Showing posts with label Airports Feb 2018. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Airports Feb 2018. Show all posts

Wednesday, February 28, 2018

Unauthorized constructions posing threat to aircraft: MIL

Nagpur: Unauthorized constructions have cropped up around the airport, especially in the runway approach funnel, posing a threat to aircraft. Taking serious cognisance, Aerodrome Environment Management Committee (AEMC) has convened a meeting to chalk out measures to tackle the problems. A few days ago, an Air India flight with 180 passengers was hit by a bird while landing at the airport.
AEMC, under divisional commissioner Anup Kumar, will meet on March 5. The committee will discuss nine proposals, including problems from unauthorized constructions. “Airports Authority of India (AAI) has conducted obstruction limitation survey of airport. Also, the same survey was conducted by private agency appointed by Mihan India Limited (MIL), airport’s operator. It was reported that some buildings are infringing on the approach funnel of runway-14 and transitional surface of the airport. Also, new constructions have emerged close to the airport boundary wall. Owners of some houses have constructed walls and parking along airport boundary wall, which is a threat to airport security. MIL has informed about all these unauthorized constructions to NMC and NIT for appropriate action,” MIL said in one of the proposals.
MIL has also sought help of NMC and state government to lodge complaint with police department against persons slaughtering and dumping animal waste and other garbage within 10km from aerodrome reference point. “Aircraft Rule-1937 prohibits slaughtering and flaying of animals, depositing of rubbish and other polluted or obnoxious matter, which attract vultures or other birds, and animals, within 10km from aerodrome reference point. There is a provision of imprisonment up to three years or fine of Rs10 lakh and both. To ensure effective implementation of the provisions, civil aviation department sent a letter dated March 22, 2017, directing municipal bodies and state government to lodge complaints with police,” MIL said.
28/02/18 Ajjaya Anparthi/Times of India

Clear hurdle at Solapur airport: AAI to Maharashtra govt

Nashik: The Airport Authority of India (AAI) has detected a problem at the Solapur airport and directed Maharashtra government to ensure removal of a chimney that could obstruct flight operations from the airport.
Solapur, along with Nashik, Kolhapur and Jalgaon airports, was selected under the second phase of the regional connectivity scheme earlier this year to boost air travel. Executive director (regional connectivity scheme) of AAI G K Chaukiyal told TOI that the flight operations from these four airports in the state would start as soon as possible. Over a dozen flights will be operated from these four airports under the scheme.
“The airports of Nashik, Jalgaon and Kolhapur are fully prepared to handle civilian flight operations under phase two of the scheme. There is a problem of a chimney near the Solapur airport that could create a hurdle in the pathway of the flights. We have requested the Maharashtra government to deal with that problem at the earliest,” he said.
Under the scheme, Nashik has been connected with Delhi, Bangalore, Hyderabad, Ahmedabad, Goa and Hindan in NCR region. Similarly, Jalgaon would be connected with Ahmedabad, Kolhapur with Bangalore, Hyderabad and Tirupati and Solapur with Bangalore and Hyderabad.
Civil aviation minister Ashok Gajapati Raju had on January 24 declared bids won by various airlines for phase two of RCS that would connect 78 airports across the country. Five airlines including TrueJet, Alliance Air, Indigo, SpiceJet and Jet Airways have won the bids to operate flights from these four airports. Interestingly, the Ozar airport in Nashik and the Jalgaon airport were connected in phase one of RCS in December 2017. Air Deccan is presently operating flights connecting Nashik with Pune and Mumbai, and Jalgaon with Mumbai.
The Ozar airport at Nashik belongs to the state owned Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL). “Nashik has got a significant number of flights under the second phase of RCS. It would enable the city to be connected with other important cities of the country,” added the senior AAI functionary.
Chaukiyal, who had a meeting with representatives of the different airlines at Delhi on Tuesday, said that AAI has directed the latter to complete the mandatory formalities so that flight operations can start as soon as possible.
28/02/18 Times of India

Repair work at Ahmedabad airport to begin on March 1, to hit operations

Ahmedabad: Runway maintenance work at Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel International (SVPI) airport in the city will begin on March 1 and end on April 15. During this, the flight operations will be suspended from 10am to 7pm.

Airport officials said that flights operating during the day will be rescheduled to fit into peak flying hours in the morning and evening. Airport authorities have taken a series of measures to deal with the passengers' rush and to avoid any inconvenience to flyers.
The runway repair work would not affect international flights as they operate in the night or during early morning. This is the third time when the runway has to be repaired. Earlier the 3.5 km long runway was repaired in October 2016 after the monsoon damaged the patches of the runway.
"Regular maintenance of the runway must be undertaken to ensure safety of passengers flying out of the airport and landing here," said SVPI airport director Manoj Gangal.
“The domestic terminal – Terminal-1 – will have 13 new self-check-in counters, to keep the check-in process smooth. Passengers without check-in baggage can collect their boarding passes from these counters and head to the security check,” added Gangal.
28/02/18 Ashish Chandran/Times of India

Incentive for vacating homes at Navi Mumbai airport site

City and Industrial Development Corporation of Maharashtra (CIDCO) has offered villagers an additional ₹500 per square feet for vacating their homes on the airport site as soon as possible. CIDCO officials said villagers with houses covering a minimum of 1,000 square feet would stand to earn a maximum of ₹5 lakh as per the incentive scheme.

CIDCO has to hand over the site to airport developer GVK in June and has introduced the scheme with the aim of getting the land vacated at the earliest. As of now, the rate promised to villagers is ₹1,000 per square feet for vacating their houses. The CIDCO has now promised to pay an additional ₹500 per square feet to those vacating their homes by March 31, ₹300 to those who leave in April, and ₹100 in May. The scheme won’t be valid after May.

A CIDCO official said, “The villagers are expected not only to vacate their homes but also to get them demolished. To claim the incentive, the villagers have to approach us after razing their houses. We will then conduct a survey and hand over the money after verification. No incentive over and above the ₹1,000 per square feet will be given after May.”
28/02/18 Raina Assainar/The Hindu

Missing Assam boy at terminal

Dum Dum: A 14-year-old boy found loitering in the airport on Wednesday turned out to be a teenager reported missing from Dispur in Guwahati.

The boy told police that a person had brought him to the city with the promise of a job. He reached Calcutta on a flight from Guwahati on Tuesday, the police quoted him as saying.

The boy's "escort" apparently vanished after reaching the city. "The boy went to Howrah to catch a train to Assam and apparently spent the night there," an airport official said.

He returned to the airport on Wednesday morning as he had no money. The boy was found loitering in front of gates 4A and 4B around 10.30am. Central Industrial Security Force men questioned him and got a phone number to contact his family. He was handed over to Airport police station.
28/02/18 Telegraph

Tuesday, February 27, 2018

Flyers won’t have to pay user fee after 2018

Chennai: The country’s airport tariffs regulator has suggested to Airports Authority of India that it not charge flyers user development fee (UDF) at Chennai International Airport from next year.
The Airports Economic Regulatory Authority of India (AERA) recommended that AAI, AII facilty’s operator, discontinue the charge — a contentious issue due to the airport’s capacity constraints amd limited amenities — because it failed to use money it collected to develop the airport in the past five years.
AAI has in recent years collected between Rs 250 crore and Rs 300 crore and more as UDF annually.
The fee, for passengers on flights departing the city, is Rs 667 for flyers headed to international destinations and Rs 166 for those on flights to domestic endpoints.
The tariff may not appear to be significant, given that flyers have to contend with hourly fluctuations of thousands of rupees in ticket prices, but UDF has proven to be a sticking point between AERA, operators and customers in several airports across the country. In Hyderabad, for instance, operators GMR Airports challenged in the AP high court an AERA order abolishing UDF at the facility in February 2014.
27/02/18 V Ayaappan/Times of India

Raju: No controversy over Chandigarh airport’s name

Chandigarh: Union Minister for Civil Aviation P Ashok Gajapathi Raju today said there was no controversy over the naming of Chandigarh international airport and that a ‘procedure’ for its christening was in place.
Speaking to mediapersons on the sidelines of the inauguration of a skill-development centre at the old airport terminal in Behlana, the Union Minister said, “There is no controversy. There is a process of naming, which has to be followed. The Punjab Government had made a request and the Haryana Government too has made a request. Everyone feels there is no need for a controversy because Shaheed Bhagat Singh is a national hero and not the hero of a small community.”
When asked whether it meant that the airport would be named after Shaheed-e-Azam, Raju’s reply was cut short by MP Kirron Kher, who said, “What is wrong with Chandigarh? Don’t you like Chandigarh as the name of the airport?”
The Punjab Government had demanded that the airport should be named as ‘Shaheed-e-Azam Sardar Shaheed Bhagat Singh International Airport, Mohali’ and passed a resolution for the same in the Assembly.
The Haryana Government had objected to the use of ‘Mohali’ in the airport’s name.
27/02/18 Tribune

Megawide, GMR submit $3B offer to rehabilitate NAIA


Construction and engineering firm Megawide Construction Corp. and GMR of India have submitted a $3-billion unsolicited proposal to upgrade and rehabilitate the highly-congested Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA).

Consortium representatives said on Thursday that the proposal – which was based on an 18-year concession – was aligned with the government’s strategy to develop a sustainable multi-airport system in the Philippines.

The GMR MEGAWIDE consortium believes that its solution will increase airfield capacity to 950 to 1,000 aircraft movements per day, a 30-35 percent increase from the current estimate of 730 aircraft movements daily.

For peak hours, the consortium pitches to increase NAIA’s aircraft handling capacity by 50 percent, from 40 to 60.

Within 24 months of taking over operations, the consortium also plans to rehabilitate and expand the existing terminals, which will roughly double the space and result in over 700,000 square meters of terminal area. Once completed, both the airside facilities and the terminals shall be able to handle a total annual throughput of 72 million passengers.

“As an experienced private operator, we have a deep understanding of the problem experienced by NAIA and we would like offer our take on the solution,” said Louie Ferrer, one of the consortium’s authorized representatives. “Our team has transformed Delhi International Airport, previously one of the world’s worst airports, into one that is consistently named among top five best airports of the world. We have also transformed Mactan-Cebu International Airport, one of the Philippines’ previously overlooked airports, into the 2016 Best Regional Airport in Asia Pacific. We hope to contribute our knowledge from these projects to the development of our country’s main gateway,” Ferrer said.

