In a major boost to 'Make in India', HAL-made Dornier 228 can be used for commercial regional flights in Europe

In a major cheer for Modi-led BJP government's 'Make in India 'campaign, Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd's (HAL)-made Dornier 228 can now be utilised for commercial regional flights across Europe. European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) has accepted DGCA certification for this plane that is being manufactured at HAL's manufacturing facility in Kanpur. Notably, this is the first instance where an Indian manufactured aircraft will be used for commercial flights across Europe.
As per a report in the Times of India, the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) has given type certification (TC) for HAL manufactured Dornier 228 allowing the multi-purpose light transport aircraft to be used for civil flights by regional operators in India. DGCA chief Arun Kumar said, "Now the Dornier can be used for commercial use in Europe also. This is a big achievement for our make in India program." Here's all you need to know about India's Dornier 228.
The aircraft is being used for commuter transport, third level services and air-taxi operations, India navy and coast guard duties and maritime surveillance. Dornier's maritime surveillance and patrolling variants have been modified by HAL to cater to larger demand by the Navy, including surveillance radar, forward-looking infrared, electronic support measure, satellite communications, data links and Traffic Collision Avoidance System (TCAS) among other things. The aircraft was also supposed to be used heavily under the ude desh ka aam nagrik (UDAN) scheme but due to multiple issues, the aircraft had limited success in India.
31/08/19 Ashish Shukla/IBTimes

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IAF pilots test fly MiG 35 at Russian air show

New Delhi: Pilots of the Indian Air Force (IAF) conducted test flights of the MiG 35 fighter aircraft during an ongoing air exhibition in Zukhovski, Russia.
An Indian Air Force (IAF) delegation had visited Russia for the International Aviation and Space Salon MAKS 2019 air show that was held at the Zukhovski International Airport near Moscow between August 27 and 29.
The delegation was led by Air Marshal Amit Dev, Director General Air Operations.
The delegation was also shown the Sukhoi 57E, the export version of the fifth-generation Russian supersonic stealth jet fighter at the air exhibition.
"The Indian delegation were shown MiG-35 and Su-57 aircraft. Indian Air Force test pilots G/C BS Reddy and W/C FL Roy got an opportunity to fly two sorties on MiG-35 aircraft during the visit," the IAF tweeted.
The MiG-35 is a 4++ generation Mikoyan multi-role combat aircraft that comes in single- and twin-seater versions too. Officials said the MiG 35 as well as the Sukhoi 57E were entirely new version of the aircraft.
31/08/19 IANS/Economic Times

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Jet Airways down but aviation sector stays afloat with hopes of festive season

New Delhi: Even after the popular and private carrier Jet Airways was grounded earlier this year, the civil aviation sector has managed to stay afloat with no significant decline.

Jet Airways was completely grounded due to lack of funds in early 2019.

Jet Airways had around 110 aircraft in its fleet with both wide body and narrow body planes. The airline also had staff strength of over 1,500-2,000 pilots and 5,000-6,000 cabin crew members. Most of them have been accommodated elsewhere in the industry.

As of August 2018, there were 570 aircraft flying in the Indian skies and as of August 2019 there are 600 aircraft still. This is despite 110 planes of Jet Airways being grounded.

Aviation secretary Pradeep Singh Kharola said, "We have resilience in the aviation sector even after Jet Airways went down. There was 5-6 per cent capacity growth in the sector. Fares are coming down now because competition has picked up. Festive season is coming up and we will see more participation in the next few months."

On the other hand, India's national carrier Air India is battling its own miseries. Air India owes three state-owned oil firms Rs 5,000 crore in unpaid fuel bills. This has prompted oil retailers to stop refuelling Air India planes.
29/08/19 Nagarjun Dwarakanath/India Today

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Slowdown Blues: The worst year for Indian aviation in six years

New Delhi: Is the Indian aviation sector heading for its worst year in the past six years? Recent numbers from the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) show that domestic air passenger growth was just 3.15 per cent in the first seven months of 2019. That's just a fraction of the 21.8 per cent growth achieved during the same period of 2018. The weak consumer sentiments, capacity correction after the fall of Jet Airways and high airfares have contributed to the subdued air passenger traffic.
Since the beginning of 2019, air passenger traffic started slipping, but the real trouble started when Jet Airways went out of business in April. It led to sudden vacuum in capacity, which meant higher airfares. Though rival carriers like IndiGo, SpiceJet and Vistara were quick to fill the vacuum, the current capacity, as experts point out, is more sustainable. But it's not going to last long as airlines have drawn out aggressive capacity addition plans for the future. IndiGo, for instance, has plans to increase capacity by 30 per cent in the 2019/20, which means the airline will add 65 aircraft in the current financial year. Similarly, SpiceJet has plans to induct 35 planes during 2019/20.
The overcapacity conundrum which got corrected by Jet's shutdown is expected to make a comeback in the sector, and will force airlines to bring down fares to fill those extra seats. In a mad rush to keep their PLFs high, airlines might be heading for profit-less growth from the fourth quarter onwards. This is in sharp contrast to the record-profit run of IndiGo and SpiceJet. In the first quarter of 2019/20, IndiGo reported net profit of Rs 1,203 crore and SpiceJet Rs 262 crore.
Aviation veterans say domestic players haven't learnt from past mistakes. Overcapacity took the life of Kingfisher Airlines (in 2012) and Jet, but all airlines are still chasing market share by adding more capacity than required.
Prior to Jet's shutdown, the sector was dealing with overcapacity that pulled down fares and pumped up the air travel. For instance, domestic passenger traffic growth in 2016, 2017 and 2018 stood at 18.6 per cent, 17.3 per cent and 23.18 per cent, primarily supported by low airfares and the government's push to making flying affordable through UDAN (Ude Desh Ka Aam Naagrik) scheme.
28/08/19 Manu Kaushik/Business Today

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Indian airlines’ combined fleet back to pre-Jet closure days; wide body capacity remains a concern

New Delhi: Indian carriers’ combined aircraft capacity is now back to pre-Jet Airways’ closure days, thanks to other airlines adding capacity quickly and adding flights on slots that suddenly became available at otherwise infra-starved desi airports. Aviation secretary P S Kharola Thursday said last August (when Jet was still flying) schedule Indian airlines had 570 planes in their fleet.

“This number in August 2019, is at 600 despite the 110-aircraft-strong Jet not operational. Fares are showing a declining trend (after the sharp rise in few months after Jet’s demise in April). But the test of fare levels will be from the end of this month when the festive and peak travel season kicks in,” he said.
The ministry has now extended the slots of Jet at Indian airports and its flying rights for foreign destinations given to other Indian carriers for the coming winter season, which means till next March-end.
“Jet’s case is in NCLT and therefore its flying rights and slots have not been given on a permanent basis to other carriers. However, some challenges remain in the wide body capacity side while the narrow body capacity is growing,” Kharola says. SpiceJet and Vistara have taken many ex-Jet Boeing 737s.
29/08/19 Saurabh Sinha/Times of India

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Flight tickets set to get costlier: Airfares to rise as festive season kicks in, says govt official

While air passengers have enjoyed low airfares for some time now, travellers must be ready to shell out more soon. The travel cost for air passengers is expected to rise with the arrival of the festive season in September-October, Civil Aviation Secretary Pradeep Singh Kharola said at an event on Thursday. “Fares are falling for now but will pick up in Sep-Oct on account of the festive season,” CNBC TV-18 reported. Talking about the government intervention in Neo A320 aircraft, a government official of the Civil Aviation Ministry said that the issue will take another 4-6 month to be addressed, the news channel reported. The aviation regulator DGCA had called IndiGo and GoAir for an urgent meeting on Wednesday to discuss the performance of Neo aircraft, which have been subject to glitches for the past three years.
Pradeep S Kharola also talked about the impact of Jet Airways grounding on domestic Indian aviation. As the airline shut its operations in April this year, the same had created a void of 110 planes leading to massive flight crunch and rising fares in March-June. The aviation watchdog DGCA had then asked other domestic airlines to ramp up their operations and add to their fleet. Major Indian airlines, including IndiGo, SpiceJet, GoAir and Vistara, jumped onto the opportunity; numerous international and domestic flights were introduced and the airlines were rewarded with higher market share.
The same resulted in a dip in airfares for some time due to dual reasons. While the following months are traditionally weaker for airlines due to low passenger activity, there was a sudden increase in flight operations as well, leading to higher competition and lower airfares. Currently, about 600 planes are operational in India, as compared to about 570 planes which were operational last year around the same time before Jet Airways grounding, Pradeep S Kharola said.
29/08/19 Financial Express

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Nearly 15 aircraft added per month to ease passenger traffic: Civil Aviation Minister Hardeep Singh Puri

New Delhi: Union Civil Aviation Minister Hardeep Singh Puri on Thursday said that 10-15 aircraft are being added per month to deal with the increasing passenger traffic.

"Today we have in air 690 aircraft. We are adding 10-15 aircraft per month. We are looking forward to a scenario when we will have 2000 registered aircraft flying," said Puri while addressing a press conference here.
He said that Delhi Airport alone deals with 70 million passengers per annum and both Delhi and Mumbai Airport put together roughly deal with 34 per cent of passengers in the country.

"In 1975, when I went on my first posting to Tokyo, Palam then used to deal with 1.9 million passengers per annum. Today Delhi Airport deals with 70 million passengers per annum. Both the private Airports, Delhi and Mumbai when put together deal roughly with 34 per cent of overall passengers in the country," said the Minister.

