Air India privatisation: IndiGo, Etihad show interest in ailing national carrier; govt likely to come up with EoI next month

In a big relief for the ailing Maharaja-Air India, budget carrier IndiGo and Abu Dhabi-based Etihad Airways reportedly have approached the government to acquire the debt-laden national carrier, according to news reports.
This development has come soon after a senior official of Air India expressed concern about the future of the struggling airline, which he said, might be shut down by June next year if it could not find out a buyer.
In the case of these two firms, IndiGo, India's largest airline by market share, can buy 100 percent in Air India while Etihad can acquire only 49 percent due to the current norms of the foreign direct investment (FDI) policy, said a report in The Economic Times.
The government is expected to come up with the expression of interest (EoI) documents by next month, said the report.
“Representatives from these companies (IndiGo and Etihad) have met government officials and, unofficially, shown interest in the national carrier. The Tata Group, however, has not shown any interest yet,” the report said quoting an official in the know of the matter.
Meanwhile, Civil Aviation Minister Hardeep Singh Puri claimed that the bid to privatise the ailing Air India was going ahead well even as the government's efforts in the past to find a suitable buyer for the crisis-hit airline did not succeed, reported Mint.
“The only way forward is for Air India’s privatisation," Puri was quoted as saying in the report.
On Monday, a senior official of Air India had said that the airline might be forced to shut down by June next year unless it finds a buyer as 'piecemeal' arrangements cannot be sustained for long.
Amid continuing uncertainty over the fate of the national carrier, the official said there is also need for funds to restart operations of the airline's 12 grounded narrow-body planes.
Air India has a debt burden of around Rs 60,000 crore and the government is still working on the modalities of disinvestment.
31/12/19 First Post

Read More

IndiGo, Etihad Airways show interest in boarding Air India

New Delhi: IndiGo, India’s largest airline by market share, and Abu Dhabi-based Etihad Airways have met government officials and evinced interest in ailing national carrier Air India, a senior government official told ET.
“Representatives from these companies have met government officials and, unofficially, shown interest in the national carrier. The Tata Group, however, has not shown any interest yet,” said the official, who sought anonymity.
The government, which could not sell 76% in Air India last year, is offering 100% stake this time. But the response to road shows in Singapore and London were not encouraging.
Officials said that they did, however, see interest from a couple of private equity investors. “There are these two companies and a couple of private equity investors who have shown some interest. An airline as big as Air India is unlikely to receive any more interest,” said the official.
The Centre is likely to come up with the expression of interest (EoI) documents by next month.
Among the two suitors, IndiGo can bid to own 100% in Air India but Etihad can own only 49% under the current foreign direct investment (FDI) norms.

The norms allow a foreign carrier to own up to 49% in an Indian airline, but allow 100% foreign investment in an airline. This means Etihad can bid for 100% stake in Air India by tying up with either Abu Dhabi Investment Authority (ADIA) or National Investment and Infrastructure Fund.
The National Investment and Infrastructure Fund is an infrastructure investment company anchored by the Indian government, where ADIA is a key investor.

Etihad, till recently, owned 24% in Jet Airways but decided against funding the financially crippled airline, leading to its grounding in April.
31/12/19 Mihir Mishra/Economic Times

Read More

Rajasthan: Nigerian dupes businessman, held at Mumbai airport

Jaipur: The Special Operation Group of Rajasthan police on Monday arrested a Nigerian national from Mumbai airport for allegedly duping a Jaipur-based businessman of Rs 7.79 lakh. The Nigerian, whose visa had expired, was about to be deported by the immigration officials at the airport.
The Nigerian has been identified as Eric Chukwudi Okafor who had come to India on medical visa in 2015. A case under Sections 66C, 66D, 84B under Information Technology Act 2000 and IPC sections pertaining to cheating, fraud and criminal conspiracy (120B/419/420 of IPC) has been registered against Okafor.

Director general of police (ATS and SOG) Anil Paliwal said the businessman had registered an FIR complaining that he had been duped of Rs 7.79 lakh online on December 16. In the complaint, the businessman mentioned that he had a client based in Italy and he has been in touch with him for business for the past 15 years. He mentioned that he received an email from his client that his acquaintance needs money for medical treatment in India and he gave details of Indian bank accounts. On the request through the mail, the businessman deposited Rs7.79 lakh in instalment in different bank accounts from December 2 to December 11. But, when he talked to his Italian business client about the money he deposited on his request, his Italian client denied that he had written any such email to him asking him to deposit money in different bank accounts.
31/12/19 Times of India

Read More

Colombo-bound flight halted on runway due to technical snag

Chennai: A Sri Lankan airlines flight bound for Colombo, with 177 passengers and six crew members, was stopped at the runway, moments before take off, following a technical snag at the Anna International airport here this evening.
 Airport sources said the flight entered the runway and was all set for take off at 1630 hrs, when the pilot noticed a technical snag. The alert pilot immediately halted the flight at the runway itself.
 Thanks to the timely detection of the snag, the 183 passengers had a narrow escape. The sources the flight would leave for Colombo after the snag was rectified.
 29/12/19 UNI

Read More

India offers to commence flight connectivity with Batticaloa

As part of its measures for further improving air connectivity with Sri Lanka, India has offered to develop the Batticaloa Airport for flight operations between regional destinations, Daily Mirror learns. 
During the term of the last government, flight operations commenced between the Jaffna International Airport which was formerly known as the Palali Airport and Chennai. 
According to Industrial Exports, Investment Promotion, Tourism and Civil Aviation Minister Prasanna Ranatunga, Indian High Commissioner Taranjit Singh Sandhu offered to extend air connectivity between Indian cities and Batticaloa. 
The airport was set up in 1958. However, the Airforce took control of the airport on March 27, 1983 due to the war situation. Recently, it was gazetted as an international airport. Currently, domestic flights are operated from the airport. 
30/12/19 Kelum Bandara/Daily Mirror

Read More

Vietnamese Woman Arrested At Delhi Airport With 15 kg Peacock Feather

New Delhi: New Delhi: A Vietnamese woman was arrested by CISF personnel at the Delhi airport with 15 kg of peacock feather allegedly obtained in an illegal manner, a senior official said on Monday.
Nguyen Thi Le Hang was intercepted at the Indira Gandhi International (IGI) Airport in Delhi on Sunday.