The GMR Megawide consortium is also the operator of the Mactan-Cebu International Airport.

“It is vital to immediately decongest NAIA and maximize its potential in order to sustainably support the air traffic needs of the greater capital region,” Ferrer explained. “A solution is urgently needed, which we in the private sector are willing to support and provide.”
The “alternative” proposal was submitted around two weeks after seven of the country’s biggest conglomerates submitted a rival P350-billion unsolicited proposal to upgrade NAIA.
28/02/18 Doris Dumlao-Abadilla/Inquirer.Net

Monday, February 26, 2018

Land proposal for airport expansion sent to ministry

The office of the Principal Director Defence Estates, Southern Command, has forwarded a proposal to the Ministry of Defence recommending that 15.84-acre defence land be leased to the Airports Authority of India to facilitate the expansion works at Lohegaon airport.
A senior defence official told TOI on Monday, “Based on this report submitted by the board of officers of the Indian Air Force (IAF), we have prepared a final proposal and sent it to the ministry. Once we get the MoD’s sanction, the land will be transferred to the Airports Authority of India.”
The board’s report said the cost of relocation or reconstruction of the existing assets in the area proposed for transfer would be borne by the authority as a deposit work. “The total cost for relocation of the IAF assets to the area proposed for transfer is Rs 6.41 crore,” the report added.
According to the report, Lohegaon airport has witnessed an exponential increase in air traffic. The apron has seven aircraft parking bays which cater to passenger flight operations, and a parking bay for non-scheduled flight operations.
26/02/18 Times of India

Airport Runway Safety System Market 2021 Growing at 8.53% CAGR

The Global Airport Runway Safety System Market 2017-2021 maintains a high growth which has been encouraged by the consecutive increases of industrial output, import & export, consumer consumption and capital investment for over last decades. The Airport Runway Safety System Market report is designed to integrate qualitative and quantitative features of the industry regarding each of the regions and countries involved in the study.
Global Airport Runway Safety System Market is maintaining an annual average growth rate of 8.53% by 2017-2021.
Airport Runway Safety System Market report also caters the detailed information about the crucial aspects such as drivers & restraining factors which will define the future growth of the market. In the report, Airport Runway Safety System Market provides analysis on manufacturers, regions, types, applications, challenges, opportunities, and more.
Some of the key vendors involved in the market are ADB Airfield Solutions, Honeywell International, Varec, Saab, Aviation Safety Technologies, Boeing, Indra Navia, NEC. The companies are also trying to dominate the Airport Runway Safety System market by investing in research and development. Acquisitions and effective mergers are one of the best domination strategies currently being used.
26/02/18 Amit. P/Investor Opinion

Efforts under way to make Trichy numero uno airport in the country: Airport director

Trichy: Various developmental works are being undertaken at the Trichy International Airport to make it achieve numero uno status among non-metro airports in the country, director of the airport, K Gunasekaran said on Monday.
He was speaking at a function organised by TOI OOH (Out of Home) for advertising to felicitate officials for making Trichy airport achieve the status as the best non-metro airport in South India.
Stating that Trichy airport is one of the best in the country, Gunasekaran thanked his entire team for its support and tirelessly promoting the airport to become number one in South India.
“We are working towards the target in such a way that the Trichy International Airport is ranked the best non-metro airport in the country. For that, we have initiated various developmental works. We have taken up renovation work at an estimated cost of Rs 1.71 crore and soon the airport will sport a complete makeover at par with international standards,” he said.
26/02/18 Times of India

Assam CM, Air Asia CEO discuss Guwahati-ASEAN flights

Assam Chief Minister Sarbananda Sonowal has discussed the modalities of starting direct flights between Guwahati with ASEAN countries with Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer Air Asia, Amar Abrol.

The Assam government has even offered to provide a subsidy in order to make direct flights to ASEAN countries viable for operators.

The meeting discussed Air Asia's plan of making Guwahati its principal hub for the company's Southeast Asia operations. Abrol submitted a proposal to Chief Minister Sonowal for Air Asia's expansion plan in Guwahati, including connecting the city with frequent direct flights to domestic destinations such as Chennai, Hyderabad, Vizag and Bagdogra.

Sonowal said that the state government is working very seriously to make Guwahati the nerve centre of India's Act East Policy and, as part of this effort, wants to start direct flights with ASEAN and BBN countries.

He also informed the Air Asia CEO that his government, in association with the Ministry of External Affairs, is in constant touch with ASEAN countries to persuade them to set up consulates in Guwahati.
26/02/18 Bikash Singh/Economic Times

Airport reopens, no change in watch hours

Mohali: The airport would open for civil and military operations on Tuesday after the first 15-day closure period came to an end on Monday.
Airport officials said watch hours at the runway would remain as per the NOTAM (notice to airmen) issued since October 31 last year from 5 am to 4 pm till March 24, 2018 from Monday to Saturday. The airport would remain closed on Sundays. The first flight would arrive the airport at 6:55 am.
CHIAL PRO Deepesh Joshi said, “There is no change in watch hour timings till the end of the winter schedule. In the summer schedule that would come into effect from March 25, watch hours are likely to be changed from current to 7.20 am-5.30 pm, with the addition of some flights that were suspended in winter.”
An official of Jet Airways said two domestic flights, one departing to Delhi at 7.40 am and another Mumbai-bound flight at 3.30 pm, that had been suspended due to fog would start operations from Tuesday.
On February 12, in a meeting between all stakeholders, the contractor working on the runway had proposed that the next 15-day airport closure period be kept from May 14 to May 28. However, a final decision regarding the proposed dates is expected in the first week of March.
The closure, on account of runway repair, is expected to have affected over 60,000 passengers, with a majority of the air traffic in the northern region, diverted to New Delhi and Amritsar.
26/02/18 Tribune 

Bengaluru, now check in your flight using your web kiosk in airport buses

In a bid to increase the ridership in its airport buses, the Bangalore Metropolitan Transport Corporation (BMTC) has started providing a web check-in kiosk inside the bus on a test basis.

Currently, buses from Electronic City to the airport (KIAS-8) have been installed with this facility as part of BMTC’s second pilot project. The first such pilot project was undertaken on buses plying from Majestic (Kempegowda Bus Station) to the airport.

With this facility, passengers can print their boarding passes beforehand and head straight for security checks, skipping the long queues at airline counters. This will be especially beneficial to those customers who do not have any check-in luggage and are travelling only with hand baggage.

“The pilot is currently going on. We are getting a very good response. The previous pilot which had gone for 20 days also showed good response. We will gradually introduce this facility in all the routes,” Ramesh, Divisional Controller, BMTC told TNM.
“On an average, our esteemed customers spend close to an hour during their travel to the airport. So, if they can use this facility to save time. Our conductors are educating customers about this facility,” he added.

The ongoing pilot is applicable to people flying to different locations in India using five airlines— Air Asia, GoAir, IndiGo, Jet Airways and SpiceJet.

In addition to check-in services, BMTC is also in talks with the airport authorities to streamline luggage handling facilities.
26/02/18 News Minute

Flight ops in UT to resume on Tuesday

Mohali: The watch hours at Chandigarh International Airport may increase by 45 minutes after it re-opens on February 27. The airport, which had remained closed from February 12, is all set to resume its operations on Tuesday.
President Ram Nath Kovind, who is scheduled to visit Chandigarh in connection with a golden jubilee celebration of a leading girls' college, will also land at the airport on Tuesday.
Meanwhile, Air India has announced the departure of its Sharjah-bound flight on Tuesday instead of Monday - citing the passenger rush and demand.
The Sharjah flight operates thrice a week, which is Monday, Wednesday and Friday.
26/02/18 Times of India

'Slum rehabilitation survey at airports contradicts CM Devendra Fadnavis'

Mumbai: The Slum Rehabilitation Authority (SRA) is carrying out a biometric survey of the residents of a slum on Juhu airport for ex-situ (off-site) rehabilitation. The SRA sought permission to carry out the su-rvey in May 2016. In two letters to the SRA's CEO, the Airports Authority of India (AAI) consented to "a feasibility study on ex-situ rehab".
"AAI's stand contradicts chief minister Devendra Fadnavis's pre-election promise during the 2017 BMC poll campaign to grant in-situ (on-site) rehabilitation to slum-dwellers on airport land," said former Congress MP Gurudas Kamat, who has demanded that the state government reveal its rehabilitation plans.
AAI's stand has been consistent: "In view of issues impacting safe airport operations, in-situ rehab of slum-dwellers is not a viable option."
In response to Fadnavis's November 15 request for in-situ rehabilitation, S Suresh, member, finance, AAI board, in a letter to Arun Kumar, joint secretary, ministry of civil aviation, said, "Notwithstanding the mandatory aviation guidelines, and environmental hazards on account of dense habitation around the airport periphery, the land available sho-uld be used for increasing or improving aeronautical facilities... which per se can be achieved only by rehabilitation of slum-dwellers ex-situ."
The letter refers to the parliamentary standing committee on transport that has commented, "Habitation in the vicinity of an airport's operational area impacts safety and security. Hence, ex-situ rehab is the only way to overcome these concerns."
Last July, responding to a PIL, the AAI in an affidavit before the Bombay high court said it had never given an NOC to the SRA or any developer for rehabilitation or redevelopment of airport land, which is required for airport modernization. "The survey is being conducted for exploring the possibility of slum rehabilitation as per state government policy so that the government or local authority may rehabilitate/relocate hutments from airport land. Thereupon airport land is freed from hutments," reads the affidavit.
26/02/18 Clara Lewis/Times of India

Customs faces contempt case over air courier launch delay

Trichy: Tired of the inordinate delay in the launch of international courier operations from the airport here, courier agents are keenly awaiting the outcome of a contempt of court petition they moved in this regard against customs authorities earlier this month for failing to honour a three-month deadline fixed by the Madurai bench of the Madras high court.
It was on July 12, 2013 that the finance ministry okayed the launch of courier imports and exports via Trichy international airport. With no visible signs of the launch, a writ petition was filed in the high court by Express Courier Operators Association for the same in August last year. Following this, the court directed the customs authorities to issue notification for the courier import and export operations in the international airport within three months.
However, with no indication of the public utility taking off, the courier agents moved the contempt of court petition at the high court bench against the customs authorities on February 6. They pointed out that the authorities had done nothing to issue trade notification even after the court had fixed a deadline to issue the same. The operators said they were forced to use either Chennai or Bangalore for sending their consignment.
Airports Authority of India had been waiting for the trade notification from the customs to begin the service. “As the custodian of courier import and export operation, Airports Authority of India, Trichy had established the required infrastructure at the airport such as LAN (Local Area Network) and WAN (Wide Area Network) connectivity. But the customs department has not been issuing a notification on their part,” said S A Sayeed, president, Express Courier Operators Association.
He said that the service would immensely help people hailing from Trichy and central region working abroad. “During emergency purpose, lifesaving drugs can be sent or received by the courier. Those residing abroad can send gift articles during anniversaries to their loved ones. Household articles or any essential items can also be sent or received with the help of the international courier,” he added.
27/02/18 Times of India

Jamshedpur Airport: Front tyre of aircraft bursts on runway; no casualties

Jamshedpur: A major mishap was averted on Monday at the Sonari Airport when the front tyre of a four-seater aircraft of Alchemist Aviation burst during touchdown. However, no one was injured in the incident. The pilot and co-pilot of the aircraft came out of the cockpit safely, said Mrinal Pal, CEO of Alchemist Aviation.