"When Jet Airways ceased operation we had 540 aircraft in the sky but a false narrative was floated that Indian skies will be adversely affected. We are adding new aircraft to maintain fleet as per the traffic requirement," said Puri.
29/08/19 ANI/Asian Age

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Another regulatory hurdle cleared for India’s inflight wifi market

Two weeks from now it will be permissible to use WiFi enabled devices on board aircraft in India, assuming the pilot agrees. As the country inches ever closer to allowing for inflight connectivity services on board the rules are being adjusted to account for such. Most recently a filing in the Gazette of India seeks to amend the rules affecting the use of portable electronic devices in transmitting mode on board.
With the new policy in place the rule will look like this (bold provision is new):

"29B. Prohibition on the use of portable electronic devices – No person shall operate, nor shall the operator or the pilot-in-command of an aircraft allow the operation of any portable electronic device on board an aircraft in flight:

Provided that the Pilot-in-Command may permit the use of cellular telephone by the passengers of a flight after the aircraft has landed and cleared active runway, except when the landing takes place in low visibility conditions as may be determined by the Director-General from time to time;

Provided further that the Pilot-in-Command may permit the use of mobile communication and internet services through Wi-Fi on board an aircraft certified by the Director-General for such services and subject to the procedures specified by the Director-General in that behalf;

Provided further that the provisions of this rule shall not apply to portable voice recorders, hearing aids, heart pacemaker, electric shavers or other portable electronic devices which, in the opinion of the operator, do not cause interference with the navigation or communication system of the aircraft on which it is to be operated and for which such operator has obtained approval of the Director-General.
29/08/19 Seth Miller/Paxex.aero

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Indian aviation to have 2,000 planes in near to medium term: Hardeep Puri

New Delhi: Civil Aviation Minister Hardeep Singh Puri on Tuesday said the number of planes will increase to 2,000 in short to medium term from 540 aircraft when Jet Airways discontinued operations.
Crisis-hit Jet Airways stopped flying on April 17 this year and subsequently, its lenders on June 17 moved the NCLT.

Speaking at the CII-CBRE real estate conference, the minister said there are very few companies running airlines globally making money in the aviation sector, possibly due to wrong business model and corporate governance issues, or both.

"When jet airways stopped operation we had 540 planes in the air, today we have 690 planes in the air and we are in short to medium term looking something close to 2,000 planes in the air if we look at the order book of Indian aviation companies," he said.

Puri informed that most of the country's airports are "going green".

Talking about liquidity issue, the minister said when something goes wrong in a major sector, the industry expects a bail out from the government.

However, he said the government can help to some extent "but the government cannot be held responsible for omission and commission in the corporate sector which results in business failure".
27/08/19 PTI/Times of India 

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Pak closes 3 aviation routes over Karachi for Indian flights till August 31

Pakistan has closed three aviation routes of Karachi airspace from August 28 till August 31, the country's civil aviation authority said on Wednesday after the government's announcement that it is mulling a complete ban on the use of the country's airspace by Indian flights.

The ban will affect all international flights using the three routes above Karachi. It further provides pilots with an alternate route to circumnavigate Karachi airspace.

The four-day ban will expire on September 1, the aviation authority said in a Notice to Airmen (NOTAM).

The closure came at the heels of announcement by Minister of Science and Technology Fawad Chaudhry who tweeted on Tuesday that Prime Minister Imran Khan is considering a complete closure of airspace with India.

Pakistan's Cabinet on Tuesday discussed the idea of disallowing India to use the country's airspace for flight and the land route for trade with Afghanistan. The final decision will be taken by Prime Minister Khan.
28/08/19 PTI/Business Standard

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Why Pakistan closing its airspace hurts it more than it hurts India

Closure of the airspace hurts airlines from India. Hundreds of flights carrying passengers and cargo are forced into long detours that cost millions of dollars.

The location of Pakistan is crucial because it lies smack in the middle of an important air corridor. Even international carriers such as Singapore Airlines, British Airways, Thai Airways, and Lufthansa were affected by the previous airspace closure.

According to FlightRadar24, more than 300 flights were being affected every day. Pakistani airspace is divided into two Flight Information Regions (FIR) — Lahore and Karachi. Both had a huge drop in transiting traffic. In fact, this chunk of traffic ended up with Mumbai air traffic control (ATC) because flights had to take a bypass route via the Arabian Sea.

Mumbai ATC usually handles 750 overflying or transiting flights each day. This surged to 1,200 per a due to Pakistan's airspace closure. Even Indian airlines such as Air India and IndiGo had to opt for longer routes to bypass Pakistan's airspace.

What to make of Pakistan’s bravado? Closing itself off from the world to prove a point is a very risky bet for any world. And, Pakistan should think rationally.
Pakistan's aviation minister said that his country suffered loses of over PKR 8 billion ($50 million, or Rs 332 crore under current exchange rates) from airspace restrictions. This includes the income ATC's get for handling overflying flights.

This is a significant income loss for a country whose economy is in the doldrums. Foreign investment is declining, debt is rising, and there's no buffer reserve to go back to. If Pakistan wants the international community to take its economy seriously, they need to focus on building relationships, not breaking them over some other countries constitution.
On the flip side, a closure will definitely affect India. According to India's civil aviation minister, national carrier Air India lost Rs 491 crore until July 2, while IndiGo suffered a loss of Rs 25.1 crore till May 31. SpiceJet and GoAir lost Rs 30.73 crore and Rs 2.1 crore, respectively till June 20 due to the Pakistan airspace closure. These losses are minuscule stacked for an economy of India’s size.

Here only Air India’s loss is significantly high. Air India, backed by the government of India, is the only Indian airline that can boast of substantial overseas operations. Private players have a lower exposure because of international penetration in Europe and Central Asia.

Four months is a long period in aviation, and Pakistan needs to ensure it doesn’t make bypassing its airspace a “norm”. Because the inconvenience will soon become mainstream, and airlines as well as passengers will plan their fares and plans accordingly.

India is among the fastest-growing economies in the world and the aviation industry is crucial for communication. This ensures solid demand, in turn, making airlines accommodate longer routes and adjust schedules accordingly.
28/08/19 Shivam Vahia/CNBC TV18

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Time Lost & Increased Costs: What India Stands to Lose if Pakistan Completely Shuts Down its Airspace

Pakistan will shut down its airspace for India, starting from August 28, for three days in protest against the latter’s decision to abrogate Article 370 and Article 35A in Jammu and Kashmir.

On Tuesday, Pakistan cabinet minister Fawad Hussain told the media that Pakistani PM Imran Khan was considering the complete closure of the country’s air space for India, while also placing a complete ban on the use of its land routes for trade with Afghanistan.
Hussain, the federal minister for science and technology, had argued that the move was suggested in the cabinet meeting and the legal formalities for these decisions are under consideration. This isn’t the first time that Pakistan will be closing its air space. Pakistan had fully closed its airspace in February after an Indian Air Force strike on a Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM) terror camp in Balakot.

For instance, flights to and from India that fly westwards towards the Gulf region, or Europe or America will have to fly longer distances to avoid Pakistani airspace. This, in effect, will increase the time taken by the flight and also exponentially increase the cost of operations.

An official of the DGCA explained, “When longer distances are flown, then more crew is required. The increased time required for the flight that different sets of crew and multiple pilots will be required. And on top of all this, the passengers are greatly inconvenienced.”

The geography of the Himalayas in the north of India is a further complication, experts said and added that the closing the Pakistani airspace impedes flight operations since the mountains are near impassable.

Generally, the airspace over a nation is controlled by that country’s aviation regulatory body (Civil Aviation Authority, in the case of Pakistan) and air traffic control organizations determine when, where and how aircraft are allowed to fly.

Flights typically like to fly a straight line to their destination in order to save fuel – but for this, the airspace has to be open and safe. But the impact of shutting down the air space is felt by both nations. After shutting down the airspace earlier in February, Pakistan had suffered a loss of USD 50 million, said Pakistani aviation minister Ghulam Sarwar Khan – but had underlined that Islamabad’s action had hit New Delhi “harder”, “It is a huge loss for our overall (aviation) industry”, he was quoted as saying by the Dawn newspaper.

But he had added “This restriction had hit India harder than Pakistan. The loss of India is almost double. But at this juncture, détente and harmony are required from both sides.”
28/08/19 News18.com

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Patna: Airfares rise ahead of Diwali and Chhath

Patna: With Diwali and Chhath just a few months away, there has been a surge in air travel bookings.

Many people are planning to return to Patna, their hometown, to celebrate the festivals with their families. The short trip, however, will prove to be a costly affair as flight tickets are quite expensive during the period.
While Diwali will be celebrated on October 26, Chhath will begin on November 2.

According to travel agents and executives of airlines operating from the city, most Patna-bound flights from destinations like Chennai and Bengaluru have already been booked.

“The price of tickets available in some of the flights is three times higher than the average rate,” Abhishek Kumar, a travel agent on Exhibition Road told this newspaper.

A Sri Krishnapuri-based travel agent, Sanjay Singh, said huge rush of passengers would be witnessed on Patna-bound flights from October 18 till the first week of November.

Another travel agent, Tarun Pal, pointed out that flyers would now get only connecting flights on most routes, the prices of which are higher than those of direct flights.

“The airfare will further increase. The highest rush is being observed on the New Delhi-Patna and Mumbai-Patna routes,” he said.
28/08/19 Faryal Rumi/Times of India

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TAL delivers 25,000th floor beam for B787 plane to Boeing

Tata group company, TAL Manufacturing Solutions Ltd (TAL) said on Tuesday it has delivered to Boeing 25,000th floor beam, a key component in the manufacturing of a Boeing 787 plane, from its Nagpur facility for all variants of the wide-body plane. The US aircraft major had awarded TAL the first contract to manufacture Advanced Composite Floor Beam (ACFB for the Dreamliner (B787) family of planes in 2011.

TAL shipped the first set of floor beams in 2014. “The delivery of the 25,000th floor beam for the Dreamliner marks a special milestone for Boeing’s partnership with TAL,” said Salil Gupte, president, Boeing India.

TAL Manufacturing Solutions is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Tata Advanced Systems. From its facility in Mihan-SEZ, Nagpur, TAL delivers complex aerospace components to leading commercial aircraft programs.

MIHAN (Multi-Model International Passenger and Cargo Hub Airport at Nagpur), is a Maharashtra government project for the development of the existing domestic airport of Nagpur as an international passenger and cargo hub airport, and a multi-product special economic zone (SEZ), situated near the airport. Boeing’s broader and continued investments in India are not only towards Make in India but span technology, hi-tech innovation, production capacity, as well as skilling centers for aerospace manufacturing,” added Gupte.
27/08/19 PTI/Financial Express

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India May Buy 83 Tejas Fighters For $3 Billion

The Indian Ministry of Defense is negotiating with Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) to place an order for 83 Tejas fighter jets for an estimated price to be around $3 billion (INR 22,000 crore), down from HAL-quoted price of $5 billion (INR 37,350 crore).
"HAL quoted INR 450 crore per aircraft as the basic price. The MoD and the Indian Air Force (IAF) are firm that this price is not competitive and are negotiating for a price that is less than INR 300 crore per aircraft. Negotiations are nearly complete and final price is likely to be in the range of INR 250-275 crore," a source privy to the negotiations was quoted as saying by TOI on Sunday.
If each unit costed INR 450 crore ($62.5 million), the value of the contract for 83 jets would be INR 37,350 crore ($5 billion). If one Tejas fighter costs INR 275 crore ($38.2 million), then the order will be worth INR 22, 825 crore ($3.17 billion).
26/08/19 Defense World.net

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Flight cancelled or delayed? Know your rights

If you are someone who plans a trip keeping the weather in mind to avoid flight cancellations or delays, chances are it may not work. Flight cancellations and delays are not just limited to bad weather and air traffic.

