Update on Kingfisher Airlines: With employees threatening to move court for closure of the company, Kingfisher Airlines chairman Vijay Mallya today finally broke his silence through a letter to his employees saying the management is making every effort to restart operations.

At the same time, Mallya urged the employees to be careful in their interaction with the media, alleging "negative reporting" by media on the carrier.

The employees of the grounded Kingfisher Airlines, who have not been paid for eight months now, had yesterday threatened to file a winding up petition in the court under the Company's Act, if the management did not share its revival plan with them.

"We have submitted a detailed restart plan to the DGCA which is in two parts. The first part deals with a limited re-start utilising 7 aircraft ramping up to 21 aircraft in 4 months. The second part is a full scale rehabilitation of our airline growing to 57 aircraft within 12 months of recapitalisation," Mallya informed his employees in the letter. The letter, however, did not mention anything about the payment schedule of dues of the employees, but it said that "both plans contain detailed information on key assumptions and funding requirements, including payment of outstanding salaries to employees."

The airline has not paid to its employees since May last year.

KF has reneged on its promise to pay its dues to employees several times last year and it remains to be seen whether they will be willing to give Mallya the benefit of doubt or will file a winding up petition.