DGCA suspends SpiceJet pilot for mishearing ATC which led to runway incursion in Mumbai

Mumbai: Aviation regulator DGCA on Saturday suspended a first officer of SpiceJet for three months for mishearing an Air Traffic Control clearance, due to which he gave incorrect direction to the pilot-in-command (PIC), causing runway incursion at Mumbai airport, said a source.
"DGCA probe found that Atul Yadav, who was first officer on Surat-Mumbai flight on July 5, told the PIC that their plane was cleared by ATC to cross runway 14. The truth is the clearance was given to the IndiGo plane that was ahead of his plane," the source told PTI.
The SpiceJet plane had the call sign SEJ2763.
When the regulator issued a show-cause notice to Yadav on August 19, he responded by admitting his mistake and stating the incursion happened on July 5 because another plane with a similar call sign which was ahead of their plane had received the ATC clearance to cross runway 14, the source said.
The aircraft ahead of the SpiceJet plane was of IndiGo and it had a call sign IGO063, the source said.
31/08/19 PTI/Business Today

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Dead Bird On Mumbai Airport Runway Delays AirAsia, IndiGo Flights

Mumbai:  A dead bird on the runway of the city's Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj international airport on Saturday forced an AirAsia India flight to do a go-around and an IndiGo aircraft to discontinue the approach, an MIAL spokesperson said.
The presence of the dead bird on the runway was reported to the ATC by the pilot of a GoAir flight landing from Delhi, the Mumbai International Airport Ltd (MIAL) said.
"The pilot of G8-338 informed ATC of a dead bird on the runway. During the removal of the foreign objective debris (FOD), I5-304 was asked to go-around and 6E224 was asked to discontinue approach," the spokesperson said in a statement.
Both flights have since landed after operations on the runway resumed, she added.
31/08/19 PTI/NDTV

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AI fuel crisis sparks delays, diversions and luggage woes

Pune: The Air India’s jet fuel crisis, which has affected six airports including Pune, has caused flight diversions, delays and passengers’ luggage being offloaded.
On August 23, state-owned oil marketing firms had stopped the supply of aviation turbine fuel (ATF) at six airports — Pune, Ranchi, Visakhapatnam, Mohali, Patna and Kochi. Air India sources insisted that they were managing the situation without inconveniencing passengers. “ The situation is unchanged — Air India flights are still not getting fuel at Pune airport. However, flight operations are almost normal,” an Air India official told TOI.

On Wednesday, however, passengers on-board an Air India flight from Hyderabad to Pune were affected — the departure was delayed and, when it landed in Pune, passengers were informed their luggage had been left behind. “Horrible experience with Air India flight from Hyderabad to Pune. Flight departed almost 90 minutes late and on arrival in Pune, all passengers were informed that no luggage was loaded on the flight in Hyderabad,” Harsh, a passenger, had tweeted.

Air India denied that this was connected to the fuel crisis. “There was a payload issue with the Hyderabad-Pune flight, but that is not related to the current situation,” an AI source in Pune said.

AI sources said their flights were dealing with the situation by carrying an extra load of fuel for the return trip. For instance, a flight from Delhi to Pune carried enough fuel to allow it to return to Delhi. According to an official in the know, when aircraft carry extra fuel, it will impact the payload, heightening the chances of passengers’ luggage or cargo being offloaded.

In many cases, there were diversions. An Air India flight, AI-814 from Pune to Chandigarh, which flies on certain days of the week, was diverted to Mumbai on August 23, 26 and 28. “Fuel was the reason for these diversions,” another airlines official confirmed.
31/08/19 Joy Sengupta/Times of India

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Israel wants to post personnel in India to screen Tel Aviv flyers

New Delhi: Israel wants to add additional layers to its air-security and has requested India to allow trained Israeli personnel to put flyers to Tel Aviv through a behaviour analysis.
India, which usually gives its nod to such security measures from friendly countries on a reciprocal basis, is considering the request. “India is sensitive to security concerns of other countries and we usually allow specific requests on a reciprocal basis,” said a source.
Air India (Delhi-Tel Aviv) and Israel’s El Al (Mumbai-Tel Aviv) operate direct flights between the two countries. Israel wants its personnel on El Al to conduct a behaviour analysis of flyers on its flights from Mumbai.
A Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) official — responsible for airport security — said Israel had conducted a training programme for its personnel for behaviour profiling in 2010. “Since then we have been providing training in this field and using it. Almost all drug and cash recoveries are made by observing passenger behaviour,” the official said.
31/08/19 Saurabh Sinha/Economic Times

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Chandigarh: Fuel issues delaying Air India flights, says airport authority

Chandigarh: The Public Relations Officer (PRO) of Chandigarh airport claimed on Friday that several flights of Air India were being delayed due to "air-fuel issues".

"It has been observed that several Air India flights are being delayed daily due to air-fuel issues. We have not received any official statement from Air India regarding this," read a statement put out by the PRO.

In the statement, the official added that any inconveniences being faced by the passengers were related to the airline and its officials could be contacted by the aggrieved passengers.

"We submit that no inconvenience is being faced by passengers at Chandigarh Airport, rather than issues related to the airline only. Certain or correct information pertains to Air India only and its officials may be contacted for detailed reasons," the statement added.
31/08/19 ANI/India Today

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Oil companies threaten to extend fuel ban on Air India to two more cities; flight operations to get impacted

New Delhi: Passengers booked on Air India may not be able to complete their flights with oil companies threatening to expand their fuel supply ban on the national carrier to two more airports.
Sources said that the oil companies have written to the airline saying that they will expand their fuel supply ban to Raipur and Hyderabad airports too from September 5.
The oil companies are not supplying fuel to Air India at six airports that are Patna, Ranchi, Pune, Mohali, Vizag and Kochi.
“We are going to cancel our flights out of Vizag because it is becoming unsustainable for us to continue with our flights with the ban,” said a senior Air India official, who did not want to be identified.
He added that Air India is on cash and carry with oil companies and is paying RS 18 crore to them everyday.
31/08/19 Mihir Mishra/Economic Times

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Inclusive steps at Calcutta airport

Calcutta: The city airport is set to be friendlier towards fliers with reduced mobility with the authorities planning to set up dedicated terminal entry gates and baggage and security check-in counters for them.
Officials said a path from the entrance to the terminal till the boarding area would be delineated for the passengers to ensure they travel the minimum distance.
One gate in each of the two sections of the terminal (domestic and international) will be earmarked for fliers with restricted mobility.
The check-in island closest to the gate in each section will have a counter from where boarding passes of all airlines will be issued to the passengers. From there the fliers will proceed towards the nearest security check-in counter.
“We hope to implement the plan in eight months. Some of the technicalities are being discussed with the airlines,” airport director Kaushik Bhattacharya said on Friday.
As for the counters from where boarding passes of all airlines will be issued, Bhattacharya said: “The airlines have to prepare a roster for this. The counters will have a common user facility.”
Calcutta airport lacks some basic facilities for passengers with reduced mobility. Passengers in need of wheelchairs often allege that they have to wait for long after getting off their cars in front of the terminal building before the airline concerned sends a wheelchair.
There are phones at every gate in the departure area where a list of numbers of the airline help desks is displayed. But passengers often say calls to many of the numbers go unanswered.
The airport also lacks facilitation counters and adequate signage for passengers with reduced mobility.
An airport official said a counter would be set up at each of the two entry gates to help the passengers.
31/08/19 Telegraph

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L&T to construct greenfield Navi Mumbai airport

Hyderabad: GVK’s step down subsidiary, Navi Mumbai International Airport Private Limited (NMIAPL) has awarded Engineering, Procurement and Construction contract for the greenfield Navi Mumbai International Airport to the Transportation Infrastructure and Buildings & Factories businesses of L&T Construction.
The key development spectrum covers cut and fill works, terminal works including departure and arrival forecourts, airfield development works (a 3,700 m long south runway, apron systems, taxiway systems, airfield ground lighting &other facilities), landside facilities (roads, multilevel car parking), utilities & support facilities.
The passenger terminal building that has been designed by Zaha Hadid Architects is being developed to initially handle a capacity of 10 million passengers per annum (MPA). The project will subsequently be enhanced to handle 20 MPA.
GVK Reddy, Founder and Chairman, GVK: “With the commissioning of the iconic Terminal 2 at Mumbai airport and designing the under construction GardenTerminal 2 at Bengaluru airport, GVK had set new benchmarks in the Indian airports’ sector. Now for the Navi Mumbai International Airport, we have to raise the bar over and above what we have achieved at Mumbai and Bengaluru airports. For this, we are happy to partner with L&T yet again, as their team is very much in sync with our philosophy of delivering world-class quality and creating landmarks for others to follow. Am confident that with the high standards of excellence that L&T brings to the table, we will deliver yet another world-class airport that will be the pride of India”.
31/08/19 V Rishi Kumar/Business Line

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30 More Daily Flights to Kerala in Next 3 Months, Says Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan

Thiruvananthapuram: Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan was on Saturday informed that 30 additional daily flights would be introduced from the four airports in the state in the next three months.
The assurance in this regard was made by the Union Civil Aviation Secretary Pradeep Singh Kharola at a meeting of CEOs of various airline companies called by the chief minister here in the backdrop of airline companies reducing flights from the Thiruvananthapuram airport.
The additional flights would be introduced during the next winter schedule of airlines companies, a release quoting the Chief Minister's office (CMO) said. Five more flights would be introduced from Thiruvananthapuram to Delhi, Kharola said.
The Civil Aviation secretary had held an informal meeting with airline companies prior to the meeting, on the basis of which it was decided that 30 more flights would be introduced to the state during the winter schedules , the release said.
In the last meeting of CEOs of airlines companies, there was a demand for reducing excise duty on Aviation Turbine Fuel (AFT) and it had the support of the Civil Aviation secretary.
Vijayan pointed out that Kerala had reduced excise duty on ATF from 25 per cent to five per cent in 3 airports--Kozhikode, Kochi and Thiruvananthapuram, while in Kannur airport it was brought down to 1 per cent.
However, not only was there no positive response from the airlines companies, but the services from Thiruvananthapuram airport had been considerably reduced, the chief minister pointed out at the meeting.
31/08/19 PTI/News18.com

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Structural streamlining of airlines at Mumbai’s Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport

GVK led Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport (CSMIA) will witness unification of operations at terminal 1 and 2 starting October 1, 2019 for domestic flights of IndiGo, SpiceJet and GoAir.
This will ensure convenience to passengers travelling through Mumbai International Airport, thereby benefitting both airlines and passengers at large.