Sources said the incident occurred around 4.45 pm when the aircraft was landing at the airport. The aircraft came to a stop after dragging on its burst tyre up to some distance.
Hearing the loud noise at the runway, the ambulance and fire brigade staff rushed to the site. The pilot and co-pilot came out of the aircraft without sustaining any injury.
26/02/18 Avenue Mail

Jaipur airport ‘lands’ in 11th spot

Jaipur Airport has reached 11th position in the country in daily scheduled flight operations. Everyday 69 flights operate from here leaving many peer cities behind. Of these, 60 flights are domestic while nine are international.

Recently released figures from Airport Authority of India have revealed that Jaipur is now on 11 the place in the list in which Delhi and Mumabi are top two airports in that order. Goa is ahead of Jaipur due to international connectivity but Jaipur is ahead of the coastal city in terms of growth rate.

Till March 2017, there were 46 daily flights. At that time, Guwahati and Lucknow were ahead of the Pink City, however, now they are lagging behind Jaipur. Thiruvananthapuram also known as Trivandrum was left behind the race in 2015. In last three years, number of flights from Jaipur have increased the most.
26/02/18 Kashiram Chaudhary/DNA

Sunday, February 25, 2018

Stray cat runs loose inside airport terminal

Pune: Many flyers have expressed amusement as well as concern over a stray cat that has been spotted roaming around on the Lohegaon airport premises.
Passengers have asked officials to take action. Devdatta Tengshe saw it on Sunday afternoon and posted a photo, tweeting: “There is a stray cat at Pune Airport. Wonder what security check it went through? Cat-Scan?”
Another flyer, Ramesh Mirakhur, observed on February 11: “The AAI and the CISF are okay with cats roaming at the departure lounge.” The tweet was marked to Union minister of state for civil aviation, Jayant Sinha.
Airport sources said the cat has been around for nearly two weeks. “It appears out of nowhere. Though it doesn’t create a problem, a stray loose in the airport doesn’t look good,” said a ground staffer of an airline.
“It is possible that the cat is coming to the area for food, which means there is a garbage dump somewhere nearby. This is very risky for flights and passengers,” an airline official said.
The airport has often faced an animal problem. Recently, a pet dog had escaped from a flight at the airport.
25/02/18 Joy Sengupta/Times of India

Airport land losers protest at HDUDA

Hubballi: Demanding compensation, the land losers of Hubballi airport expansion project laid siege to the Hubballi-Dharwad Urban Development Authority (HDUDA) office when a pre-budget meeting was in progress here on Saturday. District minister Vinay Kulkarni, leader of opposition Jagadish Shettar, MLA Arvind Bellad and HDUDA chairman Anwar Mudhol took part in the meeting.
The protesters alleged that 850 acres of land along Gokul road, at Omkar Nagar and other areas were acquired for the expansion of the airport. Of the land acquired include 11.30 acres of Akrama-Sakrama land. However, compensation is not paid to the land losers though Rs 4.5 crore meant for the payment of the compensation is lying unused with the Karnataka Industrial Area Development Board.
The protesters alleged that though the state government had promised of allotting sites to the land losers at Jagadish Nagar, Lohia Nagar and Bhairidevarkoppa. However, no action has been taken so far in this regard. The protesters also alleged that of the 850 acres acquired, only 650 acres are utilized and the rest are sold to private companies.
24/02/18 Times of India

Birmingham flight gets good response

Amritsar: The tremendous response to the Air India’s flight between Amritsar and Birmingham is likely to revive the glory of Sri Guru Ram Das Jee International (SGRDJI) airport.
It bolstered the morale of the tourism industry and officials of the Airport Authority of India (AAI) as they feel that the flight must be made regular.
They felt that it could be a turning point in the fortune of the airport which had been incurring losses. Operating international flights is likely to increase the income of the airport.
Airport Director Manoj Chansoria said the response from passengers was remarkable and many flights had been booked in advance. “Undoubtedly, the flight must be made daily,” he added.
“The Sri Guru Ram Das Jee international airport needs airlines with long range aircraft to start direct flights to Australia and the US, where a large number of Sikh diaspora resides,” he asserted.
So far, passengers here are using flights to Singapore to travel to Australia and flights to the Gulf to reach the US.
25/02/18 Tribune

Saturday, February 24, 2018

IndiGo to decide which all domestic flights to shift at Delhi airport within 10 days

New Delhi: Ending the over year-long imbroglio, low cost carrier IndiGo Saturday said it will move some of its domestic flights from Delhi Airport’s terminal 1 to T2. The Supreme Court had on Friday refused to grant relief to IndiGo in Delhi Airport’s decision on shifting flights.
“IndiGo deferentially accepts the decision of the apex court and shall implement the order in the coming weeks, in close coordination with Delhi International Airport Limited (DIAL),” IndiGo said in a statement. An airport official said IndiGo will submit a proposal by March 3 and then DIAL will respond to the same by March 13. As per the SC Friday order, shifting of flights should happen within 24 days.
IGI Airport’s T1 has to be decongested so that its expansion work can begin. GoAir (which has only domestic operations) had already shifted all its Delhi flights to T2 last October. DIAL wanted to shift IndiGo and SpiceJet flights between Delhi and Mumbai, Kolkata and Bengaluru from T2 only. Now which all flights are shifted remains to be seen.
T1 has a capacity of handling 2 crore passengers annually but is expected to handle 2.6 crore flyers the financial year ending March 31, 2018, explaining the serious overcrowding here in peak hours. DIAL plans to expand its capacity to 4 crore passengers per annum by 2020-21 but the work, it says, can begin only after one-third flights move out of T1. The expanded T1 will have 22 aerobridges apart from 15 boarding gates from where flyers will take buses to planes.
Now with airlines agreeing to shift, the much-delayed expansion work of IGIA may finally begin.
The IndiGo statement issued Saturday said: “By its order dated February 23, 2018, the Supreme Court of India has declined to interfere with the judgment of the Division Bench of the Delhi High Court, which upheld the decision of DIAL to shift one-third of IndiGo’s operations from Terminal 1 to Terminal 2 of IGI Airport, New Delhi.”
24/02/18 Saurabh Sinha/Times of India

After Supreme Court order IndiGo airlines says will shift some flights at IGI

New Delhi: Budget carrier IndiGo today said it would comply with the Supreme Court order and shift some of its flights to T2 terminal at Delhi's Indira Gandhi International airport in the coming weeks.

On Friday, the apex court rejected IndiGo's plea challenging a Delhi High Court order to shift its operations partially from Terminal 1 (T1) of the IGI Airport here to Terminal 2 (T2).

With IndiGo finally agreeing to shift partial operations, the airport operator can now start expansion work at the overcrowded T1.

IndiGo deferentially accepts the decision of the apex court and shall implement the order in the coming weeks, in close coordination with Delhi International Airport Limited, the airline said in a statement today.

The SC has given IndiGo and SpiceJet time till March 3 to approach airport operator Delhi International Airport Limited (DIAL) for suggesting which of their flights can be shifted from T1 to T2.

The airline, however, reiterated that relocating some of its flight may cause inconvenience to passengers.

"IndiGo has maintained consistently in all forums that shifting of only a part of its operations from Terminal 1 to Terminal 2 would not only cause grave inconvenience and confusion amongst passengers, it will also reduce flight options for passengers connecting through Delhi," as per the statement.

IndiGo added that it will be one of the only two airlines to operate from three different terminals of one airport.

Earlier this week, Civil Aviation Minister Ashok Gajapathi Raju lamented that despite the government's best efforts, there was a delay in upgradation of the domestic terminal at IGI.

"I would say a delay (in shifting operations) has resulted in strengthening of infrastructure getting delayed. This is the result of it. We tried to avoid it. We tried to get everyone together and take it forward and it didn't happen. The time-frame has gone haywire," the minister said at a media interaction.
24/02/18 PTI/New Indian Express

IGI stalemate ends, after SC order IndiGo says will shift flights

Budget carrier IndiGo today said it would comply with the Supreme Court s order and shift some of its flights from one terminal to another at Delhi s Indira Gandhi International airport in the coming weeks.

On Friday, the apex court rejected IndiGo s plea challenging a Delhi High Court order to shift its operations partially from Terminal 1 (T1) of the IGI Airport here to Terminal 2 (T2).

The SC has given IndiGo and SpiceJet time till March 3 to approach airport operator Delhi International Airport Limited (DIAL) for suggesting which of their flights can be shifted from T1 to T2.

IndiGo deferentially accepts the decision of the apex court and shall implement the order in the coming weeks, in close coordination with Delhi International Airport Limited, the airline said in a statement today.

The top court also laid out the timeline for shifting of operations. It said that after the airlines share details of flights that can be relocated, DIAL will have to take a decision between seven to ten days. Following this, DIAL will inform IndiGo, which will have to comply with the same within ten days.

Earlier, low-cost carrier IndiGo has written to the Delhi airport operator refusing to shift a part of its flight operations from terminal 1 (T1) to terminal 2 (T2) and threatened "action" if it is forced to do so.