On Monday, a Dubai-bound Air India Dreamliner's take-off was delayed due to stoppage of fuel supply by oil marketing companies. As per reports, the flight with 300 passengers took off from Kochi airport at around 1 pm instead of 9.15 am after civil aviation and petroleum ministers intervened.

In another recent instance, anti-government protests forced Air India to announce the suspension of all its flights to and from Hong Kong on Aug 13 'until further notice'. This came after over 200 flights were cancelled at Hong Kong airport on August 12 after the authorities, at a short notice, suspended flight operations due to pro-democracy protesters entering the terminal's arrival halls.

These instances prove that a passenger is always at the risk of flight cancellation or delay, irrespective of the weather. While the airlines usually assist the passengers in such cases — from providing a refund to alternative flights — one must know one’s rights in case of delays and cancellations to avoid any kind of hassle.
27/08/19 CNBC TV18

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Air India Worst On-Time-Performer Among Domestic Flights

State-owned airline Air India which has been infamous in the past for its reliability has been ranked the lowest in terms of on-time-performance among other domestic airlines. A set of data that was recently released by the DGCA has ranked Air India at the bottom for having the least number of flights that operated in accordance with its schedule. Ranking at the bottom, Air India has managed to record 58.9 percent on-time flights. Meanwhile, ranking at the top is budget-airline GoAir which posted 80.5 percent.

During the month of July 2019, GoAir flew 13.26 lakh passengers, with barely 0.46% cancellations and one complain per 20,000 passengers. This was amid hindrances such as the onset of monsoon and inclement weather conditions across the nation. GoAir currently operates over 300 daily flights to 24 domestic destinations including Ahmedabad, Bagdogra, Bengaluru, Bhubaneswar, Chandigarh, Chennai, Delhi, Goa, Guwahati, Hyderabad, Jaipur, Jammu, Kochi, Kolkata, Kannur, Leh, Lucknow, Mumbai, Nagpur, Patna, Port Blair, Pune, Ranchi and Srinagar and 6 international destinations, including Phuket, Malé, Muscat, Abu Dhabi, Dubai and Bangkok with another 2 destinations to take off soon.
27/08/19 News18.com

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Why govt must distribute Jet slots to other airlines urgently

An analysis by Network Thoughts based on data released by DGCA shows that over the last couple of years passenger growth is characterised by growth in capacity in the market and this curve has not been any easier to read since December 2018! To make it even simpler, the numbers were converted to per day levels. While this is not a standard practice for analysis, it helps remove the differences that crop up due to the difference in number of days ranging from 28 to 31 each month.

Read in full why Ameya Joshi says the Jet slots must be re-distributed >>

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Pune can source aircraft recovery kit from Mumbai

Pune: Mumbai is among the six major airports in the country that needs to procure DARK (disabled aircraft recovery kit) by March next year following a directive from the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA). This will benefit Pune too since, in case of any eventuality of the kind here, the city airport authorities can source the kit from Mumbai in under two hours.
Besides, sources in the Maharashtra Airport Development Company (MADC) Limited, which manages the fast-growing Shirdi airport, said they too would consider getting the equipment in the next two years.
“Both airports are not far from Pune. While Mumbai is around 150km from the city, Shirdi is around 190km away. Though presently there is no direct flight connectivity from Pune to Mumbai or Shirdi, in case of an emergency anything can be arranged. It would take maximum two hours or even less for the equipment to be brought to Pune if needed,” a source told TOI.
The DGCA directive had come in July much after the incident in which a SpiceJet aircraft got stuck in mud after overshooting the main runway at the Mumbai airport. The runway had to be shut for three days, which led to the cancellation of more than 200 flights and delays galore till the aircraft was salvaged.
26/08/19 Joy Sengupta/Times of India

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Worst July For Air Passenger Traffic In At Least Six Years

Air passenger growth slowed in July amid a prolonged slowdown in the economy. The number of passengers flying Indian airlines grew at 3 percent year-on-year last month, the worst pace in July in at least six years, according to BloombergQuint’s calculations based on the data from Directorate General of Civil Aviation.That compares with the 18 percent monthly average passenger growth in the last five years. Nearly 1.19 crore Indians took to the skies in July this year, the data showed. While the overall passenger growth is in single digit, yields—a measure of average fare per passenger per kilometer—too, have come down to last year levels, according to Santosh Hiredesai, research analyst at SBICAP Securities. “This means that there is some slowdown in the sector. Generally, lower yields should be complemented by higher passenger growth rate or vice versa to suggest that the sector is growing well.”
SpiceJet Ltd. continued to report faster passenger growth that market leader InterGlobe Aviation Ltd. for the third straight month. Also, smaller airlines grew faster than larger peers in July.

Here’s how the year-on-year passenger growth of major Indian airlines fared in July.

- The number of passengers flying IndiGo grew at the slowest pace in five months at 17 percent. -SpiceJet’s passenger growth stood at 29 percent. -Passenger growth of Air India stood at 3.4 percent—the slowest in three months.
-GoAir’s passenger growth stood at 29 percent. -AirAsia’s air passenger growth stood at 38
-Passenger growth of Vistara stood at 29 percent—the highest in nearly two years.
23/08/19 Soumeet Sarkar/Bloomberg|Quint

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Market share of airlines fluctuates, but smaller carriers fare better

Smaller airlines GoAir and Vistara have managed to either hold on or increase their market share in the domestic market this year. On the other hand, larger carriers, including IndiGo, Air India and SpiceJet, struggled as their share fluctuated.
In the case of the national carrier, the decline has been the sharpest, since April this year.
Earlier this week, industry regulator DGCA released the industry numbers for July.
GoAir, the carrier owned by the Wadia family, has seen its share increasing from 8.7 percent in January to 11.1 percent in July. Interestingly, the airline has managed to hold on to its market share - at 11.1 percent - for three consecutive months since May. It now gives Air India competition for the third spot in the domestic market.
Similarly, Vistara has seen a sharp increase in its share this year. From 3.8 percent in January, the JV between Tata Sons and Singapore Airlines saw its share increasing to 6 percent in July. Air Asia, Tata Sons' other JV airline - this time with Malaysia's Air Asia Berhad - saw its share going up to 6.5 percent in July, from 5.3 percent in January.
All these airlines have made the most of the space created by Jet Airways, which suspended its operations in April. Going by the response to its insolvency process, reviving the airline now looks like a tough task.
The competition has in the meantime aggressively expanded its services. GoAir launched new eight flights in July. In the same month, AirAsia India announced new flights from Delhi, to Chennai and Kolkata.
A month earlier, Vistara added 62 new flights to its network. The airline now connects Mumbai with 10 cities.
23/08/19 Prince Mathews Thomas/Moneycontrol

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Emirates Aviation University offers special package for international students

Thiruvananthapuram: Emirates Aviation University has introduced an “international student study package”, offering financial benefits and support to international students, a statement said on Friday.
 The package includes 20 per cent savings on costs for university accommodation, 15 per cent discount on programme fees, and a complimentary Economy class return ticket per year on Emirates. The package would also offer the students free services for three persons from Marhaba, the world’s leading passenger services providers, free hotel accommodation for two adults for three days as well as a waiver for all visa administration charges.
 Vice-Chancellor of Emirates Aviation University Ahmad Al Ali, said, ''Getting your kids settled in a new university and city can be a difficult task for many parents. The special package will give parents peace of mind and ensure a stress-free experience, as they help their children settle in Dubai."
EAU offers an extensive range of educational opportunities designed to provide students with the best aviation related specialisations. Students can choose from vocational, undergraduate and postgraduate programmes that combine the highest standard of academics with the latest development in the field of aviation.
 23/08/19 UNI

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New work norms for aircraft maintenance personnel

New Delhi: The death of a trainee aircraft engineer last month after the automatic doors of a SpiceJet plane snapped shut on him has led to the DGCA mandating rules for maximum working hours and rest periods for maintenance personnel like those for pilots and cabin crew to ensure fatigue and human errors don’t contribute to accidents and safety lapses.

The Directorate General of Civil Aviation on Friday issued an advisory requiring that maintenance personnel not be made to work for more than 8-10 hours, which in case of exigencies can be extended to a maximum of 12 hours. The new rules also require that they do not work on more than two consecutive night shifts, which should be followed by two successive days of rest.
The DGCA said the rules will apply to technicians, inspectors, supervisors, managers, planners and persons working in maintenance control centres.

The norms, also called Duty Time Limitations, have so far been in place only for flying crew, which includes pilots and cabin crew.

The DGCA said there should be a minimum rest period of 11 hours between two shifts and the personnel should be given a break after a gap of every four hours and they should not work for more than 48 hours in seven days or 60 hours including overtime.
23/08/19 Jagriti Chandra/The Hindu

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Domestic air passenger traffic grows by 3.01% in July

With the tourist season coming to an end, the domestic air passenger traffic in July increased by just 3.01 per cent compared to July last year, according to the data released by aviation regulator DGCA on August 22. The domestic air traffic in July this year consisted of 11.90 million passengers as compared to 11.55 million passengers in the same month last year, a jump of 3.01 per cent, as per the data.
In June this year, the domestic passenger growth was 6.19 per cent compared to the same month last year.
The passenger load factor of all the major airlines -- Air India, IndiGo, SpiceJet, GoAir, AirAsia and Vistara -- declined in July as compared to June 2019, as per the DGCA data.

"The passenger load factor in the month of July 2019 has shown declining trend compared to previous month primarily due to the end of tourist season," the DGCA stated in a note.

IndiGo maintained its lead position with 47.8 per cent share of the domestic passenger market in July, the data showed.
22/08/19 PTI/Moneycontrol.com

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India set to receive first Rafale jet on September 20

New Delhi: Rafale is set to handover its first fighter jet built for the Indian Air Force. Air Force Chief BS Dhanoa and Defence Minister Rajnath Singh will be in France on September 20 to receive the first Rafale jet manufactured for the Indian Air Force.

