DGCA to complete Kochi plane skid probe in 6 weeks

Mumbai: The Directorate General of Civil Aviation has said it will complete in six weeks the investigation into a Gulf Air plane skidding off the runway at Kochi airport.

“I have appointed deputy director Sanjay Brahmane as inquiry officer to investigate the incident. The preliminary probe will be completed in a week and the final report will be available in six weeks. Two officials from the civil aviation authority of Bahrain are also in Kochi, to participate in the inquiry. An assessment of the damage is being done and crew statements will be recorded on Wednesday,” Director General Bharat Bhushan said.

Early yesterday, a Gulf Air A320 plane from Bahrain carrying 137 passengers veered off the runway, after landing at Kochi airport. Seven passengers were hurt.

According to sources, the plane touched down about a thousand feet from the runway threshold and then veered off the runway. The weather bulletin issued earlier said there was no tail wind and the visibility was 2,000 metres above the requirement level.

31/08/11 Business Standard

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DGCA probe blames pilot for Kochi mishap

Kochi: Ruling out bad weather as the cause of Monday's mishap involving a Gulf Air A320 aircraft at Cochin airport, a preliminary inquiry by the Directorate general of civil aviation has blamed pilot error for the plane landing off the runway.

"The pilot must have made some errors during landing and must have tried to steer back the aircraft after it skidded," a DGCA official said. A DGCA team is examining the aircraft's cockpit voice recorder data, which is likely to give a clearer picture of the mishap.

DGCA sources told TOI that the aircraft landed around 3.50am and data obtained from India Meteorological Department clearly showed there were no unusual weather conditions at that time. There was only moderate rain.

31/08/11 T Ramavarman/Times of India

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Meticulous ops to remove A320 from crash site

Kochi: Lifting and towing away 50 tonnes of precious metal was no mean feat, the biggest such exercise by technicians at the Cochin International Airport.

On Monday night, more than 50 men braved the chill and rain to retrieve the Gulf Air A320 from the slush into which it had careened after skidding off the runway, and tow it to a vacant bay with a view to making the runway fully operational the next morning. "It was a very complicated operation as the nose wheel had broken. Both engines were filled with slush and grass. There was no power on board. And, worst, there was no way we could steer the aircraft with its front wheel gone," a senior officer, who was part of the retrieval team, told ToI.

Technicians had summoned three cranes capable of lifting 100 tonnes, 60 tonnes and 40 tonnes, respectively, along with a JCB to add muscle to the operation. "But we didn't use them fearing that these crude machines would damage the fuselage of the aircraft. There are designated areas on the body where we could use pressure like a jack, etc.," he explained.

The first task was to lift the nose from the slush. "For this we kept an airbag, which is a multi-layered rectangular balloon inflated with compressed air, under the nose. The bag can lift up to 100 tonnes. But great care has to be taken while inflating as the aluminium-alloy body is quite vulnerable to excess pressure as it can get dented beyond repair," he pointed out.

31/08/11 Times of India

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Parts of LCA Tejas go missing from London airport

India's effort at building an indigenous trainer for the air force has hit numerous air pockets since Sthe project's inception way back in 1983.

In one of the comparatively recent gaffes that raised serious security concerns and added to the hiccups in the rollout of the fleet, a huge consignment containing critical parts meant for Light Combat Aircraft (LCA) Tejas was lost in transit.

Though the bulky cargo went missing in December 2008 from London's Heathrow Airport after it was loaded onto an aircraft in the US, the government, surprisingly, is still clueless on its whereabouts. The consignment contained 15 actuators - devices that control the flow of material or power and which are a part of the integrated flight control system (IFCS) and line replaceable units (LRUs).

It was airlifted by a British Airways plane from John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York on December 22, 2008. The aircraft was headed for Heathrow Airport, from where it was supposed to come to India and land at the doorstep of LCA manufacturer Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) in Bangalore.

31/08/11 India Today

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Experts suspect pilot error in mishap

Kochi: A pilot error caused the accident at the Cochin International Airport in the wee hours of Monday, experts said.
Although, three possibilities are being considered - failure of the instrumental landing system(ILS), pilot error and a sudden blow of crosswind; the primary assessment puts the pilot in the dock.
Kochi-based aviation expert Jacob Philip sees a 70 percent chance that it was an error on the part of the pilot.
“It is learnt that the flight did not land along the centre of the runway, as is the usual practice. However, pilots often land even when there is a slight variation from the centre and make up in running after touch down. In today’s incident, the pilot might have attempted a landing away from the centre hoping to change direction later. The change in direction coupled with speed might have caused the aircraft to lose control and skid off the runway,” Philip said.
Supporting this reasoning, Cochin International Airport Limited (CIAL) director A C K Nair said that there was no problem with the ILS. “A few minutes before the accident, the flights of Qatar Airways and Emirates had landed without any difficulty,” Nair said. However, Philip does not count out the effect of crosswind. “Another major possibility is a sudden crosswind which could have blown after the aircraft descended to a lower altitude,” he said.
Meanwhile, an Indian Airlines pilot refuted the statement of CIAL managing director V J Kurian that a pilot has no option but to land after descending to a height of 350 feet. “The CIAL MD’s statement is wrong. What wonders me is why the pilot did not opt for a go around instead of making a risky landing in rain as he claimed. Go around is possible even after descending to a height of 50 feet,” said the pilot who is serving as a commander.
30/08/11 Babu K Peter/ExpressBuzz

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Close shave: Did weather report misguide Gulf Air pilot?

Mumbai: Most of us take weather predictions with a pinch of salt. For pilots, however, that's not an option, especially during the monsoon. The aviation-specific weather report (called a METAR report) that they get on board their aircraft every 30 minutes is taken very seriously, and it is based on this data that a commander decides, among other things, whether he should continue with a landing or not.
As is the case with all predictions, the METAR report is not expected to be totally accurate, just indicative of what to expect. The pilot of the Gulf Air A-320 with 137 passengers on board which veered off the runway in Kochi and halted nose-down early Monday in slush may not have known that he was going to touch down in blinding rain and strong winds. The accident, which could have led to serious casualties, left only seven people injured mostly from the emergency evacuation, one of them seriously enough to be hospitalized.
The A-320 flying from Bahrain landed at about 3.55am and skidded right to halt more than five metres off the paved surface. About 40 minutes before that aircraft touched down, the commander and co-pilot would have decoded what is called a METAR report that provides wind direction and speed, visibility, cloud cover at different heights, temperature and warns of thunderstorms, rain and haze.
The pilots would have gone through the 3am and 3.30am METAR reports. The 3.30am and 4am METAR reports for Cochin airport were not available on the government website and it is also not known whether these reports were transmitted to the pilots. But the METAR reports for 3am and 4.30am - that is the report issued about an hour before the accident and one issued 35 minutes after the accident - showed good weather.
The 3am report indicates 5 knot winds - acceptable for the size of an A320 - and speaks of clouds at 1000 feet and 800 feet. It ends by saying there will be no significant change in weather in the next hour or so. Similarly, the 4.30am report indicates no surface wind and few clouds, though it says that the sky will be overcast at 800 feet.

"The pilot said that he was suddenly assailed by strong winds and gust of rain after he descended below decision height," said Director General of Civil Aviation Bharat Bhushan. "But the inquiry is still on. So we need to see what the real conditions were," he added.
30/08/11 Manju V/Times of India

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Gulf Air seeks Air India help to clear runway debris

Mumbai: The Gulf Air A320 aircraft which veered off the Cochin Airport runway to come to rest off a paved surface on Monday morning is likely to be removed from its current resting place by Tuesday afternoon. In case of such accidents it is the airline's responsibility to clear the aircraft off the runway. "The stranded aircraft had affected operations at the Cochin International Airport and so Gulf Air officials called up Air India to help them with the issue," said a source.
In India, such jobs go to Air India as it is the only airline which has what is called a Disabled Aircraft Retrieval Kit and the expertise to carry out the work.
"The kit had to be flown down to Cochin and so Air India initially enquired whether Gulf Air will pay for charter flight and all other charges," said a source. The primary tool in a kit consists of low-pressure high-volume inflatable airbags. These are placed underneath the aircraft's nose, wheels, and tyres, inflated and then the aircraft is towed to a parking bay.
But as soon as the work commenced, Air India ran into difficulties. The 'kit' could not be loaded into Boeing 737-800 aircraft which was chartered from Air India Express. "The boxes were so huge that it was not possible to load them into the aircraft," a source said.
30/08/11 Manju V/Times of India

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Skills of Gulf Air pilots and crew help avert tragedy

Manama: The skills of Gulf Air pilots averted tragedy yesterday when a flight skidded off the runway while landing at Kochi International Airport, India, due to weather conditions.
The incident took place at around 4am when the Airbus A320, carrying 137 passengers including an infant, landed in rainy weather conditions, said a Gulf Air official.
A Bahraini, eight Saudis and a UK national were among those on board.
"All passengers were evacuated safely as emergency procedures were employed," said the airline's chief operating officer Capt Nasser Al Salmi.
"Two of the passengers, both Indian nationals, were treated for minor injuries in the terminal building while another Indian man was taken to a nearby hospital for treatment of evacuation-related injuries."
Capt Al Salimi said a special team as well as two representatives from Bahrain's Civil Aviation Affairs had been deployed.
30/08/11 Mandeep Singh/Gulf Daily.com

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Low cost Singapore, Malaysia flights likely from Nagpur

Nagpur: Dr Babasaheb Ambedkar International Airport at Nagpur is 'international' only for the record, with only one flight operating to foreign shores from here in the last two years. However, if officials of Mihan India Limited (MIL), the airport operator company, are to be believed, Nagpur may soon be connected again with international destinations like Singapore, Bangkok and Malaysia.
Along with this, Air India Express may resume international flight between Dubai and Nagpur. This route will be serviced by a flight on the Mumbai-Nagpur-Ahmedabad-Dubai sector. "The airline discontinued its service in January last year, but has now started putting in place plans to resume services from Nagpur," sources at the airport informed.
MIL officials have recently approached and requested Air Asia, world's largest international low cost airline, to start flights for designations like Singapore, Bangkok and Malaysia. A senior MIL official confirmed the offer extended to Air Asia officials to get all international facilities at Nagpur airport.
The Nagpur airport had achieved its aviation high some two years ago, with flights to four international destinations Qatar Airways to Doha, Air India Express to Dubai, Air India on Hyderabad-Nagpur-Bangkok sector and Air Arabia for Sharjah.
30/08/11 Times of India