Delhi International Airport Limited (DIAL) had asked airlines operating from T1 to shift one-third of their flights to T2 to be able to carry out expansion work according to its master plan and to meet growing passenger numbers.
24/02/18 PTI/DNA

Govt pledges 40m-flyer/year 2nd Chennai airport soon

Chennai: The state government on Friday said the city would soon get a second airport with an annual passenger-handling capacity of 40 million.
"The government will establish an international airport with a capacity to handle four crore passengers per year in the suburbs of Chennai," deputy chief minister O Panneerselvam told an audience at property expo FAIRPRO 2018.
The statement was a reiteration of the state's commitment to a new facility that will cater to twice as many flyers as the current airport at Meenambakkam, which has no scope to expand capacity.
It lifted spirits of the real estate industry - yet to emerge from recent turbulence of its own and a dip in demand - but did not include specifics on the location of the new airport or set a time frame for its development.
This couldn’t have been more disappointing for the civil aviation industry or regular flyers, given that the government had — under pressure from the Centre to develop a new facility airport because of the limitations of the existing facility — held two high-level meetings with Airports Authority of India on the issue in 2017 and stated that it would identify a new location by December 31, only to renege on on the pledge.
24/02/18 Times of India

Old airport revival on HAL agenda

Bengaluru: Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd. (HAL) is exploring ways to re-open its idling airport in Bengaluru to short-distance civil commercial flights, according to a top official.

HAL hopes to re-launch the defence airport for a burgeoning regional air traffic, Chairman and Managing Director T. Suvarna Raju said in a recent interview.

“HAL and BIAL are working out a mutually acceptable business proposal to start operations from the old HAL airport. It can be done for regional connectivity. Looking at Bengaluru’s growing demand, the old airport can be useful to meet future demand beyond 2020,” Mr. Raju said. Without elaborating, he said a plan would be worked out and offered to BIAL, which operates the privately promoted Kempegowda International Airport.

BIAL (Bangalore International Airport Ltd) said, “There is no specific update about HAL or related plans.”

Until May 2008, the HAL airport – located within the city – was the hub of Bengaluru’s international and domestic air travel and was operated by the Airports Authority of India.

KIA started operating in 2008 at Devanahalli, about 40 km north of the city’s old central hubs. It is the country’s third busiest after Delhi and Mumbai’s airports. In almost ten years, its annual passenger traffic has doubled to 25 million during 2017 – about 19% being regional or short-haul travellers.

In the past three or four years, successive HAL chiefs have said they would like to have the airport reopened. When it was shut down on May 23, 2008, after around 50 years of operation, HAL airport had clocked over 10 million passengers a year.

The concession agreement (CA) signed in 2004 between the Ministry of Civil Aviation and BIAL mandates that the new airport cannot have a rival commercial airport within a radius of 150 km for 25 years - that is until after May 2033. Any plan to reopen it will also mean revisiting the CA.

Today the old airport handles military and test flights besides small chartered and VVIP aircraft.

When it closed, HAL airport had reportedly last made business of around ₹150 crore. It is small in HAL’s overall current revenue of around ₹18,000 crore which mainly comes from selling fighters, transport planes and helicopters to the Air Force.
24/02/18 Jay Shankar/The Hindu

UDAN Scheme: PM Launches Flight Between Ahmedabad And Diu, Travel Time To Reduce By 11 Hours

Prime Minister Narendra Modi today launched development schemes worth Rs 1,000 crore for Daman and Diu, and also inaugurated a flight connecting Ahmedabad to coastal town of Diu.

The prime minister, who inaugurated Air Odisha's flight connecting Ahmedabad with Diu under the Centre's regional connectivity scheme UDAN, said air connectivity will boost tourism in the region.

He also launched a helicopter service connecting Daman and Diu at an event here.
"The air connectivity will boost tourism as tourists who want to visit the Somnath temple, Gir forest (in Gujarat) can now go (there) from Diu," Modi said.

Somnath temple and Gir forest are located around 80 kilometres from Diu. Ahmedabad to Diu road journey takes 12 hours and the air-connectivity reduces the travel time to just an hour.

Modi also laid the foundation stones for a slew of projects, including a water treatment plant, a gas pipeline, an electric sub-station, a municipal market and a foot-bridge for the union territory.

The prime minister also inaugurated anganwadis (child care centres) and schools constructed under corporate social responsibility (CSR) initiatives.

On the occasion, he distributed e-rickshaws to women and scooters to differently-abled beneficiaries.
24/02/18 Outlook

Airport to reopen on February 27

Mohali: The Chandigarh international airport will reopen for civil and military operations on Tuesday (February 27) after remaining closed for a fortnight from February 11 to 26.
The airport has been closed for runway repairs and re-carpeting work, including extending the length from the current 9,000 ft to 10,400 ft, in order to accommodate wide-bodied aircraft, which will facilitate long-haul flights from Chandigarh.
According to estimates, over 60,000 passengers are expected to be affected due to the disruption, with a majority of the traffic diverted to Delhi and Amritsar.
Chandigarh International Airport Limited (CHIAL) CEO Suneel Dutt said, “The airport will resume operations from February 27. The watch hours will remain the same and there are no major changes in the schedule. In the summer schedule (end of March), it is likely that the watch hours will be extended by an hour.” Dutt said the airport would remain closed for another two weeks later in the year, but the dates were yet to be confirmed.
An airport official said during the 15-day closure, work on stress absorbing membrane inter-layer was under way.
Sources said at a meeting between all stakeholders on February 12, it had been proposed that the next period of closure be kept from May 15 to May 28. However, a final decision regarding the proposed dates would be taken in the first week of March.
24/02/18 Tribune

Big CAT to land at airport

Chandigarh: The Chandigarh international airport would soon be CAT III-B compliant allowing aircraft to land under 50-metre visibility.
All stakeholders, including the Union ministry of civil aviation, Indian Air Force (IAF) and the Airports Authority of India (AAI), have agreed for installation of the much-needed advance instrument landing system (ILS) at the airport.
PLANE
A formal statement regarding the installation of ILS (CAT III-B) was made before the Punjab and Haryana high court on Friday by the agreement division of the ministry of civil aviation through assistant solicitor general of India Chetan Mittal during the resumed hearing of a petition related to facilities at the airport.
Presently, an aircraft requires at least 350-metre visibility to land safely at the airport but due to climatic conditions, most of the flights at the Chandigarh airport remain grounded from December-mid to January-mid.
According to the proposal, the installation work would be undertaken by an agency appointed by the IAF and the AAI would bear the entire cost.
The main runway at the airport has two sides — runway 29 and runway 11. As per the proposal, runway 29 would remain CAT II compliant, while the runway 11 would be upgraded to CAT III-B.
At the high court, Mittal said a meeting was held on December 1, 2015, between the senior officials of the ministry, IAF, AAI and DGCA in which AAI had projected that CAT III-B needs to be installed at the Chandigarh airport. On this it was decided to conduct a joint study to check the feasibility of installing the advance ILS on runway.
A division bench comprising Justice A K Mittal and Justice Amit Rawal asked the AAI to come up with the final plan regarding installation of the ILS-IIIB by April 5.

24/02/18 Times of India

Air India to launch Jammu-Bhatinda flight service on Tuesday

Air India today announced that it is going to start a flight service from Jammu to Bathinda from Tuesday, February 27, a spokesperson of the airliner said.
The flight will operate on the new both ways. “Flight 9I-611 Jammu/Bathinda will depart from Jammu at 9:15 am to reach Bathinda at 10:20 am and flight 9I-612 Bathinda/Jammu will depart from Bathinda at 10:50 am and will reach Jammu at 12 pm. The fare for the service has been fixed at Rs 1295 per passenger for one side.These air services will operate on daily basis.
24/02/18 Greater Kashmir

Five flights diverted due to low visibility

Vasco: A sudden drop in visibility on Friday morning forced Goa airport authorities to divert two charters and three domestic flights to other airports.
According to the information by officials of Airport Authority of India (AAI), the visibility was extremely low from 6 am onwards, when the morning flights were to arrive. “There was sudden drop in visibility as thick fog enveloped Dabolim airport. After visibility dropped less than 100 meters, two international flights including a charter flight from Russia was diverted to Bangalore while another routine flight from Manchester to Goa was asked to land at Mumbai airport. Similarly, three other domestic routine flights including an Indigo flight from Chennai to Goa was diverted to Bangalore, Go Air flight from Mumbai was asked to return to Mumbai and Spice Jet flight from Chennai to Surat via Goa was diverted to Bangalore,” AAI Director B C H Negi said.
The flights began landing from 8.30 am onwards when visibility improved to 1500 meters.
24/02/18 Herald

Airport to reopen on February 27

Mohali: The Chandigarh international airport will reopen for civil and military operations on Tuesday (February 27) after remaining closed for a fortnight from February 11 to 26.
The airport has been closed for runway repairs and re-carpeting work, including extending the length from the current 9,000 ft to 10,400 ft, in order to accommodate wide-bodied aircraft, which will facilitate long-haul flights from Chandigarh.
According to estimates, over 60,000 passengers are expected to be affected due to the disruption, with a majority of the traffic diverted to Delhi and Amritsar.
Chandigarh International Airport Limited (CHIAL) CEO Suneel Dutt said, “The airport will resume operations from February 27. The watch hours will remain the same and there are no major changes in the schedule. In the summer schedule (end of March), it is likely that the watch hours will be extended by an hour.” Dutt said the airport would remain closed for another two weeks later in the year, but the dates were yet to be confirmed.
An airport official said during the 15-day closure, work on stress absorbing membrane inter-layer was under way.
23/02/18 Tribune

