Two held at Bengaluru airport for bid to smuggle drugs

Bengaluru: In yet another major haul of drugs at the Kempegowda International Airport (KIA), sleuths of the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) here nabbed two men — in connection with two different cases — while they attempted to smuggle out Ephedrine and Ketamine worth over Rs. 2 crore to Malaysia. While Ephedrine was carefully concealed inside 45 travel pouches, Ketamine was hidden inside a wet grinder.

DRI sources said that a passenger profiling was conducted at the airport early on Saturday following specific information that large quantities of Ephedrine was being smuggled to Kuala Lumpur via Bengaluru. A detailed check raised suspicion on a 43-year-old passenger from Chennai who checked-in a 20-kg luggage with the Malaysian Airlines flight. Interrogations revealed that he was carrying Ephiderine weighing 5.3 kg worth Rs. 1.06 crore. Sources said that the contraband was painstakingly sealed inside 45 travel leather pouches with each holding 50 gm each of the substance at the top and bottom of the leather cover. The drug smuggler, who arrived by bus from Chennai, was arrested. Sources said that investigations were on to know the dealers who had given him the contraband and their links in Benglauru.

Meanwhile, a DRI team intercepted a 37-year-old man from Chennai at KIA on Friday night while he was waiting to board an Air Asia flight to Kuala Lumpur.

A box containing a new wet grinder that was checked-in by the passenger was retrieved. Dismantling of the grinder revealed 12.9 kg of Ketamine under the motor area which was packed with thermocol and plastic and concealed carefully, sources said.
06/06/16 Petlee peter

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36 French Rafale Fighter Jets to Cost India Euros 7.8 billion

Closing the deal much below the asking price, India has finalised the much-touted deal for purchase of 36 French made Rafale fighter jets at around Euros 7.8 billion or Rs 58,600 crores, sources in the know told DefenceAviationPost.

The signing of the agreement will still take a while as approvals to ratify the price will be taken from the cabinet, sources added. A high-level team from France is expected to be in India in May to firm up the details for purchase of these 36 Rafale fighter aircrafts by India.

Indian officials led by Defence minister Manohar Parrikar have been negotiating hard to bring down the price of the Rafale deal. The expectation is that the final deal will be clinched by May-end. Parrikar had earlier said he was a “tough negotiator” and wanted the “best price” for Rafale fighter jets from France. “I am a tough negotiator. Let me save money for the nation,” Parrikar had been quoted as saying.

As reported by DefenceAviationPost.com, India wanted to keep the price below Rs 60,000 crore. Defence minister Manohar Parrikar had told DefenceAviationPost in an exclusive interview last month that he wanted to close the multi-billion dollar deal as early as possible.

“I don’t fix timelines but I am definitely interested in finishing it as early as possible,” Parrikar had said. He had, however, said that price was an important issue. “Price is equally important. While I want the aircraft I will definitely be interested in the right price,” he said. The deliveries of the nuclear-capable multi-role Rafale jets are likely to begin in 2019.

The deal for 36 fighter jets was first announced during Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to France last year. The two sides had hoped to wrap up the strategic order during President Francois Hollande’s Republic Day visit in January, but the two sides had failed to reach a consensus on the price.

The deal comes with the clause of delivering 50 per cent offsets, creating business worth at least 3 billion Euros for smaller Indian companies and creating thousands of new jobs in India through the offsets.

The Rafale jet fighters are manufactured by Dassault Aviation. Under the proposed deal, companies like Safran and Thales will join Dassault in providing state-of-art technologies in stealth, radar, thrust vectoring for missiles and materials for electronics and micro-electronics.
18/04/16 Anupama Airy/Defence Aviation Post

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India agrees to ink bilateral air service agreement with Fiji

As per a Financial Chronicle report by Nirbhay Kumar, India has agreed to sign a bilateral air service agreement (ASA) with Fiji, paving the way for direct flights between the two countries.

According to a Ministry of Civil Aviation official, the two sides recently agreed to ink an agreement in this regard under which designated airlines from the two countries could operate thrice a week. “Besides cities like Delhi and Hyderabad, Varanasi has also been added as a point-of-call for Fijian Airlines in India. Indian carriers can operate to anywhere in Fiji,” the official said.
18/04/16 Hospitality Biz India

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Govt drops plan to bid out unused air traffic rights

New Delhi: The civil aviation ministry has dropped the proposal of auctioning unused bilateral traffic rights on international routes, as per a draft on National Civil Aviation Policy circulated for inter-ministerial consultations last month, official sources said.
Domestic carriers as well as the International Air Transport Association (IATA) have strongly opposed plans to auction unused bilateral rights.
The government has also tried a balancing act on replacing the much-debated 5/20 rule for flying overseas, while at the same time giving older carriers the flexibility to withdraw capacity deployed on unviable routes which is in excess of the minimum requirements, the sources said.
The existing rule of domestic airlines having minimum five year experience and 20 aircraft for being eligible to fly on international routes is proposed to be replaced by only 20 aircraft requirement and a minimum of 20 per cent capacity being deployed domestically.
If approved, the proposed policy will enable new carriers like AirAsia India and Vistara — both operated by the Tata Group via joint ventures with foreign partners — to operate internationally without having the minimum five-year experience as required in the existing regime.
17/04/16 Sunny Verma/Indian Express

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PAL flight diverts to India after baby couldn’t wait

A Manila-bound Philippine Airlines (PAL) plane from Dubai was diverted to India on Sunday when a seven-month pregnant passenger went into premature labor mid-flight.
PR 669 left Dubai at midnight Saturday when four hours into the flight to Manila, 40-year-old Mary Grace Alejandro, who was traveling with her teenage son, complained of abdominal pain and went into labor.
The cabin crew helped the woman give birth.

Mother and daughter, however, were in delicate condition that required proper medical care.
This prompted the pilot to divert the flight to the Rajiv Gandhi International Airport in Hyderabad, India.
Upon landing, Alejandro and her new baby were rushed to Apollo Hospital, where they were declared in stable condition.
According to PAL spokesperson Cielo Villaluna, the baby was on ventilator support and under observation, with a projected full recovery in six weeks.
17/04/16 Inquirer.net

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India, U.S. to conclude pact on aircraft carrier cooperation

India and the U.S. may not have signed the Logistics Support Agreement as planned during Defence Secretary Ashton Carter’s visit early this week but both sides are close to finalising an Information Exchange Agreement (IEA) on aircraft carrier technologies, as well as cooperation on air wing operations for carrier Vikrant under construction at Kochi.

The IEA will formalise the exact technology that the U.S. will share and at what classification level, design side, operations among other things, a senior U.S. Admiral said. Both sides had already signed the Terms of Reference on June 17, 2015 during the first meeting of the India-U.S. Joint Working Group (JWG) on carrier technology cooperation.

“We provided them a draft when I visited them in February and it is going through the necessary channels of the Indian government to make sure you are ok with it. We are very close,” said Rear Admiral Tom Moore in an exclusive interview to The Hindu, in the US capital late last month. He is the U.S. Navy’s Program Executive Officer for Aircraft Carriers, and the Co-chair of the JWG. From the Indian side it is chaired by Vice Admiral G.S. Pubby, Controller for Warship Production and Acquisition.

