Air India warns nation's sovereign rating may be affected by carrier

Air India has reportedly warned the Prime Minister's Office and the Finance Ministry that the nation's sovereign rating may be affected as the airline is reportedly on the brink of defaulting on interest payments on foreign loans INR150 billion (USD3.3 billion) (Rediff, 28-Jun-2011). The loans are backed by a government guarantee. The banks involved include Citibank, Standard Chartered, Deutsche Bank, JP Morgan and KFW. The carrier reportedly stated the vendors were threatening to put the airlines on "credit hold".