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Irene affects flights to JFK, Newark from IGI Airport

New Delhi: About a dozen flights operating out of the Indira Gandhi International Airport to New York’s JFK and Newark airports were cancelled or delayed on Sunday after airports in the US had to be shut for operations because of Hurricane Irene.
Air India officials said their Saturday flights to JFK and Newark from Delhi as well as Mumbai had been suspended, though they were expecting flights from there to come in sometime on Sunday.
The Friday 11 pm Continental Airways’ flight CO-083 has been rescheduled to arrive at IGI around 1 pm on Monday. The same flight on Saturday has also been rescheduled to arrive after midnight on Monday, an airport official said.
29/08/11 Indian Express

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Flydubai starts service to Ahmedabad

Dubai: Flydubai, Dubai’s pioneering low cost airline, inaugurated its third major Indian route, with the start of operations to the world’s third fastest growing city – Ahmedabad.
Flight FZ437 landed at Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel International Airport, expanding flydubai’s network to 39 operational destinations across the Middle East, Asia, Africa and the fringes of Europe. The new route also marks the airline’s entry into Gujarat, one of India’s most prosperous states with a per-capita GDP significantly above the country’s average at $59 billion.
Flydubai CEO, Ghaith Al Ghaith, said: “I would like to take this opportunity to extend my gratitude to the Indian authorities. Thanks to their strong support, the UAE is now connected to a city that is witnessing incredible infrastructure growth which in turn has led to a population increase. As a rising centre of education, information technology and scientific industries, Ahmedabad remains the cultural and commercial heart of Gujarat and much of western India and as a result we expect this route to prove very popular.”
By increasing the number of flights between Dubai and India, flydubai is supporting the growth of trade and tourism, while also providing convenient and affordable travel options for the considerable Indian expat community in the UAE and their families at home.
29/08/11 Khaleej Times

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Mad scramble for seats as US skies clear

Chennai: The airlines here have announced normal operations to the airports on the east coast of the US after they reopened to traffic on Monday. The airports were closed ahead of the arrival of Hurricane Irene. However, the passengers who were on the cancelled flights during the last three days are scuttling for seats as flights are chock-a-block.
When many passengers checked for seat availability on Monday morning, they did not have many options as airlines were yet to decide on whether to operate additional flights.
Providing seats for passengers on seat availability basis in the existing flights have left many of those on cancelled flights in a fix. Rekha, a mother of two, was supposed to fly to the US on August 27. But she did not, as the Jet Airways cancelled its flight in the wee hours of the day. “Today when I went to book a ticket again, the supervisor at the Jet Airways’ ticketing office in Egmore informed me that seats were not available. He said I might get a seat if I went to the airport and if I was lucky enough,” she said.
Many passengers have been stranded at hub airports of various airlines. “Passengers have been waiting for 10 hours at Brussels airport hoping they could get into the next flight. Similar is the case in Frankfurt, Munich and London airports,” said an airline insider.
Sources at the airport said many US-bound passengers have cancelled the tickets, re-booked or taken the rerouting option with the airlines.
30/08/11 New Indian Express/IBN Live

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Gunnie Pieris arrested in Chennai Airport

A suspect on whom a red notice was issued for his arrest allegedly for importing Dionial Chloride to Sri Lanka was under arrest at the Chennai Airport by the Interpol recently.
The CID said they were discussing with the Interpol to bring down the suspect Canute Siripalan Pieris alias Gunnie Pieris on whom a red notice was issued by the Sri Lankan Courts for arrest.
The CID who initiated investigations on an alleged case of importing Dionil Chloride for a factory in Kosgama for the alleged reason of manufacturing toys found that it was imported for the manufacture of a toxic drink.
It was suspected that the chemical was imported to Sri Lanka to be used for chemical weapons to use against the forces during the civil war. However, later it was found that the chemical had been imported to manufacture a toxic drink. The CID investigations revealed that the king pin behind the entire episode was this suspect and a red notice was issued for the arrest by the courts. In the meantime he was arrested by the Interpol at the Chennai Airport when he attempted to enter India.
30/08/11 T. Farook Thajudeen/Daily Mirror

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Aircraft skids off runway at Kochi, major disaster averted

Kochi: A major disaster was averted when a Gulf Air flight carrying 137 on board skidded off the runway while landing at the airport here early on Monday morning. The aircraft came to a halt in a muddy area close to the runway, and there was no loss of life.

Nedumbaseery airport authorities said seven passengers were injured, of which only one needed hospitalisation. The rest made do with first aid. The 130 others including an infant and the six crew escaped unhurt through the emergency doors of the Airbus 320 aircraft.

The runway was closed immediately, leading to diversion of 12 international flights and delays in the operation of several domestic flights.

The pilot was quoted as saying the aircraft veered off the runway because of the heavy rain and poor visibility. The wings, nose wheel and engine have been damaged. A Disabled Aircraft Retrieval Kit was summoned from Mumbai, the Managing Director of the Cochin International Airport limited (CIAL) Dr V J Kurien told reporters.

Dr Kurient said Director General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) will be conducting an investigation to determine the exact cause of the accident. ``Let's not jump into any conclusions. The pilot has informed us that he could see the runway from six nautical miles away. There was moderate rain when the aircraft reached 2000 feet of height on its descend. But there was a sudden gush of wind and intense rains after the aircraft crossed down the decision height of 352 feet.''

29/08/11 T Ramavarman/Times of India

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Gulf Air plane skids off runway in India

A Gulf Air plane has come off the runway at Kochi airport in the southern Indian state of Kerala, injuring at least seven passengers.

The flight, coming from Bahrain, was carrying 137 passengers and six crew. An inquiry has begun into the accident.

Officials say the runway is closed and several flights have been diverted.

Reports said some passengers jumped down from the aircraft in panic through the emergency door even before the ladder was brought to the flight.

"The Gulf Air flight GF270 deviated from the runway at 0355 [2225GMT] this [Monday] morning," news agency Press Trust of India (PTI) quoted airport director ACK Nair as saying.

The plane went into a muddy area, damaging its nose wheel, PTI reported.

Officials said it was very windy and raining heavily at the time of the landing.

"The preliminary investigation revealed bad weather and poor visibility caused the accident," AFP quoted an unnamed airport official as saying.

The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) has launched an inquiry into the incident.

29/08/11 BBC

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Weather likely reason for Gulf Air plane skidding in Kochi

Civil Aviation Minister Vayalar Ravi today said rain and wind appear to be the reasons behind a Gulf Air plane skidding off the runway while landing at the International Airport in Kochi even as DGCA ordered an inquiry into the incident.

"DGCA has asked for a report. The report which has come to me is that it is a difficult place though the runway is long enough. The rains and winds were there. Then, it landed and slipped," he told reporters here.

137 passengers and six crew of the plane from Bahrain had a narrow escape when the Airbus A-320 skidded off the runway into a muddy area while landing at the airport.

29/08/11 PTI/Daily News & Analysis

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Passengers jump from plane after bad landing

Thiruvananthapuram : Terrified passengers jumped out of a plane in India on Monday after it skidded to a halt on landing, escaping before emergency ladders were put in place, officials said.

Seven passengers were injured in the pre-dawn incident when the Gulf Air flight from Bahrain to Kochi in the southern Indian state of Kerala landed badly in wet weather conditions and veered onto muddy grassland.

"The Bahrain-Kochi Airbus 320 shot 10m off the runway. Some passengers in panic jumped out of the emergency exit before the ladders were brought," ACK Nair, Kochi Airport director, told AFP.

"Because the nose of the plane was damaged, the emergency (inflatable) ladder did not work, so a rescue team started bringing ladders to the site. But before they arrived, people began to jump.

29/08/11 News24.com

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Flights from UAE delayed as Kochi airport closes

Hundreds of passengers bound for Kochi, India, were stranded for hours as Emirates, Etihad and Air India Express flights experienced disruptions and delays

Hundreds of passengers bound for Kochi, India, were stranded for hours as Emirates, Etihad and Air India Express flights experienced disruptions and delays following the temporary closure of Kochi airport on Monday morning.

The closure came after a Gulf Air aircraft with 137 passengers and six crew skidded off the runway and was run aground in mud at 3.55am, injuring seven passengers.

Etihad Airways flight EY280, which departed from Abu Dhabi on Sunday, was rerouted to Thiruvananthapuram. Passengers were then transported by road to Kochi. The return flight EY281 from Kochi was cancelled on Monday. No further disruption is expected.

A spokesperson of Etihad told Khaleej Times that Etihad will operate a second A320 aircraft to provide additional capacity on the route

The other delayed flights include Air India Express flight from Sharjah, which was supposed to depart at 1.30pm, Sharjah-Kochi Air India flight scheduled to depart at 12.05am and the Dubai-Kochi Air India Express flight, scheduled to leave at 11.55pm.

All the flights are fully booked due to the Eid holidays and upcoming Onam celebrations in Kerala. Most of the passengers of the Air India Express Sharjah-Kochi flight have been provided with hotel accommodation while some preferred to go home.

29/08/11 Lily B. Libo-on and Sajila Saseendran/Khaleej Times

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Gulf Air Skidded Due to Heavy Rainfall : Airlines

Kochi: Several people were injured on early Monday morning when an Airbus 320 belonging to Gulf Air skidded off the runway at an airport in southwest India, the airline said. Heavy rainfall is believed to have caused the incident.

The incident happened at around 1.45 a.m. local time when Gulf Air flight 270 was attempting to land at Cochin International Airport, which is located about 25 kilometers (16 miles) north of the major port city of Kochi. The plane was carrying 143 people, including one infant and six crew members.