Starting October 1, IndiGo and GoAir will operate all their domestic flights from T1 and international from T2, while SpiceJet is to shift full operation to T2. The structural streamline of airlines initiated for the greater benefit and convenience of the passengers.

Having catered to over 48 million passengers in 2018-2019, CSMIA is always abuzz with travellers. Being one of the busiest airports in India, the Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport has allocated Terminal 1 with terminal boarding bridges for all airlines.
While the Terminal 2 of the airport operates both domestic as well as international flight, the airport currently operates 50 international and nine domestic airlines.
31/08/19 Free Press Journal

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IndiGo server snag at IGI causes check-in chaos

New Delhi: Server problems in the check-in-system of IndiGo triggered chaos in the early hours at Indira Gandhi International Airport as flights were delayed by 30-40 minutes. Long queues were witnessed at Terminal-2 in particular, after passengers were made to wait, some even for two-three hours.
“Woke up on the wrong side of the bed, did we Indigo? Your systems are down but you’ve managed to make everything else a mess too. 3 hours at the Delhi airport and counting (sic)” tweeted iKritica. Another twitter user, Gagan Gugnanj said while his Delhi to Mumbai flight was supposed to take off at 6.40am, passengers were still waiting till 8.55am at the airport.
DIAL, the airport operator, however, stated that flight operations were normal during the period. “The check-in system of IndiGo Airlines was affected early today. This has been fully restored now. During this period all other flight operations were normal. We regret any inconvenience caused. For any further information, please get in touch with the airline concerned,” said the airport operator on twitter.
31/08/19 Times of India

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Cars parked on airport ramp cause jam

Chennai: The new parking policy at Chennai airport is causing yet another hassle for passengers.
As the airport has allowed free drop at departure terminals and removed the earlier 10-minute limit for cars to exit the premises, cabs have started parking on the elevated ramp located in front of the terminals, to avoid paying fee at the parking lot. This causes congestion of vehicles that arrive to drop departing passengers.

Passengers said that during peak hours, congestion is experienced on the ramp in front of the domestic terminal as cabs which drop passengers do not move on. Instead, they park by the side of the terminal, a little ahead, waiting for a booking. If they drive down the ramp, they have to either exit the campus or enter the parking lot and pay Rs 40. The cabs drive down when they get a booking from the arrival terminal on the ground floor.

On Friday, many cabs were found parked near the domestic terminal on the ramp in the morning and in the afternoon. “The entire area was congested with cars,” said an airline staff.

Kiruba Shankar, who travelled three days ago, said, “There was congestion for about 17–20minutes as the parked cars occupied space available for vehicles to move. It was around 11am. I didn’t have many bags so I got down and walked, but many people, including senior citizens, had to wait.”
31/08/19 Times of India

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AAI positive on Adilabad airport

Adilabad: The Airports Authority of India (AAI) seems to be positive about feasibility of an airport in Adilabad as it has found all the relevant conditions and parameters such as temperatures and rainfall satisfactory. The only hitch, according to sources, is the high probability of the Indian Air Force (IAF) denying use of the old aerodrome, which is under its control, for the purpose.

“The AAI has sought coordinates of lands surrounding the aerodrome, located on the outskirts of Adilabad town, to assess feasibility of establishing the facility in those lands in such an eventuality,” revealed Adilabad R&B Superintending Engineer Md. Nazeer Ahmed. This nearly 1,600 acres of land stretch in Khanapur, Anukunta, Kachkanti and Thantoli villages was identified in 2014 for the purpose of acquisition for setting up a full fledged Air Force Station (AFS).

An AAI team had inspected the existing 369 acres of the World War II aerodrome as part of its feasibility survey besides identifying about 50 acres of adjoining land for acquisition in case they would have to extend the length of the runway. The AAI has apparently thought it proper to also assess the feasibility in the lands in question and has collected coordinates so as to keep alive the prospect of setting up of an airport.
Sources pointed out that the AAI has rated the chances of setting up airport in Adilabad much higher when compared to Basantnagar in Peddapalli district and Jakranpalli in Nizamabad district. Besides other constraints, there is no logic in establishing an airport at a distance of 150 km from the State’s capital, Hyderabad, sources added.
31/08/19 S. Harpal Singh/The Hindu

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Three trolley touts suspended, agency warned

Kolkata: Airport authorities have suspended at least three trolley retrievers for a month and threatened the agency manning the trolley handlers to sack anyone if found trying to fleece flyers by posing as assistance personnel.
The decision was taken after TOI on Friday reported on how a section of contractual staffers, sporting ID cards to give the illusion that they are authorized porters, stands at the base of escalators leading to baggage carousals in both domestic and international wings with trolleys to “assist” passengers. They target senior citizens and foreigners, and then fleece them, demanding Rs 500 from domestic fliers and $10 from international passengers.

“We have taken up the issue very seriously. There is a section of trolley handlers who are known for such mischievous activities for past several years. No matter how much we try and contain them, they play the union card and get away. But this time, we will take strict action against them. We have asked the agency that manages them to find out the culprits and deal with them on an immediate basis. We are also in the process of lodging an official complaint against the trolley touts,” said Kaushik Bhattacharjee, the airport director.

Since Friday morning, senior officials of the airport held a meeting over the issue and called all the handlers working at the airport for a test identification parade kind of check to find out the men who were accused of the crime. “We have suspended three men and have already asked the contractor to submit the passes of those involved,” said another official.

The three men who were spotted in the photograph carried in TOI on Friday are senior handlers who have been working at the airport for at least seven years, an official said.

Taking advantage of the absence of official porter service at the airport, a section of trolley retrievers under the contractor appointed by the Airports Authority of India (AAI) and contractual workers often pose as porters to earn the extra buck. Attempts by airport officials to curb the practice has met with limited success as the touts become active after 8pm when most officials retire for the day.
31/08/19 Tamaghna Banerjee/Times of India

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Pilot cites low fuel, Air India flight to Delhi takes off after high drama

Chandigarh: At least 70 Delhi-bound passengers of an Air India flight from Chandigarh to New Delhi had a harrowing experience on Thursday evening, when they were told not to board the plane, citing “low fuel” issues. High drama took place at the Chandigarh International Airport for nearly four hours as the passengers complained of harassment and protested against the airline staff.
The flight (AI-9832) that was to depart from Chandigarh Airport for New Delhi at 7.50 pm eventually took off around 10.10 pm. One of the passengers booked on the flight told Chandigarh Newsline that the pilot refused to fly the airplane citing “fuel shortage”.

“We were informed that the flight’s pilot has said that there was no money to buy fuel for the flight and thus she could not fly it back to New Delhi. We were shocked to hear this. Despite repeated requests, no alternative arrangement was made. Many passengers who had connecting flights left in a huff, searching for alternative modes of transport to Delhi,” said Ankit Gupta, a resident of Sector 28.

“There are some ongoing issues between Air India and Indian Oil company. The airport authority is cooperating with the passengers,” a spokesman of Chandigarh International Airport told Chandigarh Newsline late in the evening.

By 6.30 pm, the passengers who were booked on the flight AI-9832 had arrived at the airport, but they were informed that the flight would not be able to take off.

“First, we were informed that the flight was delayed. Then, the Air India staff told us that the flight will take off at 8.20 pm. But a few minutes later, we were told that the woman pilot of the plane has refused to take off citing there was no fuel in the plane,” another passenger told Newsline.

“We were left stunned when informed about the fuel shortage in the plane. Ideally, Delhi is the fuel station of flights and this Air India flight takes the fuel from Delhi airport before it comes to Chandigarh and then goes back to New Delhi late in the evening. It is surprising how a flight could take off from Delhi without adequate fuel to return to the base,” Gupta said.
30/08/19 Indian Express

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IndiGo to start flights on Delhi-Riyadh and Delhi-Kuwait route from October 11

New Delhi: Low-cost carrier IndiGo will begin operations on the Delhi-Riyadh route from October 11, making the Saudi Arabian capital its 22nd international destination, the airline said on Friday. The company said it would also be operating flights on the Delhi-Kuwait route from October 11. The airline already has direct flights on the Mumbai-Kuwait route.
"The airline currently operates daily non-stop flights between Mumbai and Jeddah, thereby extending direct connectivity between the capital cities of India and the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA)," IndiGo said in its statement.
IndiGo is the largest airline in India, with around 47 per cent share of the domestic passenger market.
"Riyadh has tremendous potential as a centre of commercial and political activity and we are convinced that our services will do well there, as they have done so far to Jeddah," William Boulter, Chief Commercial Officer of IndiGo, said.
30/08/19 PTI/Economic Times

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Announcement on Gaggal airport expansion by year-end, says Anurag

Dharamsala: Union minister of state for finance Anurag Thakur today said that Gaggal airport in Kangra district would be expanded by year end. “You will receive good news regarding Gaggal airport by year end,” said Anurag Thakur while responding to queries of newsmen at Gaggal airport today morning.
Anurag was on his maiden visit to Kangra district after taking over as union minister of state for finance. He was welcomed by hundreds of BJP workers at Gaggal airport.
Anurag said that facilities at the Gaggal port were expanded after the Dharamsala international cricket stadium came up. During international cricket matches chartered flights landed here. Now the airport would be expanded so that bigger flights can land here. It would give boost to tourism in Kangra region and also bring down prices of airfares.
30/08/19 Tribune

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Source says govt extends Adani Enterprises airport bid validity date

New Delhi:  The government has extended by three months the bid validity deadline for three airports for which Adani Enterprises Ltd had emerged as the highest bidder, a senior Airports Authority of India official told Cogencis.
In February, Adani Enterprises had emerged as the highest bidder to operate, manage and develop airports in Ahmedabad, Jaipur, Lucknow, Thiruvananthapuram, Mangaluru, and Guwahati on the basis of per-passenger fee payable to the Airports Authority of India.
On Jul 3, the Union Cabinet approved the bids for airports in Ahmedabad, Lucknow and Mangaluru, but not for Jaipur, Guwahati and Thiruvananthapuram.
While approvals for the Guwahati and Jaipur airports are pending with the respective state governments due to legal and land issues, the Kerala government has challenged in court the decision to hand over the Thiruvananthapuram airport to a private player.
The statutory body's request for proposal document stated the validity of the bids at Jul 31, before which a Cabinet approval to hand over control would have had to take place.
30/08/19 Dev Kachari/Cogencis

