlier this year changed rules governing foreign direct investment in the sector by foreign carriers, which paved the way for Abu Dhabi?s Etihad to acquire 24 percent of Jet Airways.

However, that deal has been bogged in controversy and is still subject to receiving approval from competition regulators and the Indian cabinet.

Soon after the Etihad deal was announced, Jet?s then CEO Nikos Kardassis resigned from the airline.

Source: http://www.arabianbusiness.com/ceo-of-india-s-spicejet-leaves-amid-gulf-rumours-511022.html

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