Private equity firms TPG Capital and Blackstone Group have submitted bids to buy beleaguered Indian carrier Jet Airways’ stake in its frequent flyer loyalty program, television channel CNBC TV18 reported on Monday, citing sources. The airline, partly owned by Etihad, has been facing financial difficulties and said last month it would inject funds and cut costs to turn around the business. It also said it plans to monetize some of its assets, including the JetPrivilege loyalty program, which has 8.5m members. The bids are likely to be $350-$400m, lower than what Jet expected, CNBC reported, adding that the airline expected to close the deal by the end of October. Jet is expecting bids from other investors and may retain a minority stake in the program, the TV channel said.<br/>
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Aer Lingus in early 2019 will roll out a refreshed brand and begin a three-year process of repainting its fleet, changes that align with the carrier's acquisition of new Airbus narrowbodies, says Aer Lingus CE Stephen Kavanagh. As part of the rebranding, the airline will also outfit crew with new uniforms, Kavanagh says on 24 September. "Our current livery and uniform have been in service for close to 25 years. Our business has changed and we have to take the opportunity to modernise our brand," Kavanagh said. The company plans to roll out the new brand in January. Within Q1 of 2019 Aer Lingus also intends to begin offering coach passengers with free alcoholic beverages and limited free access to wireless internet. Free wi-fi will be available to coach customers who did not purchase the company's cheapest "saver fares". Aer Lingus will limit free wi-fi to 20Mb of total download – enough for social messaging, the airline says. <br/>