Gulf Air spokeswoman Katherine Kaczynska said in a statement that the aircraft skidded off the runway during heavy rainfall.

Gulf Air said the Airbus 320, which suffered a nose gear collapse during the skid, was only 1.5 year old and had an up-to-date service history. "Rainy weather conditions are suspected to be the cause of this incident, however the aircraft was approved for landing and the cause will not be able to be confirmed until a full investigation has been completed," Kaczynska said.

29/08/11 BNO News/Daijiworld.com

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Airlines seek foreign cash, but ministry not game

New Delhi: The debt-ridden domestic airline industry is once again clamouring for permission to invite equity investment by foreign airlines.

But the civil aviation ministry is not game.

Top ministry officials have admitted that some airlines — notably Vijay Mallya’s Kingfisher — have been urging the ministry to consider their plea on allowing foreign airlines to acquire stake in domestic carriers.

This could take care of some of the sizeable debt on the books of almost all Indian airlines. As per existing policy, equity investment is totally banned by foreign airlines.

This issue was first raised in 2009, when the ministry began deliberations under the then civil aviation minister Praful Patel for allowing some investment by foreign airlines. This proposal was subsequently forwarded to other ministries (including the commerce ministry) for their views.

The civil aviation ministry had, at that time, recommended up to 26% equity investment by foreign airlines. But the proposal was never implemented due to security concerns raised by some ministries.

Now, after Vayalar Ravi took over the reins at the civil aviation ministry earlier this year, airlines have again sought clarity on the matter. But top officials in the ministry sought to underplay this issue.

29/08/11 Sindhu Bhattacharya/Daily News & Analysis

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Airlines put NY bookings on hold as Irene slams into US

Chennai: Hurricane Irene continued to wreak havoc on the travel plans of US-bound passengers as airlines have asked travel agents not to take fresh bookings to New York, Newark and Washington till further notice.

Airports on the east coast of the US have been closed because of turbulence triggered by the hurricane. Flights scheduled to depart early on Monday from Chennai, Mumbai and Delhi were cancelled. Flights to the east coast have been cancelled since Saturday.

Jet Airways cancelled its NewYork-B russels-NewYork and Chennai-B russels-New York flights on Monday. Air India cancelled its Delhi-New York, New York-Delhi, Mumbai-Newark and Newark-Mumbai flights on Sunday.

Lufthansa has informed passengers that they might operate flights from Frankfurt to New York from Monday. The airline is flying to Frankfurt but it is not certain whether it will operate flights from Frankfurt to the US.The airline has cancelled its Frankfurt-Newark, Frankfurt-Boston, Frankfurt-Philadelphia flights on Sunday.

29/08/11 Times of India

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Irene toll on city fliers

Calcutta: Around 30 New York-bound passengers from Calcutta had to cancel their trips on Sunday as flights could not leave for the US east coast because of Hurricane Irene.

Airline officials said the situation might improve on Monday but could not rule out the possibility of cancellations and delays.

Erendro Singh, a postgraduate student in public administration at Harvard University, was scheduled to take the Emirates flight from Calcutta to Dubai on Sunday on his way back to the US. He had come to Imphal on August 1 on vacation.

“I did not take the flight for Dubai today as airline officials told me that I would be stranded there. There is a long queue of New York-bound passengers in Dubai. So I am staying in Calcutta tonight and will take a decision tomorrow,” said the 29-year-old, who flew to Calcutta from Imphal on Sunday. Emirates cancelled both its flights from Dubai to New York on Sunday.

The Delhi-New York leg of Air India’s Calcutta-Delhi-New York flight could not be operated for the second consecutive day on Sunday. The Calcutta-Delhi flight, however, is running on schedule.

29/08/11 Sanjay Mandal/The Telegraph

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‘Srinagar-Dubai flights not viable’

Srinagar: Union Minister for Civil Aviation, Vayalar Ravi, has said that Srinagar-Dubai flights were “economically not viable.”

In a written answer to a question raised in the Rajya Sabha on the possibility of resuming flights from Srinagar to Dubai, Ravi responded that the Srinagar-Dubai sector was “economically not viable.”

The question was raised by Saifuddin Soz, J&K State Congress Chief and Member of Parliament, a statement here said.

The Srinagar-Dubai flight from Srinagar International Airport was started with much fanfare in February 14, 2009 but was grounded a year later.

28/08/11 Greater Kashmir

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20 NY-bound flights on hold after hurricane alert

New Delhi: About 20 flights operating to New York's JFK and Newark airports from Delhi and several more across the world were suspended on Saturday after hurricane Irene forced the airports to shut for incoming flights. Airport sources said Sunday operations were also hit and airlines were watching the situation closely to take further decisions.

Air India officials said their Saturday flights to JFK and Newark from both Delhi and Mumbai had been suspended, though they were expecting flights from there to come in sometime on Sunday.

Jet Airways, too, had cancelled its Brussels to Newark and Brussels to JFK connections on Sunday, though Monday's operations were likely to take place according to schedule. Sources said passengers scheduled to fly out on Saturday and Sunday had been accommodated in hotels and efforts were on to rebook them on flights in the next couple of days.

28/08/11 Times of India

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Hurricane Irene hits Chennaiite's US travel plans

Chennai: Hurricane Irene that hit the eastern coast of USA has affected travel plans of passengers from Chennai scheduled to fly on Saturday and Sunday.

Jet Airways, Lufthansa and Air India have cancelled their flights to New York, Newark and Washington as the US airports are closed. Jet Airways' Chennai-Brussels-New York flight was cancelled on Saturday and Sunday, while Lufthansa is not operating flights between Frankfurt and the US because of turbulent weather.

Sources said that Lufthansa flew its Chennai-Frankfurt service on Saturday, but Jet Airways cancelled its Chennai-Brussels-New York flight after they received information that the airport there was closed when the flight was being readied for departure.

As the airport closure report arrived at the last minute, passengers could not be warned on Saturday. Those who arrived at the airport had to return home. Jet Airways has informed passengers that their tickets would be re-booked without additional charges on the next flight when services resume.

28/08/11 Times of India

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Finnair serves seven more Indian cities in pact with Kingfisher

New Delhi: Nordic carrier Finnair has added seven more destinations in India to its network, apart from flying directly to the national capital, thanks to the partnership with Vijay Mallya-led Kingfisher Airlines.

"We offer morning connections to Finnair's vast European network of around 60 cities via Delhi and Helsinki which extends to Kingfisher passengers from Mumbai, Bangalore, Pune, Hyderabad, Chennai, Jaipur and Ahmedabad," said Kari Stolbow, Finnair's India director.

"Our partnership also allows Kingfisher passengers to earn and redeem miles on travels on the Finnair network across the globe. We have already deployed the most modern fleet to India -- the average age is no more than one year," Stolbow said.

"While Asia has really driven our business, we have particularly seen very good growth in every segment in India. Now we are happy we are for the fact many new passengers from other cities are also using our connection services with Kingfisher," he said.

"The numbers of such passengers is growing several hundred per cent."

Finnair hopes that once Kingfisher becomes a member of Oneworld, a leading pact among 12 global carriers, which expected sometime early next year, this cooperation will get a further push.

28/08/11 IANS/Economic Times

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UAE airlines welcome arrival of Indian carriers

UAE airlines hope to benefit from more competition from India's carriers, paving the way for them to be granted expanded access into India in return.

With the budget airline IndiGo scheduled to begin flying into Dubai International Airport from Delhi and Mumbai next month, officials from flydubai say they see the move as a positive development.

They say it will lead to more bilateral discussions between the UAE and Indian governments regarding air access.

"As more Indian airlines begin flying here, we can all get more flights," said Ghaith Al Ghaith, the chief executive of flydubai, the Dubai budget airline that has made the Indian subcontinent a key pillar of its low-cost, short-haul strategy.

India is one of the largest markets for the UAE's carriers, helping to feed traffic into the long-haul networks of Emirates Airline and Etihad Airways as well as point-to-point travel for the budget carriers flydubai, Air Arabia and RAK Airways.

Mr Al Ghaith said the number of flights flydubai was entitled to operate to India was controlled by bilateral agreements between the two countries.

The airline is planning to open its third destination to India later this month with services to Ahmedabad.

28/08/11 Ivan Gale/The National

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AI Express flight cancellation leaves passengers stranded

Dubai: Many Indian passengers have been stranded at Muscat International Airport for the last one week after Air India Express cancelled a dozen flights from Muscat to Kerala and Punjab, citing operational reasons.
The low-cost airline has cancelled as many as six flights operating between Oman and India from August 20 to 26. As the six flights are operating to and fro, a total of 12 flights have been affected.
"As Air India Express is a low cost airline, a majority of the travellers are blue-collar workers and the flight cancellations have come as a burden to them. They now have to find tickets in some other airlines, for which they have to pay a hefty amount," a travel agent, who is facing the ire of the travelers, told Times of Oman.
Meanwhile, the Air India office in Muscat told the newspaper that the flights were cancelled due to "operational reasons".
The official said, "We have cancelled four flights to Calicut, one to Thiruvananthapuram and one to Amritsar. We have made arrangements for free rebooking on Air India Express flights and passengers can also opt for a full refund, without any cancellation or reissuing charges."
26/08/11 PTI/msn.com

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Airlines to fly more on the Kerala-Gulf route

Mumbai: Domestic airlines are looking at Kerala to being new routes to West Asia in an attempt to raise the percentage of filled seats in a plane, known as seat factor.
In the last three months, Jet Airways and Air India Express have both announced plans to increase their operations between Kerala and West Asia with plans to begin three new services.
Low-cost carrier, IndiGo which recently started international operations from Delhi and Mumbai, is also eyeing Kerala as a potential market to connect to the West Asian region.
Air India announced the launch of a four times a week service between Delhi-Damam-Calicut and also extended its daily service on the Kochi-Sharjah route to include Delhi.
Meanwhile, Jet Airways is set to start daily flights from Thiruvananthapuram to Sharjah from October 30.
The airline already has a daily flight from Kochi to Sharjah and the additional service will add to the number of daily flights between Kerala and the Gulf.
26/08/11 Debabrata Das/Business Line

