Showing posts with label Airports Oct 2009. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Airports Oct 2009. Show all posts

Saturday, October 31, 2009

AAI's bond issue stuck, airport revamp to be hit

New Delhi: India's ambitious airport revamp plan has hit a serious financial roadblock and passengers may have to wait much longer for world class facilities in many cities. The Airports Authority of India (AAI) has deferred its upgrade plans at several airports as the government has not cleared its old request for raising Rs 5,500 crore by issuing tax free bonds.
Instead, the authority will now raise this money from banks at a much higher cost at nearly 8.5% instead of 7% associated with tax free bonds. With the cost of capital going up substantially and revenue subdued, AAI has now decided to take up several projects at a later date.
During the 11th five year plan, we were to spend Rs 12,500 crore. Initially we felt tax free bond route will be taken for raising Rs 2,500 crore. Later with resources expected to be raised from other places drying up, this amount was raised to Rs 5,500 crore Rs 1,500 crore from public and rest from banks, said a senior official. But with the government sitting on its request tax free bonds for over five months now, the AAI has tweaked its plans and has adopted a three-pronged strategy.
Among the projects that have been deferred are construction of a new international airport at Bhubaneswar; new terminals in Leh and Port Blair and extending runway at Jaipur.
31/10/09 Saurabh Sinha/Times of India

AI plane makes precautionary landing at Delhi airport

New Delhi: An Air India flight made a precautionary landing at Delhi airport on Saturday morning, after suspected hydraulic failure.
All 170 passengers on board the Airbus A 330 from Mumbai to Shanghai are reportedly safe.
The airline is arranging another aircraft for the onward journey to Shanghai.
A similar incident took place on October 29, when another Air India plane with 150 people on board aborted landing at the IGI Airport in New Delhi after experiencing "fluctuations" on the instrument landing system (ILS) signal, but later touched down safely.
31/10/09 Hindustan Times

No probe into Mumbai airport incident

Mumbai : The Director-General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) will not conduct any inquiry into an incident in which two aircraft were opposite each other on the same taxiway here late Thursday night, though at a considerable distance from each other, an official said Friday.
“The incident was very minor and the two aircraft were at a very slow speed. If they had proceeded in their respective directions, there could have been a problem,” the official said.
The incident happened shortly before midnight Thursday when a Kingfisher Airlines Mumbai-Delhi flight IT-315 with 117 passengers was proceeding on the taxiway. At that time an Air India Nagpur-Mumbai flight with 127 passengers had also landed and was coming on the same taxiway in the opposite direction, though at a significant distance, at the Chhatrapati Shivaji International Airport.
30/10/09 IANS/Thaindian.com, Thailand

CFM Intl to set up training facility at Hyd airport

Chennai/ Hyderabad: GMR Hyderabad International Airport Limited (GHIAL) has signed an agreement with aircraft engine manufacturer, CFM International (CFM), to establish a new CFM56 maintenance training centre to support its customers in the South Asian region.
CFM International is a 50:50 joint venture between Snecma (SAFRAN Group) of France and General Electric Company(GE) of the United States. The agreement signed on Thursday cements a memorandum of agreement executed in January 2009.
The training centre, which will commence operations by late January 2010, will be located in the GMR Aerospace Park, being developed in the exclusive 250 acre aviation SEZ, that forms part of the Rajiv Gandhi International Airport complex.
31/10/09 Business Standard

Network overhaul at Brazil's 11 Airports

Bangalore: Infraero, the government-run airport administration for Brazil, has selected 3Com and its H3C enterprise networking solutions to provide the network infrastructure for its network upgrade project for 11 of the main airports in the country. The aim of the initiative is to increase the performance and security of the airport's wired and wireless networks to support the increasing demand of passengers and employees.
Infraero estimates that by using 3Com's H3C enterprise networking devices it will achieve a 100-fold increase of performance on data, voice and video applications used for flight information systems,air traffic control, surveillance and IP telephony systems.
More than 800 networks points distributed between 11 airports are planned for the first phase of the project.
30/10/09 CIOL

Flying from Hyderabad may become costlier

Istanbul (Turkey): Flying from Hyderabad will become more expensive soon. The Chairman of GMR Group, Mr G.M. Rao, told newspersons that the operator had applied to the regulator for an increase in the user development fee (UDF).
Hyderabad International Airport Ltd (HIAL) plans to charge Rs 475 plus service tax, up from Rs 375 being paid by every departing domestic passenger currently. In the case of international passengers, the hike will be steeper with the operator planning to charge between Rs 2,700 and Rs 2,800, instead of the Rs 1,000 charged at present.
30/10/09 Ashwini Phadnis/Business Line

Friday, October 30, 2009

AAI explores new fund-raising options for airport expansion

Mumbai: The finance ministry has quietly junked a proposal from the Airports Authority of India (AAI) to issue tax-free bonds to raise Rs 5,000 crore. With no indication of finance ministry approving the proposal, AAI is gearing up to explore other options to fund expansion of the Chennai and Kolkata airports, and upgradation of a large number of non-metro airports.
“The civil aviation ministry had approached North Block for permission for AAI to raise funds through tax-free bonds, but the finance ministry has not responded till now,” highly-placed civil aviation ministry sources said on condition of anonymity. With North Block not responding positively even several months after the proposal was submitted, both civil aviation ministry and AAI have virtually given up on the plan to raise funds through tax-free bonds.
Cost of funds for the airports is comparatively higher due to high gestation periods involved. In the case of airports and power, the average cost of funds is now estimated at 11.5%. “In comparison, cost of funds for sectors like roads is lower,” said A Subba Rao, president and CFO of the GMR Group, which is upgrading the Delhi airport and has built the new airport at Hyderabad. “Liquidity is plenty today. However, the government and the RBI should ensure that funds are available at a reasonable cost for infrastructure projects,” he said in response to queries.
Issue of tax-free bonds would allow AAI to raise funds at a cheaper cost and the civil aviation ministry had argued that the concession should be granted since the funds were to be invested to build infrastructure.
30/10/09 Economic Times

Air India, Kingfisher airlines aircraft in near collision at Mumbai airport

Mumbai: Nearly 244 passengers had a miraculous escape when two aircraft came face to face on the taxi way at Chhatrapati Shivaji International Airport late Thursday night, an airport official said.
A Kingfisher Airlines aircraft with 117 people on board was about to take off when an Air India Nagpur-Mumbai flight with 127 passengers landed and was speeding on the same runway. However, since the distance between the two aircraft was considerable, both managed to stop and a potential disaster was averted.
30/10/09 IANS/Times of India

Chinese engineers detained at airport

Kolkata: Twenty-three Chinese engineers were detained at the Kolkata airport on Thursday for hours on their way back to China. These men had fled after a 100 metre under-construction chimney of Bharat Aluminium Company Limited (Balco) collapsed on September 23 trapping around 50 people underneath in Korba.
"They were detained during the immigration check of the Jet Airways flight to Dhaka, as a look-out notice had been issued. However, after talking with the concerned administration, we got a clearance and they were released," said DC Security Control Shakil Ahmed.
30/10/09 Times of India

No flight diversion from Mumbai to Pune

Pune: Airport Authority of India (AAI), Pune director Captain S K Mahajan said the Lohegaon international airbase hadn't received any official communique pertaining to diversion of flights from Mumbai on account of restrictions on flight movements at the Mumbai airport every Tuesday.
The Mumbai airport will witness closure of runways from 12 noon to 6 pm for the next 22 Tuesdays for repair and reconstruction work, suspending flight operations during the period. However, a section of the runway will be open on Tuesdays, over which only private jets and ATRs can take off and land.
Kingfisher Airlines, senior general manager (corporate communication) Prakash Mirpur said, “On the domestic route network, 31 flights operate out of and into Mumbai. We have made either a timing change or flight number change on account of this closure. These changes in timings range from 15 minutes to 2 hours and will apply only on Tuesdays.” Four flights have been cancelled on Tuesdays: Mumbai-Goa IT 131 / Goa - Mumbai IT 132 and Mumbai-New Delhi IT 309 / New Delhi Mumbai IT 310.
On the international route network, there has been a change in the timings of flights on Mumbai-London Heathrow sector and Mumbai-Singapore sector, said Mirpur.
29/10/09 Sakaal Times

Thursday, October 29, 2009

Buildings can scale 100 storeys around BIA, say new rules

Bangalore: Devanahalli, which is emerging as the Aerotropolis -- airport city -- can now have skyscrapers going up 100 storeys. The Airports Authority of India (AAI) and Union ministry of civil aviation have stretched the vertical limit around Bengaluru International Airport (BIA) from 150 metres to 300 metres, within a radius of 20 km.
A new rule that's been implemented from June, it has caught the local area planning authority -- Bangalore International Airport Area Planning Authority (BIAAPA) -- unawares. The authority is still sticking to its rule book, which puts the maximum height at 25 metres around the airport.
The regulation, which kicked in for all major airports across the country, came through after builders petitioned the ministry to increase the height around airports as commercial and residential ventures in the vicinity have proved to be good business.
In May, the AAI notified that buildings within a radius of 20 km from the airport can go up to a maximum height of 300 metres, which means roughly 100 floors. The Union civil aviation ministry has also notified that the airports will have to issue NoCs based on the new rules. Certain parameters have been fixed for the heights, based on the distance from runways, and landing and take-off paths.
Aerotropolis is a relatively new concept, where a self-sustained town emerges around the airport with hospitality industry, commercial ventures and also residential enclaves. Here too, around BIA, the realty sector was buzzing with activity when the airport was commissioned, till the market crash last year.
29/10/09 S Kushala/Times of India