"In presence of the IAF Chief, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh will accept the aircraft in presence of various defence and civilian bureaucrats there," IAF sources said in New Delhi.

The ceremony is expected to take place around the end of the third week of September and is likely to be attended by a large contingent from the French government as well.

The Indian Air Force would train 24 pilots in three different batches for flying the Indian Rafales till May next year which is when the planes will arrive in India.

The Indian Air Force will deploy one each squadron of the Rafale combat aircraft at its airbases in Ambala in Haryana and Hashimara in Bengal.
21/08/19 Manjeet Singh Negi/India Today

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Gujarat government places order for VIP aircraft

Gandhinagar: The Gujarat government has placed an order for a new aircraft to be used by the chief minister, deputy chief minister, governor and other VIPs for official purposes. The state will spend Rs 200 crore on buying a new Bombardier Challenger 650 aircraft.
Senior officials of the state civil aviation department visited the company’s headquarters in Canada recently and placed an order for the plane. Officials said this was to avoid engaging the services of middlemen in the deal.
Officials said the government will likely also buy a new helicopter soon.
A state government official said, “The new aircraft is expected to be delivered within a month. The total cost of the twin-engine, 15-seater aircraft is around Rs 200 crore. It will be equipped with the latest safety features according to guidelines of the DGCA.”
22/08/19 Kapil Dave/Times of India

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IAF to induct first batch of Apache copters on Sept 3

New Delhi: The first batch of Apache helicopters, which have already arrived in India, will be formally inducted into the Indian Air Force in Pathankot, Punjab on September 3.

A senior Defence Ministry official told on Thursday that Defence Minister Rajnath Singh is likely to preside over the induction ceremony as the chief guest.

"Air Chief Marshal B.S. Dhanoa has already given his consent for the induction ceremony. The helicopters will be handed over by the manufacturer to the air force. The induction ceremony will be held at the Pathankot Air Force Station," said the official.

The first four Apache helicopters had arrived from the US at the Hindon Air Force Station in Ghaziabad on the outskirts of Delhi on July 27. Officials said four more helicopters had arrived subsequently.

The AH-64 helicopters, the most modern variant of the Apache, have been delivered by its manufacturer, the US-based Boeing, ahead of schedule.
22/08/19 IANS/Outlook

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IAF Wing Commander Abhinandan Varthaman begins flying MiG 21 again

New Delhi: Wing Commander Abhinandan Varthaman, the Indian Air Force pilot who became the face of a tense military confrontation between India and Pakistan in February, has started flying MiG 21 jet again.

Wing Commander Abhinandan returned to the fighter cockpit, nearly six months after sustaining injuries while ejecting from a fighter plane during an aerial combat between India and Pakistan on February 27.

"He has started flying," said a top military official. At present, Abhinandan is serving at an IAF base in Rajasthan.

The 36-year-old IAF pilot was captured by the Pakistani Army on February 27 after his MiG-21 Bison jet was shot down in a dogfight with Pakistani jets during aerial combat.

Before his jet was hit, he downed an F-16 fighter of Pakistan. Abhinandan was released on the night of March 1 by Pakistan.

He had sustained injuries while ejecting from his MiG 21 Bison during the aerial combat and was taken off flying duties because of it.
22/08/19 My Nation

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10 fold rise in air fares: Kerala HC seeks government's views

Kochi: The Kerala high court has sought the views of the Central and state governments on a petition seeking an order to fix minimum and maximum fares for international and domestic flights.
Justice Shaji P Chaly asked the governments to respond after considering during admission hearing a petition (WP-C No. 22581/2019) filed by Abdul Azeez Kaliyadan of Thirunavaya in Malappuram through advocate JR Prem Navaz. Rise in air fares between airports in Kerala and the Middle East, USA, and Europe are being questioned in the petition.
The petitioner, who runs a supermarket in Abu Dhabi and uses the economy class to travel, is questioning the alleged exploitation of airlines by arbitrary raising of ticket fares, resulting in tickets being prohibitively expensive. Transportation by air is a public service and only because the aircrafts are owned by private persons, they cannot be given the licence for overcharging, the petition said.
NRIs, who play an important role in the economic development of the country, are being robbed by airline companies when they travel to India during their holidays such as Onam, Ramzan, Christmas, etc. They are now constrained to celebrate the holidays abroad. Such a situation is because of the fact that there is no cap on minimum or maximum airfares, even though Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) is authorized to regulate as per Rule 135 of Aircraft Rules, 1937.
22/08/19 Mahir Haneef/Times of India

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IndiGo to start Bengaluru-Belgaum flights from September 8

New Delhi: Adding Belgaum in Karnataka as its 58th destination, low-cost carrier IndiGo announced on Wednesday that it will start daily flights on Bengaluru-Belgaum route from September 8.
Additional daily flights on Bengaluru-Madurai route will also be started from the same day, it said.
"Further strengthening its connectivity out of Bengaluru, these new routes will be serviced by an ATR-18 aircraft," the airline said in a statement.
IndiGo's Chief Commercial Officer William Boulter said, "These flights will strengthen point-to-point connectivity out of Bengaluru and enhance mobility within southern India."
IndiGo's Chief Commercial Officer William Boulter said, "These flights will strengthen point-to-point connectivity out of Bengaluru and enhance mobility within southern India."
21/08/19 PTI/Times of India

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Indian woman makes aviation history with solo Pacific and Atlantic crossings

Mumbai: Mumbai girl Aarohi Pandit, currently on a global flight in a small plane, on Wednesday created history by becoming the first woman pilot to cross both Atlantic Ocean and Pacific Ocean solo in a Light Sports Aircraft.

Flying from Alaska’s Unalakleet city across the Pacific Ocean’s Bering Sea, she landed safely at the Anadyr Airport in Russia’s Far East region of Chukotka at 01.54am after a stopover at Nome (Alaska). After landing, Aarohi, appearing a bit weary but cheerful, posed for a photo before her LSA and waved the Indian tricolor.

In mid-May this year, Aarohi, 23, became the first woman in the world to cross the Atlantic Ocean solo in a LSA, thrilling her family, friends and aviation circles.

In the past nearly 13 months of her circumnavigation flight, she has broken and created several records, including becoming the world’s first woman to complete a solo flight over the treacherous Greenland ice-cap in an LSA, and the first woman to fly all across Canada from the North East to the North West via the South, said her team in Mumbai.

“Aarohi truly represents all that young Indian women are capable of, given an opportunity. We are very proud and she has set such a great example for all other girls to emulate,” an excited Lynn de Souza, founder of Social Access Communications, which organised the WE! Expedition, told IANS.
On her part, Aarohi considers the Pacific Ocean crossing as the most significant sector for the Women Empower Expedition (WE!) circumnavigation, marking its entry into a new country, a new continent and a new day.
In her 1,100km flight from Unalakleet to Anadyr, Aarohi flew across the International Date Line, also known as the Line of Confusion, when the date changes and all instruments conk off for a few minutes.
21/08/19 IANS/Gulf News

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India’s DGCA, snubbed globally, is a cosy club of IAS officers with no aviation expertise

New Delhi: In June, when the US Federal Aviation Administration — deemed the apex airline regulator worldwide — called civil aviation authorities from across the world to review software modifications to the grounded Boeing 737 Max, it didn’t extend the invite to India’s watchdog — the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA).
This despite the fact that India is one of the 10 countries that flew the controversial new generation jet and is also one of the world’s fastest-growing aviation markets.
It was no anomaly — just the latest in a series of international aviation safety seminars that no DGCA official has been invited to.
DGCA representatives have, off late, not been invited to seminars of the US-based International Society of Air Safety Investigations (ISASI). The Indian aviation body has also been left out of safety seminars held in Europe.
The repeated snubs, experts say, is due to a structural issue at the apex of the aviation regulatory sector in the country.
Unlike in even other developing nations such as Indonesia, Pakistan, Bangladesh and the Philippines, where the regulatory bodies are headed by technocrats with an aviation background, all the top posts in the DGCA, the Airport Authority of India (AAI) or for that matter even public carrier Air India are held by Indian Administrative Service (IAS) officers.
Such is the situation, that in the past decade, the DGCA has always been headed by an IAS officer, not always with the relevant domain experience. The last technocrat to head the body was the late Kanu Gohain (2007-08), who had 35 years of experience in the industry.
The upsurge of IAS officers donning the role, however, only began after his tenure. Since 1980, for instance, of the 15 DGCA heads, eight have been from the IAS cadre (see box). But six of them have headed the DGCA in the last decade alone.
Captain Mohan Ranganathan, an aviation safety consultant and former flight instructor, said bureaucrats made their way into the DGCA after Gohain’s tenure.
“Bureaucrats in the ministry wormed their way into DGCA via the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) route,” Ranganathan said. A joint secretary would be sent to ICAO as India’s representative and qualification requirements for DGCA were tweaked by the ministry to make sure that the IAS cadre swarmed into all the top posts in aviation. None of the bureaucrats knew the subject.”
21/08/19 Ifrah Mufti/Print

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Why Fly 44-yr-Old Jets When Old Cars Not on Road: IAF Chief BS Dhanoa

New Delhi: Indian Air Force chief BS Dhanoa on Tuesday questioned why India is flying aircraft that are over four decades old when no one drives even cars of that vintage.

Air Chief Marshal Dhanoa was referring to the MiG-21 fighter aircraft that had been inducted into the force in 1973-74.

“The fifth-generation fighters are a reality and the next generation fighters are already on the drawing board. Can we afford a victory with such losses? If there is no war, we cannot wait for indigenous technology to replace obsolete warfighting equipment.

“Neither will it be prudent to import every defence equipment from abroad. Today, I can still fly the MiG 21 MF aircraft which is almost 44 years old. I’m sure none of you are driving a car of that vintage,” he said.