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Final parts arrive for first Charleston 787

Boeing's North Charleston, South Carolina final assembly line has received its first locally fabricated Boeing 787 aft fuselage, completing the final shipments for the first aircraft to be built at the company's new final assembly line, the company confirmed.
In an early morning ceremony on 22 August, staff from the 88-19 building where the aft fuselage is fabricated on Boeing's North Charleston campus, walked the completed aft section 47/48 to the newly built 88-30 final assembly building.
The arrival marks the final process towards beginning final assembly of Airplane 46, a 787 for Air India, and the first non-legacy Boeing jetliner to be completed outside the company's commercial base in the Pacific Northwest.
Major structural sections for the aircraft began arriving on 24 June with the shipment of the horizontal stabiliser from Alenia Aeronautica, followed by the wings from Nagoya, Japan on 6 July. The Spirit AeroSystems-built section 41 forward fuselage was delivered to Charleston on 21 July, followed by the centre fuselage, also assembled and integrated in South Carolina, on 11 August.
24/08/11 Jon Ostrower/Flightglobal

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Indigo fares faces T3 barrier

India's leading low-cost carrier IndiGo may dump its low-cost fares on its international operations, which is slated for take-off on September 1.
The carrier is still engaged in talks with the government in a desperate move to fly from Delhi IGI Airport's low-cost Terminal 1D instead of the swanky Terminal T3, where they would end up paying higher airport charges.
A top industry official said that IndiGo's fares on international routes will be affordable but not necessarily be the lowest given the high airport costs, which they would have to bear while operating from the flashy and costlier Terminal T3 of IGI Airport.
"We have built up a reputation of being the No. 1 low-cost airline with the best on-time arrival and the best serving airline in the country. Even if our fares on international routes are slightly higher, our dedicated customers will not mind paying more given the kind of services we offer," said an official associated with IndiGo.
"The airline is still discussing the terminal issue with the government," said the official. When contacted, IndiGo's chief executive officer (CEO) Aditya Ghosh and chief operations officer (COO) Sanjay Kumar refused to comment.
24/08/11 Sanjay Singh/Business Today

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No hatred for pilot, the real villain is war

“Most of all, I remember the little kaleidoscope,” she says. “When he lifted me to his lap and put it to my eye, I entered a wonderland.” Farida Singh, the daughter of aviation legend Jehangir Engineer, adored her father. She was 16 when his plane, a civilian aircraft caught in India and Pakistan’s 1965 war, was shot down by a Pakistani pilot, Qais Hussain.

Farida is in her sixties today, a wife, mother and grandmother, strong, successful and vibrant. She treasures memories of her father, triggered by the smallest things. “I still have a fascination for the glitter of glass,” she says, linking this to the enchanting kaleidoscope. “Even today, when I see anything that gleams beautifully, I think of him.”
Growing up with her elder sister Shireen and younger brother Noshir, Farida’s youth was shaped by the optimism of modern India. She remembers outings on Juhu Beach, where her father, a champion swimmer, would take them into the sea on his back. “If we quarrelled about whose turn it was, he would take us all,” she says. Otherwise her mother, a delicate five feet against her father’s strapping six, but much more the disciplinarian than the indulgent Jehangir, would have stepped in. Afternoons on the beach ended with coconut water, warm spicy chana and bright balloons.
Sparkling times continued as the Engineers travelled from Mumbai to Chennai, Calcutta, then Delhi with Jehangir working as a pilot in Indian Airlines. Farida was 12 when they came to the capital. “Dad created his children’s lifelong romance with Delhi ...I call Delhi home, no matter where I may be.”
Farida feels no animosity for the nation — or person — causing her father’s death. “As I wrote to Hussain, there was never any hatred for the pilot who shot the plane down,” she says. “But there was certainly a villain of the piece. That was war itself. How do you explain to the victims of war that it’s necessary to kill to get things sorted out? When peace is shattered, thousands of families look desperately for answers... Can we overestimate the work campaigns like Aman ki Asha and organisations like Women Without Borders do today? If the clock could be wound back 46 years, everything would have been different if those in power had only said, ‘Let us look for other options’.”
24/08/11 Srijana Mitra Das/Times of India/The News.com

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Vegetarian's horror at meaty in-flight meal

A Hindu woman is upset that a lifetime of not eating meat was undone when she was served chicken by mistake on a flight from New Zealand to India.
Pushplata Sharma, 56, of Blenheim, New Zealand, is a vegetarian who, as part of her religion, does not eat meat or eggs.
She had never eaten meat or eggs until she inadvertently ate chicken when it was served to her on a Singapore Airlines flight to New Delhi in February.
A Singapore Airlines spokesman said the airline was concerned that Sharma was served the wrong food, but the booking made by the travel agent did not ask for a special meal.
Sharma booked her tickets through Travelsmart Manners St, Wellington, and asked for an Indian meal free of meat and eggs, which was shown on the itinerary given to her.
However, after a mixup between the travel agent and the airline, the request was forgotten and the wrong meal was served.
The problem was compounded because Sharma speaks little English.
Speaking through her son-in-law, Ajay Gaur, Sharma said that when she was given the meal, she thought the chicken was cheese.
She realised the mistake only after she had eaten some, and was immediately sick.
A crew member who could understand her language apologised and brought her rice, chickpeas and bread, but she did not eat anything more on the flight or on the return journey, she said.
She felt sick whenever she thought of the meal, and had gone to a doctor for treatment for depression, she said.
24/08/11 Michael Berry/Sydney Morning Herald

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Flight cancellations ground holiday plans of many

Muscat: Passengers slated to travel from Muscat to Kerala and Punjab by Air India Express have been in a spot for the last one week as the airline has cancelled some flights citing operational reasons.
The low-cost airline has cancelled as many as six flights operating between Oman and India from August 20 to 26. As the six flights are operating to and fro, a total of 12 flights have been affected.
“As Air India Express is a low cost airline, a majority of the travellers are blue-collar workers and the flight cancellations have come as a burden to them. They now have to find tickets in some other airlines, for which they have to pay a hefty amount,” a travel agent, who is facing the ire of the travellers, told Times of Oman.
Meanwhile, the Air India office in Muscat told Times of Oman that the flights were cancelled due to “operational reasons”.
24/08/11 Times of Oman

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Ministry mulls new aviation policy

New Delhi: India plans to allow more foreign carriers under an upcoming policy to keep pace with rising demand for international travel that domestic airlines are unable to service.
India has bilateral air service agreements with 97 nations, but about half of them are not being utilised because the routes are unprofitable. Opening the domestic aviation sector to more foreign operators would not only improve international connectivity but also give consumers competitive rates.
The ministry now plans to work on its policy based on air traffic growth projections, the number of nations that remain unconnected and ways to service them with both foreign and domestic carriers. "Why should passengers suffer if domestic carriers can't provide adequate connectivity? They should be given more choice. We have to align transportation with national needs," a senior aviation ministry official said, adding that the work on the new policy would start after October.
Experts say the current policy does not make for an open system, as countries get flying rights depending on sovereignty of air space and negotiations.
Also, state-owned carrier Air India is given first preference to fly on new foreign routes. Private airlines get permission only after AI is consulted.
Besides, private airlines must have five years of domestic operations before they can apply for international flights.
23/08/11 Anindya Upadhyay/Economic Times

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IndiGo announces Muscat, Dubai operations

Dubai: Low cost air-carrier IndiGo has flagged off its maiden foray into the international market with the launch of flights to Muscat and Singapore and plans to further expand its operations to touch down in Dubai and Bangkok from early next month.

While round-trip Mumbai-Muscat-Mumbai flights will only commence from October 10, the carrier has already launched four flights a week between Muscat and Mumbai, which will leave Muscat on Tuesday, Thursday, Friday and Saturday.

The same flight will continue to Singapore after a brief stopover in Mumbai.

Mumbai-Muscat flights will be on Monday, Wednesday, Thursday and Friday, the airline said here.

"Other than being known for affordable fares, IndiGo holds a record of the best 'On Time Performance' in India that is consistently above 90 per cent! This further reiterates the carrier's commitment to offering an unmatched customer experience," said a spokesperson of IndiGo GSA, Muscat International Services.

22/08/11 PTI/Economic Times

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Bombardier loves what it sees in Indian aviation sector

Toronto: Starting with SpiceJet deliveries from this week, aircraft maker sees ‘very exciting opportunity’.

Bombardier, the Canadian aircraft maker, is set to make its mark in India’s rapidly growing commercial aviation sector.

Four Q400 next-generation turboprop aircraft are being prepped at its facility here, to be handed over to SpiceJet in India at a ceremony this week, the first batch in the latter’s order for 15 of the aircraft, with options for an additional 15. SpiceJet has said the turboprops would be used on new regional routes connecting smaller cities in India, with the service scheduled to begin on September 21.

For Bombardier Aerospace, the $8.6-billion division of the $17.7-billion parent company headquartered in Montreal, it will be the first major presence in the Indian commercial aviation market.

As more Indian carriers look at servicing smaller centres, Bombardier is hopeful of leveraging that growing market to its advantage. “It’s a very exciting opportunity,” said Brian Schmalz, director, marketing, commercial aircraft, arguing their planes would be a good fit for expansion of commercial aviation in India. “Airlines have largely focused on major cities so far and are now looking to connect with smaller cities. That’s what Bombardier’s product line is centred around.”

22/08/11 Indira Kannan/Business Standard

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SkyTeam holds talks with Civil Aviation Ministry officials

New Delhi: Weeks after Star Alliance suspended Air India's membership process, top officials of competing global airline grouping SkyTeam held talks with Civil Aviation Ministry officials here to "explore possibilities".

The delegation, led by its Managing Director Michael Wisbrun, met Civil Aviation Secretary Nasim Zaidi on Friday and "explored possibilities" in the aftermath of Air India's suspension by the international airlines association Star Alliance, official sources said.