“It is a necessary document to take the next step. We have made a lot of progress over the last year,” he noted.
17/04/16 The Hindu

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Zambian held at IGIA with drugs worth Rs.1.4cr

A Zambian national has been held at the Indira Gandhi International Airport (IGIA) here for allegedly attempting to smuggle out narcotic drugs worth Rs.1.4 crore.
Officials said the incident occurred on Friday when Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) sleuths detected suspicious movements of a passenger identified as Zambian Mwenda Paul, who arrived at the airport terminal to board a flight to Addis Ababa.
They said Paul was chosen for detailed frisking after which about 35kg of the banned drug was recovered from his baggage, cleverly hidden in thigh pads (cricketing gear).
16/04/16 PTI/Statesman

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Rare tortoises to be flown to Madagascar

Navi Mumbai: More than three weeks after 146 endangered tortoises were rescued from a Nepalese flyer at the international airport, 131 of them are set to return to Madagascar on Monday. Fifteen of the tortoises died.

Director of Wildlife Crime Control Bureau M Maranko said the process to send the tortoises back was over. An Interpol alert to file a case against the flyer, Lal Babu Thakur (32), was issued.
17/04/16 Times of India

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All you need to know about the Rafale deal

Rafales are twin-engine Medium Multi-Role Combat Aircraft (MMRCA) manufactured by Dassault Aviation, a French firm. Rafale fighter jets are positioned as ‘omnirole’ aircrafts that capable to perform a wide-range of combat roles such as air supremacy, interdiction, aerial reconnaissance, ground support, in-depth strike, anti-ship strike and nuclear deterrence.
Rafale was not India’s only choice. Several international aviation manufacturers expressed interest upon knowing the Indian government’s mammoth plan to revamp its Indian Airforce fleet by introducing MMRCAs.
Six renowned aircraft manufacturers competed to bag the contract of 126 fighter jets, which was touted to be the largest-ever defence procurement deal of India.
The Initial bidders were Lockheed Martin’s F-16s, Boeing’s F/A-18s, Eurofighter Typhoon, Russia’s MiG-35, Sweden’s Saab’s Gripen nd Rafale.
All aircraft were tested by the IAF and after careful analysis on the bids, two of them — Eurofighter and Rafale — were shortlisted. Dassault bagged the contract to provide 126 fighter jets, as it was the lowest bidder and the aircraft were said to be easy to maintain.
16/04/16 Deepalakshmi K/The Hindu

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India says talks on Rafale jet deal in final stage

New Delhi: Negotiations for India to buy 36 French Rafale fighter jets are nearing the finish line, the Indian defence ministry said, with sources saying the price will be set at around $9 billion.

Both sides had hoped to wrap up the strategic order during President Francois Hollande's visit for India's Republic Day celebration in January, but hard bargaining on price stalled a final result.
A ministry source said the price agreed for the Dassault Aviation jets was around 600 billion rupees ($9 billion), although a spokesman declined to confirm this on the record.

"Negotiations are in the final stage. Nothing has been concluded so far," the spokesman said late on Friday.

Dassault also declined comment. The price named is significantly below that originally sought by the French plane maker. There have been several leaks to the Indian press over recent months that a deal had been reached that proved to be premature.

Hollande and Prime Minister Narendra Modi intervened in the troubled Rafale procurement last year, ordering government-to-government talks after commercial negotiations with Dassault had collapsed.

The leaders agreed to scale back an original plan to buy 126 Rafale planes to just 36 in fly-away condition to meet the Indian Air Force's urgent needs as it faces an assertive China and long-time foe Pakistan.
16/04/16 Reuters/Business Standard

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VistaJet set to land in India to serve the uber rich

New Delhi: The world leader in the luxury jet business VistaJet is eyeing India’s uber-rich willing to shell out around $13,000-18,000 an hour for a rendezvous.

After flying 40,000 hours globally in the last one year, VistaJet wants to start a new chapter in the aviation space in India as it sees growing demand from industrialists or corporate bigwigs who have to fly for business deals within a short notice.

Speaking to Bloomberg TV India, VistaJet chairman Thomas Flohr said the success in the general aviation business depends on how well the fleet is utilised. Flohr's company is confident that India's high networth clients will certainly benefit from the personalised service without having to buy their own jets. VistaJet claims to offer everything a businessman would yearn for before stepping into a tough round of business negotiations.

Offering global aircraft services to hardest to reach destinations, VistaJet has arranged for heads of state, corporate leaders, entrepreneurs and private individuals to fly to over 186 countries worldwide.
16/04/16 Veena Mani/Business Broadcast News 

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Snag-hit plane lands at airport

Ahmedabad: A Kuwait Airways flight with more than 100 passengers aboard made an emergency landing at Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel International Airport on Wednesday morning, reportedly due to technical issues in their GPS (global positioning system) and radar systems. The issue was resolved in one-and-a-half hours and the flight finally took off for Kuwait.
"My son Varun was flying to Istanbul via Kuwait by Kuwait Airways. He boarded the KU-346 flight at around 5.30am at Ahmedabad airport and left at around 6am. When the flight was midway, the pilot announced that there were some serious technical issues with the GPS system of the flight and the radar was also not responding," said city-based Ramesh Shukla. The passenger, Varun Shukla, was on a business trip to Istanbul.
He further said, "According to the pilot's announcement, the flight was over Karachi airspace when he decided to take it back to Ahmedabad airport. The flight landed in Ahmedabad at around 8.30am and the passengers remained seated in the aircraft till the fault was repaired."
16/04/16 Times of India

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Changi Airports International, India’s Airports Authority call off collaboration

Singapore: A proposed plan to broaden Singapore and India's collaboration in civil aviation has been called off, after parties involved in the negotiations failed to agree on commercial terms of the project, Channel NewsAsia reported.

Changi Airports International (CAI) had been in talks with the Airports Authority of India (AAI) on plans to maintain some Indian airports, and explore mutual areas of commercial interest. A CAI spokesman confirmed to the broadcaster on Friday (April 15) that talks had been called off.

Channel NewsAsia quoted CAI spokesman Ms See Ngee Muoy saying: "“As an airport investor, manager and consultant, CAI will continue to explore opportunities in airport projects in India where we can add value and where there is a strong fit with our global strategy.”

CAI was nominated by the Singapore Cooperation Enterprise (SCE) in January this year as an expert party to cooperate with AAI on the maintenance of the Ahmedabad and Jaipur airports.
16/04/16 Today

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Flights to Singapore, Kuala Lumpur from July

Bhubaneswar: The much-awaited air service to international destinations from the Biju Patnaik International Airport (BPIA) here is likely to be a reality as services to destinations like Singapore and Kuala Lumpur may begin from this July.

 “International flight operations from the BPIA will begin soon. For this, preparations at our end are over. We have also given green signal to Silk Air. The carrier is awaiting the Directorate General of Civil Aviation’s (DGCA) approval. We have written to the DGCA for expediting the clearance process. If all goes well, service to Singapore will start from July this year,” BPIA Director R Mahalingam said.

Besides Silk Air, AirAsia has also evinced interest to start international operations from here. “AirAsia is also interested to launch its flight service to Kuala Lumpur. For this, the carrier has finished all the formalities.

DGCA clearance is also pending for Air Asia. Once the approval is done, services can be started within a month,” Mahalingam added.