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Closing of Jammu Airport may hit implementation of UT rules

Jammu: The suspension of air traffic from October 1 to October 15 at the Jammu Airport for the re-carpeting of runway will affect the implementation of Union Territory in Jammu and Kashmir, as Jammu will remain cut off from Delhi and Srinagar for a fortnight.
As the rules of the Union Territory are scheduled to be implemented in Jammu and Kashmir from October 31, for which the preparations are being done by all agencies concerned, the air connectivity will create problems for the working of the Central Government in Jammu and Kashmir.
According to sources, the Civil Secretariat of Jammu will be opened quite early this time as the Union Territory will start working form the Secretariat in Jammu from October 31.
As the preparations are in full swing to finalise the guidelines for the Union Territory, officials and ministers from Delhi have to travel to Jammu to review the work. But the air traffic, which is scheduled to remain suspended from October 1 to October 15, according to sources, will cut off the air connectivity from Jammu to Srinagar and Delhi.
“All flights will remain suspended for a period of 15 days at the Jammu airport, not even the charter or private planes can operate from Jammu Airport,” a source in the Airport Authority of India (AAI) said.
As the Jammu Airport is a defence airport, it is being used by the Indian Air Force, state aircraft and some other jets. However, the operation of choppers and helicopters will remain unaffected.
The AAI, Jammu, had started the expansion of the runway up to 8,000 feet from the existing 6,700 feet in July last year and the deadline set for the completion is March 2020.
30/08/19 Amit Khajuria/Tribune

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Bengaluru airport sees major leak from ceiling after heavy rainfall

Staff at Kempegowda International Airport in Bengaluru responded quickly to a major leak that occurred on Thursday night after rainwater began seeping through the ceiling in one part of the airport. Staff were forced to cordon off the area and began clearing the water away.

While the city has witnessed similar scenes in metro stations, this appears to be the first time such an incident has occurred at the airport.

In an official statement, Bangalore International Airport Limited said, “Due to excessive rains in the Bengaluru Airport area, some water percolated through the external wall into the terminal building. The breach was identified and the area has subsequently been repaired and cleaned.”
A short viral video of Thursday’s incident shows water pouring from the ceiling and two men moping the area. Visuals suggest that the waiting area near Boarding Gate 9 had been affected.
In the last 24 hours ending 8.30 am on Friday, the weather station in the Kempegowda International Airport received 60.6 mm rainfall. However, the seasonal cumulative difference was only recorded at a 2% deficit till date.
30/08/19 News Minute

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Singapore Airlines to fly its brand new A380 into Mumbai from next week

Mumbai: Singapore Airline’s brand new A380R aircraft will be flying into Mumbai from September 1.
Mumbai International Airpot Ltd (MIAL) said the aircraft, which will operate the Mumbai-Singapore route seven days a week, will depart from Mumbai at 11:40 pm and arrive in Singapore at 07:40 am, local time.
30/08/19 Manju V/Times of India

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SpiceJet to launch 6 new international, domestic flights from 25 September; to introduce non-stop flight on Kolkata-Bangkok route

Gurugram: Budget carrier SpiceJet on Friday said that it would introduce six new flights to expand its network across domestic and international routes.
All the new flights introduced will operate daily and are effective from 25 September to 26 October in the summer schedule and then from 5 November onwards.
The carrier has introduced a second non-stop flight on the Kolkata-Bangkok-Kolkata sector besides enhancing frequencies on the domestic sectors of Kolkata-Chennai and Chennai-Shirdi. The airline will now connect Kolkata and Shirdi with a direct flight via Chennai.
"We see tremendous potential in the Kolkata-Bangkok sector. Our second non-stop flight on this route will offer a tremendous boost to the city's connectivity, considering it will also connect passengers to and from other Indian cities to Bangkok via Kolkata," said chief marketing officer Debojo Maharshi.
"Our additional frequencies from Kolkata to Bangkok and Chennai have been perfectly timed to meet and support the travel plans during Durga Puja holidays and the upcoming festive season. We are confident that the enhanced frequencies will offer better connectivity and flexibility to every traveller," he added.
30/08/19 ANI/First Post

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Air Vistara starts daily flights from Delhi - Bangkok

Looking for a perfect getaway plan for the long weekend? Well, a quick visit to Bangkok doesn’t seem like a bad idea and with Air Vistara’s new direct flight to Thailand, travellers are in for a world class experience.

Air Vistara recently inaugurated its services to Bangkok. This will be the third destination on its international network after Singapore and Dubai. The return flights from Bangkok to Delhi are priced at an inclusive fare starting from INR 16,936. With these new services in place, Air Vistara has now become the only airlines to offer premium economy class seats in addition to business and economy class. The aircraft will have three - class cabin each dedicated to business, economy and premium economy.

To make the inaugural flight a memorable experience for the fliers, Vistara presented them with gift bags and chocolates. According to CEO Leslie Thng, Bangkok is one of the most visited cities in the world and tapping into this market will open endless opportunities to further grow tourism and business.
30/08/19 Outlook Traveller

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3 parking employees held for assaulting cabbie at airport

Mohali: The local police have arrested three employees of the parking contractor at the Chandigarh international airport for allegedly assaulting a cab driver and a passenger and damaging the cab here today.
The suspects have been identified as Sandeep Kumar, Sandeep Singh and Dinesh Kumar.
In his complaint to the police, cab driver Sandeep alleged that he had picked a passenger from the railway station and came to the airport on his passenger’s request to receive his friend. The complainant stated that when they reached outside the parking ticket counter, he took a U-turn on the road under the flyover as he was not supposed to park the vehicle because the passenger had arrived on the road outside the parking ticket counter. He said on watching this, the three employees at the parking lot allegedly forced him to go through the parking fee counter.
The cab driver stated that he requested them that he had not parked his cab as the passenger had already arrived outside the parking lot. However, the three employees did not agree and allegedly forced him to take his vehicle inside the parking lot. He said when he resisted, the trio allegedly assaulted him and broke a windowpane of the cab. He said the passenger sitting on the rear seat sustained injuries on his arms, face and legs due to the broken windowpane.
30/08/19 Tribune

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DGCA’s ban on MacBook laptops may delay airport security checks

Pune: Security checks at the city airport may take longer following the prohibition on specific models of the Apple MacBook Pro laptops.
Sources in the Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) said they were ready for the required checks. “We don’t expect any problems. But security checks may take slightly longer. No flyers were found to be carrying the device on Tuesday. If any flyers have the device, we are required to conduct proper checks before allowing it on the aircraft,” a source at the Pune airport told TOI.

The prohibition on some models of the Apple MacBook Pro laptops was imposed by the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) amid concerns of defective batteries catching fire. A source at the airport said information on the restriction was being circulated among flyers, announced during security checks and notices regarding the same had been put up.

On Monday, a passenger flying from Pune to Chennai on a GoAir flight took to the social media for answers. “If my MacBook Pro laptop is safe as per the serial check on Apple’s website link, can I still carry it?. If needed, serial numbers can be double-checked by the airport authorities. I have tried calling their customer care centre and regional office ... They are not responding,” the passenger posted with an image of the eligibility criteria on the website.
29/08/19 Joy Sengupta/Times of India

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SpiceJet likely to start its Bhopal-Kolkata flight in September

Bhopal: It seems to be boom time for aviation in Bhopal. SpiceJet may launch a Bhopal-Kolkata flight from September 26, or even earlier that month - well in time to cash in on the Pujo frenzy.
"Realizing the potential on the Bhopal-Kolkata sector, it is obvious that the airline would show keen interest. An announcement is likely within a week or two," highly placed sources said, adding the Kolkata operations could start on September 10.
About two months ago, at a meeting with airlines' representatives and state government officials, chief secretary S R Mohanty had expressed concern that the Madhya Pradesh capital has zero air connectivity with the eastern part of the country. Apart from Kolkata, Bagdogra and Bhubaneshwar were among the cities discussed for east connectivity, and Lucknow, Ahmedabad, Chandigarh and Amritsar came up for the north. At the high-level meeting, Mohanty had urged airlines to link Bhopal with Kolkata and other cities. A frequent flyer, Rajat Pallav, said, "There are large Kolkata and North-East Diasporas in Bhopal. As far as I know, around 60,000-65,000 people from Bengal, and many thousands from Odisha and northeastern live and work in the capital, therefore, it could prove to be a feasible route for airlines."
29/08/19 Ramendra Singh/Times of India

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Udan flights from Chennai fail to take off

Chennai: In the wake of regional connectivity scheme, airlines started around 30 new flights from Chennai to small towns in the past five years but they have gradually withdrawn around 11 flights and have cut down on the frequency of the rest.

However, ministry of civil aviation has listed the 30 flights as new flights started from Chennai in the past five years in an information given in Lok Sabha last month to stress on growth in connectivity to small towns. The direct flights were started by Indi-Go, SpiceJet, GoAir, Truejet and Air India. SpiceJet has cancelled five of the 11 flights it started from Chennai while IndiGo has cancelled two of the eight flights.

GoAir has cancelled two of the five flights and Trujet cancelled one flight. Air India has cancelled its Varanasi flight, which was shown as the only new service the airline started from Chennai during the period. Direct flights were pulled out from Hubli, Mangaluru, Belagavi, Rajahmundry, Bangkok, Raipur, Udaipur, Kolkata, Kochi, Vijayawada and Varanasi. Air fares are high to Udaipur, Belagavi, Hubli, Raipur and Varanasi as passengers have to fly via another airport. The fares for travel next week are between ?5,000 and ?8,000.
29/08/19 V Ayyappan/Times of India

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Amritsar top International Destination for flights from Melbourne Avalon Airport

Amritsar: Sri Guru Ram Das Jee International Airport, Amritsar is in the limelight as a top destination from a foreign country airport. Amritsar has emerged as the top onward destination from Melbourne Avalon Airport on Air Asia X flights.

