Meanwhile, a city court in Hyderabad on Oct. 12 issued a non-bailable warrant against owner Mallya and five others for bounced checks.

The warrant was issued after a charge was filed in August by GMR Hyderabad International Airport Ltd. (GHIAL), which manages Rajiv Gandhi International Airport in the city. GHIAL claims four checks totaling 103 million rupees ($1.8 million) issued by Kingfisher toward airport user charges, including parking, landing and navigation fees, were rejected by the bank for lack of funds.

A320 photo: Kingfisher