Stock in Jet Airways gained as much as 6 per cent on Thursday after a senior Indian government source said that the carrier was the front-runner to win an investment from Gulf carrier Etihad Airways.

Abu Dhabi-based Etihad has long been in talks with Jet and Kingfisher Airlines, and is widely expected to name the Indian carrier in which it will pick a stake within a week.

The official source also said that national carrier Jet could initially sell 24 per cent stake to the Gulf carrier for between Rs 1,500 and 1,800 crore.

However, the source admitted that while Jet was a clear front-runner in the race sell stake to Etihad, the management of Gulf carrier was yet to take a final decision on which of the two Indian carriers it will invest into.

Speaking on the topic, the source said, "Nothing is certain till the deal is signed; there should be a decision at the board meeting this week."

While Etihad's talks with Kingfisher have been stuck over the carrier's refusal to take on any of the more than Rs 7,000 crore debt on the private sector Indian airline's books; talks with Jet have been stalled due to differences on the valuation of Jet's 24 per cent stake.

Many industry watchers are of the view that Etihad involved Kingfisher in the race just to bring to beat down Jet's valuation.