As per a report published by “Geelong Advertiser”newspaper from Geelong situated in the suburbs of Melbourne Avalon airport, Amritsar is the top onward destination for passengers flying from Melbourne Avalon to Kuala Lumpur. Other airports that follow in the top five list are Phuket (Thailand), Kochi (India), Penang (Malaysia) and Bangkok (Thailand). 

Air Asia X, is currently the only International airline operating flights from Melbourne Avalon after switching its twice-daily flight between Kuala Lumpur and Melbourne Tullamarine Airport to Avalon Airport in December 2018. It started its operation from Kuala Lumpur to Amritsar in August 2018 with four weekly flights using its 377-seater Airbus A330 aircraft fitted with 365 economy and 12 flatbed business class seats.
According to the report, Avalon Airport CEO Justin Giddings said that the booming Indian market provides a good tourist opportunity for the area and expressed surprise that China did not feature in the top five destinations. Amritsar features on the front cover of published report and the detailed story highlights importance of Amritsar along with a picture of Harmandir Sahib.
29/08/19 Punjab News Express

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Birsa airport ready for more planes

Jamshedpur: Ranchi airport will throw open six additional parking bays from next month enabling passengers to board or alight from 11 aircraft at a time, the expansion mirroring a surge in air travel that the state capital has seen in the last four years.

“We received an approval from Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) this month for operating six additional parking bays at Birsa Munda Airport. We will start using these within a week in September,” Ranchi airport director Vinod Kumar Sharma told The Telegraph on Thursday.

Currently, the airport also uses two aerobridges that allow passengers to board aircraft directly from the terminal waiting area. These were introduced in 2013 when the new international terminal building was opened.
Sharma said two more aerobridges were being planned, but these would take another six months to come up.
“The work to install two more aerobridges was delayed due to technical reasons. We are in the final phase of awarding tenders for construction of aerobridges. Construction would be completed in the next six months. We hope to make these operational in 2020,” he said.
Sharma said marking and installation of lights for the additional parking bays, or apron area, had been completed in February-March. Subsequently, DGCA officials conducted an inspection. Its approval reached Ranchi earlier this month.

As of now, the apron area of Ranchi airport can accommodate three Airbus (A-320) and two 19-seater ATR planes. The new apron facility can accommodate five Airbus and one ATR plane at one time.

This means, as many as eight Airbus and three ATR planes can be parked at one time at the airport.
29/08/19 Animesh Bisoee in Ranchi/Telegraph

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Selfie with Sara: Runaway schoolboy returns home

Bhopal: The runaway schoolboy, who was located after taking a viral selfie with actress Sara Ali Khan, has been found in Pune. Ajay Singh’s parents brought him back on Tuesday.
“Ajay had gone to Mumbai, then Goa and some other places. He reached home yesterday. We are glad that hs is safe,” his father Swaroop Singh told TOI on Wednesday.
The 17-year-old was reported missing from Raisen on August 17. He was not seen or heard till August 22 when some Bollywood websites ran a video of a fan seeking a selfie with Sara Ali Khan at Mumbai airport. It went viral. A cousin of Ajay saw it and ran to Swaroop’s sweetshop to show him the video.
The clip shows Ajay bumping into Sara at Mumbai airport in his eagerness to take a selfie. She is startled at first but obliges him for a photo immediately afterward.
The family was relieved that he is at least safe. Police had tracked his debit card usage but were unable to locate him because he had bought a new cellphone. “After seeing the video, we informed his maternal grandfather, who lives in Mumbai. He contacted everyone he knew and we found Ajay in Pune. We brought him back,” Swaroop told TOI.
29/08/19 Amarjeet Singh/Times of India

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Airfares reduce after rail, road connectivity restored

Mangaluru: With the road and train services from Mangaluru being restored, airlines operating from Mangaluru International Airport that made a killing during the floods have pared down their prices. The airfares are now below Rs 2,000 one-way to Bengaluru.
The airlines had hiked the fares to the nearest destinations, especially Bengaluru, by almost three to four times in the second week of August. The fury of monsoon had caused landslides on Charmadi and Shiradi routes, cutting off both road and rail connectivity to Bengaluru and other neighbouring districts.
Usually, airfares to Bengaluru from Mangaluru cost less than 4,000, but during the crisis period, the fares were hovering in excess of Rs 10,000 to Rs 15,000. The fares to other cities like Mumbai and Hyderabad too has seen a steep rise in the same period.
Now with road and rail connectivity established, the prices have fallen sharply to below Rs 2,000 one way, barring the holiday period due to festivities from September 1 to 4, which is at Rs 4,000 one –way.
29/08/19 Times of India

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Maharashtra clears Rs 992-cr additional expenditure for MIHAN

The Maharashtra Cabinet granted administrative and financial approval for Rs 992-crore additional expenditure for the Multi-Model International Passenger and Cargo Hub Airport at Nagpur (MIHAN).
The project aims at developing the existing Nagpur domestic airport as an international passenger and cargo hub airport along with a huge special economic zone (SEZ), which is abutting to the boundary of the airport.
According to an official statement, the government had earlier approved Rs 1506 crore expenses for carrying out land acquisition, rehabilitation and technical works relating to the project.
29/08/19 moneycontrol

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Mumbai: CBI arrests customs official at airport for taking bribe

Mumbai: The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) arrested the appraising officer at air cargo section of Mumbai airport in Maharashtra while accepting Rs 10,000 bribe on Tuesday.

Accused SS Jha was working on duty drawback section of the cargo section of customs and he demanded the bribe from the complainant.
It was alleged that the customs had put IEC code of complainant under alert, because of which he was unable to export his consignment.

When the complainant approached Jha, he demanded Rs 20,000 bribe to permanently revoke the alert. After negotiation, he reduced the amount to Rs 10,000. Jha has also accepted Rs 5,000 bribe from the complainant on earlier occasion for lifting the alert temporary for 15 days enabling the complaint to export his consignments.
28/08/19 Vijay V Singh/Times of India

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Expansion projects to triple airport capacity by 2020

Surat: Once the work on terminal building expansion, parallel taxiway and an apron is completed at Surat airport, its capacity is set to increase threefold.
Work orders to the tune of Rs300 crore for the development of airport either have been issued or are in the process and they are expected to be completed by the middle of 2020, Airports Authority of India (AAI) officials said.

Direct flights to two more international destinations are being planned amid efforts to triple average monthly traffic of 1.45 lakh people and operations of 46 daily flights from Surat airport by next year.

Air India Express operates direct flight to Sharjah and private airlines to other destinations in the country from Surat.

“Development of Surat airport started late compared to other tier two cities, but by 2020 it is likely to leave all airports in the country behind in terms of development and facilities,” said an officer of AAI.

Surat airport terminal building will be expanded on both sides and in front on modular basis at a cost of Rs100 crore. “This will give three times more floor space to passengers. The airport will have five aero bridges instead of two that it now has.

Construction of parallel taxiway and apron will enable an aircraft to immediately move away from the main runway.
28/08/19 Times of India

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Bye to Ranchi airport belly aches, taxi trauma

Jamshedpur/Ranchi: A proper meal and a prepaid taxi service, two facilities that were not on offer for passengers at Ranchi airport, are set to resume by Durga Puja.

The eatery on the first floor of Birsa Munda Airport had been closed for more than a week after the contract of the Patna-based firm that was running it expired. The prepaid taxi service was suspended for over a year after the contracted private firm pulled out.

Airport director Vinod Kumar Sharma said on Tuesday that the process to float tenders for finalising firms to operate the restaurant and start the pre-paid taxi service had begun.

“We will be finalising the firms for operating the restaurant and the pre-paid taxi service in September so that it is in operation before the festive rush in October when passenger footfall will increase,” he told The Telegraph.

At present, Birsa Munda Airport only runs a coffee/tea outlet and three takeaway snacks counters. The restaurant, called Food Hub, also offered takeaway services.

Airport officials conceded that the restaurant was an immediate necessity in view of the increase in number of frequent flyers to and from Ranchi.

“A lot of young people are travelling by flight these days. They expect quality service, good eating options and a place to chill out while waiting for flights. Hence, the urgency to select an agency to start the restaurant,” an official explained.

According to data shared by the transport department, Ranchi airport, spread over 1,568 acre, use to handle six lakh passengers in 2014-15. Since then, the numbers have only increased.

Passenger count was 10 lakh in 2015-16, 13 lakh in 2016-17 and 16 lakh in 2017-18.

While there were only 11 flights carrying 6 lakh passengers annually in 2014, the number of flights increased to 30 in 2018. The number of passengers is projected to touch 22 lakh for 2018-19.

A senior airport official confirmed that passengers had been demanding a pre-paid taxi service for long.
28/08/19 Animesh Bisoee/Telegraph

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Cops out of sight, vehicles return to no-parking zone at Kolkata airport

Kolkata: The cat-and-mouse game continued to be played out at the airport between the cops and the drivers of VIP vehicles.
On Monday, cops at the airport had started booking drivers of VIP vehicles for illegal parking, asking government and defence vehicles parked on ‘no-parking’ zone to move to a separate channel for privileged vehicles. The result was evident as the carriageway outside the airport terminal wore a clutter-free look for most part of Monday. But as with most police drives, the number of cops thinned on Tuesday morning and the violators were back to their old practice. They clogged the ‘no-parking’ zone and ignored all instructions of the airport’s traffic marshals.
Among the violators was a VIP vehicle of a state cabinet minister. “We asked the cars to shift to the VIP bay but none was ready to listen to us. Then we called the cops for help,” said an official of the parking agency.
Post noon, a team of officers from Airport traffic guard came to the airport and began asking the errant drivers to get back to the parking bay. “Some drivers even asked for a notification but we just showed them the ‘no-parking’ boards and that a new bay had been made just for them. We even told them that we will take action if they were still adamant to park their cars there. The move worked and the drivers shifted to the new bay,” said an officer.
28/08/19 Tamaghna Banerjee/Times of India

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Flights soon from Jaffna's Palali airport to 4 Indian cities but not Chennai; Report

The Palali regional airport in North which is expected to commence airline services to Indian regional cities in mid October as construction are to be completed with the Indian grant will not have Chennai as one of the destinations, a news report from Hindustan Times said.