Advance system to allow flights at Chandigarh airport in peak winter, HC told

Chandigarh: The Chandigarh international airport would soon be CAT-IIIB compliant, allowing the aircraft to land even under 50-metre visibility. All stakeholders, including the Union ministry of civil aviation, Indian Air Force (IAF) and the Airports Authority of India (AAI), have agreed for installation of the much-needed advance instrument landing system (ILS) at the airport.
At present, an aircraft requires at least 350-metre visibility to land safely at the airport but due to climatic conditions of Chandigarh airport, most of the flights at airport remains grounded from mid-December to mid-January. As per the proposal, the installation work would be undertaken by the agency appointed by the IAF and the entire cost/expenses on CAT-IIIB infrastructure shall be borne by the AAI.
The main runway at the Chandigarh airport has two sides — runway 29 and runway 11. As per the proposal, runway-29 would remain CAT-II compliant, the runway-11 would be upgraded to CAT-IIIB.
A formal statement regarding the installation of ILS (CAT-IIIB) was made before the Punjab and Haryana high court on Friday by the agreement division of the Union ministry through assistant solicitor general of India Chetan Mittal during the resumed hearing of a petition related to facilities at the Chandigarh airport.
Mittal told the court that a meeting was held on December 1, 2015, between the senior officials of the ministry, IAF, AAI and DGCA, in which AAI had projected that CAT-IIIB needs to be installed at Chandigarh airport. On this it was decided to conduct a joint study to check the feasibility of installing the advance ILS on runway.
24/02/18 Times of India

Airport renovation to affect Jaipur’s connectivity for three months

Jaipur: Operations of at least 11 flights will be affected following the renovation work at Jaipur International Airport (JIA) for three months starting March 1.
Once the work is complete, Terminal 2 will be used to service domestic flights exclusively and Terminal 1 for international flights. The work will affect the city’s air connectivity to four major cities for three months.
According to airport authorities, a few flights are being rescheduled during morning and late evening hours due to the work.
“Though the official revised flight schedule has not been finalised, airlines have made some adjustments by themselves. The flights which are likely to remain cancelled for the three months starting March 1 include Go Air Jaipur-Mumbai flight at 15.55 hours, Jet Airways Jaipur-Mumbai which leaves at 16.20 hours, Jet Airways Jaipur-Delhi (17.00), Jet Airways Jaipur-Udaipur (16.06), Indigo Jaipur-Hyderabad (17.35), Indigo Jaipur-Chennai (14.05), SpiceJet Jaipur-Ahmedabad (12.55), Jet Airways Jaipur-Indore (16.10), Jet Airways Jaipur-Chandigarh (9.20), SpiceJet Jaipur to Jodhpur (12.50), Indigo Jaipur-Jammu (13.35),” said a senior officer handling airport operations on Friday.
24/02/18 Times of India

Srinagar ‘international’ airport has defunct ILS, no simple approach lights

The absence of ‘Simple Approach Lights System’ at the Srinagar international airport is leading to frequent flight cancellations during low visibility, aviation experts here said.
“In absence of this facility, both the landing and the take-off by the aircrafts are dependent on the ‘visual confirmation’ from the Air Traffic Control (ATC),” they said, adding that inclement weather, especially when there are foggy conditions often cause disruptions in the flight operations at the airport.
“Even as the Srinagar airport is Instrumentation Landing System (Cat 1) compliant, this system is lying defunct due to absence of Simple Approach Lights System,” the experts said, adding that the IAF has fixed the visibility of 1.2 km for flights to operate at the aerodrome, while below this visibility flights cannot operate.
“The landing of aircrafts at the airport is dependent on a ‘visual confirmation’ to the aircrafts by the ATC as the much-needed Simple Approach Lights System has not been installed yet,” a highly placed source said.
The Instrumentation Landing System or ILS, according to experts, is a ground-based instrumentation system that provides precision guidance to an aircraft approaching the runway to enable its safe landing during reduced visibility conditions often faced during winters in Kashmir.
24/02/18 Saqib Malik/Greater Kashmir

Advance system to allow flights at Chandigarh airport in peak winter, HC told

Chandigarh: The Chandigarh international airport would soon be CAT-IIIB compliant, allowing the aircraft to land even under 50-metre visibility. All stakeholders, including the Union ministry of civil aviation, Indian Air Force (IAF) and the Airports Authority of India (AAI), have agreed for installation of the much-needed advance instrument landing system (ILS) at the airport.
At present, an aircraft requires at least 350-metre visibility to land safely at the airport but due to climatic conditions of Chandigarh airport, most of the flights at airport remains grounded from mid-December to mid-January. As per the proposal, the installation work would be undertaken by the agency appointed by the IAF and the entire cost/expenses on CAT-IIIB infrastructure shall be borne by the AAI.
The main runway at the Chandigarh airport has two sides — runway 29 and runway 11. As per the proposal, runway-29 would remain CAT-II compliant, the runway-11 would be upgraded to CAT-IIIB.
A formal statement regarding the installation of ILS (CAT-IIIB) was made before the Punjab and Haryana high court on Friday by the agreement division of the Union ministry through assistant solicitor general of India Chetan Mittal during the resumed hearing of a petition related to facilities at the Chandigarh airport.
Mittal told the court that a meeting was held on December 1, 2015, between the senior officials of the ministry, IAF, AAI and DGCA, in which AAI had projected that CAT-IIIB needs to be installed at Chandigarh airport. On this it was decided to conduct a joint study to check the feasibility of installing the advance ILS on runway.
“Special committee formed for the purpose conducted a feasibility survey in March 2016, along with the officials of IAF and recommended for installation of ILS CAT-IIIB on Runway-11. Some obstructions were pointed out by the IAF authorities regarding the installation and the concerned authorities are working to remove that,” Mittal told the HC.
24/02/18 Times of India

Friday, February 23, 2018

Air India Delhi-Imphal Daily Direct Flights by April: Manipur CM

Manipur Chief Minister N. Biren Singh said that the Ministry of Civil Aviation has assured the State Government that Air India would begin daily direct flights from New Delhi to Imphal by first week of April, 2018. This was stated by him at the inaugural function of 3rd International Convention of Service Industry NER(I)-ASEAN FOCUS CLMV (Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, Vietnam) held at Classic Grande, Imphal on Thursday.

The Chief Minister said that the government is planning to build a Resort to attract more tourists in the State. The government is trying to acquire 100 acres of land near Tengnoupal area in Imphal-Moreh road for the construction of the Resort, he added. He stated that Prime Minister Narendra Modi has allocated funds for the construction of 39 big culverts in the areas of Indo-Myanmar border. Chief Minister informed that he along with the Chief Minister of Sagaing Region, Myanmar would jointly inaugurate the said culverts soon.

Mentioning that Manipur is the gateway to South East Asian countries, Chief Minister maintained that we should make Imphal/Manipur an important location/station because the routes will be shortened to connect the South East Asian countries. He further stressed that the State government is trying its best to increase tourists flow in the State. Stating that the State has hosted the NEDS 2017 in Imphal, first of its kind in the entire North East, Chief Minister said that following the footsteps of the State, states like Assam and Uttar Pradesh have started organising similar Business Summit in their respective states. He maintained that better connectivity is very important to bring development in the region.

Stating that we need a collective effort to be a part of global movement for change, Chief Minister urged the people of the State to commit ourselves to bring change in terms of our attitude, behaviour and mind etc.
23/02/18 Northeast Today

Jewar airport will now be a full-fledged aviation hub

UP government has decided to develop the proposed Jewar international airport in Noida as a full-fledged aviation hub. It will have at least four runways and facilities, including a flying and training institute, and cargo and aircraft Maintenance Repair and Overhaul (MRO) system.
The announcement was made on the second and concluding day of the Investors’ Summit on Thursday.
Director, UP civil aviation department, Surya Pal Gangwar said the plan to develop the Jewar airport as a state-of-the-art aviation hub was being worked out. “We hope to complete the planning and get other formalities completed soon,” he said in a session on ‘Civil aviation: emerging opportunities’ at the summit.
Jewar airport, perceived as one of the key projects to ease air traffic at IGI airport Delhi, will come up on 3,000 acres land on a public-private-partnership model.
The proposed facilities, experts say, would add to the commercial advantage of the airport and nearby region.
Union aviation minister Ashok Gajapathi Raju, who was the key speaker in the session, said the Jewar airport has to be developed within six years. “Various studies have shown that the IGI airport will get fully congested by 2024. Therefore, Jewar airport project needs to be expedited. It is not only in the interest of Delhi but also UP and other states,” he said. Raju admitted that the project got delayed due to lack of coordination between the Centre and the UP government in the past.
23/02/18 Pankaj Shah/Times of India

SC dismisses IndiGo’s plea against order to shift from T 1 to T2 of IGI Airport

New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Friday dismissed a plea of no-frill carrier IndiGo challenging a Delhi High Court order to shift its operations from Terminal-1 (T-1) of the IGI Airport here to Terminal 2.

A bench of Chief Justice Dipak Misra and Justice D Y Chandrachud directed the IndiGo Airline to shift its operations partially to T2 in 25 days.

The budget carrier had on February 19 approached the apex court against the February 13 order of the division bench of the High Court.

The larger bench of the High Court had upheld the decision of a single judge order observing that the decision of Delhi International Airport Ltd’s (DIAL) to partially shift IndiGo’s operations from T-1 to T-2 cannot be said to be unreasonable only because it may operate harshly against that airline.

The High Court had turned down the suggestion of IndiGo that T-1 be dedicated exclusively for its use and low-cost carrier SpiceJet be asked to move its entire operations to T-2. The bench had said this suggestion had sprung from IndiGo’s own commercial considerations and was not made in the larger public good.

It had said SpiceJet was as much a business rival of IndiGo as GoAir was a competitor of these two private carriers. IndiGo may be on top of the heap if the volume of passenger traffic is seen, but this would not entitle it to claim monopoly over T-1 to the exclusion of the rest, it had added.
23/02/18 PTI/Indian Express

Vistara adds daily flights to Kochi and Chennai from Kolkata

Kolkata: Vistara, the TATA-SIA joint venture, is all set to connect Kochi and Chennai to Kolkata from March end this year, the airline said in a statement on Friday. The flight between Netjai Subhas Chandra Bose International Airport, Kolkata and Kochi will be a daily one with a stopover at Chennai. There will be another daily flight to Chennai, the statement said adding the two services will commence from March 25.

The airline has already added a third frequency between Kolkata and Delhi from mid February and it leaves for Delhi from Kolkata at 8.15 pm daily, it said. The existing two frequencies to Delhi from Kolkata are in the morning and in the afternoon, it added.

“The launch of these new routes and flights from Kolkata reflects the commitment Vistara has to Kolkata and of the positive response we have received to our flights from the city,” the Chief Strategy and Commercial Officer of Vistara, Sanjiv Kapoor, said.