In second stint, Chakan airport on Chavan’s priority list

Pune Chief Minister designate in the new government Ashok Chavan is keen on taking up the new Chakan Airport project on a priority basis. Taking time out from discussions under way for cabinet berths in the new ministry, Chavan told The Indian Express on Tuesday he would focus on the project once the ministry is announced.
However, the state will not be able to adhere to the 2011 deadline set by Union Civil Aviation Minister Praful Patel as the acquisition for the airport and clearances from the ministry are pending.
“I am committed to the project and will take it up on priority,” he said. It was in February that his ministry had given administrative sanction for the project, appointing Maharashtra Airport Development Company (MADC) as a special planning authority for land acquisition and development of the airport. Seed money to the tune of Rs 200 crore was cleared then.
Though eight months have gone by, only Rs 60 crore has reached MADC, hampering the agency from undertaking any acquisition of land for the project. “Once the ministry is formed I will address the meeting and clear it,” said Chavan, who is also Chairman of MADC.
A senior MADC officer said the two elections within a few months and the swine flu scare in between saw the project being neglected. “We have written to the government to disburse funds as early as possible,” he said.
28/10/09 Nisha Nambiar/ExpressIndia

Air passenger traffic shows signs of recovery at Chennai

Chennai: Air passenger traffic, at a low for a long time this year, is showing signs of recovery.
The Airports Authority of India (AAI), going by the current trend, predicts that passenger movement and aircraft movement in the domestic and international sectors will surpass the figures of 2008-09 at Chennai airport. Passenger traffic had declined in 2008-09 when compared to the previous year.
More people are flying on international and domestic routes and airport officials hope to see more footfalls when the expanded and modernised airport opens its doors sometime next year.
"This is a recovery from the time when domestic passenger traffic declined to 7-10% in June, July, August and September 2008," said an AAI official.
Domestic passenger traffic is projected to touch approximately 64 lakh by March 2010 compared to 61.79 lakh last year while international passenger traffic is expected to touch 38.47 lakh against 36.63 lakh last year, according to an AAI forecast.
The total passenger traffic on domestic and international flights is expected to touch 1.01 crore at Chennai by the end of this financial year an increase of around three lakh compared to the 98.42 lakh last year.
29/10/09 V Ayyappan/Times of India

Flights diverted, held in air for 20-25 min

Mumbai: As many as 96 machines, including dumpers, hot mixers, pavers, rollers, concrete mixers and bitumen dispensers, took their place at the intersection of the Mumbai airport’s runways on day one of the massive reconstruction work being carried out on its airside on Tuesday as it saw a few flight movements during those hours.
Airport officials also reported that flights were held in the airspace for an average of 20-25 minutes for over an hour twice during the afternoon when the main runway was completely shut and was being prepared for operations before and after work at the intersection. They also disclosed that two flights of Go Air and Jet Airways were diverted to Goa and Ahmedabad airports as they were running out of fuel.
However, the spokesperson of the Mumbai International Airport Limited (MIAL) termed the overall operational experience at the airport as successful and maintained that apart from a few significant delays, most of the operations were normal.
No flight movements took place at the airport from 12.07 pm to 1.34 pm and 5 pm to 6.15 pm when the runways were completed closed for shifting the runway operations. According to officials, the operational area on the main runway after the intersection, termed as 27 Alpha, had to be prepared for shortened runway operations.
28/10/09 Shashank Shekhar/ExpressIndia

West Bengal's airport city project gets first chunk of land

The West Bengal government Wednesday handed over 533.51 acres to the proposed aerotropolis project, an airport city near Durgapur that will house aviation-intensive businesses.
The land was handed over to Bengal Aerotropolis Projects Ltd (BAPL) by West Bengal Industrial Development Corp (WBIDC).
'The 99 years' lease agreement was signed between BAPL and WBIDC under which the total lease premium paid by BAPL is Rs.44.37 crore,' the company said in a statement.
This is the first tranche of the total 2,300 acres required for the Rs.10,000-crore project, being jointly developed by BAPL and WBIDC.
'The integrated project is spread over approximately 2,300 acres and the land acquisition for the remaining area is expected over the next few months,' the statement said.
Besides having an airport, the aerotropolis would house aviation-related infrastructure like an aviation academy.
There are also plans to build an industrial park with factories, office parks, IT park, institutional area, a hospital, market, school, theme park, community centre and housing.
28/10/09 IANS/Sify

Surat airport authorities eye Haj pilgrims

Surat: The landing of first international chartered flight at Surat airport last week has boosted the spirits of local authorities here.
The airport authorities are trying to convince flight operators and members of Haj Committee about the potential of air connectivity between Surat and Jeddah in Saudi Arabia.
Official sources said over 5,000 people go on Haj from south Gujarat every year. Since there is no international flight connectivity from Surat, the pilgrims either travel to Ahmedabad or Mumbai to board the flights for Jeddah.
"The landing of an international chartered flight has boosted our spirits. Our first priority is to get the Jeddah flights to Surat so that Haj pilgrims could save their time of travelling to Mumbai and Ahmedabad," said Surat airport controller Ashok Verma.
He said there was no problem of setting up immigration and customs facilities for international landings and takeoffs for Haj pilgrims. If an operator comes up with a viable plan to operate flights from Surat to Jeddah, the airport authority will ensure that the immigration and custom facilities are set up on time.
28/10/09 Melvyn Thomas/Times of India

AI starts direct Chennai-Muscat flight

Chennai: Air India has introduced direct flights from Chennai to Muscat and Bhubaneshwar and has re-introduced the Chennai-Ahmedabad flight in its winter schedule. Two new services - Kochi-Chennai-Bangalore and Kochi-Bangalore-Chennai - have also been introduced.
The Chennai-Ahmedabad service will be operated via Hyderabad two days a week. The flight (IC 981) will leave Chennai on Thursdays and Sundays at 4pm, reach Hyderabad at 5pm, leave Hyderabad at 5.50pm and reach Ahmedabad at 7.30pm.
The Chennai-Muscat service has been made direct, thereby reducing travel time. IC 923 will henceforth leave Chennai daily at 7.25pm and reach Muscat at 8.40pm (local time), said a press release.
Air India has also decided to operate its service (IC-993) on the Chennai-Kuwait sector via Mumbai. On Tuesday, the flight will leave Chennai at 4.15pm, reach Mumbai at 6.05pm, leave Mumbai at 7.05pm and reach Kuwait at 9.05pm. On Saturdays, it will depart from Chennai at 3.25pm, reach Mumbai at 5.15pm, leave Mumbai at 6.15pm and reach Kuwait at 8.15pm (local time).
29/10/09 Times of India

Wednesday, October 28, 2009

Near-misses on tarmac cause concern

Mumbai: With runway repairs starting on Tuesday, operations at Mumbai airport are likely to get more chaotic, what with drainage repair work also in progress and certain taxiways unavailable.
This month itself there have been at least two close calls on the ground. In one case, a fire engine crossed a runway just as an aircraft was readying for takeoff. In another, an aircraft that was on its way to the apron was hit by a truck.
Though damage was minimal in both cases, the incidents raise questions about the level of safety in ground operations.
At around 9:40pm on October 2, an IndiGo Airlines flight from Mumbai to Bangalore (6E 415) was on runway 27 of 09:27 for takeoff.At that time, a passenger coach of Jet Airways caught fire near gate 8 of the old airport terminal at Kalina.
"The driver had called the fire brigade and a fire tender crossed the runway to reach the spot," said an official of Mumbai International Airport Limited (Mial), the company that runs the airport. "The plane was just minutes from takeoff. Luckily, an air traffic control (ATC) official saw the vehicle crossing the runway and immediately alerted the pilot."
On October 3, an al-Jazeera Airways flight from Kuwait to Mumbai (J9 606) landed in Mumbai at about 2:50am.The aircraft was on its way to the international apron when a catering truck suddenly came along and hit its left wing.
28/10/09 Naveeta Singh/Daily News & Analysis

GMR to consolidate airport assets

Hyderabad: GMR Infrastructure Ltd (GIL) will consolidate its airport assets under a holding company in the next two months, just the way it had done with its power and road assets. GMR runs three airport projects -- Hyderabad and Delhi airports in India, and another in Istanbul, Turkey.
"The holding company structure will afford better management of airport-related activities and also helps raise funds for expansion," GMR Infrastructure CFO Subba Rao told DNA Money.
Airport is the second biggest vertical for the company after energy.
In the second quarter ended September 2009, the energy segment contributed about Rs 539.50 crore to revenues, while airports contributed about Rs 346.40 crore.
While the EPC unit and others brought in Rs 220.93 crore, roads contributed about Rs 87.46 crore.
GMR's total revenue in the quarter was Rs 1,194.29 crore, up 41% per cent over same period last year.
GMR is already working on the monetisation of airport assets.
GMR Hyderabad Airport Ltd (GHIAL), which operates the Rajiv Gandhi International Airport Ltd in Charminar city, has about 5,500 acres at its disposal and the quantum of land that would be monetised is said to be significant compared with New Delhi.
Delhi International Airport Ltd (DIAL) has about 250 acres for commercial activity.
Of this, about 45 acres have already been taken up for monetisation.
28/10/09 K V Ramana/Daily News & Analysis

GMR Infrastructure pulled down by interest burden

GMR Group firm GMR Infrastructure Ltd reported a 24% drop in its profit before tax for the September quarter although operating profit rose by a smart 54%. Blame a 150% jump in interest cost for this outcome. Finance charges rose as new projects started, which were funded mainly by debt.
The company had attempted to raise funds earlier this year by selling securities to institutional investors who were not willing to subscribe at prevailing prices. The company is now set to raise Rs1,000 crore through an issue of preferential shares. Part of the funds raised will be used for ongoing projects and some of it used to retire debt.
GMR’s consolidated revenues grew by 41% year-on-year and operating profit margin improved by 2.6 percentage points to 31.8%. This rise in profitability is partly due to a reduction in employee costs, which fell by 30% over the year-ago period. This relief is largely due to retiring of employees in the Delhi airport project. The company had an agreement to employ them for three years.
27/10/09 Mobis Philipose, Ravi Ananthanarayanan and Vatsala Kamat/Live Mint

Now, fly non-stop to Doha from Dabolim

Panaji: With an objective to capitalize on the winter holiday season, Qatar Airways launched scheduled direct flights from Doha to Goa on Monday morning.
Flight QR 224 from Doha arrived at the Dabolim International Airport early this morning with a delegation of airline officials onboard led by Qatar Airways chief executive officer Akbar Al Baker.
After Sri Lankan airlines, Qatar Airways is only the second foreign airline to start a direct international flight to Goa. Presently, national carrier Air India has direct flights from Goa to Dubai and Sharjah.
Qatar Airways is among three airlines in the world with a five-star ranking for service excellence. The ranking has been given by Skytrax, an independant airline industry audit.
28/10/09 Times of India