During the meeting, the SkyTeam delegation was briefed about the situation arising out of the Star Alliance decision on July 31, they said. The government had then termed the move as "unexpected and disappointing".

The sources, however, did not rule out the possibility of re-opening discussions with the Star Alliance.

They also maintained that Air India was "fully compliant" with all conditions necessary for joining a global alliance of airlines having been met, the sources said.

Air India's bid to join the association suffered a setback on July 31 when the 27 airlines' group suspended the national carrier's integration into the network, on grounds that it had not met the minimum joining conditions contractually agreed to in December 2007.

21/08/11 PTI/Economic Times

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TCS leads race to acquire Lufthansa's IT subsidiary; IBM also in the fray

Bangalore: India's largest IT services firm Tata Consultancy Services is leading the race to acquire the IT subsidiary of the German airline Lufthansa. Lufthansa Systems is looking to divest 51% stake. IBM is also in the fray, a German magazine stated in its report on August 18. Lufthansa Systems, which counts players like British Airways among its customers , provides IT solutions for customers ranging from the aviation sector to media and healthcare.

A majority of its customers though are from the aviation industry. Lufthansa Systems reported revenues of around $850 million in 2010 which has been declining for the past three years. It also ran into turbulence on profitability last year and it is in the midst of a restructuring and cost-cutting exercise. Headquartered in Germany, Lufthansa Systems has offices in 16 other countries and employs around 3,000 people. The company provides IT services for Lufthansa group companies and for external customers. According to the report in Manager Magazine, the talks are nearing finalisation.

20/08/11 Economic Times

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Airline emissions: The next global trade war

Not usually accused of being unilateralist and unwilling to negotiate, the EU has sparked what is shaping up to be the next big international trade dispute.

On January 1, the EU will require airlines operating out of all airports in its 27 member states to financially offset their flights' carbon dioxide emissions. The move brings aviation into the EU's existing "Emissions Trading Scheme" (ETS) that has been applied to many other industries since it was first implemented in 2005.

EU Environment Commissioner Connie Hedegaard says it's high time "the polluter-pays principle" applies in the skies too.

"How can we ever hope to make ordinary citizens of the world play their part in tackling climate change," she writes on her website (in English and Chinese), "if the financier from Hong Kong or London or the business man from Guandong [sic] or Frankfurt is not asked for any contribution whatsoever in respect of the significant emissions that he incurs on an intercontinental flight?"

Other governments have blasted the EU's go-it-alone approach. Airlines have consistently resisted being included in the ETS as the system has evolved. Now that it's due for implementation, many non-EU governments have rejected the plan, most vocally the United States, China, India and Russia.

Their main complaints: The EU is asserting the right to assess these fees in the absence of a global agreement, or any reciprocal measures by other governments, to do so; it will be charging for the entire length of a flight, not just the portion in European airspace; and the earnings from the carbon dioxide charge will go directly into the coffers of EU governments, with no requirement that the money be spent to combat global warming, on research and development, new aviation technology or any other tool to protect the environment.

19/08/11 Teri Schuitz/Climate Spectator

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No hatred for pilot, the real villain is war

Most of all, I remember the little kaleidoscope ," she says. "When he lifted me to his lap and put it to my eye, I entered a wonderland." Farida Singh, the daughter of aviation legend Jehangir Engineer, adored her father. She was 16 when his plane, a civilian aircraft caught in India and Pakistan's 1965 war, was shot down by Qais Hussain. Farida is in her sixties today, a wife, mother and grandmother , strong, successful and vibrant . She treasures memories of her father, triggered by the smallest things. "I still have a fascination for the glitter of glass," she says, linking this to the enchanting kaleidoscope. "Even today, when I see anything that gleams beautifully, I think of him."

Growing up with her elder sister Shireen and younger brother Noshir, Farida's youth was shaped by the optimism of modern India. She enjoyed great happiness with her family through the 1950s. She remembers outings on Juhu Beach, where her father would take his children into the sea on his back. "If we quarrelled about whose turn it was, he would take us all," she says. Her father was a champion swimmer, she adds; otherwise her mother, a delicate five feet against her father's strapping six, but much more the disciplinarian than the indulgent Jehangir, would have stepped in. Afternoons on the beach ended with coconut water, warm spicy chana and bright balloons.

21/08/11 Srijana Mitra Das/Times of India

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India-Russia accelerate Multi Role Transport Aircraft Project

Russia’s United Aircraft Corporation(UAC)will soon set up a technical competence center to develop critical technologies for the Indo-Russian Multi Role Transport Aircraft (MTA) project while India’s Hindustan Aeronautics Limited has established a new company, the Multi Role Transport Aircraft Limited (MTAL), as an Indo-Russian joint venture.

Speaking at the Moscow Air show (MAKS) 2011 here yesterday, UAC President Mikhail Pogosyan said the technical competence was part of UAC’s initiative to speed up technology development for new aircraft projects such as the SSJ100 and MC-21 civilian jets and the MTA tactical military transport.

These projects need new materials and composites to make them light and fuel efficient.

HAL, meanwhile has established the MTAL in Bangalore as a 50:50 joint venture between itself and UAC. The new company is yet to commence operations but has started recruitment of staff. Its CEO will be an Indian national. The aircraft’s designing and prototyping will happen in Russia while production will take place in India. MATL will be in charge of marketing the aircraft in the two countries as well as for export. The total project cost is estimated at US$600 million shared between the two countries.

20/08/11 Defenseworld.net

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Finnair Cargo to launch India service

New Delhi: Finnair Cargo Saturday said it will commence operation of cargo flights between Helsinki and Mumbai from Sep 16.
"The new freighter services offer fast connections between India and northern Europe. According to our customers, there is a great need for cargo capacity, especially between Nordic countries and Mumbai," Finnair Cargo's vice president (global sales) Pertti Mero said.
According to the company, the move was in line with the airline's plan to expand its operations to leverage the transit traffic between Asia and Europe.
"This is in line with Finnair Cargo's vision to be number one in the Nordic countries and to be the most desired option in transit traffic between Asia and Europe. According to our plans, North America and India will be a natural expansion direction," the firm's senior vice president Antero J. Lahtinen said.
20/08/11 IANS/Deccan Herald

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Boeing’s First 787 Could Ship Next Month

After three years of delays and countless controversies, Boeing’s new 787 Dreamliner might finally be prepared for takeoff into commercial service. The first version of the carbon-composite jetliner completed its final flight tests last weekend. Deliveries can begin to launch customer All Nippon Airways (PINK:ALNPY) as soon as the FAA grants its certification. Boeing officials believe deliveries of ANA’s 50-plane order — which initially had been scheduled for late 2008 — will finally start next month.
That’s the good news. The bad news is that Boeing’s 787 deliveries to Air India — which had been scheduled to begin in October — will be delayed by at least two more months. That’s a big problem for Air India, since earlier delays reportedly have cost the struggling state-owned carrier $1.5 billion in revenue.
The flight test of Air India’s first 787 in July was cut short when a sensor failed and the flight crew was forced to declare an emergency. The plane landed safely and Boeing is ironing out the sensor problem. But additional delays in the Air India delivery schedule are nearly certain since that carrier’s planes are outfitted with General Electric GEnx-1B engines, which have not yet been certified. ANA’s planes are outfitted with Rolls Royce Trent 1000 engines, which already have received certification.
18/08/11 Susan J. Aluise/InvestorPlace.com

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AI refusal right hits private carriers’ overseas expansion

New Delhi: The government’s unstated policy of shielding Air India from competition has held back overseas expansion programmes of domestic private carriers. This stance has led foreign carriers capture larger market share on various profitable routes that could otherwise have been shared between Indian carriers.

The civil aviation ministry has put in abeyance the applications of private carriers like Jet Airways and SpiceJet seeking permission to operate flights on sectors like Delhi-Paris, Kochi-Dubai, Mumbai-Riyadh and Delhi-Teheran.

Low-cost airlines IndiGo and SpiceJet are miffed over this stance as it indirectly gives government-owned Air India the right of first refusal whenever a case of granting traffic rights to private carriers for starting flights on international sectors come up.

Following the completion of five years of operation in the domestic market to become eligible to launch international flights budget carriers are planning to expand their networks beyond India.

18/08/11 Nirbhay Kumar/Financial Express

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Jet Airways Plans Low-Fare Flights Overseas

Mumbai: Jet Airways (India) Ltd. plans to introduce low-fare flights to short-haul overseas destinations, a move that will likely help India's biggest carrier by market share take on increasing competition from the low-fare carriers such as SpiceJet Ltd. and Indigo that have recently started flights on international routes.

"Low-cost aviation is a reality globally and we have to be ready to face any such demand," Sudheer Raghavan, Jet Airways' chief commercial officer, told reporters Wednesday after the carrier's annual general meeting. He didn't give a timeframe for starting the low-fare flights.

Mr. Raghavan also didn't disclose the possible overseas destinations, but said the flights will cater to destinations that are less than five hours' flying time from India.

Operating short-haul international flights will help Jet Airways increase yields as such routes are more profitable. A large number of Indians are travelling to neighboring countries thanks to higher disposable incomes and cheaper tickets offered by low-fare carriers SpiceJet and Indigo.

