SpiceJet

SpiceJet was incorporated in 1984 as ModiLuft — a joint venture between the Modi family (Indian industrialists) and Lufthansa — but that venture failed financially and ModiLuft ceased operations in 1996. The airline's assets were subsequently acquired by Ajay Singh and relaunched as SpiceJet in 2005, initially with two Boeing 737-800 aircraft on the Delhi-Mumbai route. SpiceJet grew rapidly through the late 2000s and early 2010s, competing aggressively with IndiGo and Jet Airways on domestic routes. The airline went through two ownership changes — Sun Group's Kalanithi Maran acquired a controlling stake in 2010 before selling it back to founder Ajay Singh in 2015 when SpiceJet was on the verge of collapse.

Singh's turnaround of SpiceJet in 2015 was initially praised as a remarkable revival. However, the Boeing 737 MAX global grounding from March 2019 — which affected SpiceJet significantly as a major MAX operator — and the subsequent COVID-19 pandemic devastated the airline's finances. By 2022-2023, SpiceJet was facing extreme financial stress, with aircraft lessors repossessing planes and the DGCA imposing operational restrictions.