Notably, AirAsia had announced the launch of its Bhubaneswar-Kuala Lumpur service from December 15 last year. Mahalingam took over as the Director of BPIA last Friday.

Elaborating the expansion plans, Mahalingam further said efforts are being made to increase the footfall at the airport, especially from south Indian cities. For this, air services to Coimbatore, Bengaluru, Chennai and Thiruvananthapuram would be started soon.
16/04/16 Pioneer

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Brussels attacks: Jet Airways crew member Nidhi Chaphekar speaks to her children after 24 days

Nidhi Chaphekar, the Jet Airways crew member who was critically injured in the Brussels Airport blast, had been put off the ventilator on Friday and she could finally speak to her children, who are in Mumbai, over the phone after 24 days.
Chaphekar had been admitted in the hospital in the ICU and was placed in 'medically induced state'. Though the doctors had declared Chaphekar to be out of danger, she had sustained over 15 per cent burns and was left with a fractured foot.
16/04/16 Neha LM Tripathi/Mid Day

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Novoair to launch Dhaka-Guwahati flight

Novoair, a private airliner of the country, is going to launch international flight in Northeast Indian city Guwahati by October this year to tap growing air market.

Sohail Majid, head of marketing and sales, Novoair, said Druk airlines, lone foreign carrier operates flight in this route. But it has a huge opportunity considering business travellers and tourists as this city is gateway to North-east India.

“For the first time in Bangladesh, Novoair is going to launch a new wing which will connect Guwahati with four cities including Dhaka, Chittagong and Kolkata. It will open a new era for the businessmen specially for Assam and Chittagong based businessmen,” said Majid.

Historically, Assam and Meghalaya have lot of tea gardens. Most of the tea businessmen of Assam come Chittagong for auctioning their tea. Moreover, Shilong, Guwahati, Cherapunji are an attractive tourist spots for Bangladeshis, specially for rain forest attract tourists, he further said.
16/04/16 Ishtiaq Husain/Dhaka Tribune

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Foreign currency smuggling on the rise at city airport

Hyderabad: The series of foreign currency smuggling attempts at RGI Airport has made it clear that city-based hawala operators have been transporting huge amount of foreign currency in small suitcases.
Over the past one month, Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) sleuths arrested four city men and seized Rs 3.56 crore worth foreign currency from their possession.
In two cases, the offenders were travelling to Dubai and in another case, the accused were going to Sharjah.
Initially DRI sleuths thought that the smugglers are trying to take UAE's currency dirhams along with US dollars and euros, which could easily be exchanged in the country.
But during the recent arrest, DRI sleuths were shocked to see the smuggler carrying Australian dollars, Saudi riyals, Omani riyals, Qatar riyals and Kuwaiti dinars to UAE which has flummoxed intelligence officials.
16/04/16 Times of India

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Zambian national held at IGIA in Delhi with Rs 1.4cr drugs

A Zambian national has been held at the Indira Gandhi International Airport (IGIA) in Delhi for allegedly attempting to smuggle out narcotic drugs worth Rs 1.4 crore. Officials said the incident occurred on Friday when CISF sleuths detected suspicious movements of a flier identified as Zambian Mwenda Paul, who arrived at the airport terminal to board a flight to Addis Ababa. They said Paul was chosen for detailed frisking after which about 35kgs of the banned drug was recovered from his baggage, cleverly hidden in thigh pads, a cricketing gear.
16/04/16 PTI/Indian Express

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Satellite phone spells trouble for US citizen

Kochi: The Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) arrested an American citizen on Thursday at Cochin airport for carrying and using a satellite phone, banned in India.
CISF arrested Kruss Daniel Morton (65), a resident of Castlewood Ln, Deerfield, Illinois, USA, after the phone was found in his possession during a routine baggage screening at the airport.
Morton, who was in Kochi along with his wife and a group of friends, arrived last week and visited popular tourist locations such as Kumarakom and Munnar.
The accused was intercepted by CISF around 5.50pm on Thursday. He was about to board a flight back to the US along with his wife and a family friend. He was handed over to Nedumbassery police.
Officials said that the foreigner had arrived in Kochi on April 10.
Police said that the accused claimed to be a doctor and director of a hospital in the US. He said he brought the phone fearing that he would be unreachable over his cell phone in Kerala. He also claimed that he was unaware of the Indian rule, restricting the use of satellite phone.
15/04/16 Times of India

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SkyTeam wants India’s Jet, Brazil’s Gol

Dubai:  Major airline alliance SkyTeam wants to add India’s Jet Airways and Brazil’s Gol to its ranks as it looks to strengthen its global network, Chief Executive Perry Cantarutti told Gulf News on Tuesday.

SkyTeam, one of the three major airline alliances, does not have any members from India or Brazil, two countries where Cantarutti said the alliance could improve its position.

“Those would be the markets that would be at the top of our list for trying to find a member,” he told Gulf News at the SkyTeam lounge at Dubai International.

Jet Airways and Gol are “top candidates” to join the alliance because of existing bilateral relationships with its members, he said. Jet Airways has agreements with nine SkyTeam members and Gol has agreements with seven, according to Cantarutti.
12/04/16 Gulf News

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Air India looks to woo tourists with Delhi-Vienna service

Vienna: Air India’s decision to start three-times-a-week flight to Vienna might prove to be a money spinner. Air India started the flight connecting Delhi with Vienna on April 6. The airline started the service after Austrian Airlines withdrew from the sector.

Not only are the number of Indians travelling to Austria increasing, the country is also generating a lot of interest among affluent Indians wanting to tie the knot in a foreign locale. Officials from the Vienna Tourist Board told newspersons, who travelled on the inaugural Air India flight to Vienna, that the city witnessed close to 50 per cent increase in tourist arrival from India in 2015.

Pankaj Srivastva, Commercial Director, Air India, said that the flight is expected to link Vienna not only to the Indian subcontinent, but to South-East Asia and Australia as well.

“The first flight to Vienna had 106 transit travellers, 53 of them from Bangkok,” he added.

Ishvinder Maddh, Managing Director, Robinville, a market entry specialist for tourism boards and sight-seeing in the region, pointed out that in 2015, Indians had 2,15,000 room nights in Austria, far more than the average of 1,63,000 room nights in the previous years.
12/04/16 P Anima/Business Line

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Indian businessman handed 13 month sentence for importing €106,200 in fake banknotes

An Indian leather goods importer has been jailed for 13 months in connection with the largest seizure of counterfeit Euro banknotes in Maltese history.
33-year-old businessman Ravi Kumar, from Mahabat Pur Baoli in India, had been arrested at the airport on 18th May last year. Kumar had been trying to leave the island when he was found to be carrying 1,152 fake €100 banknotes and 20 fake €50 banknotes - a face value of some €106,200.
The court ordered that the counterfeit notes be destroyed.
Although Kumar had initially denied the charges, Magistrate Josette Demicoli noted that the accused had later changed his plea and admitted his guilt.
12/04/16 Malta Today

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2 Sri Lankans with fake passports nabbed

Vasco: Two Srilankan nationals were arrested by Dabolim airport police for trying to board a Sharjah- bound flight with fake passports.
DySP Sucheta Dessai said, "They portrayed themselves as Indians but immigration officials suspected otherwise." The accused as per their names in the passports M Lusin and Srinivasan Balsubramanyam.
13/04/16 Times of India

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Co-production of US fighter jets in India on the table

New Delhi:  A proposal to manufacture US fighter jets on Indian soil is on the agenda of bilateral talks between US Defence Secretary Ashton Carter and Indian counterpart Manohar Parrikar.