17/08/11 Anirban Chiwdhury & Nikhil Gulati/Wall Street Journal

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PAF pilot says he did not apologise, only shared the grief

Islamabad: Former Pakistan Air Force (PAF) Flying Officer Qais Hussain, who fought for Pakistan in the 1965 war, has made it clear that while writing a condolence letter to the daughter of an Indian pilot whose plane he had downed 46 years ago, he neither apologised nor expressed remorse for his act which was carried in the line of duty.
In an exclusive interview with The News, Qais Hussain said he did not intend to apologise to the daughter of the Indian pilot and his only intention was to share the grief of her family members. “The Indian media has interpreted my goodwill gesture as an apology and repentance despite the fact that there is no such thing in my letter. I have clearly stated in my letter that I did not play foul and that I carried out my orders in the line of duty. I have further stated, ‘I feel sorry for you, your family and the other seven families who lost their dearest ones in September 1965’. It does not mean that I am apologising. It only means that I am trying to share their grief as a human being, which is their due.”
“The reason for writing the letter/email was only to tell them the true and actual circumstances under which their dear ones lost their lives because the Indian media and the Government of India Inquiry Committee at that time had not been able to present the true picture either due to lack of credible witnesses considering where it happened or due to malice which is an essential part of the psyche during a war situation.”
The incident took place on September 19, 1965 in the Rann of Kutch during the Indo-Pak war when Qais Hussain, a rookie, who had completed his conversion on F-86s from US only four months earlier, shot down an Indian Beech craft which was carrying eight people including Chief Minister of Gujarat State Balwantrai Mehta. Also on board were the chief minister’s wife, Mrs Sarojben Mehta, three members of the CM’s personal staff and a reporter from the daily Gujarat Samachar.
15/08/11 Amir Mir/The News

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GMR to focus on emerging markets for airport business

Mumbai: GMR Infrastructure, the flagship company of the infrastructure conglomerate GMR Group that runs four airports across the globe, is looking at emerging markets in South East Asia, South America and African countries for expanding its airport business, a top company official said.
The company is currently developing four airport projects including two in India - Delhi and Hyderabad - and one each in ale and Istanbul.
"We are looking at opportunities for expanding our airport business in the international market. We will be focusing on emerging markets including South East Asia, South America and several African countries. We have not identified any particular project as of now," GMR's Chief Financial Officer, A Subbarao, said.
Besides, the company is also looking at developed countries including the USA among others for expanding its airport business, he said.
The BSE-listed company made its maiden international foray by winning the bid to develop Istanbul Sabiha Gokcen International Airport (ISGIA) at Istanbul, followed by Male airport project in Maldives.
14/08/11 Economic Times

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Heroin hidden in sari hem seized at JFK

Federal inspectors at Kennedy Airport intercepted almost three pounds of heroin from India that was sewn inside the hems of the traditional dresses of Indian women, known as a sari.
The smuggling technique unraveled when U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers smelled a strong chemical odor coming from a box that was labeled: "Dress," the agency said Friday. The box had been shipped from India.
When officers examined the three dresses that were inside, they noticed each had hems that were much thicker than normal.
A closer look at the hefty hems revealed the seams were stuffed with a tan powdery substance that tested positive for smack. The contraband saris held about 2.8 pounds of pure heroin, which has a total street value of about $90,000, the agency said.
CBP Spokesman Anthony Bucci declined to say where the shipment originated from in India or what its final destination was supposed to be. He said the matter is under investigation.
12/08/11 Bob Kappstatter/NY Daily News.com

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Indian, Turk airlines to add Philippine destinations

Jet Airways, India’s largest private airline, and a Turkish carrier plan to add the Philippines within their Asian routes, outgoing Tourism Secretary Alberto Lim said Friday.
“We’re getting interest from both big carriers as well as budget airlines,” said Lim who told reporters he resigned as Tourism secretary effective Aug. 31 and that President Benigno Aquino III accepted it.
“They have expressed interest, but they are [still] in the talking stage as of now.”
Lim has been cited as the architect of the country’s pocket open-skies policy that has since attracted foreign carriers to increase flights or set up operations in the Philippines.
Earlier, Etihad Airways, the United Arab Emirates’ national carrier, also announced it would increase the number of flights in its Manila-Abu Dhabi route to 14 a week.
Japanese carrier All Nippon Airways, Singapore-based JetStar Asia Airways, and Malaysian airline AirAsia Berhad have also begun regular services in the country.

Southeast Asian Airlines Inc., meanwhile, has sought government approval to fly to China, Japan and Vietnam. The company told the Civil Aeronautics Board it wanted its budget airline Seair to mount flights from Clark to three cities in China, Hanoi and Osaka and from Manila to Fukuoka, Japan.
13/08/11 Manila Standard Today

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Cincinnati customs agents seize 8,000 fake pills at CVG

U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers seized a package containing more than 8,000 counterfeit pills at a DHL facility at the Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky International Airport.
Officers inspected the package from India, which supposedly contained “harmless generic medicine,” but found the counterfeit Tadalafil tablets instead, according to a news release. Tadalafil is a drug commonly used to treat erectile dysfunction.
Customs and Border Protection has intercepted more than 300 shipments and more than 1,000 pounds of fake, illegal substances this fiscal year at the Cincinnati airport — a 43 percent increase in seizures compared to last fiscal year, according to the release.
12/08/11 Business Courier

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World over, airports are always under construction'

Mumbai: In New York's La Guardia airport, the old air traffic control tower is being demolished for the new. London's Heathrow is demolishing and reconstructing its Terminal 2. At Sydney airport, work on the safety area being built at the end of a runway is almost complete. Closer home, in Mumbai, work is on to construct an integrated terminal, an air traffic control tower and several other airport essentials.

"With the ever-increasing volume of air traffic, there are hardly any airports in the world that are not under construction," said Capt Daniel Maurino, safety advisor, International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO). He is in the city to conduct a week-long training session on ICAO's Safety Management System (SMS) for officials handling airport operations. To put it simply, SMS is about adopting a proactive approach to prevent accidents in an airport. "Even in the best-run organization in the world, there is room for improvement. It's very healthy to be sceptical in air safety,'' he said, lauding Mumbai airport operator's decision to voluntarily hold this training session. Unlike in the case of Mumbai airport, generally airports request such ICAO training sessions only before an audit or check, he said. So, in the next few days, the participants will be trained in the culture of anticipating what could go wrong at an airport from the safety point of view and the remedies.

11/08/11 Times of India

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Asia will become the nucleus for aviation, says Etihad chief James Hogan

Growth in the aviation industry and liberalisation of regulations will make Asia the "new nucleus" for world air travel, said the head of Etihad Airways.

The balance of power in the industry is shifting east, partly because of tight government regulations faced by European carriers, said James Hogan, the chief executive of the Abu Dhabi airline.

"The centre of geopolitical gravity is being drawn rapidly and inexorably eastward towards Asian economic power," he said.

"We speak of Asia as the new centre of the world." Mr Hogan added that Etihad was focusing its attention on emerging economies in the East.

"Our future network hub strategy is built around the huge opportunities we see in provincial China, regional India and in other under-served growth areas."

Mr Hogan was speaking at an address on the "shifting geopolitics of aviation" held at the Lowy Institute for International Policy in Sydney.

He said that rapid growth of airlines in the emerging markets would see the focus of the aviation industry shift East. "Aviation will have a new nucleus: Asia," said Mr Hogan. "China has recently built 50 new airports. Another 50 will open before this decade is out … India, while slightly behind, is growing even faster."

The Association of South East Asian Nations (Asean), a bloc of 10 countries, has proposed a plan to establish a single aviation market with no traffic restrictions by 2015.

Mr Hogan said such a transition would represent a "free and efficient framework for landing rights and air traffic control". This compares favourably to the tight restrictions on landing rights seen in the West, he added.

12/08/11 Bedn Flanagan/The National

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AI to seek Star Alliance fee refund

New Delhi: Air India will talk tough when it meets Star Alliance on the issue of failed membership.
The national carrier will ask Star Alliance to return the amount paid as membership fees. Air India is also planning to ask for a hefty compensation for the sum spent in preparing itself for Star’s membership.
Star Alliance, a global group of 27 international airlines, announced last week that it was suspending Air India’s integration into its network as the carrier had failed to fulfil some norms.
AI officials said they were in talks with Star Alliance officials for a meeting to discuss the reasons of suspension as well as to ask them for a refund.
“The date of the meeting has not been decided as of now but it might happen later this week. Star Alliance officials have said they were considering ways so that they can accommodate AI into the international group. But we are more interested in discussing about compensation as last week’s events have caused us a lot of embarrassment and a major setback,” said an AI official.
The civil aviation ministry will soon start the process of recovering the 10 million euros (Rs 63 crore approximately) as joining fee they had paid. A decision to suspend Air India’s integration with the alliance was jointly taken by 27 member airlines.
09/08/11 Kiran Choudhury/The Telegraph

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Pakistani pilot writes after 46 years to daughter of Indian pilot he shot down

Nearly half-a-century after shooting down an Indian civil aircraft under orders during the 1965 war with India, a Pakistan Air Force pilot has sent a condolence message to the daughter of the pilot of the aircraft he downed.

Qais Hussain, a rookie Flying Officer during the 1965 war, made this moving and humane gesture via an e-mail, expressing his condolences and providing details of the circumstances under which he shot down the Indian aircraft.

The e-mail is addressed to Farida Singh, daughter of the Indian Air Force pilot Jahangir “Jangoo” Engineer, one of the three famous Engineer brothers in the Indian Air Force.