The woman, bound for Ho Chi Minh City, was handed over to the Customs department as she could not explain the reason for carrying such a huge quantity of peacock feathers, the official said.

Customs officials will ascertain the source of the cache and whether the consignment violated the wildlife law, he added
30/12/19 PTI/NDTV

Read More

Kolkata: CISF Arrests Two Chinese Nationals For Smuggling Gold Worth Rs. 75 Lakh

The Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) personnel on Sunday nabbed two foreign passengers for carrying nine gold pieces weighing about 1884 gms worth approximately INR 75 lakh concealed in body cavity at NSCBI Airport, Kolkata. According to officials, two Chinese National, Meng Fanjun and Chengzhi Pei who were scheduled to travel to Mumbai by Indigo Airlines flight. They were caught during thePre-Embarkation Security Check (frisking) at Domestic Security Hold Area (SHA).
While  Meng Fanjun was crossing the DFMD  Asstt.Sub Inspector Ajeet Kumar of CISF observed unusual movement of the passenger and noticed the audiovisual alarm at the middle level of DFMD. At the same time Asstt. Sub Inspector Sunil Kumar Verma who was deployed at adjacent frisking booth also observed unusual movement of Chengzhi Pei as well as noticed the audiovisual alarm at the middle level of DFMD while he was crossing the DFMD.

On suspicion, both the passengers were taken at a separate place in SHA for thorough checking.  After intensive checks, six gold pieces from the possession of Fanjun and three gold pieces from the possession of Mr Pei were detected. The gold pieces were wrapped with black colour insulating tape which was concealed by both the passengers in their rectum.

On enquiry, it was learnt that both passengers had no check-in luggage and they had arrived from Guangzhou, China by Indigo Airlines on Sunday. Later, both the Chinese Nationals along-with the recovered 09 gold pieces weighing about 1884 gms worth approximately INR 75 lakh were handed over to Customs Officials for further action in the matter.
29/12/19  Varsha Chavan/Republic

Read More

Qatar Airways-IndiGo Codeshare For India: Strategically Excellent, Financially Uncertain

Qatar Airways is narrowing the gap with rival Emirates, which two years ago was 85% larger than Qatar. Last year Emirates was 69% bigger. But Qatar’s growth has been lopsided, especially in India, whose 1.3 billion people, dysfunctional flag carrier, and close proximity to the Gulf should empower Middle East hubs. Emirates is successful: it flies five times a day to Mumbai, India’s largest city, and sells a sixth flight from sister flydubai. Emirates even uses the A380. Qatar? It has just one flight a day to Mumbai.

 The difference is in traffic rights. While Dubai and Abu Dhabi have received additional traffic rights this decade, Qatar’s entitlement is unchanged since 2009. Not only has Qatar fallen behind on growth, it has become imbalanced trying to amass a position similar to Emirates in Europe and North America but without the connections to India.

Unable to grow in India on its own, Qatar has formed a codeshare partnership with IndiGo, the largest airline in India. Unlike many codeshares that are over-hyped, the Qatar-IndiGo partnership gives both a new growth platform, which if scaled could be more significant than they acknowledge. Their challenge is finding a suitable financial framework.

 The initial partnership is one-sided with Qatar codesharing on IndiGo flights between Doha and three Indian cities: Mumbai, Delhi, and Hyderabad. Before the codeshare, Qatar could feed its global network with only its single Mumbai flight. Now it can sell IndiGo’s double daily Mumbai-Doha flights, letting Qatar fill more connecting flights from Doha to London, New York and more.
29/12/19 Will Horton/Forbes

Read More

Air India to resume jumbo flight operations to Jeddah from Calicut

After an interval of over five years, Air India will resume its jumbo flight operations from the Calicut international airport to Jeddah (Saudi Arabia) from February 17.

Calicut airport director K. Srinivasa Rao told The Hindu on Friday that the Airports Authority of India (AAI) had given approval to the national flag carrier to operate direct flights initially twice a week on Monday and Saturday. The flight will land at Calicut at 7.05 a.m. and depart for Jeddah at 5.30 p.m. Bookings have already started, he said.

The Director General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) has already approved the proposal of Air India to recommence flight operations under Code E. It will conduct services on Boeing 747-400, a wide-bodied jet airliner.
28/12/19 The Hindu

Read More

Flight made emergency landing after Telugu woman suffered heart attack

Jeddah: A passenger plane had to make an emergency landing in Riyadh in Saudi Arabia, after a Telugu passenger who was travelling to India suffered a heart attack. The flight was en route from New York to Abu Dhabi on Friday evening, made an emergency landing at King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh.

