Deccan seeks approval to fly to US, West and SouthEast Asia

New Delhi, Oct 30: Kingfisher Airlines has mandated management consulting firm Accenture to study the possibility of integrating operations with Air Deccan.

''We have appointed Accenture to advise on the integration of two airlines. We will take a future course of action after a report from it in the next six weeks,'' said Kingfisher's Chairman Vijay Mallya on the sidelines of Fortune Global Forum here.

Earlier this year, Mr Mallya's UB Group had acquired 26 per cent stake in Deccan Aviation for Rs 550 crore. The group has now scaled up its stake in the budget airline to 46 per cent by buying shares in an open offer.

On overseas operations, Mr Mallya said Air Deccan has sought government approval to fly overseas from next year. The company is looking for a license to start flights to West Asia, SouthEast Asia and the United States.

He also said UB Holdings is planning to raise Rs 1,000 crore through qualified institutional placement (QIP) next month. The liquor baron will pick up Rs 720 crore of the QIP to maintain his shareholding in the UB Group.

The Vijay Mallya led-Kingfisher Radio now holds a 45.97 per cent stake in aircraft and air charter operator Deccan Aviation, post open offer.

The UB Group has already initiated a marketing exercise with a new livery for Air Deccan, which has now been rechristened as Deccan. For the quarter ended March 31, Deccan Aviation posted a loss of Rs 213.17 crore while the loss for the nine-month ended March 31, 2007 stood at Rs 246.5 crore.

UNI