Vistara’s Kolkata flights have high loads in all classes, Kapoor said. “Our strong acceptance in the market indicates there is room for a quality full service carrier in the market, with a sizable base of customers in all market segments including corporates,” he added.

The airline, a full-service carrier, had commenced flight operations from Kolkata on June 10, 2016. With these additions Vistara will connect Kolkata directly with Delhi, Chennai, Port Blair (Andamans) and Kochi, the statement said.

Customers from Kolkata can also connect via Delhi to many other domestic and international destinations, including Chandigarh, Srinagar, Jammu, Amritsar and Lucknow and multiple cities internationally through Vistara’s 21 international interline partners, it added.
23/02/18 PTI/Indian Express

Poor visibility hits flight operations at Goa airport

Panaji: Poor visibility caused by fog severely affected operations at the Goa airport this morning with two international and three domestic flights diverted to various cities, senior officials said.

Visibility was extremely low from 6 am onwards at the airport in Dabolim, around 30km from here, said the Airports Authority of India (AAI).

Airport authorities said two international flights were diverted to other cities. One of them - a chartered aircraft from Russia - was diverted to Bengaluru, while the other flight - from Manchester, UK - was asked to land at the Mumbai airport.


An IndiGo flight from Chennai to Goa was diverted to Bengaluru, while a GoAir aircraft from Mumbai was asked to return to the metropolis. A SpiceJet flight from Chennai to Goa was diverted to Bengaluru, the officials said.
23/02/18 PTI/India Today

Authorities say security measures at Calicut airport are effective

Authorities at the Calicut International Airport at Karipur, near here, today said security measures at the airport were effective, in light of allegations of theft of valuables from passengers’ baggages.

Baggage movement is under CCTV surveillance and it is also being monitored by airline and CISF security personnel, the airport Director (Acting) K. Mohammed Shahid said in a release.

The Airport Security Committee has been taking various measures to curtail such activities, he added.

Personnel handling baggage inside aircraft cargo hold area are frisked by airline security at the tarmac and by the CISF at the exit gate, he said.

Shahid said with regard to the alleged incidents recently, CCTV footage was viewed and no tampering of baggage was observed.

Complaints from passengers concerned were being handled by the respective airlines with their counterparts in Dubai and it is learnt that the matter is taken up with Dubai airport authorities and security agencies, he said.

The enhanced security measures at the Calicut airport and no complaints from departing passengers indicated that the measures were effective, he added.
23/02/18 Asianet India

Direct flight from Delhi to Imphal by April

Imphal: The civil aviation ministry has assured the Manipur government that Air India will begin daily direct flights from New Delhi to Imphal by the first week of April.

Chief minister N. Biren Singh announced this at the inaugural function of the 3rd International Convention of Service Industry NER(I)-ASEAN FOCUS CLMV (Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, Vietnam) held here on Thursday.

The convention was organised by the ministry of commerce and industry, the International Chamber for Service Industry and the Manipur Infrastructure Development Agency on the theme Tapping potential of services sector catering to domestic and international demands.

Biren Singh said Manipur needs to be developed as it is the gateway to Southeast Asian countries and that his government was trying its best to promote the tourism sector. He said the government was planning to build a resort to attract more tourists to the state and was trying to acquire 100 acres of land near Tengnoupal along the Imphal-Moreh road for it.
23/02/18 NgangbamIndrakanta Singh/Telegraph

Trichy airport to get Rs 1.71 crore makeover

Trichy: The Trichy Interational Airport terminus which was plagued by poor maintenance will soon sport a complete makeover at par with international standards. Officials from Airport Authority of India (AAI) have taken up renovation work at an estimated cost of Rs 1.71 crore. The work is expected to be completed around April, officials added.
Poor maintenance of restrooms at the international airport was a common complaint aired by passengers who arrive here. They said that the continuing lack of maintenance had been causing them severe inconvenience. Many passengers regularly expressed their anger on social media over the stench and leaking taps.
Airport director K Gunasekaran said that steps had been initiated to arrive at a permanent solution for this problem. “We have given a contract to a new agency, who will take up fixing all 28 toilets in both departure and arrival areas at an estimated cost of Rs 90 lakh. Work is going on rapidly and I have also asked for regular checks, surprise inspections to monitor the maintenance. There will be significant improvement by the month of April,” he said. Sanitary napkin vending machines will also be placed at women’s toilets, he added.
23/02/18 D Vincent Arockiaraj/Times of India

Traffic mismanagement irks air passengers in Srinagar

Missing flights is becoming a norm in Kashmir courtesy huge traffic mess and traffic mismanagement in the city especially on the roads leading to the Sher-e-Kashmir International airport Srinagar.

Voices are calling for immediate steps to manage the Airport traffic corridor in better way so that they do not bear brunt. All this mess in recent times has caused problems to students, patients etc on account of missing flights due to heavy traffic jams and long wait to enter airport.

A passenger who missed his flight due to traffic jam states – “I had an emergency meeting to attend at the Delhi but due to long traffic jams and roads leading to airport in mess I missed the flight despite leaving hours before for airport. This season on account of incomplete flyover, mismanagement of traffic the number of people missing flights is growing.”

Since past few months missing of flights by much courtesy messy traffic system is calling upon authorities to revamp the airport traffic corridor in better way.

“I take about 10 or 12 return flights per year for work. Departure times are usually early afternoon, so no rush-hour traffic to contend with. I always give myself far more time to drive to the airport than I would normally require (I live about an hour away from the nearest airports and trains are not convenient), but it seems that every time I set off on one of these journeys I always get stuck in traffic somewhere,” added Shabir Ahmad.
22/02/18 Kashmir Patriot

This new service can end those never-ending traffic jams from Bengaluru airport to the city

If you have travelled to Bengaluru or are a resident of the city, you probably know the pain involved in travelling from the main city to the international airport. People have complained that it’s like travelling to another city.

If you’ve taken a taxi, the average price of a hailing taxi service such as Ola or Uber ranges from anything between Rs 600 and Rs 1200, depending on the surcharge at that point of the day. So then it’s interesting news to all that Bengaluru will now have a heli-taxi service from the airport to the city. As the name suggests, heli-taxi is a helicopter taxi service that connects Kempegowda International Airport to the rest of Bengaluru. The service could bring a lot of relief to thousands of commuters, particularly those who live in Electronic City, which is closer to the Tamil Nadu border, while Bengaluru International Airport is on the Bengaluru-Hyderabad Highway.
Thumby Aviation, the company operating the helicopter taxis, told CNN Traveller that permissions are in place and two Bell 407 helicopters are ready to fly passengers from Bangalore’s Kempegowda International Airport to Electronic City, Phase 1 and to HAL Airport. This means that a journey that usually takes two hours by road will now take only 15 minutes.

Currently, flights are timed at peak business hours. There will be an average of three round-trips between Bangalore’s Kempegowda International Airport (KIA) and Electronic City from 6.30am to 9.30am and another three round-trips from 3.00pm to 6.15pm. (Flights between Bangalore KIA and HAL Airport will start on 1 March.) The four-blade, single-engine Bell 407 chopper to be used as a heli taxi can seat up to six people.

Tickets for the heli taxi are priced at Rs4,130 per seat (Rs3,500 + GST). It includes the drive from the Bangalore airport terminal to the helipad on the premises. It also includes carry-on luggage up to 15kg.
23/02/18 DNA

AAI seeks inquiry into breaking of glass panels at airport

Chennai: Authorities of the Airports Authority of India (AAI) in Delhi have sought a detailed inquiry yet again into the recent incidents of glass panels breaking at the Chennai airport.

On Tuesday, a glass panel crashed in the security hold area of the airport around 11.30 p.m.

Since there were no passengers or staff in the area, no one was injured.

A few days ago, a bolt from a speeding car’s tyre broke the glass panels of the domestic terminal.

“After media reports emerged, the authorities in Delhi wanted to know why such incidents continue to occur. We will send them a report with the total number of incidents so far,” an official said.

Ever since the new domestic and international terminals of Chennai airport were inaugurated in 2013, there have been at least 40 incidents of glass panels breaking.

Over 22,000 glass panels from Saint Gobain have been used in the two terminals of the Chennai airport.
23/02/18 The Hindu

Tuesday, February 20, 2018

Abhishek Verma owned Olialia India bags Maldives International Airport construction award

A global conglomerate owned by billionaire Abhishek Verma, 'Olialia' (pronounced as Oooh La La) has signed an MoU for building an international airport with the Government of Maldives.

Olialia has been sanctioned a huge lagoon by the Government of the Maldives for this purpose. Located far from the capital city Male, the designated water body was in much need of an international airport.

The second lagoon identified by Olialia is for development of a seven star resort close to the airport development.

The planned airport is going to be named Olialia International Airport for a minimum period of 50 years. Olialia was invited by the island nation’s government for the construction of the airport by issuing a formal invitation letter / Expression of Interest.

This letter addressed to Mrs Anca Verma the wife of Abhishek Verma was signed by the Maldives’ Tourism Minister Moosa Zameer.

A special purpose company (Olialia International Airport Maldives Private Limited) is now been registered in Maldives which has already received sanction to bring in FDI (foreign direct investment) into the country for this airport project.

The airport will be built upon the ‘build, own and transfer’ model, which means that Olialia build and run the airport for 50 years, after which the operations and management would be handed over to the government of Maldives.

As decreed by the model, the government is not liable for any finance, which means that Olialia would be the sole investor in the project.

An Olialia spokesperson has revealed that the company will hand over the airport to the Maldives government after developing and running it for a period of 50 years. The airport’s net worth is expected to rise to a whopping $6 billion by the said time. The airport project is also expected to generate approximately 5,000 employment opportunities for the people of Maldives.

Olialia World is a Lithuanian multinational corporation with US$ 2 billion annual sales. It is a FMCG company with interests in hospitality, aviation, infrastructure, financial services and tourism.

Olialia World is owned by India's Verma Family scion Billionaire Abhishek Verma with Mrs. Anca Verma being the Chairperson of the Conglomerate. The Co-Founders of Olialia brand are Justas Tomkus, Rasa Tomkiene and Rytis Tomkus.
19/02/18  Olialia World/OpenPR

Threat amid runway risks

The recent incursion of Akure airport runway by cows that prevented Air Peace aircraft to delay landing for about 20 minutes has again brought to the fore the need to improve aviation safety through ensuring that airport runways are clear of obstruction.