NGO to tackle jackal menace

Kolkata: Kolkata airport authorities have finally found an NGO that is willing to capture and relocate jackals inhabiting the vast stretch of grassland across the twin runways at the Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose International Airport. A pact between the NGO and Kolkata airport may soon be inked.
While Wildlife SOS, a Delhi-based NGO, has responded positively to the airport authorities pleas, it has said it can do the job only with help from the forest department's wildlife wing.
"We need close coordination with the forest department to carry out the job," said the NGO's co-founder Kartick Satyanarayan.
So, airport authorities will again have to approach the forest department with a fresh plea, said airport director R. Srinivasan.
Earlier, many requests to the department had not been met with prompt action, forcing airport authorities to launch a nationwide hunt for NGOs willing to tackle the jackal menace.
28/10/09 Arpit Basu/Times of India

Three Lankan nationals detained at Chennai airport

Chennai: Three Sri Lankan nationals, who were about to board a flight to Colombo on Tuesday, were detained at the Anna International Airport here, when it was found that they had illegally entered the country sometime back.
Mohd. Ashrat (22), Mohd. Irshad (24) and Rushmi (21) were the trio about to board a Jetlite flight to Colombo early this morning. The immigration officials on suspicion, detained them and verified their passports.
It showed they had landed at Thiruvananthapuram Airport two years ago, and the immigration seal affixed on the passport found to be fake.
28/10/09 Gopal Ethiraj/Asiantribune.com

Petition launched for direct flights between Birmingham and Punjab

A campaign has been launched to lobby for direct flights between Birmingham and the Punjab in India.
At present the only way to get to Amritsar in northern India is via Heathrow Airport.
Now a petition, started by long-term campaigner Jas Sansi, is calling for the direct flight to be restored after it was cancelled by Air India in October 2008. The campaign has been backed by city council leader Mike Whitby.
Bilateral agreements between the Indian and UK governments currently restrict who can operate flights between the two countries.
After signing the petition, Coun Whitby vowed to support the campaign, starting with a visit to India to meet with the country’s civil aviation minister.
“There is little doubt that there is huge demand for flights to be reinstated from Birmingham to the Punjab,” he said.
“The connection is key to our status as a global city and the impact will bring long-term benefits to every citizen, business and community within the city regardless of ethnicity.”
Mr Sansi said the move would not only benefit the Indian community, but also the city as a whole and the environment.
27/10/09 Gregg Evans/Birmingham Mail, UK

Tuesday, October 27, 2009

Navy proposes to build an Airport in Karwar

Karwar: The Indian Navy has proposed to build an airport near Karwar which could be used for civilian and military purposes. The airport would enhance the commercial prospectus in and around Karwar, said Rajiv Jaiswal, Commodore, INS Kadamba, Karwar.
While addressing the presspersons at the naval base on Friday, he asserted that the required land for the airport has been identified and the State Gavernment would have to get hold of more land for this purpose. He requested the local people and State Government to cooperate with this regard.
Mr. Jaiswal notified that Karwar received 230 mm of unprecedented rainfall in just three hours on 2nd October, 2009. At this time, few had claimed that the walls built by the naval authorities led to flash flood around the naval base area. While clearing these claims, he averred that the wall in question had actually blocked the water and prevented loss of more lives and property. He further affirmed that the navy authorities would be more prepared to tackle such situation in future.
26/10/09 Reema/Sahil Online

700 AI flyers stranded at Paris airport for over 10hrs

New Delhi: Over 700 passengers of three Air India flights, from India to various destinations abroad, spent over a day in Paris after they were diverted to the Charles de Gaulle airport on Saturday morning due to bad weather over Frankfurt. With none of them carrying transit visas, the passengers were stuck at the cramped airport for close to 10 hours before government intervention helped them get accommodation in hotels.
According to sources, when the three AI flights — Delhi-Frankfurt-Chicago, Ahmedabad-Frankfurt and Mumbai-Frankfurt-Newark — landed at the airport, French authorities reportedly asked airline officials to keep passengers on board as they were expecting the weather to clear up any time. But when that did not happen, the passengers were deplaned and made to sit inside the terminal, which was bursting at the seams with passengers from several other diverted flights, apart from its own traffic. Even restaurants ran out of food, but passengers could not be shifted as they did not have the requisite transit visas.
‘‘We were kept at the Paris airport for over eight hours without food and then suddenly transferred to a hotel where we didn’t get our luggage...,’’ said Deepak Gupta, a passenger on board AI 127 from Delhi to Chicago.
27/10/09 Neha Lalchandani/Times of India

After PBN, Chennai airport to go for air traffic control automation

Chennai: After defining air routes for landing and take-off under the Performance Based Navigation (PBN) sytem, the Airports Authority of India (AAI) has taken steps to introduce automation of air traffic control at the Chennai airport.
A meeting with representatives of US-based Raytheon, which bagged the Rs 42 crore contract to automate ATC, is scheduled in the coming days to discuss the details. "They will have to study the procedures used here and then design a system that can match ours," said a senior AAI official.
Like PBN, automation is crucial for the airport here because the traffic has crossed 400 aircraft a day. In Mumbai, PBN was installed when traffic touched 350 aircraft a day. So, an automated ATC system will ease the workload of controllers, improve air safety and make handling of aircraft in the congested air space easy.
Installing an automated ATC system, however, is going to be a long process. Raytheon's officials "will be working with air traffic controllers simultaneously to perfect automation before starting the training programmes and actual implementation," an official said. It is likely to take at least a year before the system becomes operational.
27/10/09 V Ayyappan/Times of India

Shahid caught up in US airport drama

New Delhi: Like Shah Rukh before him, Shahid Kapur too has had to spend some involuntary time with US immigration officials who stopped his valet Mohammed Manjoor Allam at the New Jersey airport recently. Instead of leaving the old man to his fate, Shahid decided to stay back and go through the grind with him.
Shahid was in the US alongwith co-star Anushka Sharma, choreographer Ahmed Khan and other members of the unit to shoot for Parmeet Sethi's untitled venture being produced by Aditya Chopra. While the team had no problems during the first leg of their filming in Philadelphia, Allam was asked to step aside for questioning at the New Jersey airport. The session with Allam reportedly went on for 90 minutes. Allam has been taking care of Shahid since childhood and has travelled extensively with him all over the world. However this was his first visit to the US.
According to reports, Shahid sat through the entire session with him and even helped answer questions on his behalf, since Allam is not comfortable speaking English.
Shahid is the second major Bollywood star in recent months who has been held up at a US airport due to immigration problems. Earlier legions of Shah Rukh Khan's fans were outraged when the actor was detained at at Newark airport.
26/10/09 NDTVMovies.com

Zicom secures Amritsar International airport

Zicom Electronic Security Systems Limited, has successfully completed the security and surveillance project at the Raja Sansi International Airport at Amritsar. The company had bagged this project in July 2008 from the Airports Authority of India and completed commissioning it this year.
Hi-tech security zones have been created at the airport using technologically advanced IP based PTZ cameras. Extra care has been taken while designing the security system for critical locations like the Arrival & Departure terminals, baggage carousals, air traffic control tower, parking areas, entry main gate and operational area to ensure fool-proof security.
26/10/09 ConstructionWeekOnline.in

AI launches Pune-Hyderabad-Bangalore flight

Pune: Air travellers from Pune to the infotech cities of Hyderabad and Bangalore, now have one more option to avail of for their journey.
On Sunday, national carrier Air India (AI) launched a new flight service linking these three cities. This is AI's third flight service from Pune, following its existing operations to Delhi and Dubai.
The flight, to fly every day except on Saturdays, will take off from Bangalore at 8.10 am to reach Hyderabad at 9.15 am and Pune at 11.15 am. On its return trip, it will take off from Pune at 3.20 pm and land in Hyderabad at 4.25 pm and at Bangalore at 5.45 pm.
As of now, Kingfisher airlines has two early morning flights to Hyderabad and Bangalore and one evening flight to Bangalore; while Jet Airways operates an early morning flight to Hyderabad and an evening flight to Bangalore. SpiceJet operates an early morning flight to Bangalore and Indigo has an evening flight to Bangalore. Jetlite has the lone flight in the afternoon from Pune to Hyderabad.
Flight Timings
* IC-917: Departure Bangalore 8.10 am; Arrival Hyderabad 9.15 am; Departure Hyderabad 10.10 am and Arrival Pune 11.10 am.
* IC-918: Departure Pune 3.20 pm; Arrival Hyderabad 4.25 pm; Departure Hyderabad 5.05 pm and Arrival Bangalore 5.45 pm.
27/10/09 Times of India

1.4 kg gold seized at Chennai airport

Chennai: In what could be a grim reminder of the age-old practice of gold smugglers, Chennai Airport Customs last week arrested two "carriers" --
one, an Indian and the other, a Sri Lankan -- for smuggling 1.489 kg of 24-carat pure gold bars, concealed in their rectum. They had arrived from Colombo. In two other cases, customs officials had seized one kg of gold jewellery being smuggled in by two passengers travelling in the same sector last week.
In the latest case, the culprits had wrapped the bars in carbon sheets to escape from metal detectors, but landed in the Customs net owing to intelligence inputs. "Our officials found two passengers Mohammad Israth of Kandy in Sri Lanka and Mohammad Shahul of Ramanathapuram in Tamil Nadu in uneasy postures and hence picked them up for questioning. Showing no resistance, they admitted to carrying gold in their rectum," said R Periasami, commissioner of customs.
In the past 20 days alone, the Chennai Airport Customs has seized 7.5 kg of gold bars and jewellery from passengers who evaded paying customs duty.
27/10/09 K Praveen Kumar/Times of India

