Irish firm ASL Aviation Group, which last year completed the acquisition of Swiss-based aviation group, Farnair Group, has announced it has received approval from the Indian government's Foreign Investment Promotion Board (FIPB) to increase its shareholding in local cargo carrier Quikjet Airlines (QO, Bengaluru International) to 72.59%.

ASL Aviation, which had held a 50.93% shareholding in Quikjet through Farnair, will increase its stake in a series of steps involving a minimum total foreign direct investment of INR144 million (USD2.25million). ASL last year said it would equip Quikjet with a fleet of B737 and ATR freighters for an upcoming integrator contract slated to commence during the next quarter of the year.

The ASL Aviation Group consists of seven airlines including Europe Airpost (Paris CDG), Air Contractors (Dublin International), Safair (FA, Johannesburg O.R. Tambo), Farnair Switzerland (Basel/Mulhouse/Freiburg, CH), Farnair Hungary (Budapest), and K-Mile Asia (8K, Bangkok Suvarnabhumi) (limited to a 45% stake)