“Members of my team and industry are looking at the potential co-production of fighter aircraft,” Carter said at a discussion at the Council on Foreign Relations, New York, giving a clear hint prior to his departure.

His public comments come days after US aviation majors Boeing and Lockheed Martin gave a presentation to the Defence Ministry top brass about their proposal on producing fighter jets in India under the Make in India programme, though several officials in the defence ministry and Indian Air Force remained sceptical about the US move.
12/04/16 Deccan Herald

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Malaysias Indians-owned Sharia-compliant airline suspended

Kuala Lumpur: Malaysias Rayani Air, the countrys first Sharia-compliant airline owned by an ethnic Indian Hindu couple, has been suspended for three months for failing to adhere to aviation regulations, it was announced today.
Department of Civil Aviation Director-General Azharuddin Abdul Rahman said the suspension notice had been sent to the airline.
He said an inquiry on Rayani Air would be held on May 12 pertaining to the suspension order.
"The suspension will be lifted if they fulfill all of our requirements or we can permanently suspend (Rayani Air) or take a longer time. Three months is provisional. We have discussed with the airline and they know about it. Its up to them to improve," he told a press conference here.
Authorities said Rayani Air had contravened the conditions of its Air Operators Certificate (AOC). They said a full administration and safety audit would be conducted into the airlines.
11/04/16 PTI/India Today

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The Long Journey Home After the Brussels Bombings

South Plainfield, NJ: When Norma Patel arrived at the Brussels Airport from Mumbai at 7:28 a.m. March 22 she was more than ready to return home to South Plainfield after having spent 12 days in India with her brother and sister-in-law.
Their Jet Airways flight from Brussels to Newark was scheduled to depart at 9:30 a.m. but, as they entered the elevator that would take them up to the assigned gate, a loud boom shook the airport. It was just before 8 a.m. Belgium time and the start of what would turn out to be a four-day journey to get home.
When the elevator doors opened, Patel said people were running and crying. Patel, along with her brother and sister-in-law who live in Sayreville part of the year, immediately headed to their designated gate as announcements that ‘a blast’ had occurred began coming over the loudspeaker. A few minutes later, everyone was forced to evacuate the airport via the airplane ramp onto the tarmac.

”We had to evacuate without any of our bags,” she said.

Shortly after security and airport personnel began throwing carryon items out of the airport as well. “They were unsure if any of them contained an explosive device. People were rushing and tripping over bags and one another,” she said, adding that once outside, buses arrived to transport people away from the building and out onto the runway. “Anybody who was in the airport was evacuated, even those who may have been their to pick someone up.”
It was just after 3 a.m. in New Jersey when Patel, who thankfully still had her purse with cellphone and passport on her, called home to South Plainfield to tell her son Dharam what was happening. “No news outlets had anything yet and they just said a blast to me on the phone and that could meant anything. It could have been a pipe that burst,” Dharam said.
Logging onto to Twitter, Dharam began searching ‘#brusselsairport’ and learned it had been a bomb and, within minutes, news confirming a terrorist attack filled social media. He called his mother back and told her what he had found out, but soon after, all communication – including calls and texts – was cut off.

“Something happened with the network there. Nothing was going through from here and they weren’t able to call here,” Dharam said.

Despite not being able to get through, Dharam – thousands of miles away at home in South Plainfield – was able to stay informed about what was going on and where his family was through Twitter. “Someone was able to get communication through and by following the Tweets I was able to find out where the passengers were,” he said. “Without social media we would have had no idea.”
11/04/16 Victoria Caruso/Tap into South Plainfiled

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India set to approve manufacturing facility for US fighter jets

India is likely to approve the setting up of a manufacturing facility for the F-16 aircrafts or the F/A18 super hornet jet fighters early next week, top government sources have told DefenceAviationPost.

“Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar will once again strike a tough bargain for India during the ongoing three day visit of the US Defence Secretary Ashton Carter, a bargain that will see the country benefitng on both the economic and strategic front besides gaining immensely on the technical front…. setting up of a manufacturing line in India for either F-16 aircrafts or F/A18 super hornet jet fighters may be announced,” said a top Defence Ministry official.

Both the US fighter jet makers– Lockheed Martin and Boeing have expressed keen interest to set up manufacturing facilities for these two niche aircrafts in India in line with the Modi government’s “Make in India” initiative.

While the exact announcement on whether India will go for a F-16 or a F-18 facility will be known shortly, the Indian defence establishment has been keen to go for the twin-engine F/A 18 super hornets (Boeing) over the F-16 single engine aircrafts by Lockheed Martin after the indigenously developed Tejas light combat aircrafts.

US has been keen to strengthen defence ties with India as New Delhi prepares to dole out multi-billion defence contracts and Carter’s three day visit—which is second in less than a year – clearly signals the intent.
11/04/16 Anupama Airy/Defence Aviation Post

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Gupta private jet flies to India

Cape Town: A private jet used by members of the Gupta family to fly from South Africa to Dubai late last week has now flown on to India.

PlaneFinder.net shows that Flight ZS-OAK, a Bombardier Global Express jet registered to ExecuJet South Africa, flew from Dubai at 00:10 on Monday, April 11, and landed near Nakur, north of New Delhi.

This is about 30km from the Gupta family hometown of Saharanpur, a city in northern India.

The Sunday Times reported in 2011 that until 1989 a "nondescript" apartment block in Rani Bazar, Saharanpur, with 30 rooms, was home to the Gupta brothers and their family.

Described as "fly-infested" and "dirty", the Sunday Times reported that locals had high praises for Shiv Kumar Gupta, the family patriarch who died in 1994, and his "hard-working" family.

On Sunday, City Press reported that Ajay and Atul Gupta, together with one of their wives and five of their assistants, had left South Africa for Dubai on Thursday evening. They were seen at Lanseria Airport "with a mountain of luggage".
11/04/16 News24

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Foreigner sneaks into airport on fake ticket, held

New Delhi: A foreign national was arrested for sneaking inside IGI airport by flashing a fake Delhi-Frankfurt ticket to see off his girlfriend. The incident, which took place last Monday, has raised security concerns at the airport as the current security plan allows anyone to enter the airport without any frisking or thorough checks.
"A man, identified as Mikael Elias Rodriguez, holding a Spanish passport entered Terminal 3 by flashing a Delhi-Frankfurt e-ticket of an international airline during the early hours of Monday," said a senior police official, adding, "He was caught by CISF personnel posted at the entrance gates while trying to exit. Rodriguez said that he had entered the terminal to see off his girlfriend."
CISF personnel got a confirmation from the airline that no ticket was booked in Rodriguez's name. He was then handed over to Delhi Police and booked for forgery and cheating.
Senior officials said a strict system needs to be put in place for screening such people as safety of hundreds of passengers is at stake. "IGI is flooded with foreign tourists and Indian passengers during peak hours. Leniency in the security plan may endanger many lives. The issue has been raised many times, but no solution has been achieved," said a senior CISF officer.
11/04/16 Anvit Srivastava/Times of India

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Three detained with fake passports

Kolkata: Three Nepalese citizens were detained for carrying forged passport at the NSC Bose International Airport here, airport officials said on Sunday. All the three persons arrived here from Hong Kong by a private airline last night. They were caught by airport security, they said, adding that their interrogation was on.
11/04/16 PTI/The Hindu

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Etihad and Jet Airways keep Mumbai Indians flying high

Abu Dhabi: Etihad Airways and Jet Airways are continuing their sponsorship as Official Airline partners and principal sponsors of defending champions Mumbai Indians at this year’s Vivo Indian Premier League (IPL) T20 cricket tournament.