Monday, October 26, 2009

Late for flight, techie makes hoax bomb call to airline

New Delhi A passenger, who was getting late for his flight to Bangalore decided to delay the plane by making a hoax call about a bomb threat. The 25-year-old employee of Infosys has been arrested.
The GoAir flight G8201 to Bangalore, scheduled to depart from Delhi at 8:45 am, was delayed by over four hours by software professional Abhishek Gupta, a resident of Lucknow. Senior airport officials said Gupta was coming to Delhi from Lucknow by the Gorakh Dham Express. The train was scheduled to reach New Delhi Railway Station at 5.55 am.
“But it was running late, and Gupta could reach the railway station only at 8:30 am,” said Joint Commissioner of Police (Operations) Satyendra Garg. With 15 minutes in hand before the flight took off, Gupta made a bomb hoax call at the airline’s headquarter to delay the flight.
“All passengers were made to disembark the plane, and the registered baggage de-boarded,” said a senior CISF official.
At 9.20 am, Gupta reached the airport. “As he reached the entry gate of Terminal 1A, he was apprehended and interrogated by the CISF team,” said CISF spokesperson Rohit Katiyar.
According to the officials, he admitted to making the call from his mobile phone. He however, showed no remorse. “My job is very important. This was the best way to catch the flight,” he reportedly said.
Gupta was later handed over to the Delhi Police. The CISF is believed to have asked the police to take stern action against him as cases of individual passengers creating panic after getting late for flight are on the rise.
26/10/09 ExpressIndia

Withdrawal of popular flights by Air India stuns pilots and other employees the airlines

Chennai: The withdrawal of a few ‘popular’ flights by Air India in its latest winter schedule ‘due to poor load viability’ has stunned the pilots and other employees of the airlines. Among the flights withdrawn as per the schedule that is effective October 25 is IC 997/998 in the Calicut-Doha-Bahrain sector, which the employees point out enjoyed an average occupancy of 80 to 85 per cent.
The factsheet clearly states that during the past six months 80 to 85 per cent of the seats were filled. “Even in the 20-minute journey from Bahrain to Doha, the flight had a 55 per cent occupancy. There is no rationale behind the withdrawal of this flight that was doing so well,” said a senior Air India official.
Industry insiders point out that Air India has withdrawn from sectors that had good patronage in the past, too, letting private airlines capture the business. An year ago, IC-975 operating in the then Coimbatore-Cochin-Sharjah route with an average seat factor of 80 per cent was withdrawn and Air Arabia that came in on that route is now doing roaring business, an official said. “Similarly flights from Chennai to Coimbatore were withdrawn and private carriers have benefited out of that,” an aviation expert said. It is this kind of rescheduling on domestic and international sectors that had brought the airline to the present state, an official told Express.
26/10/09 Mamta Todi/ExpressBuzz

Trials over, chopper corridors await DGCA clearance

Mumbai Authorities at Mumbai airport have completed the much-anticipated trials of dedicated helicopter corridors, the proposal of which has been awaiting clearance for more than three years. The need of such corridors had been felt afresh earlier this year after an Mi-17 helicopter from President Pratibha Patil’s troupe of three choppers narrowly missed collision with an Air India flight (IC 866) with 150 passengers on board.
“The trials are over and the reports have been sent to the director general of civil aviation (DGCA) for clearance,” said M G Jhungare, General Manager, Air Traffic Control (ATC), Mumbai.
Although a timeframe for implementation of corridors has not been fixed, a senior ATC official said the new routes would be implemented by year-end in all likelihood.
As reported earlier, Mumbai International Airport Limited (MIAL) is not in favour of helicopter movements at Mumbai airport as they slow down operations at the airport where a landing or a take-off takes place approximately every 30 seconds. The proposal for dedicated helicopter corridors has been pending with DGCA for the past three years. “There are over a dozen corridors on which testing was done. Corridors like airport to Mahalakshmi Racecourse or airport to South Mumbai are examples. Because helicopter movements have been increasing over years, there was a definite requirement for dedicated corridors so that they don’t interfere with the airport’s flight operations,” said the official.
26/10/09 Shashank Shekhar/Express India

Chopper breaches president's security

New Delhi: A helicopter recently broke president Pratibha Patil's security cordon by flying into sanitised airspace when she was disembarking from an aircraft at the Indira Gandhi International (IGI) airport.
The incident took place in the morning of September 27 when Patil reached Delhi after a domestic tour.
The helicopter, belonging to Global Vectra, was told to hover over Tihar jail since Patil's aircraft was about to land. The chopper had permission to land, but not to enter the Palam technical area.
"At the Palam technical area, when the President's aircraft landed and disembarkation was going on, the chopper flew overhead, which alerted security agencies," said a senior government official on condition of anonymity.
The aviation ministry, following a query by the prime minister's office, instructed the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) and the Bureau of Civil Aviation Security to get the details of the incident.
At the airport, the technical area is under the command of the air force, which takes over all operations when the President flies from or lands at the airport. As per protocol, during landing and take-off by an aircraft carrying the President, air traffic is closed.
26/10/09 Yogesh Kumar/Daily News & Analysis

High airport fees must be justified by better services: IATA

New Delhi: The International Air Transport Association (IATA) today said the high user charges, which were making major Indian airports "very expensive", should be justified by better services to the airlines and passengers.
Though the landing, parking and navigation charges or airport development fees were "not at the top level of the (global) scale", IATA Director General and CEO Giovanni Bisignani said if these were compared to the purchasing power of Indian people, it would make the airports "very expensive".
The government had earlier this year allowed a ten per cent hike in landing and parking charges, which came under severe criticism from this global umbrella body of airlines.
In an interview, Bisignani stressed that the charges should match delivery of services.
25/10/09 PTI/Economic Times

Kingfisher’s winter schedule leaves passengers in dark

Bhubaneswar: When Sushmita arrived at the Biju Patnaik International Airport with her nine-year old son to check in for her Kingfisher flight to Mumbai at about 9.30 am on Sunday, it had already flown out.
She was not the only one to be deserted by the airline, a dozen others also had met the same fate. The Mumbai-bound flight, which leaves the Capital at 10.30 am, had taken off at 9.20 am itself.
The stranded passengers fumed and demanded why they were not informed of the change in flight schedule. They were told by the staff that the timing had changed with effect from Sunday.
Weird as it may sound but the airlines had chosen to inform a select few of the change leaving out a chunk of the passengers in dark about the schedule.
Most passengers were offered a refund; those who insisted on travelling had to take a circuitous route via Bengaluru while the rest were asked to travel on Monday.
The Kingfisher Airlines, however, attributed it to a fresh change in winter schedule of the flights.
26/10/09 ExpressBuzz

If it’s Tuesday, brace yourself for flight delays

Mumbai: Brace yourself for delays, if you are flying in or out of Mumbai on Tuesdays for the next three months or so.
Mumbai International Airport Limited has begun re-carpeting of the secondary runway, and work on the intersection of the two runways will be taken up for six hours from 12 noon to 6 pm beginning this Tuesday.
With only about 5,700 feet of the 11,000 feet main runway available, airlines have rescheduled or cancelled some flights during this period. Air traffic controllers and airlines admit there could be long delays as all flights will get bunched up before and after the closure.
During this six-hour period on Tuesdays, large planes like Boeing 747 or Boeing 777 won’t be able take off or land as such aircraft require over 8,000 feet for landing. Though an Airbus A-320 requires about 6,000 feet, an official from Indigo which operates Airbus A-320 said their flights will not operate to/from Mumbai during the six hours Tuesdays.
An Air India spokesperson said while the airline has rescheduled its flights, there are no cancellations. A Jet Airways spokesperson said that some flights had been combined and rescheduled, and the aircraft type for two flights has been changed in view of the shortened runway.
Movement of even some smaller planes, such as the Boeing 737 series or an Airbus A-319, which can take off or land using 5,700 feet runway length, will be determined by the tailwind component, visibility and load factor.
26/10/09 Aneesh Phadnis/Mumbai Mirror

Krishna flags off first batch of Haj pilgrims from Mangalore

Mangalore: Union External Affairs Minister S M Krishna flagged off the Haj connecting flight to Calicut from Mangalore airport. This is the first time Haj pilgrims from coastal districts of the state have flown to Jeddah directly from Mangalore after the Bajpe airport was added to the list of 18 destinations across the country from where direct flights are operated to Saudi Arabia by national carrier Air India and Saudi Arabia Airlines.
"About 700 pilgrims are going on Haj from this airport in six batches of 115 each daily till Oct 30. A special camp has been opened near the airport to facilitate the smooth passage of Hajis to Mecca and Madina in Saudi Arabia," Krishna told about 1,000 people, including relatives, friends and community leaders who assembled for the grand event.
Until now, Haj pilgrims from coastal and northern regions of the state had to fly to Jeddah or Riyadh in Saudi Arabia from Bangalore, Kozikode in Kerala and Hyderabad in Andhra Pradesh.
"We are providing connectivity to Haj pilgrims from across the state from Bangalore, Mangalore and Hyderabad. Pilgrims from northern districts such as Gulbarga and Bidar will fly out of Hyderabad, those from coastal and central districts from Mangalore and southern districts from Bangalore," Krishna said.
Noting that direct flights from Mangalore would help the pilgrims to avoid the menace of private tour operators, Krishna said there was an urgent need to check irregularities committed by middlemen in the guise of helping them in the exercise.
26/10/09 Mangalorean.com

Sunday, October 25, 2009

GoAir flight grounded after bomb threat

New Delhi: A Bangalore-bound GoAir flight G8201 was grounded at the Delhi airport Sunday morning following a threat call that there was a bomb on the air craft, airport officials said.
A senior airport official said an unidentified person called up the airline's call centre at around 10.40 a.m. saying that a bomb had been planted on the plane.
The bomb disposal squad was searching the aircraft, which has been parked in the bay at the Indira Gandhi International Airport domestic terminal, airport officials confirmed.
25/10/09 IANS/Economic Times