A runway incursion is an incident where an unauthorized aircraft, vehicle or person is on a runway. This adversely affects runway safety, as it creates the risk that an airplane taking off or landing will collide with the object. It is defined by the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) as any occurrence at an aerodrome involving the incorrect presence of an aircraft, vehicles or persons on the protected area of a surface designated for the landing and take-off of aircraft.

While aviation has been getting safer of late, runway incursions by aircraft or vehicles remain a weak spot. After all, during each flight, the passengers literally put their lives in the hands of complete strangers.

Although general aviation accidents have been decreasing over the past few years, incursions with all dangers attached to them have been increasing at an alarming rate. It is merely a matter of time for these incursions to become tragic accidents. Last week Saturday, scores of cattle made incursion into the runway of the Akure Airport, in Ondo State, preventing an Air Peace flight, which left Lagos for Akure from landing immediately until they were dispersed by security men.

March 8, 2011, the Hawker 850 aircraft carrying the then Vice-Presidential candidate of ACN, Mr. Fola Adeola, experienced scenario of runway incursion by goats and sheep at Bauchi airport.

Sources at the airport said the incident, which has become a regular feature at the airport premises occurred around 12:00 am, causing initial disturbance to the airline and passengers, forcing the former to hover mid-air for some minutes.

“The herdsmen foraged into the runaway causing some disturbance and preventing the aircraft from landing around 11:30am. The incident lasted for about 10 minutes until Aviation Security personnel, (AvSec), arrested the situation,” a source at the airport told New Telegraph.

The management Air Peace said that flight P4 7002 from Lagos had to delay landing into Akure Airport when the pilot-in-command sighted cows on the runway at about 12.15pm. “On being alerted by control tower, aviation security personnel of the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN AVSEC) quickly intervened and cleared the runway. “The flight was eventually cleared to land after about seven minutes.

Our guests on board were all calm while the delay lasted. The aircraft departed for Lagos at about 11.06 with full escort from FAAN security personnel. Confirming the incident, Air Peace Corporate Communications Manager, Mr. Chris Iwarah said: “We confirm that flight P4 7002 from Lagos had to delay landing into Akure Airport today (Saturday) when the pilot-in-command sighted cows on the runway at about 12.15pm.

Runway incursions are today one of the major factors affecting flight safety. In India, there are numerous cases of small accidents involving runway incursions every year, with the potential always present for a major disaster, such as the Tenerife airport collision on March 27, 1977, when two Boeing 747 passenger aircraft collided on the runway of Los Rodeos Airport (now known as Tenerife North Airport) on the Spanish island of Tenerife.

A total of 583 passengers died in that incident, making it the deadliest accident in aviation history. Even if accidents are avoided, incursions often cause costly flight delays.

Animals on the runway are a particularly pervasive problem at many airports in India. There are numerous examples. In 2005, an aircraft taking off from Pune International Airport ran over a stray animal, which resulted in a two-hour delay for flights.

In 2008, an Air India aircraft narrowly escaped accident when it hit an Indian blue bull during landing at Kanpur Airport in Uttar Pradesh. Also in 2008, a Kingfisher Airlines aircraft hit a stray dog on the runway at the HAL Bangalore International Airport, resulting in the aircraft’s landing gear collapsing.

The aircraft skidded off the runway and its nose collapsed; four passengers were injured. Maharashtra Chief Minister Prithviraj Chavan recently ordered an Airport Environmental Committee (AEC) enquiry into the recurring mishaps – hundreds every year – caused by stray animals on the runway at Babasaheb Ambedkar International Airport in Nagpur.

The absence of perimeter fences at most of the country’s airports has always posed a challenge to FAAN because of the huge capital outlay required in constructing perimeter fences, some of which are as long as 40 kilometres, across the 22 network of airports across the country. Some of the perimeter fence projects commenced in 2014 while the remaining ones were expected to be executed in 2015.
20/02/18 Wole Shadare/New Telegraph

Free Wi-Fi still out of reach for many international flyers at Indian airports

At a time when airlines are planning to introduce in-flight voice and data connectivity, following a Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) order, flyers using international SIM cards still can’t access free Wi-Fi at Indian airports.
Currently, only those with local mobile numbers or those international passengers with roaming packs can connect to Wi-Fi at airports. In contrast, most international airports provide free Wi-Fi to all passengers from any part of the world.
According to TRAI sources, public wireless network users need to be verified for security reasons through OTPs. “That is why the facility is limited to local mobile numbers and those using international roaming at Indian airports,” they say.
But this has been causing grave inconvenience for international passengers, who’re forced to sit through flight delays and long layovers without internet access. While passengers who have international roaming packs may not require free Wi-Fi at airports, the service in itself is expensive.
Coupons, apps don’t work for all
To address the issue, a few airport lounges in the country provide Wi-Fi coupons or mobile apps for internet access, but the problem remains largely unresolved. For instance, Bangalore International Airport Ltd’s (BIAL) mobile application — BLR Airport — allows passengers to access free Wi-Fi for two hours without an OTP. But the app is not iOS compatible, as Apple doesn’t open its platform for this integration, but most international travellers use iOS devices.
D Sudhakara Reddy, founder and national president of Air Passengers Association of India, said they have received several complaints from international passengers about lack of free Wi-Fi. “It’s unfair to insist on having local mobile numbers to access free Wi-Fi at airports. Most international airports don’t have such restrictions.”
While Wi-Fi connectivity is available at all passenger-waiting areas, one has to select the network and enter the mobile number. Once it’s entered, an OTP is generated, which then needs to be entered into the web page. Many passengers complain that Wi-Fi coupons aren’t available at most Indian airports.
20/02/18 Christin Mathew Philip/Times of India

Air Asia X to stop flights from Mumbai

Malaysian budget carrier AirAsia has decided to pull out its flights from Mumbai to Kuala Lumpur from April 30.

A report in The Times of India quotes an  AirAsia India spokesperson saying passengers booked on the sector after April 29 will be allowed to either re-route through other destinations, get a credit refund, change the travel date or get a full refund.
The Mumbai-Kuala Lumpur flight has been popular with tourists to Malaysia and Bali, where Air Asia has excellent connections. If you were planning your South Asia summer holiday, you still have three good options from Mumbai. The following airlines operate non-stop flights:

Malindo Air flies to to Kuala Lumpur from Mumbai every day, with a flight duration of 5 hours and 20 minutes. Book your tickets here.

Malaysia Airlines also has daily non-stop flights between Mumbai and Kuala Lumpur. Book tickets here.

Jet Airways flights, operated by Malaysia Airlines as a part of codeshare, will also take you to Kuala Lumpur in just 5 hours 20 minutes.
20/02/18 Conde Nest Traveller

Smiths Detection awarded AAI security contract

Through a global competitive tender process conducted by AAI, Smiths Detection won the bid to install and integrate high-speed explosives detection systems (EDS) for hold-baggage screening at 11 sites across nine airports in India, including Chennai International Airport and Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose International Airport in Kolkata.

“The Indian market is forecast to be the third-largest aviation market in the world by 2026, so security is a mission-critical factor in enabling India’s airports to be future-ready. Smiths Detection is honoured to partner with AAI – supporting airports to stay ahead of the evolving threat landscape with a technological solution that is fully compliant with regulatory requirements,” said Jerome de Chassey, General Manager of Smiths Detection in India.

AAI manages a total of 125 airports in India and is responsible for creating, upgrading, maintaining and managing civil aviation infrastructure both on the ground and in the air. The organisation is also responsible for building new terminals for the many new small airports under development by the Government of India. Working in partnership with Smiths Detection, AAI will implement ECAC Standard 3 screening of hold baggage at Level 1 for inline systems across the country. This complies with regulations set by the Bureau of Civil Aviation Security (BCAS), the regulatory authority for civil aviation security in India.
19/02/18 Advance

PadMan effect: AAI installs sanitary pad vending machines at airports across India

As if taking a cue from Akshay Kumar starrer movie PadMan, Airports Authority of India (AAI) has started initiatives to make airports more woman-friendly by installing sanitary napkin vending machines at airports across the country. The authority has already installed the pad vending machines in 19 airports, including three in northeast India -- Guwahati, Agartala, and Imphal.

By providing sanitary napkins at affordable prices inside the airport terminals, the authority plans to promote the hygienic practices among women passengers during menstruation.

The movie PadMan, based on the true-life story of a Tamil Nadu man who invented the low-cost machine to make sanitary pads, challenged the social taboos related to menstruation and menstrual hygiene prevailing in the society.

Even though the AAI had started installing pad vending machines much earlier, now the authority is using the hype created by PadMan movie to carry forward the mission with renewed vigor and to enhance the traveling experience, comfort, and convenience of lady passengers. 

The first sanitary pad machine was installed at Indore Airport in October 2017.  Several airports followed suit, including the airports in Kolkata, Jaipur, Bhubaneswar, Port Blair, Thiruvananthapuram, Mangalore, Tirupati, Visakhapatnam, Vadodara, Aurangabad, Rajkot, Pune, Shimla, Varanasi, and Surat, besides three in the Northeast got these machines, according to The Telegraph. The cost of sanitary napkin range from Rs 1 to Rs 5 in these airports.
19/02/18 Nithya Nair/IBTimes

Bengaluru International Airport to enable an omni-channel commerce experience

New Delhi: Bengaluru International Airport Limited (BIAL) has partnered with omnichannel platform company Ace Turtle to enable omnichannel commerce experience for travelers at the Kempegowda International Airport, Bengaluru, it said in a statement.

The omnichannel experience will enable passengers to buy online or in the air and pick-up, ship or deliver to the destination of their choice.