The partner airlines are lending support for the third year running to one of the most successful franchise teams in the IPL and one of India’s biggest sports brands since the tournament was launched in 2008. Mumbai Indians feature some of the sport’s biggest names.

The team is captained by Indian batsman Rohit Sharma and coached by former Australia captain Ricky Ponting. Star players in this year’s squad include Indian spin bowler Harbhajan Singh, Sri Lankan fast bowler Lasith Malinga, New Zealand all-rounder Corey Anderson, England wicketkeeper Joss Buttler and West Indies’ Lendl Simmons, who won the ICC T20 World Cup with his national team in India last week.

The tournament coincides with the May 1 debut of Etihad Airways’ long-awaited Airbus A380 on one of its thrice-daily Abu Dhabi — Mumbai flights, operating as a codeshare service with Jet Airways, and featuring The Residence — the world’s first three-room suite on a commercial airliner.
09/04/16 Gulf News

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When the music dies midway

Chennai: Veena artist Rajhesh Vaidhya, who is currently on a tour of the United States and Canada, is smarting from the fact that a prized instrument is damaged and unplayable.

Mr. Vaidhya was travelling from Dulles International Airport, Washington, to Edmonton in Canada when his 90-year-old veena was lost in transit by a Canada-based airline company.

Later, when it was found and handed over to him, Mr. Vaidhya found it to be badly damaged with a big hole in the ‘kudam’ (resonator) of the instrument and a large crack around its circumference.

The secure enclosure of the instrument remains intact, suggesting that the instrument had been removed from its secure packaging during transit. A post about the damaged veena that is doing the rounds on social media has many musicians commenting about the “indifferent attitude” of the company.

Many instrumentalists from Chennai, who travel frequently, say that the instruments are not damaged during travel, but only during transit at airports.
10/04/16 S. Poorvaja/The Hindu

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Delayed not detained: This is how Akshay Kumar spent time at Heathrow airport

Bollywood star Akshay Kumar was made to wait at Heathrow Airport as UK immigration officials checked the details of his Canadian passport.
The 48-year-old flew into London from Mumbai for the shoot of his film Rustom but had to wait an additional hour- and-a-half as the authorities checked the entry requirements to the UK for Canadian nationals on Thursday.
"It is being claimed that Akshay was 'detained', which is absolutely incorrect. It was just a delay for which immigration apologised and he went on with his day," a source close to the star told PTI.
Kumar, who is a Canadian national, does not require a visa to travel to the UK for tourism and business purposes for up to 90 days. It is believed the UK authorities took longer to clarify this "fine-print", during which he was made to wait in the general waiting area at the airport.
Kumar's team also denied media reports which claim the Punjab-born actor tried to assert his stardom to get any kind of special treatment or favours. They insist he willingly complied with the request of the authorities and was soon out of the airport and is now busy with his shoot in London. A Home Office spokesperson confirmed no problems were found with Kumar's documents.
08/04/16 PTI/Daily News & Analysis

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Russia points to pilot error in flydubai Boeing crash

Moscow: Russian aviation investigators said Friday that the pilots of a flydubai jet that crashed and killed 62 last month put the plane into a nose-dive and were unable to pull out of it.
The Boeing 737 flying from Dubai crashed short of the runway in the southern Russian city of Rostov-on-Don in the early hours of March 19 after it aborted a landing in poor weather.
Russia's Interstate Aviation Committee, which probes plane crashes, said in a preliminary report that the jet hit the ground at a speed of 600 kilometres per hour (370 miles per hour) after the pilots put the plane into a steep dive.
The accident came following the crew's decision to abort a landing and try to ascend, the committee said.
But at an altitude of 900 metres (2,950 feet), the pilot pushed the control column, or steering controls, back into a dive and "simultaneously" shifted a tail stabiliser "to dive, after which the plane went into a rapid descent."
"The crew's subsequent actions did not manage to prevent the plane from hitting the ground," said the committee, which investigates crashes, but does not assign legal responsibility for any wrongdoing.
08/04/16 AFP/Times of India

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Man's body flown from Saudi Arabia

Jaipur: The body of a 38-year-old man belonging to Nagaur's Merta town was finally flown to India, more than one-and-a-half months after he died in Saudi Arabia.
His family members back home were relieved as they had been running from pillar to post to get the body flown to India. The distraught family members had approached the local MLA, MP, district administration officials and even officials at the ministry of external affairs, pleading that the body be brought to India, so that they could cremate it with rituals.
The man, Jabar Chand, was working as a barber at a village named Mahil in Saudi Arabia for the past seven years, according to his brother Manak Chand. "His employer, who is also from Rajasthan, called us saying that he died of a heart attack. His body was found in his room," said the brother.
09/04/16 Times of India

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Finmeccanica's ex-boss jailed for graft in Indian chopper deal

Milan/New Delhi: Italian defence and aerospace major Finmeccanica's former chief Giuseppe Orsi has been sentenced by the Milan appeals court to 4.5 years in jail for false accounting and corruption over the sale of 12 VVIP choppers to India for Rs 3,600 crore.

In the ruling, which overturned a previous court order of 2014, Bruno Spagnolini, the former CEO of Finmeccanica's helicopter subsidiary Augusta-Westland, was also handed a four- year prison term by the court yesterday.

The court found both guilty of corruption in relation to the sale of 12 helicopters to the Indian government and sentenced Orsi to a jail term of four and a half years, Italian news agency ANSA reported.

Prosecutors had requested jail terms of six years and five years for Orsi and Spagnolini, respectively, it said.

The ruling has come as a severe blow to the Italian company which had just managed to leave the corruption saga behind that marred its image across the world.
08/04/16 PTI/India TV 

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MP’s act of kindness wins several hearts

Malappuram: P.V. Abdul Wahab, Rajya Sabha MP, hailing from Nilambur in the district, won the heart of Air India officials and Malayalis around the world by his act of kindness at Dubai airport on Wednesday.

Mr. Wahab, who was to travel to Karipur on an Air India Express flight from Dubai, gave up his journey by giving his ticket to help a Malayali who was in dire need.

Mr. Wahab was prompt in his move as he met B. Mahamood from Nadapuram in a heart-broken state at Dubai airport. Mr. Mahamood was on the verge of a breakdown after his attempts to get a ticket to Kerala to attend his son’s funeral failed because of the rush. Mr. Mahamood had knocked at all doors for an airline ticket to get back home in time for a last glimpse of his 15-year-old son, who died on Wednesday morning.