60-year old Bala Nagamma, native of Kadapa, who was with her son Suresh in New York, was returning to India through a gulf carrier when she began to feel unwell in the mid-air, according to her family. The medical team at the airport responded quickly to the emergency and the patient was rushed to a local hospital in Riyadh where she is being admitted in ICU and her condition is stable now, they added.
Nagamma ticket is not covering the health care and cost of treatment is now equally concerned for the family. Almost all Telugu state passengers travel Northern America and other parts of the world through gulf-based carriers. Mid-Air health issues often reported among elderly patients who were on way to their families in abroad or back to home.
28/12/19  Telangana Today

Read More

Dubai car crash victim's body flown home to India on the flight he was booked to travel alive

Dubai: In an tragic twist of fate, the body of one of the two Indian students, who were killed in a car crash in Dubai after the friends’ reunion, was repatriated on a flight he was booked to fly home alive.

Sharat Kumar, 21, and Rohit Krishnakumar, 19, who were studying in universities in the United States and United Kingdom, respectively, met with the tragic end while Sharat was dropping Rohit home after meeting a few other Dubai-based friends on Christmas Eve.

Friends and relatives bid a tearful adieu to the youngsters at the embalming unit of the Medical Fitness Centre in Muhaisnah yesterday evening.

At the time of going to press, their mortal remains were taken to Dubai International Airport for repatriation to the south Indian state of Kerala, where their cremation will be held today.
Sharat’s body was to be flown on an Emirates flight at 9.40pm yesterday to Thiruvananthapuram, while Rohit’s body was scheduled to be repatriated on another Emirates flight to Kochi at 2.30am today.

Dozens of friends and relatives were accompanying the two grieving families.

A family friend told Gulf News that Sharat was supposed to be on the same flight along with his mother and grandmother. “They had booked the tickets on the same flight to Kerala and join his father there. It is heartbreaking that we are sending off his body on the same flight.”
As per the family’s initial plan, he said, Sharat and his father were scheduled to go on a pilgrimage to the Sabarimala temple on Friday. Sharat is believed to have been observing a vow of penance, a relative said. “He had arrived from the US on Tuesday and had gone out with friends, saying they would eat out.”

The family friend said Sharat had hardly spent any time at home after arriving from the US. “He shared the joy of scoring good grades with his mother and grandmother and soon he went out to meet his friends.”
He suspected that Sharat might have been suffering from jetlag and dozed off while driving back home.
26/12/19 Sajila Saseendran/Gulf News

Read More

Saudi national held in Hyderabad for duping air hostess

An engineering student from Saudi Arabia has been taken into custody by the Banjara Hills police for duping an air hostess on the pretext of marriage and extracted Rs 15 lakhs from her.
Saleem (30) is pursuing engineering in a private college in the city. He befriended the woman who is working as an air hostess in Saudi Arabian airlines in 2015. The duo fell in love and entered into a live-in relationship. The woman used to stay at his house in the Paramount colony in Shaikpet. The accused also introduced her to his parents and promised to marry her.
Believing him, the woman gave Rs 15 lakh to the accused after which he started ignoring her. On December 6, the woman spotted Saleem in a plane from Riyadh to Hyderabad. When she confronted him, Saleem told her that he will neither marry her nor return her money back.
Based on the woman's complaint, the Banjara Hills police registered cases under relevant sections of IPC and arrested him. The police produced him before Nampally court and sent him to remand.
26/12/19 Roja Mayabrahma/Hans India

Read More

Cambodian national detained at Bengaluru airport with wild boar teeth

Bengaluru: Personnel with the Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) at the Kempegowda International Airport in Bengaluru seized three wild boar teeth from the possession of a Cambodian national on Wednesday. The passenger was slated to board a flight from the state capital of Karnataka to Varanasi in Uttar Pradesh when he was detained.

At about 1.40 pm on December 25, Cambodian national Sopheap Chan was apprehended during the Pre-Embarkation Security Check (PESC) after CISF personnel detected three animal teeth in his hand baggage through the X-BIS machine. Chan told the officers that the teeth belonged to a wild boar, however, he was unable to produce any documents regarding the ownership of the teeth.
A Cambodian national bound to board an Indigo Airlines Flight to Varanasi at 3.20 pm, Chan was handed over to Bengaluru City Police along with the teeth. The local forest department was also informed about the incident and further investigation into the matter is underway.
26/12/19 MirrorNowNews.com

Read More

Explained: What has MEA announced about carrying old passports for OCI cardholders?

New Delhi: On Sunday, 16 American citizens of Indian origin were briefly stranded at New York’s JFK airport for not carrying old canceled passports, PTI reported.

Over the past few months, many OCI cardholders have faced similar issues and have had to cancel their trips to India. Some have had to return midway from connecting airports such as Dubai and Singapore.
After receiving a flood of complaints from the Indian origin community, the Ministry of External Affairs had announced a relaxation in the rules earlier this month.
According to the MEA website, an Overseas Citizen of India (OCI) is a person of Indian origin who is a foreign national and gets registered as an Overseas Citizen of India Cardholder under Section 7A of the Citizenship Act, 1955.

As per the MEA rules, an OCI card needs to be re-issued every time a passport is renewed by cardholders below the age of 20 years and those who have completed the age of 50 years. Cardholders between 21 and 50 years of age who acquire a new passport do not need to get their OCI card re-issued.

The guidelines have been in force since 2005, as per the MEA.

In the past several months, many OCI holders complained of being subjected to harassment by immigration authorities as well as airline officials over the rule, which had not been enforced so far. Several OCI holders, including many Indian Americans, complained to Indian diplomatic missions.
25/12/19 Indian Express

Read More

Why PIOs are finding it hard to visit India

Chennai: People of Indian origin who live abroad continue to find it difficult to travel to India on holidays because a change in norms regarding travel documents was not communicated in time by the ministry of home affairs to travel and tour operators and airlines.
The rule issued by the ministry says that people of Indian origin who are below 20 years should have their OCI (overseas citizenship of India) card re-issued on renewal of their foreign passports and those who have attained 50 years have to get the OCI card re-issued for travel to India.