Love-struck Lankan woman creates a scene at Chennai airport

Chennai:A love-struck Sri Lankan woman, who came to India two years ago with a fake passport in search of her lover she worked with in Kuwait and was jailed, on Saturday created a flutter at the Chennai airport when she resisted deportation, forcing a Colombo-bound plane to leave her behind.
Police said Hanifa Nisha Rani, who was jilted by an Andhra co-worker in Kuwait, came after him with a fake Indian passport and was arrested in Hyderabad. Subsequently, a court sentenced her to three years in jail. Thanks to her good conduct, the sentence was reduced to two years and a court in Kadappa directed that she be deported to Sri Lanka after issuance of an emergency visa.
Two policemen from Andhra Pradesh brought her to Chennai to be sent to Colombo. However, after getting the boarding pass, Rani refused to go and even tore the travel documents.
She pleaded with police officials and airline staff to allow her to stay in India so that she could continue the search for her lover. The police team took Nisha to the Sri Lankan deputy high commission in Chennai.
25/10/09 S Murari/Asiantribune.com

Air India announces winter schedule

Nedumbassery (Kochi): Air India will start operating flights under its winter schedule from October 25, said AI Deputy Manager(CC)Aby George here on Wednesday.
Air India Express will operate 42 flights from Kochi every week, including daily flights to Dubai, Doha, Bahrain, Abu Dhabi and Sharjah as well as five flights to Muscat, two flights to Kuwait, one flight to Al Ain and three flights to Salalah every week, in addition to three flights to Mumbai.
Air India will operate five services to Riyad, three flights to Dammam and five flights to Jeddah. In the domestic sector, Air India will operate one flight to Hyderabad and seven flights to Mumbai every week.
There will be daily flights to IC-coded segments Delhi, Mumbai, Hyderabad and Coimbatore. The summer schedule did not have IC coded operations to Hyderabad and Coimbatore.Among the IC-coded sectors, there will be two daily flights to Chennai, against the previous schedule of three flights a week, and two daily flights to Bangalore.
25/10/09 ExpressBuzz

Saturday, October 24, 2009

Painted grasshopper from India stopped at UK airport

Airport officials in London have stopped an unusual stowaway from entering the country after a painted grasshopper was found on a flight from India.
Inspectors from the Food and Environemnt Research Agency are caring for the colourful insect after it was intercepted at Stansted Airport.
Since being discovered, the 6cm-long uninvited guest has been taking advantage of the hospitality rapidly eating its way through a cabbage plant at the agency's laboratory.
Fera's Sharon Reid, who identified the painted grasshopper, said: "...a single insect like this wouldn't be able to reproduce and is unlikely to survive in our UK climate."
Fera warned this was not always the case with non-native insects - which could potentially cause an outbreak that would damage UK crops or horticulture.
The species, which has a voracious appetite, is a pest in Pakistan and India where it damages food crops including aubergine, citrus, potatoes and tomatoes.
23/10/09 Metro.co.uk, UK

Fake Viagra pills from India seized at Miami International Airport

U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers at the Miami International Airport intercepted 21,600 counterfeit Viagra pills that weighed a total of 50 pounds.
During the inspection of a shipment from India that was in transit through the United States, Customs officers became suspicious of a number of boxes containing a large number of pills.
Samples sent to a Customs import specialist group for further examination were found to be inconsistent with authentic Viagra.
23/10/09 Miami Herald, US

SC notice to Centre, AAI on airport development fee

New Delhi: The Supreme Court today issued notices to the the Delhi International Airport Ltd asking it to explain why it should be allowed to charge the development fee from passengers.
Acting on a petition by a consumer rights group, a Bench headed by Justice R V Raveendran sought reply from the Ministry of Civil Aviation, Airports Authority of India (AAI) and the Delhi International Airport Ltd (DIAL) as to why the the airport should be allowed to levy such a fee on its passengers.
23/10/09 Press Trust of India

Air India announces direct service from Washington, D.C., to Dehli

Air India, announced the launch of its daily direct service from Washington D.C.’s Dulles International Airport to Delhi with new Boeing 777LRs, effective December 1. The flights will depart from Washington at 12:10 P.M., stop en-route at New York’s JFK Airport, and continue non-stop to Delhi, arriving at 4:45 P.M. the following afternoon. Continuing service is offered to Kolkata. Passengers bound for Mumbai will be able to transfer at JFK to the carrier’s evening non-stop JFK-Mumbai flight.
All of the flights from Washington offer a choice of Economy, Executive and First Class service. Economy Class seats feature a comfortable 34” seat pitch, a therapeutic footrest, and built-in 10.6” LCD monitor. Executive Class passengers enjoy the comfort of flat beds, a spacious 76” seat pitch, a privacy partition, and 15.4” LCD screen. And First Class cabins boast flat bed compartments with a built-in massage system, buddy seat, a large 23” LCD screen, and generous 80” seat pitch.
23/10/09 TravelDailyNews

Jet Airways van catches fire at Mumbai airport

Mumbai: A Jet Airways van caught fire at Mumbai airport on Friday. The vehicle was carrying a doctor and two people to attend a medical emergency on board an aircraft when the mishap occurred.
The van was parked near the bay and nit too close to the runway. No injury has been reported and no operations affected due to the fire.
23/10/09 Central Chronicle

AI seeks insurance cover to underwrite losses due to fog

Mumbai/New Delhi: National carrier Air India has floated a tender seeking a Rs 20 crore insurance cover to underwrite its losses resulting from cancellations or delays in flights due to fog during winter in India and abroad.
The insurance is being sought as part of its corporate strategy to minimise the risk from poor weather conditions for a period of five months starting November 1, as winter sets in, airline sources said.
Air India has identified 18 domestic stations and eight overseas stations, which face moderate to heavy fog during the winter season.
The domestic fog-prone airports identified are Amritsar, Bangalore, Dibrugrah, Delhi, Kolkata, Jaipur, Srinagar, Guwahati, Indore, Lucknow, Kullu, Nagpur, Jodhpur, Patna, Raipur, Ahmedabad, and Jammu.
The foreign stations were Newark, Frankfurt, London, New York (JFK), Chicago, Toronto, Paris, Shanghai and London which face considerable problems due to foggy weather.
The tender seeks coverage from leading insurance firms which underwrite similar weather-related risks, they said, adding that bids have been invited from both public sector and private insurance companies.
Under the fog insurance, Air India has sought risk coverage of an average daily loss of Rs 10 lakh at each Indian station, barring Delhi.
For Delhi, the daily loss is around Rs 20 lakh, the sources said, adding that similarly for foreign stations the daily loss are likley be to of Rs 20 lakh each.
21/10/09 Press Trust of India/Business Standard

Friday, October 23, 2009

AAI starts pre-determined feeder route system for flights at airport

Chennai: As the Jet Airways Chennai-Bangalore flight 2727 took off on Thursday, air traffic controllers eased back into their seats to watch on their monitors the aircraft follow the pre-determined feeder route out of the airport. However, the aircraft did not have the new feeder routes data fed into its flight management system (FMS). Hence, air traffic controllers had to guide the aircraft to its cruising altitude. Traffic was minimal in the afternoon, so things went off smoothly.
Though the Airports Authority of India (AAI) started its Performance Based Navigation (PBN) system on Thursday, after a 45-day intimation to all airlines, there were some initial hiccups because some of the aircraft did have data relating to the new departure and arrival feeder routes fed into their flight management systems.
A Chennai-Bangalore Kingfisher flight was the first one to fly out along the pre-determined feeder route prepared by AAI to implement the PBN-based RNAV 1 navigation system. AAI has designed feeder routes for departure and arrival for aircraft and has also defined six holding points 40 nautical miles around the city before implementing the navigation system.
23/10/09 Times of India

Expat pilot’s tantrums delay flight

Chennai: An expat pilot with Air India who was flying as a passenger on an Air India Chennai to Mumbai flight on Thursday morning delayed the flight thanks to his starry tantrums.
Aronakvic has been with the company for almost six months now and was flying along with another Indian pilot to Mumbai. When he presented his economy class ticket at the check-in counter and asked for an upgrade to J Class, he was politely refused one as there was no such facility for his ticket. Aronakvic didn’t give up. After boarding the aircraft, instead of going to his 24D seat, he went and occupied the 1C seat of J Class. “The cabin crew then checked his boarding pass and requested him to take the allotted economy seat. But he wouldn’t budge. The cabin crew checked with the captain of the flight who came back negative again. But Aronakvic still didn’t give up. He asked for a representative from commercials team and requested his upgrade again. The answer was still negative. By then it was 7am and time for the flight to depart. All other 136 passengers had boarded the flight and finally the commercials manager was called in who again informed the expat that the upgrade on his ticket was not possible. Aronakvic budged from the seat only after the commercial manager almost decided to de-plane him.
23/10/09 ExpressBuzz

First international chartered flight to land at Magdalla airport

Surat new chapter in the city's aviation history will be written on Friday when an international chartered flight from Luton airport will land at Magdalla, signifying Surat's growth in the last two decades.
Despite a Rs 50,000-crore industrial belt at Hajira and a diamond industry with a turnover of Rs 65,000 crore, the city has never been seen as an aviation destination.
Senior officials of corporate houses at Hajira had to travel by road either from Mumbai or Ahmedabad to reach the diamond city. A European diamond trader preferred to complete his work in Mumbai rather than visit Surat as then he would have to travel four hours in a cab.
But now with a corporate house bringing in its top officials from London to Surat directly by a chartered flight, things will change dramatically. The journey from Luton to Magdalla airport will be completed in eight hours by the private aircraft of the corporate house when it lands here at 8.30 am on Friday.
22/10/09 Himanshu Bhatt/Times of India

Ahmedabad airport to get laser guns to check bird hits

Ahmedabad: The Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel International Airport will soon have laser guns to check the menace of bird hits.
The Airports Authority of India (AAI) has finally begun acting on the directions issued during the high-level meeting between Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation (AMC) and Director General of Civil Aviation (DGCA).
Officials said that at the meeting it was decided that the AAI would have laser guns installed at the airport instead of the existing LPG scare guns.
Officials said that the laser guns have been tested in Mumbai and soon they would be brought to Ahmedabad for trial. Once successful, the guns will be replaced with the LPG scare guns.
The AAI has also directed its staff to ensure that there was no garbage disposal either by the Airport Colony residents or the catering staff. The scattered garbage went a long way in attracting birds.
Officials said that AAI has already issued directions for regular cutting of grass on the airport premises and also decided that insecticides should be regularly sprayed.
23/10/09 Times of India