The focus of the digital transformation for BIAL is to improve the traveler’s journey, create new revenue opportunities and realize operational efficiencies through an agile approach for BIAL and its business partners, the company said.
20/02/18 ET Retail

CM Devendra Fadnavis rules out budget grant for Purandar airport

Pune: Chief minister Devendra Fadnavis has ruled out allocation of funds in the state budget for the proposed airport at Purandar.
Asked whether funds will be provided in the state budget for the Purandar airport, Fadnavis in a text message replied: “It is not required.”
Senior officials of the Maharashtra Airport Development Company Limited (MADC), which is developing the airport, told TOI that a detailed proposal on the financial aspect of the proposed airport, which include expected funds required for land acquisition, has been sent to the state government and its approval is being awaited.
“We have not mentioned the compensation amount as it is expected to be different for each landowner depending on the package he/she chooses. Once the proposal is cleared by the local district administration, we will be able to discuss the amount,” an MADC official said.
The foundation stone for the Navi Mumbai international airport was laid by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the first flight is set to take off by 2019.
The tweet from Fadnavis’ office said, “First flight from Navi Mumbai International Airport to take off by December 2019. We are also building missing lines on Mumbai-Pune expressway. We have received all permission for the new Purandar Airport in Pune and also working on extension of existing Pune airport.”
20/02/18 Joy Sengupta/Times of India

Goa will be unique to have two international airports close by: Governor

Goa will become a unique state as it will have two international airports conducting civilian operations in close proximity once the greenfield airport at Mopa in North Goa gets commissioned, state Governor Mridula Sinha said in Panaji on Monday. The coastal state currently has international airport at Dabolim in South Goa near Vasco town, which operates from the naval base INS Hansa. The airport operates civilian as well as defence aircraft. “The present airport at Dabolim is already overloaded due to increasing passenger traffic as well as naval restrictions,” the governor said addressing the first day of the Budget session of the state Legislative Assembly.

“While the dual status of Dabolim airport is retained, my government is committed to have its own international airport at Mopa in Pernem taluka, catering to round-the-clock operations of both domestic and international flights within the next three years,” she said.

“Goa will become a unique state to have two international airports conducting civilian operations in close proximity,” Sinha said.

The work of improvement, widening and strengthening of existing approach road to Mopa airport site to facilitate two-way movement of vehicles is almost completed, she said.

The governor said that Goa is one of the famous tourist destinations and tourism industry contributes a major portion in the state income. “The number of tourists arriving in Goa is more than four times the population of the state,” she said.
19/02/18 PTI/Indian Express

Surat international airport inches towards reality

Surat: The dream of local people to have an international airport in the Diamond City may come true with the state government allocating Rs 1 crore for setting up of immigration facilities at Surat airport.
Deputy chief minister Nitin Patel, while presenting the state budget in Gujarat assembly on Tuesday, stated that the government has earmarked Rs 1 crore for setting up of immigration facilities at Surat airport.
It was on September 20, 2017, that the home department of Gujarat government had asked the director general of police to allot 68 immigration staff for Surat airport in the financial year 2018-19.
The prime minister’s office (PMO), ministry of civil aviation and ministry of home affairs (MHA) had given clear directions to the state government to take over immigration functions at Surat airport.
In the latest communication to Gujarat government, the MHA, government of India (a copy of which is with TOI) has stated that the process of declaration of Surat airport as an authorized immigration check post would be initiated only on receipt of positive response from the state government.
The central government had clearly said that the state government needs to take over immigration functions at Surat airport. A reference was given of a letter dated June 7, 2017, addressed to the principal secretary, home department, government of Gujarat, requesting to make arrangements for providing required manpower and other infrastructure necessary for carrying out immigration functions at the airport.
20/02/18 Times of India

Shop online as you fly to and from Kempegowda International Airport

Bengaluru: Passengers at Kempegowda International Airport can now shop online in flight and later pick-up the goods from a place of their choice.
BIAL has partnered with Ace Turtle, an omni-channel platform company, to digitize travel experience of the passengers.
Passengers can pre-book food from the BLR Airport app or website and collect the order from restaurants and food outlets at the airport. It also has a facility for passengers to order a product and choose the option to collect it at arrival or departure from collection points within the airport
They can also order products from their favorite stores at the airport kiosks and get them delivered at their addresses or collect from the designated airport areas.
Ace Turtle claimed BIAL was the first airport in India to enable omni-channel commerce experience for travelers.
Hari Marar, Managing Director and CEO of BIAL, said,“This partnership will go a long way in delivering seamless retail experience for brands and create greater value for our passengers.”
Nitin Chhabra, CEO, Ace Turtle said, “Travel retail in India is booming, making airports a potential revenue generator for many brands and retailers. Over the past few years, the BLR Airport has emerged as one of the fastest growing airports in the world and has created brand new opportunities for retailers to reach out millions of premium customers travelling for business or leisure”.
20/02/18 Christian Mathew Philip/Times of India

Consultant to submit report on Kolkata Airport expansion soon

Kolkata: The consultant engaged for preparing a sustainable and capacity expansion roadmap for the Kolkata Airport is likely to submit its report soon, a senior official of the airport said here today.

"We have engaged US-based consultant Landrum & Brown, a few months back with a mandate to study sustainability and capacity expansion of the airport," Kolkata Airport director Atul Dikshit said today on the sidelines of a Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) organised event 'Infra-East'.

Landrum & Brown specialises in aviation planning and development.

Dikshit said on an average, 450 flights take off or land daily at the Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose International Airport here.

Although the airport has the capacity to accommodate more flights, it is contemplating capacity enhancement to meet future demand.

Dikshit said the West Bengal government had made efforts to persuade a few European airlines to start their operations from Kolkata.
20/02/18 PTI/Business World

Lo! Even runway of Lucknow airport will have chock-a-block scene

Lucknow: Not only the roads leading to much-hyped Uttar Pradesh Investors Summit-2018 will have traffic jams on February 21 and 22 but the runways at Lucknow airport are going to have chock-a-block scene.  Reason – so many chartered planes on a single day beyond the capacity of Chaudhary Charan Singh Airport in the state capital.

The summit to be inaugurated by the Prime Minister Narendra Modi in the presence of dozens of Central ministers  has a galaxy of the captains of industry –many of them arriving in their private or chartered aircrafts. This situation is bound to lead to a chaos not only outside but insde the airport and at the runway and aircraft parking bays .

A senior official at the airport  told newstrack.com that the capacity of 12 aircrafts but the information of more than two dozen private planes had already been received. In such situation, the planes are likely to be parked at nearby airports of Fursatganj in Raebareli or even Varanasi, he said.
20/02/18  Arnima Dwivedi/News Track

Kadapa-Vijayawada flight service from March 1

Kadapa: The Trujet Airliners will operate Kadapa-Vijayawada flight service from March 1, according to local airport director Pasupula Siva Prasad in a release here on Monday.

There are flight services from here to destinations like Hyderabad and Chennai. Soon a flight service to Vijayawada will be launched, he said, adding that airport development works with Rs 100 crores are underway.

The number of seats in airlines will increase from the present 72 to 170 soon. Amenities are being created to equip the airport with the night-landing facilities, he added. Airport fire superintendent Sarat was also present.
20/02/18 Hans India

What Kolkata Airport Authorities Have To Face When Mamata Banerjee’s Flight Queues For Landing

Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee’s impatience and propensity to fly off the handle at the slightest provocation have been causing a lot of anguish to officials – both of the Airports Authority of India (AAI) and private airlines – at Kolkata airport. Her insistence on the aircraft she is on board being accorded priority in landing and her adverse response in case that demand is not met are affecting air traffic operations.

Banerjee has long been known for her impatience, short temper, and irritability, especially if things don’t run according to her script. Thus, while flying in to Kolkata, she turns irate if the aircraft she is in has to hover over the airport and is not accorded priority in landing. She has been known to vent her ire on airline cabin crew, who are always tense and jittery when the Bengal Chief Minister is on board.

The latest such incident happened a week ago when she was returning from a trip to Darjeeling. The IndiGo flight she was on had to hover over Kolkata city for a few minutes due to congestion in the air space over the airport. The flight landed four minutes after its scheduled time of arrival. This was reason enough for Banerjee to order her pliant police to start a probe against IndiGo and the Kolkata airport authorities!
19/02/18 Jaideep Mazumdar/Swrajya

Singapore Airlines Increases Frequency From Ahmedabad

Singapore Airlines has introduced a fifth weekly flight from Ahmedabad to Singapore; to cater to the increased travel demand during the summer holiday season. The additional flight will operate every Friday from April 27 – May 25, 2018.

David Lim, General Manager India – Singapore Airlines said, “Ahmedabad continues to be a key market for Singapore Airlines and we are pleased to offer an additional, seasonal frequency to meet the growing demand. The new flight will provide travellers an additional departure window to travel to Singapore and to onward destinations.”
19/02/18 T3 News Network

Need of the hour, rising congestion: Second airport to unlock aviation growth in Mumbai

On January 20, the second-largest aerodrome in the country — Chhatrapati Shivaji International Airport (CSIA) at Mumbai — handled a record 980 flights in a single day, becoming the world’s busiest airport with a single runway. Even as few other airports in the world such as London’s Gatwick airport operate at a similar rate, the Mumbai airport is constrained for capacity and is near its saturation point in terms of handling flights as well as passengers. This has also had an impact on Mumbai’s contribution to the growth story of India’s aviation sector. A close look at data for top 17 air routes in India provided by research firm OAG shows that the percentage of seats allocated to sectors involving Mumbai came down to 51 per cent in 2017 from 61 per cent in 2007.

In terms of the pecking order, routes such as Mumbai-Chennai-Mumbai, Mumbai-Ahmedabad-Mumbai and Mumbai-Kolkata-Mumbai saw sharp fall in their positions according to number of seats over the 10-year period from 3rd to 10th, 8th to 15th and 12th to 17th, respectively. Apart from the Mumbai-Dubai-Mumbai route, none of the other routes involving the financial capital of India saw an increase in ranking.
The CSIA, which is operated by Mumbai International Airport Ltd – a joint-venture between Airports Authority of India (AAI) and a GVK-led consortium, reached 94 per cent of its maximum passenger handling capacity in 2017, according to research firm CAPA, which also said that the airport was expected to reach full capacity in 2018. Further, according to data compiled by AAI, during the nine-month period ended December 2017, Mumbai airport reported the slowest on-year growth in number of domestic aircraft movements among the top five airports of the country. While Mumbai’s domestic aircraft movements grew 2.6 per cent on year, those at Delhi, Bengaluru, Kolkata and Hyderabad grew by 11.3 per cent, 4.2 per cent, 23.1 per cent and 14 per cent, respectively.
20/02/18 Pranav Mukul/Indian Express