The e-mail, with the subject line “Condolence”, dated Fri, Aug 5, 2011, is copied to Naushad Patel and Jagan Pillarisetti, the Indian contacts who helped Mr Hussain to reach out to the bereaved family, something he had wanted to do for some time.
09/08/11 Beena Sarwar/The News

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GE Aviation trains guns on Indian defence sector

GE Aviation, the US-based $17.6 billion aircraft engine manufacturer, is optimistic about getting more contracts for supplying to the Indian military.
Bansi Phansalkar, general manager, India Engineering Operations, GE Aviation, said the firm has technologies for the military sector.
“We have technologies like F 414, P8 which are suited for the Indian military. Unlike the US where we supply extensively to both military and commercial aircraft, in India though we have been supplying to the military aircraft, it’s more on the commercial aircraft side where we have a large presence,” said Phansalkar.
According to Nalin Jain, vice-president, GE Aviation, South Asia, currently majority of the firm’s revenues from India come from the civil sector with good growth expected from the defence segment in future.
“The defence business is presently more at the orders stage, while the civil business is at the delivery stage. We expect this proportion to change as defence deliveries start kicking in.”
09/08/11 Priyanka Golikeri/Daily News & Analysis

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Delivery of Boeing 787 Dreamliner to AI likely in December

The delivery of the first Boeing 787 Dreamliner to Air India is understood to have been further pushed by two months to December this year. The ailing national carrier, which has been one of the first customers of this fuel-efficient plane, having placed orders for 27 of them way back in 2006, plans to fly them on medium-haul international routes.
Singapore is likely to be the first foreign destination on which Air India plans to operate two of these Boeing-787s, which it expects to be delivered this calendar year itself, airline sources said.
Besides Singapore, they said the other routes could be Hong Kong, Dubai, Osaka, Jakarta and Frankfurt. While the deliveries were earlier scheduled to begin from October this year, after being delayed by over two years, the sources said now the first delivery was only likely in December. The launch customer of the Dreamliners is Japan's All Nippon Airways.
The prime reason for this delay is that Air India now wants the aircraft to be fully certified by the Federal Aviation Authority in the US before being delivered to it.
09/08/11 moneycontrol.com

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Flydubai to start flights from Ahmedabad

Mumbai: Dubai's first low cost airline flydubai will launch flights to the city of Ahmedabad in Gujarat from August 27, the airline said in a statement today.
The flights will operate once in a week on Saturdays only. Ahemdabad is the world's third fastest growing city in the world and will be the 44th destination added by the Dubai based low cost airline across its network globally.
Flydubai launched its India operations in June last year and recently added the city of Hyderabad on its network. According to industry estimates, about five million Indian expatriate population is living and working in the Gulf region.
08/08/11 Manisha Sighal/Economic Times

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Dubai passengers delayed by Air India Express

Passengers on a Dubai-bound Air India Express flight were delayed by almost six hours in Lucknow due to technical difficulties with the aircraft.
According to a report by The Times of India, around 144 passengers had boarded the plane at Amausi International Airport on Saturday when technical concerns were raised by the pilot.
07/08/11 arabian SUPPLY CHAIN.com

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Turkish airline eyes base in Calcutta

Istanbul: Turkish Airlines, which flies from New Delhi and Mumbai, plans to start flights from Calcutta, Chennai and Hyderabad over the next two years.

“We are considering Calcutta as a hub in eastern India. But it depends on whether we are able to get the requisite permissions. We are in talks with the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) and the civil aviation ministry,” said Temel Kotil, president and CEO of Turkish Airlines.

Plans are underway to start direct flights connecting Hyderabad and Istanbul next year. “GMR has asked us to start direct flights to Istanbul. We want to reach out to more cities in India and if they allow us we will definitely go. Right now, we are planning to reach out to five cities in India,” he said.

Hyderabad-based GMR Infrastructure is part of a consortium that won a contract to build a new terminal at the Istanbul international airport.
08/08/11 Karan Choudhury/The Telegraph

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AI, Star alliance meet to iron out issues

New Delhi: Air India’s stalled plan to get into the Star Alliance of airlines worldwide may be revived. “Both we and Star have decided to meet and discuss of our suspension, even when we had fulfilled all the 87 criteria required to join the alliance,” said a senior AI official, who did not want to be identified. No decision has been taken on the date but it will be soon.
Star Alliance had announced last week, after a board meeting, that it was “suspending” the government carrier’s integration into its network. It said AI had not fulfilled the criteria it had agreed to.
Star, in an email reply to Business Standard, had also said the membership issue could be revived. “If both parties agree to resume the membership process at a future point in time, it can be done,” the reply said.
Entering the alliance was an important component of AI’s turnaround plan, as that would have ensured fixed revenue for the airline. Formed in 1997, Star is a consortium of 27 airlines, including Lufthansa, Air Canada, Singapore Airlines, Thai Airways and Swiss.
08/08/11 Mihir Mishra/Business Standard

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Nigerian drug trafficker dies on plane

Lagos: The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA), has ordered a probe into the death of a 25-year old Nigerian, Chilaka Ogbonna Emmanuel.
He died onboard an aircraft on his way to Malaysia enroute Doha, forcing the pilot to divert the plane to India.
The sad incident occurred barely few months after Nigeria lost a suspected drug trafficker, Offiah Gozie Vincent, who was arrested at the Murtala Mohammed International Airport (MMIA), Lagos, but died few days later in a Lagos hospital.
Like Offiah, Chilaka reportedly took off from the Lagos airport on Tuesday, August 2, 2011, carrying a Nigerian international passport.
His sudden death arising from drug ingestion forced the pilot to make an emergency landing in India where he was confirmed dead in a hospital. A post mortem conducted revealed that he had ingested narcotics.
Mumbai police found an Italian visa application form and his Catholic baptism certificate in his bag" .
According to the NDLEA boss, “this is sad and unfortunate. It is one death too many. I want to know exactly what happened and take proactive action against future occurrence. I have ordered full investigation into the incident and I am expecting a detailed report in few days.”
07/08/11 Shola Adekola and Adelowo Oladipo/Sunday Tribune

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IndiGo loses Muscat rights

Muscat: India’s low-fare airline IndiGo has lost its rights to fly to Muscat, Indian newspapers have reported.
Quoting Indian government officials, business newspaper Mint reported that the government has withdrawn some of the overseas flying rights granted to IndiGo, run by InterGlobe General Aviation Pvt. Ltd, and handed them to state-owned Air India Ltd.
Earlier, IndiGo Airlines had announced its plans to start Muscat-Mumbai flights by the middle of October. It also had plans to start flights to Trivandrum, Kochi and Chennai by January 2012.
07/08/11 Times of Oman

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Technical faults delay AI flight

Lucknow: Dubai bound Air India Express flight with 144 passengers and six crew members on board was cancelled on Saturday after the pilot detected some technical faults just before the aircraft was about to taxi. The airlines officials, however, did not disclose the fault, which occurred.
The flight, IX-194, was scheduled to fly from Amausi airport at 3.10 pm. Passengers had boarded the flight. But just before pilot could taxi the aircraft on the run way, he detected some faults and aborted the flight. Later passengers were asked to deboard.
Air India Express official spokesperson, Chandra Kumar, told the media that the accessories of the aircraft were being sent through a Jet airways flight from Mumbai. He, however, did not disclose as to what part was to be replaced. Airlines officials at the Amausi airport too refused to comment on the incident.
07/08/11 Times of India

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Indian with $50,000 arrested in Bangladesh

Custom officials at Shah Amanat International Airport in Chittagong yesterday detained an Indian national with 100 grams of gold and around $50,000 in his possession.
He was held back from taking a Kolkata-bound flight of GMG Airlines after frisking him on suspicion at around 11.30am. The detainee was identified as Harish Chandra Upor, said a Patenga police station official. Customs sources said he was arrested on charge of possessing undeclared money.
06/08/11 Gulf Times

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Ministry not averse to Indian airlines joining Star Alliance

Mumbai: Even though the Civil Aviation Ministry is miffed with the suspension of Air India's membership application to Star Alliance, it is unlikely to stop other Indian airlines from joining the 27-member grouping.

“The Minister has gone on record stating that we have no problems with any another Indian airline joining the alliance. But we do not understand why Air India's application was rejected. If they are trying to arm-twist us by blocking Air India and bringing in another airline, it would not work,” a Ministry source told Business Line.

However, sources said, there hasn't been any application made by any other airline to join the alliance.

The Ministry officials' response came to a Business Line query on whether they would scuttle the entry of any other airline into the alliance, as was being indicated by a representative from Star Alliance.

Star Alliance is one of the oldest and the largest in terms of the number of airlines as members. Its member airlines include German carrier Lufthansa, Singapore Airlines, United Airlines, Air China and Japan's All Nippon Airways.

05/08/11 Debabrata Das/Business Line

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Jet Airways to lure more elite passengers in Mumbai-Hong Kong sector

Mumbai: It may not be the best of seasons for airlines in India. High fuel costs, shortage of pilots and other operating hurdles had left many of them in the red in the last reporting quarter. But that has not deterred airlines from spending on upgrading their services.

Jet Airways, the largest private sector airline in the country, has refitted one of its Boeing -777 aircraft making a three-class configuration to offer first class service on its Mumbai-Hong Kong flight.

The new first class service starting from August 21 will provide an ‘exclusive all-new five-star in-flight service,” said Mr Paul Wu, Country Manager for Jet in Hong Kong.

The first class suites on board will provide a personal cabin with sliding doors and a fully flat bed and a dining table for two, besides the other usual business-class amenities.

“Our aim is to ensure unmatched luxury, privacy and comfort to our elite passengers,” said Mr Wu, who has been with Jet Airways for over 15 years and posted in Hong Kong recently.

One of the things that will make the service unique is the in-flight meal, he said.

04/08/11 NK Kurup/Business Line

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Oman flight to beat pinch

New Delhi: The government has permitted Air India to fly to Oman, offering the ailing airline a fresh source of revenue.

“These routes are profitable and the government wants Air India to earn as much revenue as possible to keep it going. According to our estimates, more than 7,000 people travel to and fro from Oman on a weekly basis. The idea is to tap these flyers,” said a senior Air India official.

IndiGo had also considered starting flights to Oman, but the government withdrew its rights. IndiGo confirmed that the right to fly to Muscat had been withdrawn by the civil aviation ministry. “This is the first time this has happened, but we will manage in the other sectors. This does not worry us much,” said a senior IndiGo official.

In January, the then civil aviation minister Praful Patel had given IndiGo an in-principle right to fly to Muscat from Delhi and Mumbai.

Though some analysts has cried foul over barring IndiGo, the government claims it has acted within its rights to promote the national carrier.