Soon, hangars for pvt aircraft at Pune airport

Pune's Lohegaon International Airport will spend Rs 12 crore to develop six hangars for aircraft belonging to charter plane operators. Currently, charter planes are being parked in the open next to commercial aircraft.
"We have submitted a proposal to the government for budgetary provision, which the government has, in principle, approved," said Captain S K Mahajan, director of Pune Airport. The proposed hangars will be ready in 10 months.
The decision to construct the hangars has been taken after several requests from charter plane operators.
Currently, there are 12 such operators, including Bharat Forge, Kirloskars, Poonawala , Bajaj, Finolex and Eon Aviation.
"If the hangars are constructed, it would be very beneficial for non-scheduled flight operators like us. They would provide security for the aircraft, help in better maintenance, as the hangers will have space for a small office and make operations easy," said Anil Ummat, operating manager of Eon Aviation, a charter service firm from Pune.
22/10/09 Chandran Iyer/MiD DAY

Wipro bags 10-year contract for Delhi airport

Bangalore: Wipro has bagged a 10-year total outsourcing contract from Delhi International Airport Ltd (DIAL) to provide information technology infrastructure and services for Indira Gandhi International Airport (IGIA). The award followed a globally competitive process which attracted several global and Indian IT partners. The company, however, declined to disclose the value of the contract.
DIAL is a joint venture comprising the Bangalore-headquartered GMR Group, Airports Authority of India, Fraport and Malaysian Airports. IGI airport’s new integrated terminal (T3) will be the gateway for the Commonwealth Games in New Delhi next year. IT is expected to be the driver for critical airport operations, including flight management, terminal management, ground handling and property management.
Wipro and DIAL have also signed an agreement to form a joint venture with focus on emerging business models and airport-specific applications. To be known as Wipro Airport IT Services Ltd, 74 per cent of the JV will be owned by Wipro, while the rest will be held by DIAL.
23/10/09 Business Standard

Thoothukudi ICG air station in 3 yrs’

Thoothukudi : “The Indian Coast Guard (ICG) has plans to establish an air station in Thoothukudi within three years and talks are on with Airports Authority of India and the Tamil Nadu government,” said Inspector General of Coast Guard (Eastern Region) A Rajas­ekhar on Thursday.
He added that the air station would be set up after finishing formalities like land acquisition.
When asked about the coastal security in this part of TN, he pointed out that though there was no specific threat, the Kanyakumari-Thoothukudi stretch assumed importance due to the movement of ships.
23/10/09 ExpressBuzz

Air India to commence its winter schedule flights from Kochi effective October 25, 2009

According to a UNI report, the winter schedule of Air India (AI) from Kochi will commence from October 25, 2009. Aby George, Deputy Manager, AI said that Air India Express (AIE) will operate daily flights to Dubai, Doha, Bahrain, Abu Dhabi and Sharjah. The airline will operate five flights a week to Muscat, two flights a week to Kuwait, three flights a week to Salalah and one flight a week to Al Ain.
It will also operate flights to Mumbai three times a week. In addition to AIE operations, Air India will operate five flights to Riyad, three to Damam and five flights to Jeddah on the international sector and one flight to Hyderabad and seven flights a week to Mumbai in the domestic sector which will be full service operations with Economy and Business Class configurations.
23/10/09 TravelBizMonitor

Thursday, October 22, 2009

2 AI staffers caught stealing from luggage at IGI Airport

New Delhi CCTV cameras installed at the Indira Gandhi International (IGI) Airport proved handy for the Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) as they recovered goods stolen from a passenger’s registered baggage at the international terminal.
The accused worked as apron assistants for an airliner.
On October 18, Tapankar Gooptu, a passenger on inbound flight MK 744 from Mauritius, had put in a complaint with CISF saying his digital camera was missing from his registered baggage. “The crime and intelligence wing of CISF checked CCTV footage and two men were found fiddling with the complainant’s bag on belt no 3 at the baggage break-up area. The two suspects were located and identified as Dal Chand and Ram Singh. Both worked as apron assistants for Air India,” an airport official said.
Sources said on interrogation, the suspects confessed to having removed the complainant’s camera, which was later recovered from the bushes near Air India’s GSD complex. The two were handed over to Delhi Police.
21/10/09 ExpressIndia

SilkAir flies daily to Hyderabad

Kota Kinabalu: SilkAir has increased its flight frequency between Singapore and the Indian City of Hyderabad from five times weekly to daily, starting 20 October.
The regional wing of Singapore Airlines began flying between Singapore and Hyderabad on 15 June 2009 and has received strong support from customers and experienced good load factors over the past four months of operation.
Hyberabad, located in Andhra Pradesh, is the airline's fourth Indian destination after Thiruvananthapuram, Kochi, and Coimbatore.
With the increased flight frequencies between Singapore and Hyderabad, SilkAir now operates a total of 40 flights weekly between Singapore and India.
Apart from that, the airline which was voted as the Best Regional Airline (Southeast Asia) in the 2009 Skytrax World Airline Awards, will be increasing the frequency of its flights between Singapore and Kathmandu (Nepal), Phuket (Thailand), and Kunming (China).
22/10/09 Daily Express, Malyalsia

A 1.4-hour flight that took over a day

New Delhi/Jodhpur: What should have been a one-hour-forty-minute flight to Delhi from Jodhpur for 50-odd passengers of Jet Airways on Tuesday turned out to be over a day's journey for some of them.
The flight (9W 3312) was scheduled to take off from Jodhpur at 2pm but a technical snag grounded the plane until late Wednesday. Several passengers were left to drive to Jaipur, Lucknow or even Delhi late on Wednesday evening.
The nightmare for the passengers began on Tuesday afternoon when they boarded the 62-seater ATR 72-500. "We remained seated inside the aircraft for about 45 minutes without any airconditioning. The plane was like an oven," said a passenger. Finally the plane took off but returned only minutes later as the aircraft developed a snag.
What followed was a long wait on the ground. Later, the passengers were told that the flight had been cancelled due to "technical reasons" and it would take off at 10am on Wednesday. The airline offered budget hotels to passengers but many foreign tourists preferred to go back to the luxury hotels they had checked out to catch the flight, at their own expense. Jet sent some passengers who had to take international flights out of Delhi on Tuesday night by road.
22/10/09 Times of India

Air India to operate two flights from Kolkata to Medina

Mumbai: According to a UNI report, Air India will operate daily two special flights from Kolkata to Medina for Haj pilgrims using A747-400 aircraft from October 23, 2009 to November 13, 2009. R Srinivasan, Airport Director, Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose International Airport, Kolkata said that a total of 10,575 pilgrims from Kolkata will fly to Medina with 420 passengers leaving daily. Pilgrims from Patna and Ranchi will also travel to Medina via Kolkata. The first batch of 420 pilgrims from the Bihar capital arrived yesterday by air. A total of 5,706 pilgrims from Patna will travel through Kolkata till November 2, 2009. Pilgrims numbering 2,630 from Ranchi will be arriving in Kolkata between November 2, 2009 and November 13, 2009. Exclusive arrangements have been made for Haj pilgrims, including a separate AC terminal,
21/10/09 TravelBizMonitor

AI to operate A-320 on Hyd-Kolkata sector

Hyderabad: Air India is all set to operate Airbus A-320 on the Hyderabad- Kolkata-Hyderabad sector from its winter schedule effecting October 25.
The national carrier is introducing the 145-seater stateof- the-art Fly-by-Wire Airbus A-320 replacing the 68-seater smaller CRJ aircraft on this sector, according to a release.
The Airbus A-320 Flight IC- 218/IC-217 will operate between Hyderabad and Kolkata on Mondays, Wednesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays and departs from Hyderabad at 7:25 p.m. to arrive in Kolkata at 9:30 p.m., while Flight IC- 217 leaves Kolkata at 4:20 p.m.
22/10/09 ExpressBuzz

Wednesday, October 21, 2009

Distress in mid-air, Huma in Chennai

Chennai: Former Pakistan captain Wasim Akram’s wife was Tuesday admitted to Chennai’s Apollo Hospital after her condition worsened midway through her flight to Singapore, forcing the air ambulance to make an emergency landing in the city.
Huma was being flown from Lahore to Singapore for neurosurgery to remove three tumours from her brain.
As the air ambulance was flying over India her condition worsened and the doctor accompanying the patient wanted her admitted in an emergency ward at the earliest since reaching Singapore would have taken another four hours. The pilot immediately contacted the Chennai air traffic control at 4pm and his request was relayed to the civil aviation authorities in Delhi since it was a Pakistani aircraft.
When the civil aviation and external affairs officers learnt about the identity of the patient and her condition they cleared the aircraft for emergency landing and also issued temporary visas to all eight persons aboard.
The plane landed at the Chennai airport at 4.20pm and a waiting Indian Airlines ambulance transported the patient to the hospital in central Chennai.
Huma is accompanied by husband Wasim, her brother, a doctor, a nurse and an attendant.
21/10/09 The Telegraph

Jet flight makes emergency landing

Jodhpur: A Delhi-bound Jet Airways aircraft with 62 passengers on board had to return Jodhpur Airport on Tuesday soon after take-off due to technical snag. The flight 9W3312 made an emergency landing 15 minutes after take-off, airport sources said.
According to airport manager Manoj Pant the flight took off from Jodhpur Airport at 2.40 pm. But due to technical snag, the flight made an emergency landing after 15 minutes, he added.
According to Jet Airways, the flight had 62 passengers on board, including both Indians and foreigners. All of them are safe and have been accommodated in city hotels, sources added.
21/10/09 Times of India

Rajnath's Plane Takes off in Dark, Flouts DGCA Rules

Ranchi: Flouting Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) norms, BJP president Rajnath Singh's chartered plane took off from Jharkhand's Dumka airport with only the headlights of jeeps to guide it over the dark, unlit runway Monday evening.
Rajnath Singh, who was in Jharkhand for a one-day visit, landed at Dumka airport Monday afternoon.
Dumka airport has no lighting and the pilot told Rajnath Singh that he should return before 5 p.m. for a safe take-off, a party leader told IANS. But the party president was late and reached Dumka only after sunset at around 6.15 p.m. When the pilot cited bad light and said he could not take-off, BJP workers brought five jeeps near the runway. Ranchi ATC sources said such lights are used in special cases, but this was a clear violation of DGCA guidelines.
20/10/09 IANS/Daijiworld