Mr. Wahab, on seeing the desolate man, chose not to travel and arranged for his journey in his place. Malayali passengers at the airport saluted Mr. Wahab and some Air India officials stood in awe.
08/04/16 The Hindu

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Grinder Muivah had been discharged after hijack charges

Aizawl:  Grinder Muivah, the nephew of NSCN (I-M) General Secretary Th. Muivah, who died of stroke in Delhi yesterday, was an important go-between in the talks between the Centre and the NSCN (I-M).
Grinder Muivah, who had been arrested in 2000 in Kolkata on the charge that he attempted hijacking and Indian Airlines aircraft operating between Aizawl and Kolkata, was later found not guilty and discharged by a court.
Grinder Muivah had returned from Bangkok and put in custody at the Netaji Subash Chandra Bose International Airport, Kolkata on March seven, 2000 after his alleged accomplice Ranju Rangan, posing as Director of the Union Ministry of Civil Aviation was arrested at the lone Lengpui Airport near Aizawl about a fortnight before Muivahs arrest in Kolkata in 2000.
Police had then alleged that the duo was planning to hijack an aircraft to secure the release of the NSCN (I-M) leader, then languishing in a Bangkok jail, a state official said today quoting records.
07/04/16 PTI/India Today

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ATR, Bombardier and Embraer bullish on India growth

Mumbai: Plane makers ATR, Bombardier and Embraer are bullish on growth in India with the rise in air travel in tier II and III towns and the government thrust on regional connectivity.

These plane makers primarily cater to the regional aviation  market with their 48-110 seater aircraft. Currently ATR has the largest presence amongst the three in India with 35 aircraft in service with four scheduled airlines. Bombardier and Embraer have 15 and 3 aircraft in service  with a single operator each.

Demand is expected from both existing customers and new airlines as the civil aviation ministry proposes to link 350 unused airstrips in country and state governments  encourage airlines to start operations to tier II and III towns. Last year domestic air traffic grew over 20 per cent and the government expects new wave of growth to come from smaller towns.

The government  initiatives present opportunities for manufacturers of small planes such as ATR, Bombardier and Embraer. While turboprops such as an ATR-72 or a Bombardier Q-400 aircraft are better suited  to serve short distance low traffic routes, mid size jets like Embraer E-190 (flown by Air Costa) are designed for long distance low traffic routes. The operating costs of a  jet aircraft is higher than turboprop plane and hence it is more economical to operate them on longer distance flights.
08/04/16 Aneesh Phadnis/Business Standard

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IAC to Publish Interim Report on Investigation Into FlyDubai Crash

Moscow: The Interstate Aviation Committee (IAC) will publish later in the day a preliminary report on the progress of investigation into the March crash of the FlyDubai passenger plane in Russia, a spokesperson for the IAC said Thursday.
On March 31, an IAC official told RIA Novosti that a preliminary report on the results of the crash investigation would be published before April 19.
The spokesperson added that the information about the decoding of the flight recorders would not be revealed.
FlyDubai Boeing 737-800 crashed on landing at Rostov-on-Don airport in conditions of poor visibility on March 19, killing all 62 people on board, including 55 passengers and seven crew members. Pilot fatigue and lack of coordination have been suggested as possible causes of the accident.
07/04/16 Sputnik

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Good-bye Russia. India's aerospace industry chooses Ukraine

Ukraine is doing more than USD 100 million in annual defense business with India, and aims to increase it to USD 500 million in the next three years

A sensational event for both Ukraine and the world happened in India but it was unfortunately by-passed in the headlines of the Ukrainian press. Despite this fact, during the Defexpo India 2016 in Goa the country's ministry of defence along with several companies signed more than a dozen memorandums for the manufacturing of 500 transport planes as well as the supply of gas turbines for Indian warships. This took place in light of the previously frozen joint project with Russia about the development of a transport warplane Multi-role Transport Aircraft (MTA) and the rejection from the Russian side to service the ships.

The Defexpo India 2016 theme covers the manufacturing and development of weapons for ground forces and army naval forces, including air defence, army aviation as well as dual-use products.

The exhibition is pivotal for the whole of South and Southeast Asia. It is held every two years and this was the ninth exhibition to date. More than 600 companies from around the world take part in the exhibit. The Defexpo India 2016 display area is about 40 thousand square metres.
07/04/16 Ukraine Today

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Vienna's water cannon salute to passengers of Air India's maiden flight

 Air India's maiden flight from New Delhi reached Vienna today.The direct flight from New Delhi to Vienna was welcomed with a traditional water cannon salute and the disembarking passengers were greeted at the Vienna International Airport on arrival.
The inaugural flight to New Delhi, AI-154, has received an overwhelming response with almost full bookings.
Air India, with code share arrangements with Austrian Airlines, will offer connections to more than 25 European destinations.
07/04/16 ANI/Hans India

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Air India plans to spread its wings in Africa, Scandinavia

New Delhi: Air India aims to provide point-to-point connectivity to African and Scandinavian regions, where it currently does not operate, besides enhancing services on existing routes, as part of its aggressive network expansion plan.

In the immediate future, the government-run airline will launch services to Washington, DC from the national capital, Air India Chairman and Managing Director Ashwanai Lohani said, adding, the national carrier is also looking at taking its services to African and Scandinavian countries.

Air India plans to expand further in the US, where it already operates in four places -- New York, Chicago, San Francisco, and Newark, Lohani said.

We will soon launch a flight service to Washington DC from New Delhi," he said.

In the last four months alone, Air India has added two international destinations --San Francisco and Vienna in its network.

It is all set to launch five-times-a-week services to the Austrian city Vienna from here from tomorrow. In Europe, the airline currently flies to seven cities including London, Paris, Milan and Franfurt.
05/04/16 PTI/Zee News

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Pakistani businessman helps Indian students pay extra baggage fee at Dallas airport

In a fine gesture, a Pakistani national helped a group of Indian students who were in trouble at Dallas international airport, reported The Hindustan Times.
The incident happened on March 16 when a team of aero-designers from the National Institute of Technology-Jamshedpur (NIT-J) was returning after participating in a competition in Texas.
The airport authorities asked the students to pay $260 as the size of a model aircraft that they carried was above the prescribed limits. But they were short of money.
This was when Amaad, a businessman from Karachi, who was also waiting in the queue, came forward to help them. He paid the money for the students and helped them board the flight.
“Nobody had stopped or fined us when we took the same box to Texas. We had just $70 at our disposal. We tried asking the officials to let us check in because we were students, but our efforts went in vain. It was then that Amaad came forward and paid the fine for us, allowing us to return to India,” team captain Aditya Barnwal told Hindustan Times.