Since the end of its three-decade long civil war in 2009 and with the help of India, Sri Lanka has been upgrading the Jaffna peninsula’s Kankesanthurai harbour and the adjacent air field Palali, which played a crucial role for the Sri Lankan air force to air-drop relief supplies during the brutal conflict, when supply lines to Jaffna were often cut off by the separatist Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE).

Come October, Palali will undergo a radical transformation and become Sri Lanka’s third international airport with connections to four Indian cities. However, and much to the chagrin of Tamils in both India and Sri Lanka, Chennai is not one of them.

Sri Lankan civil aviation minister Arjuna Ranatunga last week inaugurated a INR 2.5 billion expansion program of Palali’s facilities for which India provided Rs 300 million. Speaking on the occasion, the minister expressed the hope that opening up Palali to Indian visitors will attract investment, create employment and boost tourism in the Jaffna peninsula. He also announced that smaller commercial planes will operate flights to Bengaluru, Kochi, Mumbai and Hyderabad.

But what about historically and culturally linked Chennai? As of now and given the lack of land and sea connections, members of Sri Lanka’s largest minority community desirous of visiting Tamil Nadu have to take a circuitous, six-hour road trip to Colombo’s Bandaranaike international airport to fly there. Whether Chennai will be added when an extended runway in Palali is able to accommodate wide-bodied aircraft, remains an open question.
28/08/19 Times Online

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CBI nabs Mumbai airport customs officer for graft

Mumbai: The Central Bureau of Investigation nabbed a customs officer at the Mumbai airport for demanding a bribe of Rs 10,000 from a complainant to revoke an export alert, an official said here on Wednesday. The accused, Subhash Shankar Jha, is working as Appraising Officer in the Duty Drawback Section at the Air Cargo Complex.

According to the complainant, the Customs Department had put the Importer Exporter Code of the complainant under "alert", due to which he was unable to export his consignment. When he approached Jha to revoke the alert, the latter took a bribe of Rs 5,000 from him on August 20 for issuing a One Time NOC, valid for 15 days to enable the complainant export within that period.
The One Time NOC was issued on August 22, but two days later, Jha demanded another bribe of Rs 20,000 to permanently revoke the alert.
28/08/19 Times Now News

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Nagaland: 3 flight services in Dimapur by October

Dimapur: Flight services between Dimapur-Guwahati, Dimapur-Imphal and Dimapur-Dibrugarh under the government of India’s UDAN scheme will start operating by October this year.

A Raj Bhavan statement informed that this was an assurance given by the Union Minister for Civil Aviation Hardeep Singh Puri to Governor RN Ravi when they met in New Delhi on Tuesday.

Ravi had called on the union minister to raise the issue of air connectivity of Nagaland with the rest of the country, it informed.
27/08/19 Eastern Mirror

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Cial conducts biennial emergency mock drill

Kochi: A full-scale emergency mock drill was conducted at the Cochin International Airport Limited (Cial) on Tuesday to ensure the operational readiness and security measures of the airport during emergency situations. The biennial exercise was conducted through the joint coordination of all security stakeholders at the airport and also with the support of various airlines, Indian Navy, Coast Guard, district administration, Airports Authority of India and several hospitals.

This year, the authorities staged an emergency situation of a fire in the engine of an Airbus320 aircraft of IndiGo airline. There were 166 passengers and nine crew members on board at that time. The pilot spotted the fire in the engine just before the scheduled take-off at 2.46pm and alerted the ATC. The smoke started emanating from the aircraft, triggering full-scale emergency alert at the airport.
28/08/19 Times of India

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Expansion projects to triple Surat airport

Surat: Once the work on terminal building expansion, parallel taxiway and an apron is completed at Surat airport, its capacity is set to increase threefold.
Work orders to the tune of Rs300 crore for the development of airport either have been issued or are in the process and they are expected to be completed by the middle of 2020, Airports Authority of India (AAI) officials said.

Direct flights to two more international destinations are being planned amid efforts to triple average monthly traffic of 1.45 lakh people and operations of 46 daily flights from Surat airport by next year.

Air India Express operates direct flight to Sharjah and private airlines to other destinations in the country from Surat.

“Development of Surat airport started late compared to other tier two cities, but by 2020 it is likely to leave all airports in the country behind in terms of development and facilities,” said an officer of AAI.

Surat airport terminal building will be expanded on both sides and in front on modular basis at a cost of Rs100 crore. “This will give three times more floor space to passengers. The airport will have five aero bridges instead of two that it now has.

Construction of parallel taxiway and apron will enable an aircraft to immediately move away from the main runway.

28/08/19 Times of India

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Vistara starts daily flights to Bangkok from Delhi

Indian carrier Vistara launched its daily service to Bangkok from Delhi yesterday.

The airline will now fly daily between Delhi and Bangkok, which is the carrier’s third international destination. The other two international destinations are Singapore and Dubai.

“We’re delighted to enter another new geography with service to Bangkok, one of [the] world’s most-visited cities with immense potential to further grow tourism as well as business. With Vistara, we introduce India’s best airline to Bangkok that’s committed to making a mark in global aviation with its world-class product and impeccable service,” said Vistara’s CEO Leslie Thng.

An A320neo was used on the inaugural flight. The aircraft features a three class cabin configuration that includes premium economy, cusiness class and economy class. Vistara says that it’s the only airline to offer the choice of premium economy class for travel between India and Thailand.

The aircraft has a total of eight seats in Business class, 24 in premium economy and 132 in economy class. The width, pitch, and recline of the business class seats are 22.6 inches, 41 inches and seven inches respectively.

Vistara celebrated the occasion by giving each passenger a gift bag of memorabilia and chocolates during the flight. The Tourism Authority of Thailand extended a traditional Thai welcome to all Vistara customers as well, according to the airline.
28/08/19 Business Traveller

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Operation of flights on New South Parallel Runway at Bengaluru Airport to commence in December

Bengaluru: Operation of flights on the new south parallel runway (NSPR), the second runway at Kempegowda International Airport (KIA), will commence on December 5, 2019. Trial runs on the newly constructed runway were kicked off on Tuesday.

Indigo Airlines, SpiceJet and Air Asia India flights took part in the trial runs held on Tuesday.
The 4000-metres-long and 45-metres-wide runway, although it is equipped with CAT IIIB Instrument Landing System (ILS) which will enable flights to land even in dense fog and low visibility conditions, will initially begin operations with CAT I standard certification. It will progressively evolve to CAT III B as operations stabilize, said Bangalore International Airport Limited (BIAL)—operator of KIA. BIAL had earlier announced that the NSRP would become operational by October, this year.

"The new South Runway at the Kempegowda International Airport, Bengaluru (BLR Airport) nears operational readiness with the successful completion of validation flight on August 27, 2019. Operations on the new Runway are planned to commence on December 5, 2019. The validation flights were conducted to certify aerodrome navigational aids and instrument procedures as determined by Civil Aviation regulations. The Code F and Cat IIIB compliant runway, measuring 4000-metres in length and 45-metres in width, will begin operations – initially – with CAT I standard certification and will progressively evolve to CAT IIIB as operations stabilise. Following infrastructure and procedural improvements, the runways will eventually be used for independent mixed mode operations, allowing flights to take-off and land from either runway,” read the statement issued by BIAL, on Tuesday.
27/08/19 Swathyr Iyer/Times of India

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Ahmedabad: Two planes crunch parking space

Ahmedabad: Parking in Ahmedabad is not a problem only for cars but for aircraft too! Over the past five months — after the aviation regulator Directorate General of Civil Aviation(DGCA) — grounded the entire fleet of Boeing 737 Max 8 aircraft operating in India, two such aircraft remain parked at Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel International (SVPI) airport.

Both these aircraft, operated by the low-cost carrier SpiceJet, have become eyesores for the Airports Authority of India (AAI), according to a well-placed source. The aircraft are blocking parking space in the already crammed city airport. The parking charge for both the aircrafts amount to Rs 1.82 crores, said sources.


“The two aircraft have been parked for 169 days at the city airport,” the source said. “The circumstances are unusual, but when parking space is scarce, problems are bound to occur.” On March 12 this year, the DGCA had banned Boeing 737 Max 8 aircraft after Ethiopian Airlines flight 302 crashed minutes after take-off, killing all 157 passengers on board.


Until further instructions from the DGCA, these aircraft cannot be moved from the city airport, the source said. “SVPI airport has only 33 aircraft parking stands, against more than 250 aircraft movements including arrivals and departures,” the source said.

28/08/19 Niyati Parikh/Times of India

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Second KIA runway trial runs begin, to open on December 5

Bengaluru: Flights will start operating on the new south parallel runway (NSPR), the second runway at Kempegowda International Airport (KIA), on December 5. Airport operator Bangalore International Airport Limited (BIAL) announced this after trial runs began on the new airstrip on Tuesday.


IndiGo Airlines, SpiceJet and Air Asia India flights took part in the trial runs. After taking off from NSPR, they went till nearby Dhiburahalli village airspace before making their way back. The trials were conducted from 12.30pm to 3pm, during the scheduled main runway closure at the airport.


The 4,000m-long and 45m-wide second runway, equipped with CAT IIIB Instrument Landing System (ILS) which will enable flights to land even in dense fog and low-visibility conditions, will initially begin operations with CAT I standard certification. It will evolve to CAT III B as operations stabilise, said BIAL.


The new runway is also equipped with dual parallel taxiways, cross-field and rapid-exit taxiways. When the second runway becomes operational, BIAL plans to upgrade the existing runway and associated taxiways from CAT-I to CAT-III, which will help pilots land aircraft during low-visibility conditions.
28/08/19 Times of India

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Culprits adopting new ways to smuggle foreign currency from Hyderabad's RGI airport

Hyderabad: The case of two youngsters being caught at the RGI airport by Directorate of Revenue Intelligence for smuggling foreign currency by hiding it in a false cavity created in sweet boxes last week on Wednesday, is the first of its kind incident, said, officials.

 There have been instances of foreign currency being smuggled out of the country from Hyderabad, but the Modus Operandi (MO) used by these persons is quite unique. There have been instances of smugglers and carriers adopting such means to smuggle gold from Gulf countries, but employing this MO for smuggling goods out of the country, is raising suspicion on new ways adopted by operators.