BS Dhanoa made the statement on India’s obsolete fleet of fighter aircraft in the presence of Defence Minister Rajnath Singh at a seminar on indigenisation of the IAF held here.
“Having said that, it is because over a period of time we have indigenised many of the sub-assemblies and innovated and have done import substitution of many components that have gone out of manufacture across the world,” he added.
21/08/19 Sentinel

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‘It’s only a temporary demand-supply mismatch in aviation, not a slowdown’

William Boulter, Chief Commercial Officer, IndiGo, is bullish on the Indian aviation industry despite recent headwinds. Over the past one-year, IndiGo has expanded in both domestic and international markets. In an interaction with BusinessLine, Boulter shared his thoughts on the recent slowdown, and how IndiGo is strategically combating it.
Read the interview >>

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Ahmedabad-Goa airfare zooms 80% for Janmashtami

Ahmedabad: Goa is topping the chart as a preferred destination for the great Gujarati gamblers this Janmashtami. High demand has sent Ahmedabad-Goa-Ahmedabad airfares skyrocketing by 80% during the festive weekend on August 24 and 25.
The rush to Goa is also fuelled by the political unrest in Hong Kong, which is another preferred destination for gamblers.
Tourists are skipping Hong Kong for Goa this Janmashtami, said tour operators.
A return flight between Ahmedabad and Goa this weekend costs as high as Rs 14,400 per passenger. The same on a normal weekend is around Rs 8,000, according to tour operators.
The maximum airfare for the same sector stood at Rs 34,200 for a direct flight - a clear fourfold increase from the normal price.
"Due to the ongoing political unrest in Hong Kong, several tourists have avoided Hong Kong and Macau and a lot of these tourists are diverted towards Goa.
Since there are barely two-three days available, bookings for domestic destinations are higher than international ones," said Pankaj Gupta, president, Travel agents and tour operators' Association of Gujarat (TAG).
20/08/19 Times of India

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Jet Airways' collapse gives budget rivals room to challenge Air India

The collapse of one of India's leading private airlines, Jet Airways, in April has come as a boon to major Indian carriers, which reported record profits for the June quarter, especially for private budget carriers InterGlobe Aviation-owned IndiGo and SpiceJet.
See how>>

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Govt forms committee to rationalise additional taxes on Aviation Turbine Fuel

New Delhi: The Aviation Ministry has formed a committee to rationalise additional taxes that airlines have to pay while uplifting Air Turbine Fuel (ATF) at airports across India, according to senior government officials.

Currently, airlines have to pay charges such as 'throughput charges', 'into plane charges' and 'fuel infrastructure charges' when they take ATF at any airport for their planes.

"These charges are taxed multiple times as they are billed in a circuitous manner," said a senior government official.

A second government official said that to develop a direct billing mechanism between airline companies and airport operators - so that these multiple taxes can be removed - the Ministry of Civil Aviation has formed a committee comprising representatives from airlines, airport operators, oil companies, among others.

This committee is expected to submit its report soon, the second official added.

As per government estimates, if a direct billing mechanism is implemented, airlines would be able to save around Rs. 400 crore per year.

In India, ATF accounts for almost 40 per cent of any airline's total expenditure. Therefore, any taxation on ATF always has a huge impact on airline companies.
19/08/19 PTI/Energy World

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MP demands regulation of airfares to Gulf

Kozhikode: M.K. Raghavan, MP, has written to the Prime Minister and the Minister for Civil Aviation seeking regulation of airfares to the Gulf countries which have gone through the roof recently.

In a release, he said the fares from the four airports in the State to a majority of West Asian countries had gone up by 300% to 500% from between ₹4,500 and ₹13,000. The minimum fare from Thiruvananthapuram to Sharjah on August 31 would be ₹19,000. The maximum fare to Kuwait from there would be ₹92,000.

As economy class tickets were not available in most of the services, the common people were forced to opt for the business class tickets. Mr. Raghavan said this would affect the Non-Resident Keralites and their families who would be returning to the Gulf countries after the school vacation.
19/08/19 The Hindu

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Airfares to West Asia go through the roof

Airlines have hiked fares by 300 to 500% from the four international airports in the State to almost all destinations in West Asia to cash in on the demand among Non-Resident Keralites (NoRKs) returning after summer vacation of educational institutions in the Gulf.

With NoRKs returning, the fares, which were in the range of ₹4,500 to ₹13,000 in the West Asia-Kerala sector during off-season, have been hiked steeply by the airlines, including the national carrier Air India and Air India Express.

The lowest fare available as on date in the Kerala-West Asia sector on August 31 varies from ₹19,025 in the Thiruvananthapuram-Sharjah sector to ₹92,043 in the Thiruvananthapuram-Kuwait sector.
The increase in fares by airlines based in India and West Asia, including budget carriers, has upset the travel plans of hundreds of NoRKs who have to fly back to their workplace.
The educational institutions in the Gulf will reopen on September 1 after the summer vacation. Economy class seats are not available in the scheduled airlines. Fares are high on the airlines that operate directly to the key destinations in the UAE and Saudi Arabia.
The 95 per cent of the NoRKS cannot afford travel in the business class as the fares have been increased. Those families depending on budget airlines are the worst-hit. Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Sharjah, Dammam, Riyadh, Doha, Kuwait and Bahrain had not been spared from the hike.
The grounding of the Jet Airways and the inability to operate international flights of foreign carriers from the Kannur international airport have compounded the problems of the NoRK flyers from the Malabar region.
Last year also, the airlines hiked the fares steeply as the reopening of the educational institutions in the Gulf was after Bakrid on August 22 and Onam on August 25. Travel trade sources say the airline will go in for another steep hike in the West Asia-Kerala-West Asia sector during the coming Onam season in September.
18/08/19 S. Anil Radhakrishnan/The Hindu

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Govt forms committee to rationalise additional taxes on Aviation Turbine Fuel

New Delhi: The aviation ministry has formed a committee to rationalise additional taxes that airlines have to pay while uplifting Air Turbine Fuel (ATF) at airports across India, according to senior government officials.

Currently, airlines have to pay charges such as 'throughput charges', 'into plane charges' and 'fuel infrastructure charges' when they take ATF at any airport for their planes.


"These charges are taxed multiple times as they are billed in a circuitous manner," said a senior government official.

A second government official said that to develop a direct billing mechanism between airline companies and airport operators - so that these multiple taxes can be removed - the ministry of civil aviation has formed a committee comprising representatives from airlines, airport operators, oil companies, among others.

This committee is expected to submit its report soon, the second official added.

As per government estimates, if a direct billing mechanism is implemented, airlines would be able to save around Rs 400 crore per year.

In India, ATF accounts for almost 40 per cent of any airline's total expenditure. Therefore, any taxation on ATF always has a huge impact on airline companies.

Explaining the matter, the first official quoted above stated,"Take the example of billing for throughput charges, which is done by the airport operator to the oil company. In turn, oil company passes on the charges by billing airlines. However, due to such convoluted billing process, taxes such as GST and excise duty and VAT is added on to throughput charges."
18/08/19 PTI/Times of India

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Low-cost carriers: Questions raised over safety

Aviation safety experts have expressed their concerns over safety-related incidents across the country in recent past involving low- cost carriers, IndiGo, and SpiceJet.
 While SpiceJet pilots were involved in multiple hard landings in Calicut, Surat, and Patna airports in the recent past triggering an “advisory” email from the airline’s Chief Pilot, IndiGo has been grappling with incidents of overheating and high vibrations in IndiGo’s A320/1 engines.
 Over 12 different incidents have been reported since July 25. SpiceJet’s Chief Pilot (Line Operations) of Boeing 737 Sanjay Dabral shot emails last week to all airline pilots pointing out that they had followed a “wrong technique” and tried to land early on short runways, leading to hard landings. He asked them to strictly follow the landing
Flare and Touchdown technique specified in the Flight Crew Training Manual (FCTM) and not to deviate from it based on the runway lengths available at different airports. Aviation safety expert Capt Mohan Ranganathan blamed poor training at SpiceJet.
“The DGCA had conducted an audit at SpiceJet and if the hard landings are continuing, it means that the airline knows that DGCA will not act. If the pilots are not following training manuals, then the airline has failed in proficiency checks, and points to deficiency in training and safety standards,” he said.
 A SpiceJet spokesperson strongly denied the accusation of poor training. “SpiceJet has a completely open and transparent system wherein pilots are encouraged to report incidents so that corrective training and follow-up measures can be taken by the organization. The said mail reinforces the fact that the standard landing technique is the correct technique and pilots should not over react by doing hard landings.”
 17/08/19 Satish Nandagaonkar/Mumbai Mirror

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Despite slow down in the aviation sector bookings for Premium-economy and business-class surge

According to a report by Forum Gandhi in The Business Line, even as there are concerns around the overall slump in the aviation sector, premium economy saw its bookings surge up to 50 per cent, while that of business class rose by 15 per cent, according to industry players.
Travel companies such as Cleartrip have seen a rapid growth in this segment, though it is in its nascent stage in India.
“The premium economy segment is witnessing a growth in excess of 50 per cent for both domestic and international,” said Balu Ramachandran, Senior Vice- President, Cleartrip. According to him, currently, this segment is seeing a rapid growth due to Vistara’s expansion plans.
16/08/19 TravelBizMonitor.com

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Companies offer free flights, deploy feedback apps

Mumbai: The growth slowdown has not deterred India Inc from keeping its workforce engaged. Employee engagement, a term that the HR fraternity is familiar with, continues to attract investments. And how.

RDC Concrete, owned by private equity firm True North, offers its employees one-day tours to other cities, inclusive of air travel, under a programme called ‘Meri pehali udaan’ (My first flight). The initiative is meant to give an experience of air travel along with a holiday to those employees who have never travelled by air before.

The Rs 1,000-crore independent ready-mix concrete company, which hires people who are mostly 10th/12th pass diploma holders, has already flown over 200 people under this initiative. RDC Concrete’s head (HR and business excellence) K S Bhoon said employees become eligible under ‘Meri pehali udaan’ after they have completed a year with the company.
Being a people-intensive business, every year around 100 employees join RDC Concrete, which has a total strength of about 700. Construction industry wages are usually lower than the services sector, and there are many who cannot afford air travel. Given such employee-engagement initiatives, attrition rates at RDC Concrete have come down from 23% two years ago to 15%, said Bhoon.

In the services sector, organisations are using digital tools to enhance employee engagement. The Indian Hotels Company (IHCL) recently installed an employee feedback platform ‘V Connect’. At one of its hotels, IHCL received a message regarding the quality of food in the employee canteen. Such complaints would have otherwise gone unreported, increasing the chances of disgruntlement among employees.