05/08/11 Karan Choudhury/The Telegraph

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Test Flight For Air India's First Dreamliner Cut Short

Everett, Washington: A brand-new Boeing Dreamliner declared an emergency and returned to Paine Field on the jet's first flight.
The company confirmed with KIRO 7 Eyewitness News aviation reporter Rick Price.
The problem involved a loose connector that has since been fixed.
The plane is the first production 787 for Air India.
01/08/11 Kirotv.com

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Air India looking to raise US$830m to purchase Boeing 787

New Delhi: Air India is looking to raise some $830 million to purchase Boeing's Dreamliner 787.
The beleaguered carrier is hoping the fleet will help shore up revenues and perhaps even reverse its fortune.
Air India will receive four Boeing 787s by the end of this year while another 27 Dreamliners will be delivered over the next few years.
The carrier hopes the new fleet will attract more passengers on its long haul flights and reverse its falling market share.
Subash Goyal, Chairman, ASSOCHAM Committee on Aviation, said: "787 planes will definitely change the image of Air India. Aviation is such a business that you have to be ahead of the race. When 747s came, Air India was the first airline in Asia to have 747s. Now other countries have taken the lead. So we want Air India to come back to its glory."
However, Air India is struggling with its finances. It is looking to raise $832 million in loans to cover at least 85 per cent of the purchase cost of the 787s.
It is also looking at the sale and lease back route to keep its costs under check.
02/08/11 Damanjeet Kohli /Channel NewsAsia

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What went wrong with Air India's entry into Star Alliance?

National carrier Air India (AI) is left in the lurch after Star Alliance denied the latter entry into the world’s largest network of 27 airlines linking 855 airports in 155 countries.
Listed below are key take-aways from the communication sent by Star Alliance to the civil aviation ministry on why AI's entry is rejected, according to sources.
AI as a brand is not considered up-to-the-mark in terms of service quality. AI did not take up brand-makeover exercise.
With 31,000 employees on-board, AI's aircraft-to-employee ratio is 1:280, which is unheard of in any international airline.
With a poor equity base of Rs 145 crore and mounting debts of around Rs 45,000 crore, AI's financial health is not considered sound.
Negative news from all quarters on AI was disliked by member countries at Star Alliance.
AI, as promised earlier, has not been able to hive off its engineering, maintenance and overhaul division into separate entities. Singapore Airline and Germany's Lufthansa work on a smart business model of having separate subsidiaries for allied activities to churn more revenues.
AI, after merging with former Indian Airlines in 2007, has made cumulative losses of over Rs 13,000 crore.
Of the 27 member airlines at Star Alliance, 25 voted against AI in July when the airline was due to join the global network.
02/08/11 Shaheen Mansuri/moneycontrol.com

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Turkish Airlines keen on increasing India connections

International travellers from Hyderabad may soon have an additional airline option with Turkish Airlines keen to connect the city with Istanbul and onward destinations in Europe and North America.
A member of Star Alliance, the airline presently flies daily to Istanbul from New Delhi and Mumbai with a 70-75 per cent load factor but has ambitious expansion plans in India.
Speaking to a group of Indian journalists visiting the airline's headquarters in Istanbul at its invitation, Dr Temel Kotil, President and Chief Executive Officer, said “We are speaking to authorities in India to add more routes. When we get the permission, we will add Hyderabad first to our schedule since we see a lot of demand from there.”
The airline hopes to start flying out of Hyderabad from early 2012 subject to approvals.
Asked how many cities Turkish would like to add to its itinerary, Dr Kotil said that a minimum of five is necessary.
“We fly to nine cities in Germany, a much smaller country,” he said, hastening to add, “But it is not polite to ask for more destinations immediately.”
According to him, the ideal frequency would be twice daily from Delhi and Mumbai as it would improve quality of onward connections to Europe and North America.
02/08/11 Raghuvir Srinivasan/Business Line

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RAK Airways keen to operate more flights into Kerala

Thiruvananthapuram : RAK Airways, a national airline of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) operating from Ras Al Khaimah, Tuesday evinced interest in operating more flights to Kerala.
"The airline's top officials met Chief Minister Oommen Chandy and sought support to get the clearance from the central government to operate into Kochi and the international airport here," E.M. Najeeb, whose travel agency handles RAK ticketing in the state, told IANS.
Currently, RAK operates seven flights a week into Kozhikode international airport in Kerala.
"RAK officials have told Chandy that in lieu of operating into the two other state airports, they have offered any number of flights of the national carrier Air India to operate into the RAK international airport," Najeeb added.
02/07/11 IANS/Two Circles.net

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Airline Alliance Puts Air India on Standby, Indefinitely

New Delhi: A key part of the Indian government’s turnaround plan for Air India, the country’s unprofitable national carrier, has collapsed.

Star Alliance, a global network of airlines that caters to frequent international travelers, said Monday that Air India’s pending membership had been suspended.

“Air India has not met the minimum joining conditions that were contractually agreed in December 2007,” Star Alliance said in a statement. The alliance had said earlier this year that Air India would need to be ready to join by the end of July at the latest.

Air India has been struggling, as customers have turned to more efficiently run private airlines in India. The company has a reputation for late flights and poor customer service, and it is hemorrhaging money.

Many employees have not received their full paychecks in more than a month, and former and current pilots have complained in recent months that the company is not following internationally recognized safety norms.

The Center for Asia Pacific Aviation estimated that the company had lost $1.75 billion in the most recent business year, which ended March 31. Air India reported a loss of $1.25 billion for the previous business year.

01/08/11 Heather Timmons/New York Times

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Arrested Lankan flies out of Delhi, lands in Hyderabad

Hyderabad/New Delhi: Kathirkam Thasinthan, 24, of Kilinochchi in Sri Lanka landed at the Indira Gandhi International Airport, Delhi, from Colombo. While he was trying to board a connecting flight to New York, immigration officials at the IGI airport found that Kathirkam was travelling on a forged passport and apprehended him.

They also seized the forged Indian passport in the name of Adesh Goel. He was handed over to the IGI airport police. However, while he was being questioned by the Delhi airport police, Kathirkam managed to slip out of the police station located right next to the airport and sneaked back into the terminal.

Meanwhile, the IGI airport police, who realised that the Sri Lankan had escaped, sounded an alarm and started a frantic search for Kathirkam on all the roads out of the airport. While they were looking for him outside, Kathirkam checked in and boarded the flight to Hyderabad. The FRRO and CISF were informed of the incident only at around 7am on Saturday.

Police was sent an official complaint at around 2.30 pm. When security agencies started looking through the CCTV footage, they managed to identify the passenger and saw him first change his clothes and then leave for Hyderabad in another Air India flight at 5.40 pm.

A police team was dispatched to Hyderabad at 6 am on Sunday to bring the Lankan back to Delhi-. Kathirkam was immediately apprehended after he disembarked from the flight and was escorted.

01/08/11 Times of India

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Mahindra Aerospace plans to build 10 and 18 seater airplanes

New Delhi: Mahindra Aerospace, the aircarft and aero-structures arm of the the Mahindra Group, today said it plans to build 10 and 18 seater airplanes to tap the rising demand in general aviation segment in the country, including organised tours and pilgrimages.

Besides, it plans to test during this quarter, the prototype of a 5-seater aircraft -- NM5 -- that it is building jointly with National Aerospace Laboratories, Mahindra Group Director Hemant Luthra told reporters here.

The 10 and 18-seater planes will be built by GippsAERO, the Australia-based aircraft manufacturing division of Mahindra Aerospace.

Luthra added that it expects the Bangalore plant, which would attract an investment of Rs 280 crore over three years, to begin operations in the next 13 months.

The Rs 280-crore investment is part of the Mahindra's plan to invest Rs 450 crore over the next three years, including acquisitions, and acquiring land for more facilities.

01/08/11 PTI/Economic Times

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India to oppose EU's emission trading system for airlines

Mumbai/New Delhi: The Indian government will oppose the European Union's proposal to make airlines buy carbon credits for using its airspace on the grounds that it is unilateral and unfair on carriers from developing countries.

EU's proposal to cap planet-warming gases under its emission trading system (ETS) makes it mandatory for airlines to buy carbon credits equivalent to the carbon dioxide emitted by their aircraft while flying over the region. This is likely to force airlines to pass on the cost to passengers. India also says the arrangement would allow European carriers to manipulate the taxation system after it comes into force from January 1 next year.

"India is protesting the imposition of this system because no ETS measure can be imposed without bilateral negotiations. Tomorrow, they (EU) may impose another tax and nobody would be able to do anything," a top government official said.

India will take up the issue with the authority concerned in the European Union.

01/08/11 Manisha Singhal & Anindya Upadhyay

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Airport upgrade stalled by security ‘paranoia’

New Delhi: The installation of aerobridges at modern airports is a routine affair, not normally associated with security threats. Except in India, that is. With the government taking up modernisation of metro airports like Chennai and Kolkata, and non-metro airports, the Airports Authority of India (AAI) wants to install aerobridges to allow passengers a smooth entry and exit from their aircraft. Unfortunately, the ones it has zeroed in on are made by Chinese firms and the absence of security clearance means its plans have hit a roadblock.

Even after one-and-a-half years, AAI has not yet received the green signal from the Union Home Ministry to place an order for nearly 40 aerobridges which it needs, causing considerable delay in the modernisation projects of airports.

“Clarifications from the Home Ministry have not come for one-and-a-half-years now. There has been considerable delay. The Ministry has not communicated either ‘yes' or ‘no' to us,” official sources said.

The difference in prices between aerobridges produced by Chinese firms and those from the West was said to be substantial. While the cost of an aerobridge produced in Europe or the U.S. is about Rs. 6 crore, it was Rs. 2 crore for those from China, sources said.

31/07/11 Vinay Kumar/The Hindu

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Turkish Airlines plans to expand operations in India by '12

Istanbul: Turkish Airlines plans to expand operations in India in 2012 by doubling weekly flights to 28 and adding Hyderabad as its third Indian destination.

Turkey's flag carrier, which currently operates one flight daily to Delhi and Mumbai, also aims to extend its code share with Air India, India's national carrier, to get more passengers from Indian towns to fly to or through Turkey to other destinations. "We are looking at Chennai and Kolkata after Hyderabad. India is a very important market for us and we need to fly to at least five cities there," Turkish Airlines CEO Temel Kotil said.

Turkish Airlines' 170 aircraft cover 74 European cities through 144 routes, making it the 17th largest carrier in terms of fleet. It uses its Airbus 330-200 and Airbus 330-300 aircraft for its India operations, registering average load factors of 70-75%. The CEO said the airline aims to make Istanbul, Turkey's capital, the preferred transit point between Asia and Europe, as it takes only three to four hours to fly to any European city from there.

01/07/11 Economic Times

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