Tuesday, October 20, 2009

AAI told to prune capital expenditure to improve finances

New Delhi: The government has asked state-owned Airports Authority of India (AAI) to prune its capital expenditure for it to improve finances and eventually list on the stock exchanges, but the move could undermine the agency’s efforts to modernise the country’s airports.
A finance committee headed by the joint secretary and financial advisor in the civil aviation ministry, EK Bharat Bhushan, has said the airports operator needs to take cost-cutting measures on a fast footing and rationalise airport development work, a senior official of the AAI told ET.
AAI is currently modernising 35 non-metro airports besides two metro airports in Chennai and Kolkata, which involves an investment of Rs 12,434 crore.
“AAI has not cut down its projects despite its revenues taking a hit due to a fall in the aircraft movement and reduced passenger traffic. It needs to be serious in cutting costs and linking investment with revenues,” the official said, requesting anonymity.
The free fall in air traffic as a result of the economic slowdown has forced airlines to cut fleet size and capacity. This had a adverse impact on the airport operator’s revenue. Domestic carriers have cut down their flights by nearly 25% in the last one year.
Several international carriers such as Virgin Atlantic, Singapore Airlines and SriLankan Airlines reduced the frequency to and from India during this period to contain losses. Airlines pay landing and parking and navigation charges to the Authority.
20/10/09 Nirbhay Kumar/Economic Times

Latest ATC software to cut down IGI delays next year

New Delhi: Flying into Delhi and Mumbai will soon get safer with the Airports Authority of India (AAI) installing the latest ATC software similar to the one used at the best airports of the world. While Mumbai is strained, the new system promises to cut down on delays in Delhi.
The existing ATC software, Raytheon Auto Track II system, is being upgraded to track III that will immediately generate alerts if an aircraft is heading to a no fly zone or if the flight level asked for by a pilot is likely to converge with some other aircraft.
The new system, that is currently being tested in Delhi and Mumbai, is likely to be made operational by early 2010. It also has an "arrival manager'' tool that will allow avoiding of congestion. With three runways, this will be of more use in Delhi than the bursting-at-seams Mumbai where only a new airport can tackle the issue of congestion.
"The flow management system of track III will generate a list of arrivals over a given period of time. If there is `bunching' at any time with too many planes arriving at the same time band, the traffic manager can either ask some planes to slow their approach to Delhi or speed up to beat the congestion,'' said a senior ATC official.
The existing system has a short-term collision alert that generates warning if two aircraft are likely to get dangerously close with their intended paths breaching the minimum distance both lateral and vertical at some point.
20/10/09 Saurabh Sinha/Times of India

'US-chartered aircraft carrying military cargo not following procedures'

New Delhi: Eyebrows are being raised at the repeated instances of US-chartered aircraft carrying military cargo being detected flying over Indian territory or airspace without obtaining requisite permissions.
"They are not following proper well-documented procedures... It seems somebody, probably the chartering companies, are cutting corners in the misplaced hope that it will not matter,'' said a senior IAF officer on Monday.
This came even as the US-chartered Boeing 767 aircraft carrying 189 marines from UAE, which was grounded at the Mumbai airport on Sunday for entering Indian airspace without getting mandatory military clearance, finally took off for its earlier destination of Bangkok on Monday after an all-clear signal.
"US is airlifting lot of equipment and troops in and out of Afghanistan through chartered planes. Some come into our airspace without getting the mandatory clearance, which is the norm across the world for aircraft carrying military cargo or troops,'' he added.
The Boeing 767 had been ordered to land in Mumbai on Sunday morning after it was found that it only had civil aviation clearance but not the AOR (air operation routing) clearance required from IAF despite having military equipment and soldiers on board.
"The aircraft, belonging to North American Airlines, should have had a military call-sign instead of the civilian one. It was asked to land at Mumbai after this discrepancy was noticed,'' said another official.
20/10/09 Times of India

US plane with marines takes off

Mumbai: The Bangkok-bound chartered US plane carrying 189 American marines, which was grounded at the Mumbai airport for flying over Indian airspace without getting mandatory military clearance, took off today after an over 33-hour halt.
"The aircraft took off for Utapao in Bangkok from Mumbai International Airport at 1734 hours," a Mumbai International Airport Limited (MIAL) spokesperson told PTI here. The aircraft left after spending 33 hours and 42 minutes at the Mumbai airport.
It was ordered to land in Mumbai yesterday after it entered Indian airspace without mandatory permission.
19/10/09 Press Trust of India

Mist Forces Air India Express Dubai Flight Land at Thiruvananthapuram

Mangalore: Misty morning on Monday October 19 resulted inconvenience for the service of flights at the Bajpe airport here and thereby posed a dampner to the festive spirit of people.
In an incident that posed nuisance to both the users of 6.30 am Air India flight that lands at the airport from Dubai and those who arrived at the airport to receive the passengers, the mist rendered it impossible for the said flight to land. The flight after circling the airport thrice moved towards Kerala and landed at Thiruvanantapuram much to the chagrin of both the passengers and their friends and relatives waiting at the airport.
The people, who had arrived at the airport to receive and send their relatives and friends, some from far away places were made to wait for over nine hours at the airport. The people who lost their cool due to the inconvenience took to task the officials of the airport and employees of the carrier. Terminal officers took it upon themselves the task of pacifying the protestors and made sure that situation did not get out of hand.
20/10/09 Daijiworld

Airport terminal for Haj pilgrims

Kolkata: Haj pilgrims no longer have to wait under shamianas at the airport. The Airports Authority of India (AAI) has started a multi-purpose terminal, especially for those bound for Haj, which will be used for low-cost carriers at other times.
The first Air India Haj flight from Kolkata will take off with 422 pilgrims from this terminal on Tuesday afternoon.
One of the advantages of the new terminal is that passengers of routine flights will no longer be inconvenienced due to festive-season rush. "To avoid the extra rush at the airport during special occasions like Haj, we have constructed the terminal, where our old international terminal once stood. During other times of the year, when there is rush, the multipurpose terminal will be used as a dedicated one for low-cost carriers or executive-class passengers," said airport director R Srinivasan.
Till 2008, Haj pilgrims would have to wait outside the airport terminal building under shamianas till they were called for check-in. Even when they went in, they would be cramped up at the check-in, immigration and security counters. As a result, other international passengers would also be inconvenienced.
The new air-conditioned terminal has X-ray machines, five check-in counters, three immigration counters, two Customs counters, a bank extension counter for foreign exchange transactions and a medical room.
20/10/09 Times of India

First international flight to take off from Indore airport tomorrow

Indore: The first ever international flight from the city airport will take 200 Haj pilgrims to Jeddah in Saudi Arabia, officials said today.
The Air India flight will take off around 6am from the Devi Ahiliyabai Airport tomorrow and reach its destination at around 11.30am, Air India airport manager DV Gadgil told PTI today.Airport director Vivek Upadhaya said that this would be the first time that a direct international flight was being operated from the airport.
19/10/09 PTI/Daily News & Analysis

Air India to offer service to New Delhi from Dulles

Air India said Monday that it is planning to offer service to New Delhi from Washington Dulles International Airport starting Dec. 1.
The airline said in a statement that a flight will depart Washington at 12:10 p.m., stop at New York's John F. Kennedy International Airport, and continue nonstop to Delhi, arriving at 4:45 the following afternoon.
19/10/09 Sholnn Freeman/Washington Post, USA

Municipality chairman creates scene at Airport

Chennai: The chairman of the Pammal Municipality, J Karunanidhi, on Monday had an argument with police personnel at the Anna International Airport when he entered though the exit gate opposite the international terminal.
Sources said Karunanidhi had came along with two friends to eat at a restaurant in the international terminal complex. Around 10.30 am, when the police personnel at the exit gate stopped him and his friends, Karunanidhi created a scene and said he was an important functionary and could not be stopped.
20/10/09 Times of India

Monday, October 19, 2009

Cleared by India, US military plane leaves

Mumbai: The chartered US military aircraft which was detained for over six hours Sunday and finally cleared to leave around 3 pm, has left today, airport sources revealed.
The aircraft, which was ordered to land by the Indian Air Force (IAF) after a discrepancy in its call sign (identification), was cleared by all the relevant Indian departments and security agencies on Sunday afternoon.
However, there arose a dispute over payment of certain charges by the aircraft to the Air Traffic Control (ATC) on Sunday afternoon, delaying its departure.
When the pilot of the Boeing 767 North American airliner was unable to make immediate arrangements for the cash through its local ground handler, the ATC refused to grant it permission for take-off, the sources said.
The pilot then offered to pay the charges - the amount is not disclosed yet - by credit card, which too the ATC declined. Since there was already more than four hours' delay in the expected time of departure, the pilot extended his permissible duty hours. As per international norms, pilots can fly for a certain number of hours only and then they must get a break, the sources explained.
Later on Sunday evening, the pilot in consultation with the US embassy in New Delhi and the US Consulate in Mumbai, decided that all the people on board - 205 US Marines and a few crew members would take a night halt in Mumbai.
19/10/09 Indo-Asian News Service/Hindustan Times

Police guard hotel accommodating stranded US marines

Mumbai: Security has been beefed up in and around a five-star hotel in the western suburbs where over 200 passengers of the US aircraft checked in after their plane was ordered to land at the airport here today, police said.
A Bangkok-bound chartered US plane in which American marines were among the 205 passengers was ordered by authorities to land at Mumbai airport for flying over Indian airspace without getting the mandatory military clearance.
"Necessary security measures have been taken to ensure the safety of all the passengers," Deputy Police Commissioner Brijesh Singh said.
However, he refused to disclose the name of the hotel due to security reasons.
18/10/09 Press Trust of India

Look who have been ‘grounded’