V Connect ensures the company receives feedback on a real-time basis. The manager called for a team meeting to understand the details. Discussions were focused towards understanding feedback about the issues people had with the food, and their inputs about having lighter/healthier and more cuisine options were duly incorporated in the dining menus at the cafeteria. The company said V Connect has already become a critical touch point for employees to voice their opinions anonymously across locations.
16/08/19 Namrata Singh/Times of India

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HAL proposes for four more squadrons of Sukhoi-30MKI, but IAF not keen due to budgetary issues

New Delhi: Indian Air Force (IAF) is all set to receive the first batch of four Rafale fighter aircraft as part of a controversial deal with France next month, according to a report by The Financial Express. Manufactured by Dassault Aviation, the aircraft will come equipped with Meteor missile, SCALP ground attack missiles with a range of up to 300 Kms. But the Indian Air Force (IAF) still requires several more fighter jets to meet the demands.

According to The Economic Times, state-owned Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd (HAL) has proposed for an order to manufacture additional 72 more Sukhoi-30 MKI fighter jets to add to the current order for 272, but officials said that the air force has not been keen due to budgetary issues.

The report added that squadrons of the Su-30 MKI jets were proposed to meet gaps in fighter squadron the air force seems to be only keen on ordering replacements for aircraft that have been lost in accidents.

The ET report added that the HAL is hopeful that an order for at least 10 additional aircraft is placed this year so that its Sukhoi manufacturing plant in Nasik does not fall idle.

“We are currently making 12 of the fighters per year at the Nasik plant,” ET quoted HAL chairman R Madhavan as saying.
14/08/19 News Nation

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India keen to offer support for aviation infra to neighbours: Minister

New Delhi: Civil Aviation Minister Hardeep Singh Puri has said that India would be keen to offer solutions and support for aviation infrastructure, connectivity and capacity building to its immediate neighbourhood.

The Minister spoke at a roundtable conference on ''Regional Cooperation: Neighbourhood First -- Aviation Infrastructure, Connectivity & Capacity Building'' here on Tuesday evening.

According to a Ministry of Civil Aviation statement issued on Wednesday, "The event focussed on opportunities available and the solutions that are on offer for enhancing cooperation in the critical areas like airport infrastructure development; increasing air connectivity; and collaborations for capacity building in the region."

"The Indian aviation industry has been instrumental in the overall economic development of the country. The aviation sector growth in the region has thrown up tremendous opportunity and challenges to India and other countries. India as a state has been working with zeal to create infrastructure in air transport and air navigation services," Puri was quoted in the statement as saying.
14/08/19 Outlook

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Five IAF pilots, who flew Mirage 2000 fighter jets and dropped bombs in Balakot, to get Vayu Sena Medals

New Delhi: Five fighter jet pilots of the Indian Air Force, who flew Mirage 2000 planes during the Balakot air strikes and dropped bombs in February this year, have been awarded Vayu Sena Medals. The IAF officers are being conferred with the gallantry awards for bombing the Jaish-e-Mohammed terror camp in Pakistan’s Balakot on February 26. The medals will be given on Thursday, on the occasion of 73rd Independence Day.

Reports said Vayu Sena Medals will be awarded to Indian Air Force’s Wing Commander Amit Ranjan and Squadron Leaders Rahul Basoya, Pankaj Bhujade, BKN Reddy and Shashank Singh.
It may be recalled that the Indian Air Force had carried out pre-emptive, non-military air strikes on JeM terror camp in Balakot in the wee hours of February 26.

The air strikes followed the February 14 terror attack in Jammu and Kashmir's Pulwama on a convoy of the Central Reserve Police Force. Forty troopers of the CRPF were killed in the suicide terror attack claimed by the JeM terror group.

Thirteen days later, the IAF took a pre-emptive action claiming the terror group was planning to carry out more strikes in India. More than 250 terrorists and their handlers are believed to have died in the air strikes, though Pakistan never acknowledged the terror facility existed in the first place.
14/08/19 TimesNowNews.com

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After a period of turbulence, the aviation sector finally sees clear sky

After a year of distress that saw the grounding of Jet Airways and decommissioning of the entire Boeing 737 MAX fleet, dark clouds finally seem to be parting on the Indian aviation sector.

According to IATA’s global aviation results, India's domestic air passenger volume—measured in revenue passenger kilometres (RPKs)—was the third-highest among the major aviation markets, rising  7.9 percent compared to the corresponding month of the previous fiscal.

The massive void left behind by the demise of the Naresh Goyal-led airline also seems to be filing up as other major players such as SpiceJet, IndiGo and Vistara introduced extra flights to take on the severe flight crunch.
The grounding of Jet has also bolstered the business of its competitors, who posted robust earnings in the quarter ended June 2019.

IndiGo, which took over 30 percent of Jet's domestic slots available in Delhi and Mumbai airports, posted its highest-ever quarterly profit at Rs 1,203 crore in Q1FY20. This was 43 times higher than the profit in the year-ago period.

SpiceJet, which acquired 63 domestic and international slots of Jet, also posted its highest-ever quarterly profit in Q1FY20, after reporting a loss in the corresponding quarter of the last fiscal.

"Since the grounding of Jet, players like Indigo, SpiceJet have taken a front seat and are filling in the slots of Jet. Market share gain along with lower crude price has led to the improvement in their financial performance. Further, it would help players in gaining further market share leading to higher operating leverage as occupancy increases coupled with better passenger tariffs at competitive rates," said Ajit Mishra, Vice President, Research, Religare Broking.

While the turbulence seems to have subsided, some analysts do not see a silver lining in the exit of Jet Airways.

According to them, the benefits from Jet's demise have already played out and will no longer play a factor in the rise of Indian aviation.
14/08/19 Suyash Maheshwari/Moneycontrol.com

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IAF Mi17 Helicopter Land on Narrow Stretch of Road to Save 125 Lives in Gujarat

The Indian Air Force (IAF) has rescued nearly 125 people stranded on a road washed away by floods due to heavy rainfall in Kutch district of Gujarat, officials said on Monday. Several parts of Gujarat, including Saurashtra and Kutch regions, received heavy rainfall in the last few days. After the heavy downpour, a large number of people were stuck on a road washed away by floodwaters at Bhuj in Kutch district.
On Sunday evening, the Air Force received a request to rescue a large number of people stranded on a road that was washed away at a causeway near Hajipir dargah at Bhuj in Kutch district, a defence official said. "The South Western Air Command (SWAC) responded swiftly and sent a Mi17 helicopter from Jamnagar. The helicopter took three shuttles and rescued 125 people. They were shifted to a safer location, he said. The area is located near the India-Pakistan border. The region was flooded due to heavy rains following which around 300 people, mostly workers of a factory and their family members, were stranded. Initially, teams of the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) and local police rescued around 175 people, a district administration official said.
13/08/19 PTI/News18

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Now you can book Kedarnath helicopter tickets online

Kedarnath: Uttarakhand Tourism recently launched an online portal for booking chopper tickets for the Kedarnath Yatra. This facilitates pilgrims, who will now be able to access the online platform to book air tickets for Kedarnath through authorised heli companies.

The online facility was started from August and, reportedly, enabled more than 1000 pilgrims to book their tickets to Kedarnath in the first two days. Further, from September 1, the second phase of helicopter services will start. Passengers will have a window of 24 hours to cancel their tickets before their journey commences.

Dilip Jawalkar, Chief Executive Officer of Uttarakhand Civil Aviation Development Authority (UCADA) and Tourism Secretary, said that the newly launched online ticketing system will help bring transparency to the ticketing process, and also reduce chances of corruption.
Now you can book Kedarnath helicopter tickets online
He added that although 70 per cent of the ticket bookings will be processed online, the remaining percentage will be processed offline and on the spot. To ensure that the offline booking process is done without any hassle, three offline counters will be set up in Guptkashi and two in Phata. However, because the internet services are always not proper at the Sirsi centre, the offline booking of Sirsi helipad will be done from the second counter in Phata.
13/08/19 Times of India

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IAF Wing Commander Abhinandan Varthaman to be conferred Vir Chakra on Independence Day

Indian Air Force (IAF) Wing Commander Abhinandan Varthaman will be awarded Vir Chakra on Independence Day, August 15. This year in February, Abhinandan Varthaman became the face of gallantry after he brought down an F-16 jet of the Pakistan Air Force during a dogfight. However, his aircraft MIG-21 Bison was soon shot down by an AMRAAM missile that resulted in him being taken into custody by Pakistani Army. Indian Army had recovered traces of AMRAAM missile in the investigation, which led to the suspicion that Pakistan had used an F-16 in an offensive role.

Indian Air Force’s Wing Commander Amit Ranjan, Squadron Leaders Rahul Basoya, Pankaj Bhujade, BKN Reddy, Shashank Singh have been awarded Vayu Sena Medal (Gallantry) for bombing Jaish-e-Mohammed terrorist camp in Pakistan’s Balakot town. All the officers are Mirage 2000 fighter aircraft pilots.
Varthaman was arrested by the Pak Army on February 27 and stayed in its custody for two days. Before being apprehended by the Pak Army, Abhinandan was allegedly attacked by the locals in which he sustained a rib fracture and other injuries.

Soon, a video was released by the Pak Army in which Abhinandan was seen sipping a cup of tea and denying to share any personal or professional details to the Pak Army officials. This video made him a hero back in India. The mission which made Abinandan a war hero was carried out by India in the response to the Pulwama terror attack that claimed lives of over 40 Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) jawans.

On February 14, an explosive-laden van rammed into a convoy of vehicles carrying CRPF jawans in Jammu and Kashmir’s Pulwama. Abhinandan was later handed over to India on March 1 at the Wagah Border. After the Param Vir Chakra and Maha Vir Chakra, the Vir Chakra is the third highest wartime military award in India.
14/08/19 NewsX

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Independence Day weekend ahead, airfares to popular holiday spots soar sky-high

Mumbai: Over the years, Independence Day and other festive holidays that fall around it have turned mid-August into a popular time for a short vacation. Even advance purchase fares, booked months ahead, stay relatively on the high side. Keeping with the trend, airfares out of Mumbai to popular short holiday destinations like Goa, Jaipur, Dehradun, Dubai, Singapore have gone up.
The popular date for travel this week is Thursday, August 15, with return on August 18, a Sunday.
Goa is so much in demand that fares on flights from Mumbai to Dubai or Bangkok are cheaper than Goa flights with convenient timings (morning departure and afternoon departure for return). “Demand for air travel dips in June, July, August; except during long weekends which typically bring higher airfares on flights out of cities like Mumbai, Delhi. Airlines don’t offer the cheapest tickets in the lowest buckets for Independence weekend travel. You can book six months in advance, but you won’t find the cheapest fare being offered during the Independence Day weekend,’’ said an airline official, requesting anonymity.
14/08/19 Times of India

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IRCTC Tirupati air tour package: Booking details, itinerary, costs and more details

IRCTC is offering a one night, two days air tour package to Tirupati. Tirupati is one of the most popular temple towns situated in the Chittoor district of Andhra Pradesh. Tirupati is also known as Tirumala that is famous for the Sri Venkateshwara Temple.

