For Homi Debara, 58, a retired aviation professional, owning a car means having a chance to spend quality time with near and dear ones.

In his 30 years in the aviation industry, Debara has worked for many international airlines like Austrian Airlines and United Airlines, overseeing ground operations  at airports.

 “I started my career more than 30 years ago with PAN AM airlines,” he said. The 2016 Indian movie Neerja was based on hijack of a PAN AM plane, that took place in September 1986 in Karachi. “I was hired post that incident. After that hijacking the world of aviation changed completely. A  lot of attention was being given to  security,” he said.

He owns a Mahindra 500 XUV, a second generation Sports Utility Vehicle (SUV). Debara’s penchant for SUVs is driven by the urge for more space in a car. When asked why Mahindra XUV 500, he replied, “When Mahindra launched the model, it put in every possible feature that would come in another SUV at double the price.”

He added that SUVs serve as an amazing ride for road trips, as it provides for all the required splendors. Debara explained, “When my brother and his family visits our place, we go for road trips comfortably seated in the large SUV. It is a lot of fun.”

In 2013, at the time of purchase, the car cost around Rs14 to 15 lakh, so he opted for a normal car loan. The company arranged for around Rs7 lakh from the State Bank of India, almost 50 per cent was paid through it. In six years, he repaid the loan along with the interest. 

 “As I wanted to buy an expensive car I went for a car loan,” he said.

He has also been Area Manager for India, Sri Lanka, Nepal and Maldives at Austrian Airlines. Over the past three years, he has been with Air India SATS and finally retired as Vice President on August 31, 2019.