“When we asked for Amaad’s account details, so we could refund the money after returning home, he said there was no need for that,” he added.
05/04/16 Sreekanth A. Nair/American Bazaar

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AVM appeal Jet Airways to start direct flight from Amritsar to Abu Dhabi

The Amritsar Vikas Manch has requested Jet Airways to start direct flights from Sri Guru Ram Das Ji Airport Amritsar to Abu Dhabi, UAE’s commercial capital.
In a letter to Jet Airways Amritsar Station ManagerVivek Suri, Vice President Corporate Communications Manish Kalghatgi, Etihad Airways USA Manager Jon Spring, Manch Regional Representative from USA, Sameep Singh Gumtala stated that there is a great potential of passengers from Amritsar to Abu Dhabi.
The introduction of this service will allow passengers to avail of multiple travel options through Abu Dhabi to destinations in Europe, North America, Africa, South East Asia, Middle East and the Gulf on its partner Etihad Airways. Currently, to travel on Jet/Etihad connections, passengers has to travel to Delhi on Jet Airways, wait long hours at Delhi and then do another stop at Abu Dhabi. With this direct flight, guests can enjoy the advantage of direct seamless connectivity from Amritsar to Abu Dhabi with one stop connections to many other international destinations.
The letter stated, after Jet Airways deal with Etihad in 2013, it was reported in the media, that Jet Airways has plans to connect 23 India cities to Abu Dhabi to synergize operations with Etihad Airways. Jet and Etihad had also announced that eight Indian cities will come on the map by 2013 and in the second phase, Jet will fly to six more destinations directly to Abu Dhabi including Amritsar, Jaipur, Lucknow, Goa and Mangalore by the end of 2014. Mr. Gumtala highlighted in the letter that, out of these six additional planned destinations to be covered by Jet Airways, all the other 5 cities except Amritsar were connected with Abu Dhabi in 2014 and early 2015. On 29 March 2016, Jet has started direct flight from Ahmedabad to Abu Dhabi but so far there has been no such announcement yet by the airline regarding Amritsar. Jet Airways Chairman, Naresh Goyal, who is a Punjabi is discriminating with the people from State by not starting any direct international flights after his airline cancelled Asr-London direct flight.
05/04/16 Punjab News Express

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KLM to operate 2 daily Delhi-Amsterdam flights

European carrier KLM will operate three daily flights from the national capital and Mumbai to Amsterdam.
There would be two daily flights from the national capital and one from Mumbai, the airline said in a release today.
"With the new strategic partnership with Jet Airways, KLM will now offer two daily frequencies from New Delhi to Amsterdam, a daily flight from Mumbai to Amsterdam and greater access to Indian sub-continent offering customers 11 destinations throughout this region," Max Smits, General Manager for Air France KLM, India said.
Meanwhile, KLMs new Boeing 787 Dreamliner landed here on April 3.
04/04/16 India Today

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In 6 months, 6,814 tourists avail e-visas

Ahmedabad: The Ahmedabad airport continues to get large numbers of tourists availing e-tourist visas, since the scheme was launched in September last year. As many as 6,814 tourists availed etourist visas at city airport till February 2016. Maximum arrivals of tourists on e-tourist visas were from countries like UK and USA followed by Russia, France, Germany , Australia and Canada, among others.

Six other airports, including Varanasi, Lucknow and Amritsar, too, have e-tourist visa service approval along with Ahmedabad. But Ahmedabad airport has received maximum tourists among the airports, who have sought this service.
As many as 1,851 tourists availed e-tourist visas at Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel International Airport in the month of February 2016.Around 228 availed the scheme in September followed by 560 in October, 777 in November, 1,855 tourists in December 2015 and 1543 in January 2016.
According to Union ministry of tourism, this high growth may be attributed to introduction of e-tourist visas for 150 countries, as against the coverage of earlier scheme of visa on arrival (VoA) for 43 countries. As many as 37 countries were added in the list in February this year.
04/03/16 Times of India

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IBS Software Signs 10 Year Contract With Lufthansa

Dubai: Leading IT solutions provider to the global aviation industry, IBS Software, has inked a deal with Lufthansa for replacing its legacy Unisys-based Crew Management applications with IBS' state-of-the-art crew management solution. IBS was selected after a thorough evaluation process and iFlight Crew will now replace the legacy Unisys-based application which Lufthansa used for the past 30 years. Once implemented, this will be an important step for Lufthansa to modernise their crew management system. As part of this implementation, over 40 inbound/outbound interfaces would be built that will aid in crew rostering, crew scheduling, crew check-in, crew hotel and transport by facilitating seamless dataflow to the existing crew management applications. The multi-million Euro deal was formally signed by Dr. Roland Schütz, CIO of Lufthansa and V K Mathews, Executive Chairman of The IBS Group on the side lines of the IBS Customer Summit in Dubai.
IBS' airline crew management system, iFlight Crew, is an integrated software package which determines the most cost-effective use of airline crew at every stage from tactical manpower management through day-of-operations execution to disruption recovery. The solution is designed to support all types of airlines in all geographies and aligned to the industry-defined best practices of crew management. IBS' iFlight Crew solution powers some of the leading airlines in the world, including Emirates, British Airways, KLM, Jet Airways and Virgin Atlantic.
04/04/16 Montreal Gazette

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SIA's low cost arm, Scoot, to launch India flights soon

New Delhi: Scoot Airline, the low-cost arm of Singapore Airline (SIA), is all set to land soon in three Indian cities including Chennai, making it the fourth carrier from the Southeast Asian naton to operate to the world's fastest growing aviation market here.

An announcement in this regard is likely to be made in a month, sources in the know of the development said.

Besides parent Singapore Airlines, two of its two subsidiaries Tiger Air and Silk Air also operate to India at present.

SIA also holds 49 per cent stake in Indian full service carrier Vistara, in which Tata Sons is a majority stake holder with 51 per cent.

"Scoot Airline plans to operate from Chennai, Amritsar and Jaipur as part of its India entry plan. The airline is in the process of getting all mandatory approvals. A final announcement in this regard is expected to be made in the next couple of weeks," the sources said.
03/04/16 PTI/Economic Times

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Air Arabia flight makes emergency landing at Dabolim

Panaji: An Air Arabia flight flying from Sharjah to Kerala had to make an emergency landing at the Dabolim airport early Sunday morning after a woman,70, complained of chest pain.
Sources said that the flight landed at 4 am and Leela Abraham from Kerala was rushed to the Cottage hospital at Chicalim. She was declared 'brought dead' in the hospital.
The sources said that Leela's husband alerted the crew members about her medical condition. As Dabolim was the nearest airport for the flight, it was decided to land at the Goa airport. By the time, the flight landed, her condition worsened. Officials suspect that she died due to cardiac arrest. Her body has been preserved at Goa Medical College Hospital for the post-mortem.
03/04/16 Vijay Desouza/Times of India

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Japanese flyer held with 5kg gold bars in fake belly

Mumbai: The Directorate Revenue Intelligence (DRI) arrested a Japan national at the Chhatrapati Shivaji International Airport on Thursday for trying to smuggle in 5kg gold bars worth around Rs 1.25 crore in a prosthetic belly. The passenger, Sagawa Haruhide (28), arrived from Singapore in an Air India flight with the gold bars concealed behind a silicone stomach and silicone material affixed to his groin area.
Acting on a tip-off, the DRI officials laid a trap and identified Haruhide, who is into the foreign exchange business, outside the customs area in the arrival hall of Terminal 2. "He attempted to smuggle the foreign marked gold bars bought from a person in Japan. He did not have any invoice or bill for the said purchase," said an official.