See the details of the ‘Blissful Tirupati’ air tour package >>

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Rafale jets coming to India! IAF to receive first batch of French fighters in September

Indian Air Force (IAF) is getting ready to receive the first batch of four `Rafale’ fighter aircraft from Dassault Aviation in France next month.
These state-of-the-art Rafale fighter planes are twin-engine multi-role fighter aircraft, nuclear-capable and can engage in both air-to-air and air-to-ground attacks. After receiving these combat aircraft equipped with Meteor missile, SCALP ground attack missiles with a range of up to 300 Kms will undergo extensive trials before being formally inducted in the service in 2020. These aircraft are also fitted with AESA radar, SPECTRA Electronic Warfare System and IRST System.

IAF pilots and ground crews are undergoing extensive training in France and will test these machines intensively for 1,500 hours for validating the specifications requested by India. These new machines will be based at Ambala Airbase in ‘Golden Arrows’ 17 Squadron which is closer to the Western border with Pakistan. The Ambala Airbase is also home to the Jaguars, which due to their rapid deployment capabilities is deployed to deal with incidents from Pakistan.
The other squadron of the Rafale fighters are expected to be based out of Hashimara, West Bengal and this will be in an effort to tackle any incidents coming from China, according to sources.
13/08/19 Huma Siddiqui/Financial Express

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Diwali travel: Airfares expected to rise, book air tickets now

If you plan to fly out for a holiday or to meet family and friends in October during Diwali, then book your air tickets now because domestic airfares are currently flat in comparison to the 2018 festival season, as Jet Airways’ capacity has found its way back into the market.

Experts point out that fares beyond the 0-15 day window remain unchanged over last year, with low-cost carriers like SpiceJet and IndiGo quickly inducting aircraft into their fleets. As per travel portal Cleartrip, the average domestic fares outside the 0-15 day window remain flat on major routes.

“Our data shows that average airfares during the festival season are the same levels as last year. All the capacity occupied by Jet was back into the domestic market by July-end,” Balu Ramachandran, head, air & distribution, Cleartrip, pointed out.
Domestic airlines capacity, measured in terms of available seat kilometre, stood at 13.1 billion during June 2019 as compared to 12.7 billion exactly a year ago.

SpiceJet said it doesn’t expect significant rise in fares going into the next quarter. “India is a price sensitive market. What you can do with fares is limited . However, there is no risk of discounting. The danger of fares coming down as compared to last year is not there with removal of some capacity,” SpiceJet’s chief financial officer Kiran Koteshwar explained.

Analysts believe fares, which are witnessing a downward trend, could rise closer to the festival season. “We expect the fares to moderate further in FY20 though not to the lows of FY19 as grounded capacity of Jet Airways finds its way back in the system through SpiceJet and Vistara, and planned capacity addition by IndiGo,” brokerage firm Axis Capital noted.
11/08/19 Arun Nayal/Financial Express

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Airlines take advantage of deluge, M'luru-B'luru flight ticket price jumps to Rs 16,000

Mangaluru: Almost all the road connection from the city to the capital of the state are closed due to landslides and flooding. The only option left for the passengers of the coastal region to reach the capital is through air. Noticing the increase in demand, the airlines, instead of giving rebate during devastating natural calamity the state is facing, have skyrocketed the price with the intention of making quick bucks.

Shiradi Ghat and Charmadi Ghat are closed due to landslide. The state highway that connects Bantwal with Mysuru is disconnected due to the water from the Cauvery river overflowing on the road at Koppa of Kushalnagar.
The train connection to Bengaluru is stopped due to landslide as well water logging on the tracks. So the travellers of the coastal region who want to go to Bengaluru have to make use of the last option of travelling by air, which is the last option left to them. However, the airlines have suddenly increased their price eight folds. The ticket fare between Mangaluru-Bengaluru is Rs 2,000 on normal season. However, the fare on Sunday, August 11 was Rs 16,000.

IndiGo and SpiceJet have four flights flying from Mangaluru to Bengaluru. The hapless passengers are cursing the airline companies for looting them instead of showing compassion and reducing the prices of ticket.
11/08/19 Daijiworld

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Why a Visit to The Naval Aviation Museum is a Must in Goa

A one-of-its-kind museum in India, the Naval Aviation Museum is a must-visit for all avid travellers, especially aviation geeks. Its close proximity to Dabolim International Airport and the Mormugao Port, makes it an even desirable attraction in Goa. Situated along the Vasco-Bogmalo Road just 6 kilometres from the port city of Vasco-da-Gama, a drive to this museum is spectacularly scenic; by virtue of it being perched on a plateau that overlooks the Arabian Sea.

Founded in 1947 by the Naval Force of India, the military history museum offers an outdoor aircraft park and a gallery with exhibits. The displays include a wide collection of aircrafts (both planes and helicopters), aircraft engines and parts, armaments, weapons, vintage war crafts, sensors, safe gears and ancient photographs that bear witness to India’s history of naval and aviation power.

Among the impressive aircrafts exhibited outdoors are the models of Super Constellation, Hawker Sea Hawk, Hughes, Fairey Firefly, de Havilland Vampire, Giant Lockheed, HAL Chetak, Sea Harrier and Breguet Alizé. Most of these models date back to the 1940s.
09/08/19 Charu Chowdhary/India.com

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Capt Anil Gadgil who pointed out fault in MIG-21 passes away

Captain Anil Gadgil, who had played a fundamental role in pointing out that the supersonic fighter jet MIG-21 aircraft has a fault in its make, passed away in a city hospital after suffering a cardiac arrest on August 8.
Gadgil is survived by his wife Kavita and son Kedar. He was 72 at the time of his death. The wing commander was born in Pune on March 13, 1947. He was commissioned as a pilot in the Indian Air Frce in 1967. During his service he took part in the Bangladesh Liberation War in 1971.
 After retiring from Air Force in 1984, he joined Air India the following year. While flying had always been Gadgil’s passion; ironically he lost his son Flight Lieutenant Abhijit Gadgil in a MIG crash in 2001.
 Since Abhijit was blamed for the crash, Captain Gadgil and his wife Kavita took it upon themselves to prove that their son was not at fault for the same. In July 2003 Kavita broke the security cordon at an event in Mumbai to hand over a memorandum to the then defence minister George Fernandez.
 In March 2005, Air Force chief Air Chief Marshal SP Tyagi wrote to the Gadgils, stating that while an inquiry court had established spatial disorientation as the probable cause of the crash, it was triggered by a technical malfunction and that Flt Lt Abhijit Gadgil could not be blamed for it.
 While this brought closure to their son’s death, this led the Gadgils to come up with a training institute for those dreaming to get into the aviation industry. In 2005, in collaboration with Arco Engineering, Pune, and RealiSim, Bengaluru, Gadgil built India’s first and only indigenous mobile flight training simulator, mounted on a truck body at their home at the base of Sinhagad fort.
 10/08/19 Parchee Kulkarni/Ahmedabad Mirror

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Singapore Airlines flying newer, bigger aircraft to India

Singapore Airlines is enhancing its capacity to and from India, with newer, bigger aircraft being introduced into service, as it looks to cash in on the growing number of Indians travelling overseas.

Singapore Airlines has been rewarded as the world’s best airline for years. The airline started flying into India 49 years ago, with flights to Chennai. Over the years, it has started flying to other cities. Currently, Singapore Airlines, its regional subsidiary Silk Air and low-cost arm Scoot, together fly to 13 cities in India, making the country the second largest market in Asia, after China, in terms of number of cities Singapore Airlines flies to, David Lim, general manager, Singapore Airlines – India, told THE WEEK.

“We have had double digit growth in the last three years from India. We have been, in terms of capacity, flying more often and flying bigger aircraft, so there has been capacity increase over the last few years,” he said.

The airline in the last two years has introduced several new products coming into India. For instance, In July 2017, it introduced the Airbus A350 long haul aircraft into Mumbai and last year, it launched its Boeing 787 Dreamliner aircraft to Delhi. This year, Singapore Airlines has started flying the A350 into Bengaluru and Kolkata and from September it will start flying its biggest aircraft Airbus A380, which has been retrofitted with a new cabin, to Mumbai.
It is also increasing the number of services from a few cities. So, by the end of the year, it will start daily services between Singapore and Ahmedabad, versus three times a week in the past. It has also added one more flight to Mumbai, so it now flies 18 times a week between Mumbai and Singapore.
“From 2010, until now, our capacity has gone up by around 40 per cent,” said Lim.
09/08/19 Nachiket Kelkar/The Week

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Train, air services disrupted

Kozhikode: Heavy spell of rain in Kozhikode disrupted rail and air traffic with several trains and flights cancelled on Friday.

 Acting Airport Director K. Mohamed Shahid said that five flights, both domestic and international flights were diverted to other airports. However, these flights returned and took to their destinations later. One of them was the Saudia (Saudia Arabian Airlines) from Riyadh.

Calicut airport also handled two Indigo flights to Abu Dhabi and Dubai following the closure of Kochi airport. Also, a Chennai-Kochi-Dubai Spicejet flight took off from Calicut. The Kozhikode-Kochi-Sharjah Air India Express flight would also depart from Calicut on Saturday morning, Mr. Shahid said.
10/08/19 The Hindu

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Airfares skyrocket for expat Keralites in festival season

Thiruvananthapuram: The airfares between West Asian and Kerala cities are burning a hole in the pockets of expatriates who look to reach home for the coming festival season. There is already 100 to 200 per cent rise in airfares to Kerala at present and it is expected to cross 300 per cent this Onam with the shortage of flights between the state and the Gulf.

What is more shocking is the callousness of national carrier Air India and its Kochi-headquartered low-budget arm, Air India Express. Despite the Centre’s permission to the national carrier and its subsidiary to use the slots vacated by the grounded Jet Airways to clear the extra rush on the routes between West Asia and Kerala, both airlines have been dragging their feet.