The youngsters, both belonging to Hyderabad, were travelling for the first time. Each of them had concealed `3.50 lakh Saudi riyals equivalent to `74 lakh, inside boxes containing sweets and biscuits.
Though it is suspected to be a hawala transaction, involving converting black money into white, the mode in which it has taken up is surprising.

According to investigators, there were several cases in the past, where foreign currency was smuggled abroad and at least four women were caught at RGIA in the past few months. But all of them were found to have concealed the currency in their baggage or clothes or especially in designer clothes. According to officials, the value of foreign marked gold which makes way into the Indian markets, is paid through hawala in the form of foreign currency.
28/08/19 Pinto Deepak/New Indian Express

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Sikkim misses flight relaunch date

Calcutta: On, off, about to be on but off again — that’s the status of the flight to Sikkim’s Pakyong.

The lone flight to the Himalayan state from Calcutta, suspended in June, was set to be revived on October 1 but the airline has shelved the plan citing lack of infrastructure at the Pakyong airport, located at 4,600 feet.

Officials at SpiceJet said the facilities required for flights to operate in low visibility were yet to be installed at the airport.

“We had planned to restore the flight on October 1. But the plan was deferred at the last moment because the infrastructure is not yet ready. We now plan to resume the flight towards the end of October,” a SpiceJet official said.
“Many of those who have booked tickets have taken refunds. We will try to accommodate the passengers who have not taken refunds on flights to Bagdogra.”
Prime Minister Narendra Modi had in September 2018 inaugurated the airport at Pakyong, built under the Centre’s regional connectivity scheme Udan (Ude Desh Ka Aam Naagrik).
In the absence of instrument landing system, the minimum visibility required for a flight to land at Pakyong is 5km.
“The weather would be foggy on most days and flights could not land. On an average 50 per cent of the flights would be cancelled because of weather,” a SpiceJet official said.
Since the weather is likely to improve in October, which also coincides with the holiday season, the airline had planned to resume the flight on the 1st of that month. But the relaunch had to be deferred because of lack of infrastructure.

Civil aviation ministry officials said they were unable to install landing aids because of agitation by landowners there.

Sikkim government officials said the landowners had started an agitation and were not allowing upgrade work.

“The residents are alleging that about 60 acres of land adjacent to the airport had been damaged because of landslides, caused while a hilltop was being sliced for increasing visibility. More than 60 houses were affected. The residents were paid compensation but they are demanding more,” an official in the Sikkim government said.

“We will meet the residents and the airport authorities to try and find a solution by the end of this month.”
28/08/19 Sanjay Mandal/Telegraph

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Jammu, India to close for runway works in 4Q19

As the communications blackout continues in Kashmir amid tensions surrounding the status of the disputed state of Jammu and Kashmir, the Airports Authority of India (AAI) has announced that Jammu Airport will be shut for at least 15 days from October 1 to resurface the runway.

Sources told the Indian newspaper The Tribune that the airport's closure was not related to a previously announced expansion, as the Indian Air Force (IAF) would be doing the resurfacing. The AAI had said in July 2018 that it would expand asphalt runway 18/36 from its current 2,000 metres to 2,440 metres, with a deadline of March 2020. On August 16, 2019, Sushma Chauhan, deputy commissioner for Jammu, requested that the agencies executing the expansion provide structure-free greenfield sites to the AAI to speed up the project.

In relation to the closure, the sources said that the Jammu branch of the AAI was exploring options to move some flights operating to Jammu to Pathankot or the air force base at Udhampur as alternative arrangements to deal with any VIP or emergency visits during the resurfacing period
28/08/19 ch-aviation

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3 NE cities to connect to Dpr via air

Dimapur: Nagaland's commercial hub, Dimapur, is set to be connected with Guwahati, Imphal and Dibrugarh by air  in the next two months.
According to a statement from Raj Bhavan, Kohima, the Union Civil Aviation Ministry has assured Nagaland Governor RN Ravi about these air services which will be operatio-nalised by October, 2019.
"The three routes are Di-mapur-Guwahati, Dima- pur-Imphal and Dimapur-Dibrugarh covered under the UDAN scheme.  Civil Aviation Minister, Hardeep Singh Puri gave the assurance during his meeting with Governor Ravi on August 27 in New Delhi, where the air connectivity of Nagaland with the country and the North East region was discussed", the Raj Bhavan press note said.
Meanwhile, Governor RN Ravi sought Hardeep Singh Puri’s assistance for early operationalisation of routes to three sectors under UDAN scheme.
28/08/19 Newmai News Nework/Sangai Express

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Good news for flyers at Bengaluru Airport from December 5

Bengaluru Airport’s (BLR) second runway will start functioning from December 5. In a major expansion at Kempegowda International Airport in Karnataka’s capital, a validation flight has been completed successfully on the newly constructed south runway. Currently, Bengaluru Airport has one runway. Once the second runway becomes operational, Bengaluru Airport will become the second airport in southern India to have two runways.

The validation flights have been successfully conducted to certify aerodrome navigational aids and instrument procedures as determined by Civil Aviation regulations. Operations on the new runway were planned to start on December 5, 2019, Bangalore International Airport Infrastructure Limited (BIAL), that runs the Kempegowda International Airport, said in a statement.

According to BIAL official, the Code F and Cat IIIB compliant runway measures 4000-meter in length and 45-meter in width. It will begin operations initially with CAT I standard certification. It will progressively evolve to CAT IIIB as operations stabilize. BIAL spokesperson said that once infrastructure and procedural improvements are completed, the runways will eventually be used for independent mixed-mode operations. This will allow flights to take-off and land from either runway, the spokesperson said.

This is part of the Rs 13,000 crore infrastructural upgrade programme for Bengaluru’s Kempegowda International Airport. Financial Express Online earlier reported that under this ambitious expansion project, a new terminal will be built. A second runway has already been constructed. There will be airport service utilities, a multi-modal transport hub, and internal road infrastructure. The project is expected to be completed by the year 2021.
28/08/19 Debjit Sinha/Financial Express

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Andaman wants airlines to stick to flying schedule

New Delhi: Concerned over air-connectivity from Port Blair to mainland cities, Andaman and Nicobar (A&N) administration has urged the Civil Aviation Ministry to direct domestic carriers to stick to the approved flying schedule.

The appeal follows flight frequency going down in the month of June after GoAir, IndiGo and Vistara stopped a few of their flights.

While GoAir stopped its Bangalore-Port Blair flight after June 14 this year, Vistara also stopped one of its flights to Port Blair in the same month.

"We do not operate our BLR (Bangalore)-IXZ (Port Blair)-BLR flight from 15th June to 15th September as demand is low during monsoon. Also our BOM (Mumbai)-IXZ-BOM is a winter product. It will start operations from 1st October to end of March," a GoAir spokesperson said.

"Our flights from MAA (Chennai) and CCU (Kolkata) to IXZ operate year-round all 365 days and there has been no reduction in the same as well," he noted, adding the carrier had not pulled out any flight.

According to official sources, the largest private carrier IndiGo stopped operations of three of its flights to Port Blair from Kolkata, Bangalore and Hyderabad starting June.
26/08/19 IANS/Outlook

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Dream To Fly Comes True For MKM Primary School Children

Guwahati: “We see airplanes flying over our houses and wondered whether we will ever get a chance to sit inside. Now, it has come true for most of us at MKM primary school.”

These are the first words from Prince, a kid from MKM primary school, Garal, Guwahati who was embarking to fly for first time in his life from the national Capital Delhi. That Airports Authority of India, Guwahati has added wings to their dreams and smile on the faces of 20 similar school children could be easily felt here on Monday.

Under the corporate social responsibility programme, AAI organized an educational tour for these school children who boarded Air Asia flight from Guwahati Airport to Delhi on Monday morning.

Interacting with children at the Airport, Sanjeev Jindal Regional Executive Director, AAI North-Eastern Region said that the day he joined here, he first visited these school children at Garal community centre and had assured them that if school management wishes to, he could take them for air travel. Since that day and today, their dream to fly is now a reality and it gives him immense pleasure to facilitate them for flying.

As a responsible organization, AAI is always concerned for the people affected by airport projects, he added. We are striving to connect privileged with unprivileged people in and around airports.

The Garal community centre, near Guwahati Airport is being constructed under the CSR scheme of AAI for Rs 2.37 Cr. AAI has taken up many other CSR initiatives in NER. With UNDP for development of villages around Rani block, with Akshaya Patra for mechanised kitchen for Mid Day Meals, Jindal informed.
27/08/19 Sentinel

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Ahmedabad among top UDAN airports

At present, flights connect 11 destinations from cit Ahmedabad airport has turned out to be among the top airports in the country in implementation of the UDAN (Ude Desh Ka Nagarik) under the regional connectivity scheme of government. As passengers flying under the scheme are good in number, new destinations are being added from the city airport.
According to domestic traffic figures from the city airport in the past one month, 11 % of total flight movements from the city are under UDAN. In other words, out of total 5,500 flight movements in June, 605 movements are under the UDAN scheme from the city airport.
As the aircraft are small in size, the number of domestic passengers under the scheme (33,942) constitute 4.5 % of total passengers (7,46,265). Number of flights under UDAN have increased to reach 666 in July.
To facilitate more such flights, city airport is going to add 12 more parking stands only for small aircraft under UDAN.
Talking about the success of the scheme, "Ahmedabad airport is one of the top airports when it comes to implementation of UDAN scheme. As the scheme connects many tier-2 and tier-3 cities to Ahmedabad, a business hub, the scheme is getting passengers in good number. The airports under it are near pilgrimage and tourist places like Jaisalmer, Ajmer, Pushkar, Shirdi and Diu among others."
A place like Kishangadh airport also caters to marble traders of Ahmedabad. As there is capping of fare of Rs 2,500 per 500 km under this scheme, it is also affordable. As per an estimate, for every Rs 100 spent on this scheme, economy benefits by Rs 350. We are looking forward to adding more destinations like Aurangabad and Jalgaon which will enable people to get access to more cities."
At present, six airlines operate their flights from Ahmedabad to 11 destinations. They included Nashik, Belgaum, Kishangadh, Hubli, Jaisalmer, Porbandar, Kandla, Indore, Bhavnagar, Mundra and Diu. Two more airports, Jalgaon and Aurangabad, will be added to it from September 1, taking the number of destinations to 13.
As there is a problem of parking stands at the airport, some airlines are not able to start new flights under the scheme. Gangal said: "We have 33 parking stands at present to which we are adding 19 more. Of these, 12 will be for the small aircrafts. This will give a boost to the UDAN scheme from Ahmedabad. The new parking stands will be ready by the end of this month."
Looking at the figures of last two months, the number of flight movements under UDAN are increasing from the city. As per June 2019's data of domestic flight movements and passengers catered to, out of 5500 domestic flight movements from city, 605 were under the UDAN scheme. Number of flights under UDAN have increased by 10 % to reach 666 in July.
At present, airlines which operates under UDAN included Air Deccan, Alliance Air, Indigo, SpiceJet, Star Air, Tru Jet. Under the UDAN scheme, 400 airports will be built across the country out of which 100 airports have already been built and made operational. "The basic idea is to connect underserved and unserved airports to rest of the country," said an airport official.
27/08/19 Vishal Patadiya/Ahmedabad Mirror

