Kingfisher Airlines’s two helicopters auctioned

Bengaluru: Two helicopters of defunct Kingfisher Airlines were auctioned on Wednesday for over Rs 8.5 crore, according to an official.

The Airbus helicopters were put on the block by lenders to recover outstanding dues from fugitive liquor baron Vijay Mallya, who owned Kingfisher Airlines.

An official in the know of the development told news agency PTI that the two helicopters were auctioned for over Rs 8.5 crore on Wednesday.

The total reserve price for the two choppers was Rs 3.5 crore, as per the sale proclamation document issued by the Debts Recovery Tribunal.

The e-auction was held in Bengaluru.

A representative of New Delhi-based Choudhary Aviation Facilities claimed that it has emerged as the winning bidder in the auction and would pay Rs 8.57 crore for the two helicopters.

Debt-laden Kingfisher Airlines went belly up in October 2012.

Mallya is wanted by Indian authorities in the over Rs 9,000-crore Kingfisher Airlines loan default case.