Many people of Indian origin living in UK, the US, Europe and other countries who travel to India to visit friends and relatives during Christmas and New Year and to attend social functions could not travel after airlines refused to board them. Many had to cancel their trips planned three to four months ago. Others who could not avoid travel had to spend Rs 2,000 to get a fresh visa, pay rebooking charges of close to Rs 12,000 and pay difference in fare.

Basheer Ahmed of Metro Travels said that several families whose trips got cancelled because airlines did not allow them to board could not travel because flights are full for the next two weeks and air fares are high. People from Tamil Nadu have got affected the most because a good number of diaspora live in the US and Europe.

Return air fare is in the range of Rs 50,000 to Rs 1 lakh from destinations in Europe to Chennai for travel in the last week of December and first week of January.

Zawahir, who holds a French passport, and hails from Mayiladuthurai, said, “I had to leave behind three of my children because the airline did not allow them to board the flight at Paris because their new passport numbers were not on the OCI card on December 16. The airline received an instruction from the Indian embassy but the travel agent who booked my ticket did not know about the new rule. I had to come to Chennai for a wedding which could not be avoided. I sent the children back home with a friend.”
25/12/19 V Ayyappan/Times of India

Read More

Qatar Eyes Luxury Travel From India

Qatar National Tourism Council (QNTC), which opened its office in India last year, has witnessed a growth of 20 per cent in 2018. The destination has witnessed a slight dip in arrivals in 2019, but looks to achieve its numbers by the year end. With a large Indian expat population, Qatar has been a popular destination amongst the VFR segment.

“India is a key source market for us, and our commitment to the market is evidenced by the opening last year of a dedicated office to tailor our offerings to this market. Visitor numbers in 2018 grew by 20 per cent from the year before, while 2019 has seen a dip. We are also home to a large expat population from India, so we have existing ties which we continue to nourish. Qatar and India have historical ties as well. The Indian market thus remains important for Qatar, and short travel times as well as a host of offerings in hospitality, retail and beyond, aligned with Indian visitors’ preferences,” Rashed AlQurese, Chief Marketing & Promotion Officer, QNTC, said.

With an increase in awareness about the destination in India, Qatar is now looking to tap the luxury travellers segment from India. Qatar also is home to some of the finest MICE venues in the region, and is now keen to target Indian MICE.

AlQurese added, “Historically, most Indian visitors to Qatar have been visiting friends and relatives. When we opened our office, our intent was to expand this segment apart from growing the FIT and leisure visitor segments. In particular, we target those seeking to experience Qatar’s luxury hospitality and unique cultural offerings. We work closely with Indian event planners and business events professionals to build awareness of Qatar’s growing portfolio of cultural, hospitality and MICE products and services for both business and leisure travellers. With 128 properties in the luxury and affordable luxury space, and visa free entry for Indian citizens, we are witnessing increasing interest from Indian planners looking for a novel destination to host their events.”

Also in the recent years, Indians are looking for unique destinations to tie nuptial knots; Qatar has been one of the new destinations in this segment. “We have seen great interest in Qatar as a wedding destination. A couple looking to tie the knot in magnificent ballrooms or against a backdrop of manicured vistas will find whatever they want in Qatar’s hassle-free locations which regularly cater to clients who have an appetite for modern luxury, grand entertainment and mouth-watering delights,” he added.
23/12/19 Akshay Kumar/T3

Read More

Lufthansa joins forces with Vistara to boost its Indian network

Lufthansa and Vistara, one of India’s leading airlines starts today offering its customers codeshare flights. A new partnership that adds 126 weekly flights to ten key Indian cities. This will be in addition to Lufthansa’s current schedule of 56 weekly international flights to and from the major Indian hubs of Delhi, Mumbai, Bangalore and Chennai with ultra-modern aircraft like the Airbus A350. It is planned to subsequently add more destinations of Vistara’s network under the umbrella of the codeshare agreement in 2020 and beyond.

Connecting Vistara‘s strong domestic network with Lufthansa‘s global reach gives European airline customers immediate access to many more Indian cities than ever before. At the same time this partnership offers customers from ten key Indian cities like Kolkata, Goa and Pune unlimited access to the Lufthansa Group’s worldwide network, including top-tier destinations in Europe, Canada and the United States. Further, Lufthansa and Vistara are in the final stages on enablinVistara Dec 2019Vistara Dec 2019g customers being able to earn miles flying Vistara or Lufthansa. Vistara joins Air India as the second Indian airline having a codeshare agreement with Lufthansa.
George Ettiyil, Senior Director Sales for the Lufthansa Group Airlines in South Asia emphasizes the strategic importance of taking the existing interline agreement with Vistara to the next level. “This marks Lufthansa’s commitment to offering its Indian customers world-class international travel experiences and will enable them to use their preferred mileage program on codeshare routes. By teaming up with Vistara, we will strengthen and expand our position as the leading and most popular European airline in India – a country all set to become the third-largest aviation market in just a few years’ time.“
24/12/19 Deccan Chronicle

Read More

16 Indian origin Americans were stranded at JFK airport while flying to New Delhi; find out why

News flew in from New York’s John F Kennedy Airport, where 16 Indian-Americans were briefly stranded. Among them was McKinsey’s Senior Partner, Somesh Khanna. The 16 Indian-Americans heading for New Delhi were flying Air India, and their boarding passes could not be processed. Read on if you are wondering how that happened.