A senior Air India Express official told Express that most of the slots vacated by Jet Airways are money-spinning routes. For instance, the Thiruvananthapuram-Doha route vacated by Jet would have been taken up by any airline company without a second thought as the occupancy rate on the route is always beyond the market dynamics. Moreover, it is the responsibility of the national carrier to stabilise the route if there is any vacuum or over-exploitation by private airlines.

The vacuum created with the exit of Jet is being effectively used by private airlines by hiking their ticket prices two- to three-fold. The high demand and paucity of enough seats on critical routes allow the airline companies to plunder the passengers under the dynamic ticket pricing system.
10/08/19 Dhinesh Kallungal/New Indian Express

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Solid air passenger demand, record load factor in June: International Air Transport Association

The International Air Transport Association (IATA) on Thursday announced global passenger traffic results for June showing that demand (measured in revenue passenger kilometres or RPKs) rose by 5% compared to June 2018.

This was up slightly from the 4.7% year-over-year growth recorded in May. June capacity (available seat kilometres or ASKs) increased by 3.3% and load factor rose 1.4% points to 84.4% which was a record for the month of June.

"June continued the trend of solid passenger demand growth while the record load factor shows that airlines are maximising efficiency. Amid continuing trade tensions between the United States and China, and rising economic uncertainty in other regions, growth was not as strong as a year ago, however," said IATA's Director General and CEO Alexandre de Juniac.
June international passenger demand rose 5.4% compared to June 2018 which was an improvement from 4.6% annual growth recorded in May. All regions recorded increases in growth led by airlines in Africa.

Capacity rose 3.4% and load factor climbed 1.6% points to 83.8%. European airlines saw traffic rise 5.6% in June compared to June 2018 in line with 5.5% demand growth the month before.

The solid growth occurred against a backdrop of slowing economic activity and declining business confidence in the Euro area and the UK.
India's domestic market continues to recover from the demise of Jet Airways with demand rising 7.9% in June compared to the year-ago period.

"The peak summer travel season in the Northern Hemisphere is upon us. Crowded airports are a reminder of the vital role aviation plays in connecting people and commerce," said de Juniac.
08/08/19 ANI/DNA

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J&K political crisis: Airlines see bookings fall, cancellations rise

Mumbai: Although domestic airlines continue to fly to Srinagar, Jammu and Leh despite the political slugfest, there is a decline in Passenger Load Factor (PLF).
A spokesperson for Air India said that for the flights to J&K, the PLF were 60 per cent, though there was no disruption in service.
Airlines have not received any directive from the government to stop flying to J&K and Leh. However, according to an executive representing the full service carrier, “the passenger load factors for flights going to the J&K region are impacted to a great extent and is likely to stay like this for the next three to six months.”
An industry expert said on the condition of anonymity, “There will be a drop in PLF of at least 30-40 per cent. This will continue for a long time.”
The Directorate General of Civil Aviation, had in April, asked the airlines to expand capacity and not increase fare in general. An industry expert said, “In general scenario, the fares in that region would have been impacted and shot up. However, due to the government’s decree, the fares have a cap.”
However, airlines are facing connectivity issues which are disrupting operations. GoAir spokesperson said, “GoAir is facing operational challenges, in that there is limited telephone connectivity in J&K making it difficult to conduct normal operations.”
An LCC player said, “The public sentiment is at a peak at the moment, and hence, we have seen more cancellations. Advance bookings, too, have been impacted.” Industry players like Yatra.com and Thomas Cook have seen a diversion in traffic.
09/08/19 Forum Gandhi/Business Line

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Why do airlines deliberately overbook flights

Have you ever experienced being bumped?
We mean buying a plane ticket, packing your bags, getting to the airport and then finding out that the airline has deliberately overbooked your flight and you no longer have a seat.
Most of us hate when this happens, so why do airlines continue to do it?
Read here the answer >>

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Pakistan airspace remains open for Indian flights: CAA

Pakistan on Thursday clarified that it has neither closed its airspace for India nor re-routed any route for the Indian flights. “There has been no change to the notice to airmen (NOTAM) and all flights are being operated as per schedule issued earlier,” Civil Aviation Authority Pakistan spokesperson Mujtaba Baig told PTI. “Pakistan has neither closed its airspace for India nor re-routed or closed down any route for the Indian flights,” he said.
Responding to a question about re-routing of a few routes as reported by the media, he said: “Not a single route has been re-routed after the latest tension between the two countries.” Foreign Office Spokesperson Dr Mohammad Faisal also said that Pakistan had not banned its airspace for India.
“We have not banned our airspace for India. It is open for Indian flights,” he told reporters in Islamabad. There were reports that Pakistan had closed down a couple of routes for Indian flights following its decision to downgrade diplomatic ties with India in response to New Delhi’s move to revoke special status of Kashmir.
Pakistan on July 16 opened its airspace for India after some five months of restrictions imposed in the wake of a standoff with New Delhi earlier this year. Following the Balakot air strikes, Pakistan had closed its airspace on February 26.
08/08/19 PTI/Financial Express

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Wing Commander Abhinandan Fit to Fly Fighter Jets Again after Clearing Medical Tests, Confirm Sources

New Delhi: Six days before the government officially announces a Vir Chakra for Wing Commander Abhinandan Varthaman, the Indian Air Force (IAF) pilot received better news on Thursday. After a series of tests, Varthaman has been found medically fit to fly a fighter plane again, say sources.

Currently posted at the Suratgarh air base in Rajasthan , Varthaman is in charge of administrative duties. According to sources, he will start flying the Mig-21 soon. Varthaman will undergo a final medical test at the Bengaluru-based Institute of Aerospace Medicine. Sources say he is likely to pass with flying colours.
Varthaman became an aviation legend when he downed a Pakistani F-16 with his vintage Mig-21 Bison on February 27 — that is a bit like a Maruti 800 outracing a Mercedes-Benz. His aircraft was subsequently shot down and Varthaman taken a prisoner of war (POW) by Pakistan.

An ejection is never easy on a fight pilot. Even with a safe ejection, a spinal injury is a given — Varthaman also suffered it. Also, given his trauma of being in Pakistani captivity, he had to undergo a series of psychological tests and multiple debriefs.
Grounded for the last six months, Varthaman had to get back to being A1G1, a fitness level all fighter pilots are expected to maintain. He is likely to be back in the cockpit by the end of August, with his Vir Chakra proudly pinned to his uniform. The Vir Chakra is India's third highest war time gallantry award. As is tradition, the official announcement will be made on August 14, a day ahead of Independence Day.
08/08/19 Shreya Dhoundal/CNN-News18

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Shepherd hurt in landslide airlifted to Kangra

Dharmshala: A shepherd, who was injured in a landslide near Bara Bhangal four days ago, was airlifted on Thursday and brought to Gaggal airport to provide him medical treatment.
Chet Ram had sustained injuries on the legs and back after he was almost buried under a landslide about 20 kms away from Bara Bhangal in Kangra district. He was taken to Dr Rajendra Prasad Medical College and Hospital, Tanda, in Kangra. The village, which is one of the remotest in Himachal Pradesh, can be reached after a trek of 72 hours.
Kangra deputy commissioner Rakesh Kumar Prajapati said the authorities had information about the accident on August 5 as the villagers at Bara Bhangal used a satellite phone to inform the local authorities in Baijnath. He said the officials had sent a helicopter for the rescue but failed to do so because of the inclement weather.
09/08/19 Times of India

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‘Biju didn’t land 1st plane in Srinagar in ‘47 war’

Bhubaneswar: War historian and researcher Anil Dhir has claimed that contrary to the reports on former Chief Minister Biju Patnaik in the aftermath of the Jammu and Kashmir action by the Centre, the legendary leader had no role in the first landing of warplane during the October 27, 1947 invasion of Kashmir and also in the Maharaja Hari Singh signing the Instrument of Accession.
Dhir lamented that the biographies, including the official hagiographic “The Tall Man”, are replete with untrue information on Bijubabu’s bravery and the attempt to demand Bharat Ratna for him on the basis of the falsehood. On the contrary, he said the highest civilian award should be demanded by highlighting the truth about Bijubabu.
Citing from his own book on Biju Patnaik which is yet to be published, which he claimed to be based on his research and documentary evidences from the IAF Archives, Dhir said the legendary leader was nowhere near Srinagar or Jammu and Kashmir on the fateful day.
“In fact, he did do many landings in later, the first being on the November 10, 1947, and a good fourteen days after the invasion,” said Dhir, further claiming that the first landing was done by Wing Commander Karori Lal Bhatia of the Indian Air Force, flying a DC-3 Dakota.
“Three Dakotas of 12 Sqn took off from Wellingdon airfield at Delhi at 0500 hours for Srinagar signalling the start of the IAF operations in the 1947-48 war. Before the end of the day, 28 Dakota sorties were flown,” he said.
Immediately after the Maharaja of Kashmir signed the Instrument of Accession on the October 26, 1947, No 12 Sqn, under the command of Wing Commander Bhatia was deputed for operations. He piloted the very first aircraft, into the Kashmir Valley on October 27, 1947, carrying troops of 1st Sikh Regiment under Lt Col DR Rai. In the following weeks, the squadron also conducted bombing sorties in support of the army with the bombs being rolled out of the cargo bay by the aircrew. The fledgling Indian Air Force committed almost its entire resources to the 1947-48 Kashmir operations, said Dhir.
09/08/19 Pioneer

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India's domestic air traffic rose 7.9% in June: IATA

New Delhi: India's domestic air traffic rose 7.9 in June as compared to the same period last year, International Air Transport Association (IATA) said on Thursday.

India’s domestic market continues to recover from the demise of Jet Airways, with demand rising 7.9 percent in June compared to the year-ago period” IATA said in its latest report.

IATA announced that global passenger traffic results for June 2019 showing that demand (measured in revenue passenger kilometers or RPKs) rose by 5.0 percent compared to June 2018. This was up slightly from the 4.7 percent year-over-year growth recorded in May. June capacity (available seat kilometers or ASKs) increased by 3.3 percent , and load factor rose 1.4 percentage points to 84.4 percent, which was a record for the month of June.
“June continued the trend of solid passenger demand growth while the record load factor shows that airlines are maximizing efficiency. Amid continuing trade tensions between the US and China, and rising economic uncertainty in other regions, growth was not as strong as a year ago, however,” said Alexandre de Juniac, IATA’s Director General and CEO.
08/08/19 Reema Sharma/Zee News

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