An official said that this is the first time they have caught a Japanese for smuggling gold here. "And, this is the first time someone concealed it behind a prosthetic fake belly," he added.
02/03/16 C. Unnikrishnan/Times of India

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Facebook Messenger: Now get boarding pass, flight details on the app

Facebook Messenger has announced a tie up with the KLM Royal Dutch Airlines where the air travellers will receive each and every information related to their travel on Messenger – including boarding pass.
Once you book ticket online and choose to receive info via Messenger on the KLM website, the airline will send you itinerary, boarding pass, check-in confirmation and flight status through the app, The Verge reported.
With digital boarding pass, passengers will be able to get through security and onto their flight. Passengers will also be able to chat with KLM support staff right inside the Messenger.
31/03/16 The Indian Express

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Man arrested after doing yoga, meditating on airplane: FBI

A Japan-bound airplane returned to Hawaii because of a violent passenger who wanted to do yoga instead of sit in his seat, the FBI said.

The pilot of the March 26 United Airlines flight from Honolulu International Airport to Narita International Airport turned the plane around after hearing that Hyongtae Pae was yelling at crew members and shoving his wife, the FBI said in a criminal complaint.

Pae told the FBI he didn't want to sit in his seat during the meal service, so he went to the back of the plane to do yoga and meditate. He became angry when his wife and flight attendants told him to return to his seat.

"Pae pushed his wife because she was trying to make him stop," the complaint said. "He felt that she was siding with the flight crew."

He tried to head-butt and bite Marines who were passengers on the flight and tried to force him back to his seat, Assistant US Attorney Darren Ching said at Pae's detention hearing today.

According to the complaint, he threatened to kill passengers and was yelling that there is no god.

Pae went into a rage because he felt the flight crew was ordering him around, Ching said.

Ching said Pae shouldn't be released because he's a danger to his wife, himself and others. Pae urinated on himself and was on suicide watch at the Honolulu Federal Detention Center, Ching said.

US Magistrate Judge Kevin Chang ordered that Pae be released on USD 25,000 bond, but with certain conditions including not leaving the island of Oahu and undergoing a mental health evaluation.

Since the arrest, Pae's wife has been staying at the Waikiki Gateway Hotel, defense attorney Jin Tae "JT" Kim told the judge, who asked whether Pae had financial resources to continue staying there after his release. Kim said he's working with the consulate to transfer more money to Pae's wife and find alternate, temporary housing.
31/03/16 Kaumudi

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Nasty surprises in the sky

Seif Eldin Mustafa, the 59-year-old lovelorn individual who hijacked Egypt Air flight MS181 from Alexandria to Cairo early this week, may have provided a rare comical interlude to the bloody history of aircraft hijacking, which enjoys disproportionate global attention.

Terrorists, political activists, and even pilots themselves have used acts of air piracy to grab global attention, ensure the release of dreaded terrorists and get their other demands met.

However, the growing trend in recent years — of terrorists crashing the plane — has resulted in a new level of threat that cannot be countered fully through metal detectors and body scanners alone. The popularity of suicide terrorism among extremist movements has ensured that air travel is no longer what it once was.

On September 11, 2001 when 19 al-Qaeda terrorists hijacked American Airlines flights 11 and 77, and United Airlines flights 175 and 93, airline hijacking entered this new deadly era. The hijacking was different from the earlier ones for several reasons. One, the terrorists took control of the flights and flew them, unlike most other incidents in which pilots are forced to fly according to the hijackers’ demands. Two, unlike in the past when hijackers used passengers as hostages to make demands, the four planes were used as flying missiles. Only one missed the target — flight 93 that crashed to the ground when passengers and crew resisted the terrorists who probably were flying to the While House or the Capitol Hill. With the death of around 3,000 people, it was not just the deadliest hijacking episode since airplanes took to the skies more than a century ago, but also changed the nature of hijacking itself, giving it a deadly twist.

Within years of the birth of aviation, sinister minds figured out that the act of hijacking in the air has great impact, far more than such acts anywhere else. A couple of hundred people dying in an air crash will grab more media and public attention than same number dying on ground. This could well be linked to human fascination with air travel.

Starting in 1931, there have been innumerable hijackings, some of them attributed to purely personal reasons. In one of the biggest mysteries, in 1971 a hijacker of a Boeing 727 flight collected a ransom of $200,000 and parachuted out of the plane, never to be arrested.

Many of the hijackings were for political reasons. Of all those incidents, the memory of one endures in public imagination — that of the hijacking of an Air France plane flying from Tel Aviv to Paris in 1976. The plane was taken to the Entebbe airport in Uganda, with the hijackers demanding the release of a total of 53 pro-Palestinian prisoners. Israel began negotiations but ended it with a daring commando raid.

The Israel Defence Force sent 190 commandos and 10 vehicles in four transport aircrafts, under the leadership of Lieutenant Colonel Yonatan Netanyahu, a veteran of many commando raids. He became a national hero following his death in the raid, and ultimately, his heroism helped his brother Benjamin, who is now the Israeli Prime Minister, to build a flourishing political career.

Palestine militants have struck closer home, when they hijacked Pan AM flight 73 at Karachi on September 5, 1986. The hijacking ended in the death of 22 people, including Neerja Bhanot.

South Asia has seen its fair share of hijacking for political reasons. One of the most bewildering of them took place on August 20, 1971, when Flight Lieutenant Matiur Rahman, attempting to escape Pakistan to join Bangladesh’s Liberation War, hijacked a T-33 trainer aircraft, after knocking down Pilot Officer Rashid Minhas, still under training, on the front seat.

Rahman flew towards India. Minhas regained conscious soon and fought back. The plane crashed very close the Indian border. Minhas was awarded Nishan-e-Haider, the highest military gallantry award of Pakistan and remains its only Air Force winner of the honour till date. Rahman was given Bir Sreshtha, the highest gallantry award of Bangladesh, and his remains were brought back to Dhaka in 2006 to a heroic welcome.

Hijackings, however, do not always produce heroes. In 1999, Indian Airlines flight IC 814 was hijacked on December 24 and taken to Kandahar, where on December 31, India had to release three dreaded militants in exchange for the safe release of passengers. No one at that time could have imagined how long the ghost of that New Year’s Eve would haunt Indian politics. Many terror attacks — including the one the one on Pathankot airbase on January 2 — have been executed by the Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM), a terror group that Maulana Masood Azhar founded after his release. Azhar was one of the three militants released following the IC 814 hijacking. Of the other two, Ahmed Omar Saeed Sheikh went on to kill journalist Daniel Pearl and others.
01/04/16 Josy Joseph/The Hindu

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How Brussels airport attack has impacted Indian diamond traders in Antwerp

Inside the nearly 400 offices of Indian diamond traders in Antwerp, business got back on its feet just a day after the terror attack on Brussels airport. Though not hit by the aftermath, an atmosphere of apprehension prevails in the community.

While no specific guidelines have been issued by the local police, the Gem & Jewellery Export Promotion Council spokesperson of India said access to the district has been restricted following the high alert imposed by authorities. "There are no indications of a direct threat towards the Antwerp diamond industry," the spokesperson said.

Arpan Jhaveri , an Antwerp-based diamond trader, said that the immediate impact of the attack has been the closure of the airport, which remained shut till late Thursday. Security at the diamond market, which is 40 km away from Antwerp city, had been tightened earlier itself, since the Paris terror attack last November. "We are not scared but we are watchful," says Jhaveri, who was in Switzerland during the attack.
01/04/16 Rashmi Menon/The Economic Times

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