The passengers were actually not carrying their old cancelled passports, as per reports, and the new temporary rules require them to do so. These India-American passengers were unaware of the fact that passengers are required to carry their old cancelled passport, the one whose number is mentioned in the OCI or Overseas Citizens of India card. Those, who hold OCI (below 20 years and above 50 years of age), which is a lifelong visa to India, need to get their OCI card renewed each time they get their passport renewed.
However, this provision has been relaxed until June 30, 2020. But Indian travellers were asked to carry their old passports with them when they fly to India. The concerned travellers who were briefly stranded at JFK airport were not aware of this rule, and hence were not carrying their old passports.

Luckily for them, high-level interventions by Indian people including Harsh Vardhan Shringla, Indian Ambassador to the USA; Sandeep Chakravorty, Consul General New York; and Kamal Roul, Air India (North America) Head were made.
24/12/19 TimesTravel

Read More

Where are the 3 terrorists who were swapped for 170 passengers of hijacked IC-814?

New Delhi: Tuesday, 24 December, marks 20 years since the hijacking of Indian Airlines flight IC-814 by five Pakistani terrorists. Their aim was the release of terrorists Masood Azhar, Omar Sheikh and Mushtaq Ahmad Zargar.

The hijack and subsequent hostage-release situation lasted a week until India agreed to release the three terrorists for about 170 passengers who were onboard.
The IC-814 was hijacked on 24 December 1999, when it was on its way to Delhi from Kathmandu. The flight, which made stops at Amritsar and Lahore, ultimately stationed itself in Kandahar, Afghanistan.
The CBI had charged 10 people, out of which seven, including the five hijackers, are believed to be in Pakistan.
On the 20th anniversary of the Kandahar hijack, ThePrint traces the activities of the three terrorists released — Azhar, Sheikh and Zargar — and how they still are a challenge for the security establishment in India.

After his release, Masood Azhar regrouped his terror organisation, Jaish-e-Mohammed, and launched a series of deadly attacks, including on the Indian Parliament in December 2001, the 2008 Mumbai terror attacks and the Pathankot airbase attack in January 2016.

The most recent terror attack by the Jaish was in February 2019, when a suicide bomber rammed his explosives-laden vehicle into a CRPF convoy in Pulwama killing 40 personnel.
Azhar, who was arrested from Kashmir in 1994, is also believed to be supported by Pakistan’s intelligence agency ISI, and was so important that multiple attempts were made to get him released, even before the Kandahar hijack. In July 1995, Al-Faran, a Kashmiri Islamist militant group, kidnapped six foreign tourists from Pahalgam in Kashmir and demanded Azhar’s release in exchange for the tourists.

This year, after much persuasion, the United Nations declared Azhar a global terrorist. At present, he is believed to be suffering from severe renal illness and is undergoing treatment at a military hospital in Pakistan.

Omar Sheikh is, perhaps, most infamous for the 2002 beheading of Wall Street Journal reporter Daniel Pearl, who was investigating the financing of al-Qaeda.

It is alleged that Sheikh lured Pearl into a trap by promising to arrange an interview with an Islamic cleric, and kidnapped him. Pearl was accused of being an American spy, and Sheikh demanded the release of a halted US shipment of F-16 fighter jets to the Pakistani government to let Pearl go.

Sheikh, along with his associates, kept Pearl captive for nine days before releasing a videotape which showed Pearl’s severed head.

At present, Sheikh, who was arrested on 12 February 2002 in Lahore, is in a Pakistani jail for his role in Pearl’s death. He has been sentenced to death.

Mushtaq Ahmed Zargar, who belonged to the Jammu and Kashmir Liberation Front (JKLF), was in jail since 1992.

Intelligence sources said after his release in 1999, Zargar is believed to have renewed the activity of Al-Umar Mujahideen in Muzaffarabad, close to the LoC. Sources also said that Zargar has recruited and trained youngsters for “war” in Kashmir and is believed to have been working to renew the sleeper cells.

Zargar is suspected to be the man behind the June 2019 terror attack in Kashmir’s Anantnag, in which five CRPF personnel were killed and three others were injured after their patrolling party was attacked with grenades.

Also, in 2017, Zargar claimed responsibility for many of the grenade attacks on the security forces in the Kashmir valley.
24/12/19 Ananya Bhardwaj/The Print

Read More

‘Hijack baby’: How IC 814 Kandahar tragedy shaped Jaswant Singh grand-daughter’s life

I was born on this day 20 years ago – the day Indian Airlines flight IC 814 was hijacked from Kathmandu in Nepal on its way to New Delhi. My grandfather Jaswant Singh was the foreign minister of India.

As the news of Kandahar hijack shook India, my grandfather heard two cries. One was of the families of those held hostage by Pakistan’s Harkat-ul-Mujahideen terrorists on the IC 814. The other was the cry of a newborn in his family. The hijack drama not only changed India’s security story irrevocably, but it changed my life too.
Many of my family friends received the news of the IC 814 hijack and of my birth at the same time.

While my family was rejoicing my birth at the hospital, a call about the hijack took my grandfather Jaswant Singh away that day and he could not be by my side. My grandmother kept updating him about me and asked him to reach the hospital. All he told her was that something calamitous had taken place and he had to attend to it.
My family waited for him to come and perform the gutki, a Rajasthani ritual that marks the birth of a child. In this custom, parents of the newborn choose a member of the family to give honey or jaggery as the first food to the newborn. It is believed that the child imbibes the qualities of the member who gives the gutki. My parents had chosen my grandfather, Jaswant Singh, for the custom. Since he was unavailable because of the IC 814 hijack, my grandmother was worried that I would have to go hungry for hours. But my grandfather came to the hospital to perform gutki late in the evening, and left quickly to attend to the national crisis at hand.
Growing up, I got many nicknames from relatives and family friends, even before I got an official one. They called me “hijack baby” and “Kandahari Kumari”. Every year on my birthday, my family would always talk about the hijack tragedy. I could never really shake it off.

