Kingfisher Airlines had leased 26 of its 64-aircraft fleet through offshore companies in tax havens like Cayman Islands and Mauritius and paid rents far above market rates, documents accessed by dna indicate.
The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) suspects some of them were 'dummy' companies and were floated specifically for generating over-valued lease rental invoices.
These inflated rentals were then paid through bank loans. There was a substantial difference between the actual rental and the inflated invoice, and that money disappeared through companies based in Cayman Islands and Mauritius, sources said. The CBI is yet to ascertain where the money finally landed.
Company balance sheets show that between 2007 and 2012, when the airline was grounded, Kingfisher spent a lion's share of its expenditure on leasing and operating fleet -- a mix of ATR 72-212s and Airbus models.
The Cayman Islands companies from where Kingfisher leased aircraft had addresses in the buildings of global finance and law firm MaplesFS. In 2008, US President Barack Obama during his presidential campaign had described this building as the world's biggest front for tax evasion.
Two aircraft were leased from Hubli Aircraft Leasing Co, one from INDEC Turbo Leasing Co, two from Turbo 72-500 Leasing Co and seven from KF Turbo Leasing Co. It bought two 72-seater ATR 72-212 A from Hubli Aircraft Leasing Ltd.
In a written response to dna, MaplesFS Cayman denied any link to the companies. "Please note that the entities you reference (sic) are not subsidiaries of MaplesFS or part of the MaplesFS group of companies."
17/02/15 Sai Manesh/Daily News & Analysis
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The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) suspects some of them were 'dummy' companies and were floated specifically for generating over-valued lease rental invoices.
These inflated rentals were then paid through bank loans. There was a substantial difference between the actual rental and the inflated invoice, and that money disappeared through companies based in Cayman Islands and Mauritius, sources said. The CBI is yet to ascertain where the money finally landed.
Company balance sheets show that between 2007 and 2012, when the airline was grounded, Kingfisher spent a lion's share of its expenditure on leasing and operating fleet -- a mix of ATR 72-212s and Airbus models.
The Cayman Islands companies from where Kingfisher leased aircraft had addresses in the buildings of global finance and law firm MaplesFS. In 2008, US President Barack Obama during his presidential campaign had described this building as the world's biggest front for tax evasion.
Two aircraft were leased from Hubli Aircraft Leasing Co, one from INDEC Turbo Leasing Co, two from Turbo 72-500 Leasing Co and seven from KF Turbo Leasing Co. It bought two 72-seater ATR 72-212 A from Hubli Aircraft Leasing Ltd.
In a written response to dna, MaplesFS Cayman denied any link to the companies. "Please note that the entities you reference (sic) are not subsidiaries of MaplesFS or part of the MaplesFS group of companies."
17/02/15 Sai Manesh/Daily News & Analysis