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Nok Air to launch flights to Bangkok

Visakhapatnam: Thailand’s Nok Air will launch its services from Visakhapatnam international airport to Bangkok’s Don Mueang international airport from mid-October 2019, according to sources.
Visakhapatnam MP MVV Satyanarayana met Poonam Headvif from Nok Airlines, here on Monday, along with the president of the Tour and Travels Association of Andhra, K Vijay Mohan, and vice president of Air Travelers Association, O Naresh Kumar. The MP assured them his help to get clearances for the new flight, said sources.
According to Vijay Mohan, “The direct flight from Visakhapatnam to Bangkok is passenger friendly as it is cost-effective and convenient. People travelling to Bangkok through connecting flights will be able to save a lot of time. Usually, passengers from the state who fly to Bangkok via Kolkata, Hyderabad or Chennai take 8-10 hours. The Nok Air flight will enable people to reach Bangkok within three hours. Moreover, it is a midnight flight from Visakhapatnam, hence passengers can reach their destination early in the morning.”
27/08/19 Times of India

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Satellite-based flight navigation facility at Patna airport soon

Patna: Flight operations at Jayaprakash Narayan International (JPNI) Airport in Patna is set to be smoother and safer with the use of state-of-the-art automatic dependent surveillance-broadcast (ADS-B) technology.
The satellite-based navigational system has been working on trial basis for the last three months and will be fully commissioned following the nod from Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA).

According to senior airport officials, the ADS-B equipment was installed at the airport in 2016, followed by a three-month training programme of air traffic control (ATC) staff. The ADS-B automatically gives exact position of the aircraft along with its other required navigational details.

Patna airport director Bhupesh CH Negi told this newspaper on Monday that the ATC staff have been using this equipment on trial basis since March. “It will be fully functional after the DGCA nod. A proposal in this regard has already been sent to the DGCA with the required documents,” he said.

The navigation of flights under Patna airport ATC jurisdiction is presently being done through age-old radio communication between the pilot and the ATC ground staff.

Under the ADS-B technology, the aircraft equipped with the technology transmits its details, including call-sign, height, location, speed and estimated time of arrival (ETA) through global positioning system (GPS) to the controlling ATC and other equipped aircraft in its vicinity. Most modern aircraft, including those manufactured by Airbus and Boeing are equipped with ADS-B.

Santosh Kumar, assistant general manager (air traffic management) at Patna airport, said the ADS-B technology is being used presently for only those aircraft which are equipped with the equipment supporting ADS-B. “We are using this system on trial basis between 7:30am and 7.30pm,” he said.

Meanwhile, Patna airport has also initiated the proposal to replace several other outdated equipment, including Instrument Landing System (ILS) and Doppler Very High Frequency Omni Range (DVOR) being used to help the pilot in flight navigation. They are very old. The ILS at Patna airport is of Category-1, which is termed as CAT-I ILS. It has been recommended to be updated to ILS Category-II.
27/08/19 Faryal Rumi/Times of India

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Garbage in airport neighbourhoods increasing aircraft-bird collision risk

Ahmedabad: Lingering stench from a pile of garbage may induce nausea or raise hygiene concerns. But it can pose a flight risk, if that garbage pile is close to the airport and attracts birds that may collide with aircraft.
Worried over garbage piles outside airport boundary walls, Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel International Airport (SVPI) authorities have made a representation to Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation (AMC) earlier this week. Airport authorities have sought that the civic body take strong measures to clear waste from Sardarnagar and Kubernagar areas, in addition to several locations just outside the airport boundary wall.

"It is mandatory to maintain cleanliness and ensure removal of any waste or garbage or polluted items that are likely to attract vultures and other birds and animals outside the airport premises, according to norms of Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA)," said a source close to the development.

He added, "Kubernagar is a particular problem area, since it falls in the approach funnel i.e. landing route of aircraft for Runway 23 at SVPI airport. Garbage piles here are a matter of serious concern for Airports Authority of India (AAI)."
Sources also confirmed that during 2016-2018, some 10 representations regarding cleanliness in the areas around SVPI airport's vicinity were made by the AAI to the civic body.
Probably nowhere else in the city does garbage pose as concrete a threat to human lives as in the vicinity of the airport, where it can set off a chain of events leading to aircraft accidents.
26/08/19 Niyati Parikh/Times of India

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Chandigarh, Mohali prefix before airport divides Punjab, Haryana

Chandigarh: Despite best efforts of the ministry of civil aviation, Government of India, the dispute of renaming the existing civil air terminal in Chandigarh remains a tough task for them to resolve.

The matter will now be tabled before the Union home minister Amit Shah’s Northern Zonal Council Meeting scheduled on September 3.


Significantly, both of the state governments have agreed over the name of the terminal as Sardar Bhagat Singh, but the main dispute is now over attaching Mohali or Chandigarh after the name.

Though, the civil aviation ministry of the central government tried its level best to convince the state governments to resolve the issue in the past, but none is ready to make unanimity on the subject. It will be crucial for the Union home minister to deal with the ongoing conflict.

In an action taken and status segment of the agenda item of Shah’s meeting, it has been revealed that the ministry of civil aviation, Government of India, in November 2018, intimated that the government of Punjab had passed a non-official resolution in the Vidhan Sabha to name the civil air terminal complex at the Chandigarh airport as ‘Shaheed-E-Azam Sardar Bhagat Sigh International Airport, Mohali’.
27/08/19 Deepak Yadav/Times of India

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Bengaluru airport to tackle plastic menace by building roads using waste

Mumbai: In a boost to its sustainability mission, the Kempegowda International Airport in Bengaluru (BIAL) will receive approximately 11 tonnes of waste plastic from the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) which would be used to conduct trials that would enable BIAL to pave roads within the airport campus.

BIAL said that the airport has already taken the first step towards plastic management by banning single-use plastic at the Bengaluru airport.

The official release said that the plastic was handed over to a team from BIAL by the BBMP Mayor Gagambike Mallikarjun in the presence of BBMP Commissioner N Manjunath Prasad, IAS officers D Randeep and Shri Ravikumar Surpur.

BIAL - operator of the Bengaluru airport - requires over 50 tonnes of plastic to pave approximately 50-lane-km of the internal roads.

BIAL asserted that the airport had recently conducted laboratory tests by blending plastic with bitumen and the results were in the acceptable limits.
26/08/19 Pankaj Upadhyay/India Today

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Flying from Delhi airport? Know these key upcoming flight and other changes

New Delhi: Delhi's Indira Gandhi International Airport (IGIA) is currently going through an expansion process. Airport's Terminal 2 capacity is getting enhanced and in order to make way for infrastructural enhancements in T2, Spicejet airline will be shifting its operations entirely from T2 to T3, while IndiGo will be shifting partially to T3 from September 5th, 2019.
Read the key upcoming changes flyers need to know >>

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Air ticket counters reopen in J&K

Srinagar: The Jammu and Kashmir administration has set up airline counters at the Tourist Reception Centre (TRC) to facilitate booking of tickets, which was difficult due to snapping of internet and phone communication in the Valley, for over 20 days now.

The counters will be open from 8 am to 8 pm and will be fully functional by Tuesday evening, according to senior officials.

GoAir, Indigo, SpiceJet, Vistara and Air Asia posters were seen at the TRC.

Since August 5 there was a clampdown on internet and telephonic communication in the Valley. Residents faced inconvenience and were forced to go to the airport and book tickets. Now, they will be able to track information and take print-outs at these counters.

"We are putting lease line [for internet]. To ease problems, residents can now book tickets from these counters. We hope to be fully functional by the evening," said Nisar Ahmad Wani, director, Department of Tourism, Government of Jammu and Kashmir.

Sources in the administration confirmed that a meeting took place with airlines representatives on Monday evening.
27/08/19 Pooja Shali/India Today

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Imphal airport renamed Bir Tikendrajit Intl airport

Imphal: The State Assembly has unanimously agreed to rename Imphal International Airport as Bir Tikendrajit International Airport.
During the State Assembly session today, Chief Minister N Biren moved a resolution seeking to rename Imphal International Airport as Bir Tikendrajit International Airport.
Supporting the motion, ex-Chief Minister and Opposition leader Okram Ibobi pointed out that Imphal airport is one key airport which would connect India with many South East Asian countries.
When the Airport Authority of India demanded 300 acres of land for upgrading Imphal airport to an international airport, the then Congress Government gave 500 acres, he said. The 500 acres were acquired by the State Government at the rate of around Rs 4 lakh per Sangam.
26/08/19 Sangai Express

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Aviation ministry considers eight new aiports for major cities

New Delhi:Most of India’s major airports including Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai, Bangalore and others are either running on full flying capacity or are nearing saturation.

Seeing the steady growth in air traffic, the government has planned second airports across eight major cities.

A senior official of the Airport Authority of India (AAI) said that airports of metro cities are generally using their full capacity during peak demand periods.

Only during off-hours (mostly during late-night), are airports operating below capacity.

A case in point is the Mumbai airport, which is using its full capacity almost throughout the day with daily movement of nearly 950 which is near its full capacity.