My brother, who is a few years older than me, would jokingly tease me saying I was ‘bad luck’ for India, sending me into an infuriated sulk.

When I was about seven or eight years old, I was the only one among my classmates and play friends who knew what hijack meant. I had heard so much about it from my family during breakfast discussions. I would sit beside my grandmother and ask her endless questions about the hijack. More than any bedtime tale, I was always eager to listen to the hijack story.
24/12/19 Harshini Kumar Rathore/The Print

Read More

Cabinet approves signing of protocol to allow more airlines to operate between India and Switzerland

New Delhi: The Cabinet on Tuesday approved signing of the protocol to amend the air services agreement between India and Switzerland, which will allow more number of airlines to start flight operations between the two countries. "It will provide enabling environment for enhanced and seamless connectivity while providing commercial opportunities to the carriers of both the sides ensuring greater safety and security," said a government press release.
The release added that under the amendments, multiple airlines would be allowed to conduct operations between the two countries. Till date, only two airlines were permitted.
As per the amendments, the "designated airlines" would be free to decide reasonable tariff without resorting to anti-competitive and predatory behaviour, the release said.
According to the press release, the amendments state that "designated airline(s) of each country may use aircraft leased from other company or airline(s), but lessor not to exercise the rights it doesn't have".
Before a country's airline can operate international flights, a "bilateral air services agreement" has to be negotiated to decide how many total flights (or seats) each week can be allowed from one nation to another.
24/12/19 PTI/Economic Times

Read More

9 Turkmenistan Women Arrested For Smuggling At Delhi Airport: Police

Delhi: In a major operation, nine women from Turkmenistan were arrested for allegedly trying to smuggle out of the country foreign currencies worth around Rs 3.83 crore at Delhi airport, officials said on Monday.
A total of 105 people were intercepted -- 59 women and 46 men -- when they were travelling to Turkmenistan on Wednesday, they said.

"Personal and baggage search of the 88 passengers and rummaging of flight resulted in the recovery of foreign currency $7,98,840 equivalent to Rs 5.64 crore," a statement issued by the customs department said.

Further, 48 passengers were released along with their foreign currency, as they were carrying foreign currency under permissible limit, it said.

Furthermore, remaining foreign currency -- $5,41,961, equivalent to Rs 3.83 crore was seized under the relevant provisions of the Customs Act, the statement said.
Out of the remaining 40 passengers, nine of them -- all women were placed under arrest, the officials said, quoting the statement.
23/12/19 PTI/NDTV

Read More

Bangladeshi man held for entering IGI airport using invalid ticket

New Delhi: A Bangladeshi national has been apprehended at the Indira Gandhi International (IGI) Airport here for allegedly using an invalid ticket to enter the terminal area, a senior official said on Tuesday.
The passenger, identified as Mohammed Ibrahim Khalil, was apprehended on Monday by CISF personnel as he attempted to leave the airport''s Terminal-3 (T3) building, the official said.

The man, holding Bangladeshi passport, was stopped and questioned, as exiting the terminal area is not allowed under normal circumstances, he said.

He told the Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) personnel that he used a cancelled ticket to Bangkok to enter the terminal area to see off his uncle who was travelling to Moscow, the official said.
24/12/19 PTI/Outlook

Read More

16 Indian-Americans briefly stranded at JFK airport for not carrying old cancelled passports

Washington: At least 16 Indian-Americans with valid OCI cards headed to New Delhi from the US experienced some anxious moments at the John F Kennedy airport on Sunday as the national carrier Air India was unable to process their boarding passes since they were not carrying their old cancelled passports, officials said.
 As per the new temporary rules, which they were unaware of, these passengers were required to carry their old cancelled passport whose number is mentioned in their Overseas Citizens of India (OCI) card.
Under the provisions of the OCI card, which gives the cardholder lifelong visa to India, those below 20 years and above 50 years need to renew their OCI card every time they have their passport renewed. Early this month, the provision has been relaxed till June 30, 2020, but the concerned OCI cardholders have been asked to carry their old passport with them to fly to India. However, not many OCI cardholders are aware of these new rules, officials said.
 While all of these Indian-American passengers were carrying a valid OCI card, they did not have along with them their old passports. Among the 16 Indian-Americans briefly stranded at the airport included Somesh Khanna, who co-leads McKinsey's global banking and securities practice, who was flying First-Class On-Air India along with his family.
 23/12/19 PTI/Economic Times

Read More

Russian plane makes emergency landing in Baku

Baku, Azerbaijan: The Russian Azur Air’s passenger plane that flew from India’s Goa state to Russia’s capital Moscow made an emergency landing in Baku, the Heydar Aliyev International Airport told Trend.

“The plane requested the emergency landing at our airport for technical reasons,” the airport said. “The plane successfully landed at our airport at 11:05 (GMT+4).”

“All passengers are currently accommodated at the Heydar Aliyev International Airport,” the airport said. “They will be provided with food and drinks.”

In accordance with the available information, another plane will fly to take these passengers.
21/12/19 Trend

Read More

Vizag may soon get back its flight connectivity to Bangkok

Visakhapatnam: The city may soon get its direct flight to Bangkok back over the next few months, according to sources. A few months ago, Thai Air Asia decided to withdraw its direct flight to Bangkok.
According to members of the Andhra Pradesh Air Travellers’ Association (APATA), in a meeting with representatives SpiceJet, the need of a direct flight to Bangkok was discussed.
Speaking to TOI, K Vijay Mohan of APATA said, “Loads to Bangkok were at 79% when Air-Asia withdrew its flight. The flight was withdrawn because of wrong revenue management by the airlines as the tickets were sold at a cheap rate and losses were incurred. Hence, it was suggested at the meeting to not sell tickets at low fares and have a fare of around Rs 12,000 to Rs 14,000.”