Mumbai: The Marines have landed — er, been made to land — on the shores of Mumbai.
A Boeing carrying the world’s most storied fighting force was asked to land at Mumbai airport by the Indian Air Force (IAF) today after it emerged that the plane did not have permission to ferry troops over the country.
The plane, belonging to North American Airlines, had been chartered by the US Navy to carry 205 passengers, including some Marines, from Fujairah in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) to Utapao in Bangkok.
The plane, sources in Mumbai air traffic control said, had a civilian call sign from the directorate-general of civil aviation but did not have the mandatory air operation routing clearance from the IAF.
The routing clearance — AOR in aviation parlance — has to be procured by every foreign plane flying through Indian airspace with military equipment or personnel.
“To top that, some Marines on board were also carrying submachine guns and Glock pistols,” said a CISF officer who had inspected the plane. A source in the US consulate in Mumbai said: “The necessary clearance may have been overlooked inadvertently by the plane as the Marines were going on a holiday to Bangkok.”
The US military central command has a programme called R&R (rest and recuperation) meant for both civilians and combat personnel attached to the defence department. The consulate source added that there was nothing unusual about the presence of weapons as the Marines usually carry light arms even on R&R trips.
Soon after the plane was made to land at 7.52am, diplomatic levers started moving. The plane was eventually cleared for take-off around 2.30pm by the IAF and the civil aviation authority.
However, an IAF source said the departure had also been delayed because Myanmar — the plane will enter that country’s flight information range while flying to Bangkok — has sought clarifications related to clearances.
18/10/09 The Telegraph

Delhi airport to get India’s first batch of travelators

When it opens in mid 2010, Delhi airport’s new integrated Terminal 3 would be one of the world’s largest terminals. Passengers, however, don’t need to fret about taking a long walk to board their flights.
Delhi’s Indira Gandhi International Airport would be the first in India to have travelators (automated passenger walkways) so that passengers can move on a motorised corridor from Terminal 3 to their aircraft.
Some of the travelators have already been commissioned at the under-construction terminal.
Spread over five million square feet, Terminal 3 would cater to both international and domestic flights.
Terminal 3 will have 89 travelators, in addition to 63 elevators and 31 escalators. The travelators have been manufactured by ThyssenKrupp of Germany. Eight of the travelators will be inclined, the first of their kind in India. “The terminal, along with its 4 boarding piers, will measure around 1.25 km from one end to the other. Walking that distance would be a daunting task without travelators with some of the boarding gates being more than 500 meters away,” he said.
While most airports across the world have travelators, none of the Indian airports have such facilities. Apart from IGIA, the Chennai airport too would have travelators shortly.
19/10/09 Satish Kumar/TopNews.in

Plane Makes Emergency Landing After Man Suffers Stroke

Chennai: An Etihaad Airlines flight made an emergency landing at the Chennai Airport here Sunday to save the life of a passenger who had suffered a heart attack while the plane was in midair.
The 55-year-old passenger Ismail flying from Abu Dhabi to Kuala Lumpur was immediately rushed to a private hospital from the airport. The flight took off after the passenger had been taken off for medical aid.
18/10/09 IANS/Daijiworld.com

Sunday, October 18, 2009

India clears grounded chartered US marine plane

Mumbai: The Indian Air Force gave clearance to detained US military chartered plane to fly out from Mumbai on Sunday afternoon. Now the DGCA will decide when it will take off.
Earlier, the US aircraft with 205 American marine commandos on board was made to land at Mumbai airport for allegedly violating the Indian airspace.
The chartered plane was on its way from Fujiriah in UAE to Bangkok, an airport official said. The aircraft was using a civilian call sign, officials said.
Soon US authorities got in touch with relevant officials to resolve the issue.
18/10/09 Zee News

US plane with marines made to land in Mumbai

Mumbai/New Delhi: An American chartered aircraft with 205 passengers, including US marines on board, was forced to land at Mumbai airport today for alleged violation of the Indian airspace.
The plane was on way from Fujiriah in the UAE to Bangkok, a Mumbai International Airport Limited spokesperson said.
"A US aircraft with 205 passengers, including its crew and US troops on board was made to land in Mumbai while overflying Indian airspace as there was some confusion about its call sign," he said.
The aircraft landed at Mumbai airport at 7.52am and has been parked at a remote bay, he said, adding all passengers are on board the plane.
Giving details of the incident, IAF spokesperson Wing Commander T K Singha told PTI in Delhi that the aircraft is a US military chartered Boeing 767 plane belonging to North American Airlines.
"It is a transport aircraft, which was going to Utapao in Bangkok from Fujiriah in UAE. It had civilian clearance from directorate general of civil aviation to fly over Indian airspace. However, it was carrying military personnel, for which the aircraft should have obtained Air Operation Routing clearance (AOR), needed for a military aircraft," he said.
"Once it entered Indian air space, the IAF ordered the aircraft through radio communication to land in Mumbai, to which it complied with. An inquiry is on in the matter."
"We are aware of the situation, and are in touch with relevant officials to resolve this issue, which is a routine matter," a US embassy spokesperson said in Delhi. This is the fourth such incident of a foreign aircraft violating Indian airspace since June this year.
18/10/09 PTI/Daily News & Analysis

Air India Express introduce a new destination from Doha

Doha: In order to meet the growing demand from Doha to the Northern part of India, Air India Express will introduce Delhi as a new destination effective 26th October, 2009, three times a week. The Mumbai flight will be extended to Delhi and the passengers from Doha to Delhi will travel without disembarking at Mumbai on the same aircraft.
From Delhi, Air India express will offer a flat add-on of QAR.150/- one way on Air India or Indian Airlines domestic flights to places like Amritsar, Srinagar, Varanasi, Patna, Lucknow etc.
A similar offer already exists over Mumbai to places like Baroda, Ahmadabad, Hyderabad, Chennai, Goa etc. In fact, over Mumbai or Delhi which are our gate way points, passengers can connect to any one destination in India at a flat add-on rate of QAR. 150/- one way on our services.
18/10/09 Iqbal Manna/Mangalorean.com

DIAL invites bids for setting up hotels near Delhi airport

New Delhi: Delhi International Airport Ltd (DIAL) has invited bids for setting up hotels on five plots in a hospitality district planned near the airport.
DIAL, the GMR Group-led consortium mandated to operate the National Capital's airport, has planned the 45-acre district around the airport for developing a mix of 5-star, 4-star and 3-star hotels. The properties would be developed on 13 plots.
DIAL has already alloted eight of 13 hotel plots in the district for developing hotels.
Bids are sought from individual companies or consortia with a net worth of at least Rs 50 crore. The selected bidders would enter into a long-term lease agreement with DIAL for 30 years which would be extendable by another 30 years.
In the initial round of bidding for eight plots, Accor, Hyatt (Saraf Hotels), Interglobe Hotels, Lemon Tree and Bird Group were the winners.
18/10/09 PTI/Economic Times

Passenger Dies Following Cardiac Arrest at Bajpe airport on Arrival

Mangalore: A passenger is reported to have died due to cardiac arrest soon after he arrived at Bajpe airport on Saturday October 17.
The deceased is identified as Sathish Shetty (38), a resident of Mulky. He was returning home from business in Bangalore to spend Diwali with the family.
A fellow passenger said that the deceased was suffering from chest pain onboard the aircraft. He suddenly collapsed on arrival from Bangalore , inside the airport .
17/10/09 Daijiworld.com

Saturday, October 17, 2009

Alliance Air flight stuck at IGI for 6 hrs

New Delhi: The Canadian Regional Jet (CRJ) of the Alliance Air that took off as CD 7601 in the morning to operate on Delhi-Vizag-Chennai sector developed a snag taking off from Vizag and returned to make an emergency landing. This flight was terminated here as the plane did not proceed to Chennai and after repairs returned to Delhi.
From Delhi, it was to fly to Ahmedabad at 6pm and then return to the capital at night. But the 60-odd Ahmedabad-bound passengers, including PM's media advisor Harish Khare, spent Diwali eve at IGI instead of reaching their destination in time. It again developed a snag and then a series of events kept delaying it. The CRJ took off around 11.45pm, a delay of almost six hours. An airline spokesperson confirmed the delay and the snags in the same plane on morning and evening flights. The problem began in the evening itself with the aircraft developing a snag with engine power. Small aircraft like CRJs are parked across the main runway and close to the international terminal side. Once this problem got rectified around 8pm, passengers were learnt to have been sent to the aircraft in buses. Incidentally, this was the second Alliance CRJ to have developed a snag earlier too.
17/10/09 Saurabh Sinha/Times of India

AAI takes pvt way, to levy user fee at Chennai, Kolkata

The state-run airports operator has finalised a plan to levy a user fee at the Chennai and Kolkata airports to meet the extra cost of upgrading the airports in these two metropolitan cities, a civil aviation ministry official said. A “moderate” fee will be charged for a “short time,” the official told ET on condition of anonymity without divulging further details.
The Airports Authority of India (AAI) now plans to seek approval for the levy from the civil aviation ministry and the airports regulator.
AAI, which manages 125 airports, including civil enclaves at defence airports, has not collected user fees so far but says it is compelled to do so now because cost escalation in Chennai and Kolkata is putting severe pressure on its finances.
AAI chairman V P Agarwal emphasised that the burden on passengers using the Chennai and Kolkata airports “would not be high” and that it plans to generate revenues from user fees only to the “minimum extent possible.”
According to the latest AAI estimates, the cost of revamping the Kolkata airport has risen to Rs.2,750 crore from Rs1,950 crore while for Chennai it has gone up from Rs 1,800 crore to Rs 2,000 crore.
Furthermore, AAI has targetted upgrading 35 non-metro airports at an investment of Rs 2,911 crore by the end of March 2010. If the levy of the user fee in Chennai and Kolkata proves to be a successful experiment, the toll may be extended to passengers at non-metro airports.
17/10/09 Faizan Khan & G Ganapathy Subramaniam/Economic Times

Air India flight hit by eagle, lands safely

Kochi: An Air India flight from Dubai carrying 31 passengers and the crew today had a providential escape when an eagle hit the plane when it was landing at the Nedumbassery airport here, airport sources said.
The flight IC-537, which was headed to Kozhikode, was diverted to the airport here due to bad weather in Kozhikode and was about to land here when it was hit by the bird which got entangled in the propeller.
16/10/09 Press Trust of India