Similarly, Bengaluru is also running with full capacity during peak demand periods with total daily movement of 640 flights.

The national capital Delhi’s runway is near saturation.

Total runway capacity is about 1350 movements against the actual of 1287 movement per day.

Kolkata is using its main runway slightly below full capacity, with total movement being 437 movements per day.
Down South, Chennai is operating slightly below full capacity during peak demand with a total movement of 469 per day.

Hyderabad is also using its full capacity during peak demand hours with total 492 movements per day.

Due to the double-digit growth in passenger traffic and the existing airports in metro cities nearing saturation, Ministry of Civil Aviation has granted in-principle approval for setting up second airports in cities of Delhi-Jewar, Mumbai-Navi Mumbai, Goa-Mopa, Vizag-Bhogapuram, Pune-Purandar, Ahmedabad-Dholera, Patna-Bihta and Rajkot-Hirasar.

Moreover, Central Government has requested Government of Tamil Nadu and West Bengal to identify suitable land for second airports for Chennai and Kolkata which are likely to reach saturation within the next few years.

A total of 136 airports are owned and managed by the Airport Authority of India and out of these, 32 airports are non-operational.
26/08/19 New Indian Express

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15 small airports to take wings as Karnataka plans to form SPV with AAI

Bengaluru: The domestic air connectivity in Karnataka is all set to get a boost with the government fast-tracking projects to develop small airports.
Ten days after the cabinet approved the proposal to develop a greenfield airport in chief minister BS Yediyurappa’s home district, Shivamogga, the state on Saturday signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Airports Authorities of India (AAI) to operationalise the Rs 181-crore Kalaburagi airport.

Officials said plans are afoot to develop at least 15 small airports with the setting up of the special purpose vehicle (SPV).

“Talks are on for the past two days between the government and the AAI to expedite the process of developing small airports, which is in accordance with the civil aviation ministry’s policy to support regional air connectivity. The projects are expected to take off in a couple of months,” said AAI executive director Anand G Joshi.

The AAI and Karnataka State Industrial and Infrastructure Development Corporation (KSSIDC) are setting up SPV for each airport.

The dormant airport projects which will find a second wind are Raichur, Hassan, Karwar, Virajpet (Kodagu), Kolar, Yadgir, Ballari among others.

Kapil Mohan, principle secretary to the infrastructure department, said land acquisition is already done for most of the projects and the work will be completed in a year. Belagavi and Mysuru airports with 13 and 8 flights, respectively, are going strong underlining the need of more airports, he claimed.

However, many are questioning the need for so many airports in the state.

“When the existing assets are underutilised, we would only end up overdoing by developing more airports and wasting resources,” said urban expert V Ravichandar.
26/08/19 Times of India

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Minister asks AirAsia not to stop its flights from Vizag to Bangkok

Visakhapatnam: Minister for Tourism Muttamsetti Srinivasa Rao on Sunday asked Thai AirAsia not to withdraw its flight between Visakhapatnam and Bangkok from next month.
In a meeting with Devasish Dutt, airport manager of AirAsia, the Minister asked the airline to continue its services – FD116 Bangkok-Vizag and FD117 Vizag-Bangkok, which are operated four times a week on Sundays, Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays.
He also wrote a letter to Suresh Naik, India Operations, AirAsia, regarding the same. Visakhapatnam terminal manager Karthik participated in the meeting on behalf of the AAI.
Malindo Air’s flight to Kuala Lumpur and SriLankan Airline’s flight to Colombo had been withdrawn in the past due to poor occupancy. While Malindo withdrew its service after introduction of a flight to Kuala Lumpur by AirAsia, SriLankan Airlines found its operations unviable.
26/08/19 The Hindu

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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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AAI mulls 2 options to get 5-acre plot for Pune airport expansion

Pune: The Airports Authority of India (AAI) is considering two options to get a five-acre plot of land for its expansion plans of the Pune airport. The land, located next to the airport’s parking number 1, can either be acquired by the Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) or taken through a joint venture between the AAI and the owners of the land.
AAI’s plans to construct a multi-level parking lot at the airport has been held up over non-availability of sufficient land in the vicinity. Recently, the AAI and the PMC had a meeting with private landowners around the airport. Pune’s deputy mayor Siddharth Dhende, who took the initiative to conduct the meeting, told TOI that it was likely that the PMC would acquire the land and hand it over to the AAI.

“AAI wants this five-acre land for its expansion. The land can house the existing parking number 1, after which work on constructing a multi-level parking lot can start. It is not possible to start the construction with so many vehicles being parked there. The meeting was attended by municipal commissioner Saurabh Rao, Pune airport director Ajay Kumar and some landowners too,” Dhende told TOI.
Dhende said that while the PMC is keen on acquiring the land, the landowners also proposed a joint venture. “The landowners said they do not have an issue with the PMC acquisition provided the compensation was good and satisfying. They then proposed the joint venture to the airport director, saying they could give the land on rent to the AAI. However, this idea is still at the very nascent stage, with the airport director stating that a decision would be taken only by AAI headquarters,” he said.
26/08/19 Joy Sengupta/Times of India

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Goa seeks e-tourist visa facilities at Dabolim airport

Panaji:  Goa Tourism has urged Union Minister of State for Tourism Prahlad Singh Patel for e-tourist visa processing facilities at the state’s only international airport at Dabolim.
“Goa Tourism Development Corporation (GTDC) Chairman Dayanand Sopte has requested the Union Tourism Ministry for easing of e-tourist visa processes at the Goa international airport, Dabolim, under the e-tourist visa facility for foreign nationals opting for Goa as the port of arrival,” said a state Tourism Ministry spokesperson.

Easing of e-tourism visa norms has been a constant demand of the tourism and travel industry stakeholders in Goa, which attracts nearly half a million foreign tourists every year.
26/08/19 India Post

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Video Shows Rahul Gandhi & Co Negotiating With Srinagar Airport Officials

New Delhi:Congress leader Rahul Gandhi and other opposition leaders, who were sent back to Delhi soon after they landed at Srinagar airport on Saturday, were seen negotiating with officials to allow them to leave the airport to assess the situation in the valley.
A video shared by the Congress on social media shows Mr Gandhi, the former Congress president, unsuccessfully trying to convince authorities that he reached there after he was invited by Governor Satya Pal Malik to witness that normalcy was restored after weeks of restrictions over the government's decision to end special status for Jammu and Kashmir and split it into two territories.

"The thing is, the government has invited me. The Governor has said that I am invited. Toh ab main aaya hoon. Phir aap keh rahein hai ki main nahi aa sakte hain (So I have now come here and you are telling that I cannot come.) And the government is saying that everything is okay here, everything is normal. If everything is normal, why are we not allowed out? It's a bit surprising," Mr Gandhi can be seen telling a police officer and another officer.
Apart from Rahul Gandhi,11 opposition leaders including Sitaram Yechury of the Left, CPI's D Raja, the DMK's Tiruchi Siva, the Rashtriya Janata Dal's Manoj Jha and Dinesh Trivedi from the Trinamool Congress were part of the delegation.

Many of them were seen surrounding Mr Gandhi as he spoke to the officials in what appeared to be the airport lounge.

"We want to go to any area that is peaceful and meet 10 to 15 people. We don't want to do anything more. If it's 144 ( Section 144), then I am ready to go individually...we will go individually," Mr Gandhi says.'

"Yeah, yeah, everybody will go...," Ghulam Nabi Azad of the Congress chips in.

Opposition leaders, who had flown to take stock of the ground situation in Jammu and Kashmir on Saturday, alleged that they were detained at the airport in Srinagar in an ''unconstitutional'' and ''undemocratic'' manner.
25/08/19 NDTV

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Govt hands over Kalaburagi Airport to AAI

Kalaburagi:The Kalaburagi airport was formally handed over to the Airports Authority of India (AAI) on Saturday for commercial operations. It will now connect Bengaluru with the backward Hyderabad-Karnataka region. 
The Kalaburagi airport has been selected for flight operations under the UDAN Regional Connectivity Scheme. 
Alliance Air and Ghodawat Air Private Limited have been qualified as ‘Selected Airline Operator (SAO)’ for Kalaburagi-Bengaluru-Kalaburagi, Kalaburagi-Hindon-Kalaburagi and Kalaburagi-Tirupati-Kalaburagi routes, according to a statement by the state government. A memorandum of understanding (MoU) has been signed between the state-run Karnataka Industrial Infrastructure Development Corporation (KSIIDC) and the AAI. As a result, the Kalaburagi airport will be developed, operated and maintained by the AAI as a functional airport, the government said.  The government cleared the Kalaburagi greenfield airport project in March 2007.
24/08/19 Bharat Joshi/Deccan Herald

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Visakhapatnam flyers want more red-eye flights to save on time, money

Visakhapatnam: As flights scheduled to depart late at night gain popularity among domestic passengers pressed for time and scouting for bargain options, the demand for direct red-eye flights to and from Visakhapatnam has increased.
Presently, fliers flying in to or out from the Port City rely on red-eye flights via Hyderabad or Bangalore, which have high load factors.

“Owing to the withdrawal of a few flights from Visakhapatnam in the past couple of years, airfare to and from Visakhapatnam tends to remain on the higher side. As a result, passengers are opting for red eye flights,” said Anil Punjabi, regional chairman of the Travel Agents Federation of India.

For example, Air India operates the only Visakhapatnam-Mumbai flight that takes off from Visakhapatnam at 9.30 pm. Owing to the high fare of this flight, fliers prefer to take the Visakhapatnam-Hyderabad IndiGo flight that takes off at 10.05 pm. From Hyderabad, they take the red-eye Hyderabad-Mumbai flight that departs at 12.20 am.

Similarly, a Mumbai-Visakhapatnam Air India flight takes off from Mumbai at 7.10 pm and lands in Visakhapatnam at 8.50 pm but more passengers book the IndiGo Mumbai-Hyderabad flight that takes off from Mumbai at 12.55 am and an early morning Hyderabad-Visakhapatnam flight.

The IndiGo Visakhapatnam-Hyderabad-Mumbai flight fare is normally around 45 per cent cheaper than Air India’s direct Visakhapatnam-Mumbai flight, said aviation experts.
25/08/19 Arpit Basu/Times of India

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