“Airline representatives have responded positively, and we expect the flight to do well because the occupancy rate of this sector has always been high,” added Mohan who is the president of Tours and Travels Association of Andhra.
Airport director Raja Kishore told TOI, “The traffic in Visakhapatnam has been growing tremendously. People are looking for economical options for holidays. Thailand is one of the preferred destinations. A direct flight would also help better connectivity to other countries.”
20/12/19 Reshma Jain/Times of India

Read More

India's five-star airline now flies daily to Bangkok

Vistara, India’s finest full-service carrier and a JV of Tata and Singapore Airlines, now flies daily between Bangkok and New Delhi, India.

The airline inaugurated the daily flight to Bangkok, Thailand in August 2019, becoming the only airline to offer the choice of Premium Economy Class for travel between India and Thailand, in addition to Business and Economy class.

With world-class cabin features, complimentary gourmet meals served in all three cabins, a seamless on-ground experience and service by cabin crew trained to the exacting standards of Tata and Singapore Airlines, travellers can now fly in style with Vistara to explore India. Customers from Bangkok can take convenient onward connections via Delhi on Vistara to several destinations within India including Amritsar, Bengaluru, Chennai, Hyderabad, Kolkata and Mumbai.
Vistara is the highest-rated Indian airline on Skytrax and TripAdvisor, and the winner of several ‘Best Airline’ awards. It has consistently raised the bar for operations and service delivery in the Indian aviation industry in a short span of time to be known as India’s only five-star airline (per 2020 APEX OFFICIAL AIRLINE RATINGS™).
20/12/19 Bangkok Post

Read More

Delta Cargo excited by new India service

Delta Air Lines Cargo will target the pharma, automotive and perishables sectors on its new service between New York JFK and Mumbai.

The weekly service will begin on December 22 utilising B777-200LR capacity.

Key export products from India are anticipated to be pharmaceuticals, automobile parts, perishables, courier shipments and general cargo.

Delta is supported in the market by its partner Sharaf Cargo, which will be the airline’s general sales agent for India.

“This is an exciting new route for us and the extensive connections from New York really plays to our network strength in the US providing customers with significant opportunities for import and export in a market that is seeing huge growth,” said Gonzalo Hernandez, Delta Cargo sales, Europe, Middle East, Africa and India.

19/12/19 Damian Brett/Air Cargo News

Read More

Delta to launch Mumbai-NYK non-stop next week

Mumbai: When Delta returns to India next week with the launch of a daily nonstop flight between Mumbai and New York, the one thing that is most likely to be an instant hit in the passenger cabin is its free messaging service. Onboard the ultra long haul flight, all passengers, including those in the economy class, will be able to send messages on iMessage, WhatsApp or Facebook messenger, for free.
``Our in flight wifi services are powered by Gogo’s high-speed Ku-Band satellite technology. While internet surfing and phone calls will be charged; messaging will be free,'' said Jimmy Eichelgruen, Delta, director-sales, Africa, Middle East and Indian subcontinent in a press meet held in Mumbai on Thursday.

Currently, about 20 carriers worldwide offer on board messaging services for free; some like Alitalia offer it free only to premium class passengers, while others like Qantas offers only on domestic routes. The passenger simply connects his/her smartphone to the airline’s in flight network which grants free access to messaging service providers like WhatsApp, iMessage etc.

After an absence of four years, Delta will relaunch its Mumbai-NewYork flights from December 24. Prior to this, Delta operated nonstop from Mumbai between 2006 and 2009 and thereafter the flights were routed via Amsterdam until 2015, when it suspended its Mumbai operations.

Currently, Air India and United Airlines link Mumbai to Newark with non-stop flights. Said a travel agent, requesting anonymity: ``Though two airlines operate non-stop flights between Mumbai and Newark, the demand is high on this particular route. With a third airline in the market, the fares will stabilise a bit.’’ Currently, among the three carriers, fares listed by Delta are the cheapest. For instance, for travel in the first week of January, Delta offered a return fare (as on Thursday evening) of Rs 1 lakh, versus the Rs 1.35 lakh to 1.40 lakh offered by other two carriers. ``These might be introductory fares that a new entrant offers. The coming months will tell how the Indian market has taken to the Delta product,’’ the agent added.
19/12/19 Manju V/Times of India

Read More

Delta, United challenge Air India, Gulf carriers on US-India routes

Air India and Emirates account for 36 per cent of market share of India-US air traffic and their dominance has come under challenge with US airlines launching new services to India.
United launched a daily San Francisco-Delhi flight earlier in the month and Delta will begin its New York - Mumbai service next week offering customers more non stop travel options "This is a good time for Delta to be in Indian market," said airline's sales director (Africa, Middle East and India) Jimmy Eichelgruen. He pointed out to the growth in trade and trave between the two countries and said the new flight beginning December 24 will give Indian passengers easy onward connections to 50 cities in the US.
Harvinder Singh, United's country manager in India said launch of new flight will give customers more choice and connections from San Francisco to 40 other destinations across US and Canada.

Over 5.4 million passengers flew between two countries in twelve months ending September. Emirates is the largest carrier on India-US market with a 20 per cent share of passenger traffic. Air India which operates 33 flights per week has a share of 16 per cent and Qatar Airways takes third place with 11 per cent. Air India's share increased from 11 per cent four years ago to 16 per cent now as it introduced new flights to San Francisco and Washington.
19/12/19 Aneesh Phadnis/Business Standard

Read More

NCLT extends resolution process for crisis-hit Jet Airways by 90 days

The Mumbai Bench of National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) on Friday approved the extension of the Corporate Insolvency Resolution Process (CIRP) for Jet Airways by 90 days.

The extension comes after the CIRP did not make any headway during the mandated 180-day period. The Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code permits one-time extension up to 90 days by the NCLT in deserving cases.

Ashish Chhawchharia, the Resolution Professional (RP) for the defunct Jet Airways, had filed a miscellaneous application before the two-member Bench on December 13 where he also attached the minutes of the Committee of Creditors (CoC) meeting.

The CoC passed a resolution with vote share of 90.08 per cent for extension of the CIRP by 90 days. Following the resolution passed by the CoC, the NCLT ordered 90-days extension for completion of CIRP.
During one of the recent hearings, the RP had informed the court that he had received two early interests — one from an Indian entity backed by a UK-based firm, and another from a West Asian Fund — for picking up stake in the company.
As per FDI rules, an overseas airline can hold only up to 49 per cent stake in an Indian airline, with the balance being held by an Indian partner.
South American conglomerate Synergy Group was the only company to place a formal EoI for Jet before the deadline ended in October. Thereafter, Synergy asked for more time to submit a formal bid.
20/12/19 Business Line

Read More

Air Seychelles to fly daily to Mumbai in summer 2020

Air Seychelles, the national airline of the Republic of Seychelles, will be increasing its services to Mumbai from six flights per week to daily during the peak summer months of 2020.

The announcement came during the airline’s celebration of completing five years of non-stop service between India and Seychelles. Launched as a three per week service in December 2014, the Seychelles flag carrier now operates six weekly flights to India’s financial capital and has transported more than 900 tonnes of cargo between the two countries.

Since 2014, Air Seychelles has carried over 500,000 passengers between Mumbai and Seychelles operated by the airline new Airbus A320neo aircraft consisting of 12 business class and 156 economy class seats.

Beyond Mumbai, together with codeshare partner Air India, the airline also offers domestic services to eight cities including Ahmedabad, Bangalore, Kolkata, Kochi, Delhi, Hyderabad, Chennai, Trivandrum and international services between Mumbai and Bangkok.
19/12/19 ITLN

Read More

Light Combat Aircraft impress Russians

In its first international joint exercise held recently, the Light Combat Aircraft (LCA) Tejas has impressed the Russian Air Force contingent.
The second edition of bilateral tri-services Exercise heeld between India and Russia concluded on December 19 and Tejas, which was part of the Indian Air Force (IAF) fleet won praise from a Russian pilot.
Lt Col Nestervoe of the Russian Air Force who flew the Tejas prototype trainer aircraft PV-6 with Gp Capt N Deepak, chief test pilot of the National Flight Testing Centre said that the aircraft was compact with very good quality avionics.
During the sortie the capabilities of the aircraft in terms of maneuverability and the capabilities of the
avionics was demonstrated along with laser-guided bomb and synthetic attack radar attacks on ground targets.
Earlier this year, the Tejas programme finally become combat-ready after more than three decades. In
February, it was accorded the Final Operational Clearance (FOC) by the military aviation certifying agencies.
19/12/19 Bangalore Mirror

Read More

Pratt and Whitney appoints Ashmita Sethi as MD of its India division

 
New Delhi: Aircraft engine-maker Pratt and Whitney (PW) on Thursday appointed Ashmita Sethi as the managing director of its India division, according to a statement.

Sethi had resigned from her position of director for communications and corporate affairs at Boeing India a few weeks ago.

The A320neo family aircraft, which are powered by PW engines, have been facing frequent on-ground and mid-air glitches since their induction into the IndiGo and GoAir fleets in 2016.

Palash Roy Chowdhury, who served as the managing director of PW''s Indian division for around eight years, put in down his papers in July.

PW, which is a division of United Technologies Corp, said on Thursday,"Ms. Sethi brings more than 20 years of experience from the defense and aerospace industry to this role and joins PW following a distinguished career in corporate and public affairs, and communications with Boeing and Rolls-Royce."
19/12/19 PTI/Outlook

Read More

Boeing to halt production of 737 Max airliner in January

Boeing Co. said Monday that it will temporarily stop producing its grounded 737 Max jet starting in January as it struggles to get approval from regulators to put the plane back in the air.

The Chicago-based company said production would halt at its plant with 12,000 employees in Renton, Washington, near Seattle. But it said it didn’t expect to lay off any workers at this time.

The move amounts to an acknowledgement that it will take much longer than Boeing expected to win approval from the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration and other global regulators to fly the planes again.

The Max is Boeing’s most important jet, but it has been grounded since March after crashes in Indonesia and Ethiopia that killed a total of 346 people. The FAA told the company last week that it had unrealistic expectations for getting the plane back into service. Boeing has missed several estimates of a return date for the plane, and the company didn’t give a date on Monday.

Even if no employees are laid off, ceasing production still will cut into the nation’s economic output because of Boeing’s huge footprint in the nation’s manufacturing sector. Through October of this year, the U.S. aerospace industry’s factory output has fallen 17% compared with the same period last year, to $106.4 billion, in part due to previous 737 Max production cuts.
The shutdown also is likely to ripple through Boeing’s vast network of 900 companies that make engines, bodies and other parts for the 737, and layoffs are likely.

Richard Aboulafia, an aircraft industry analyst at the Teal Group, said the shutdown would probably hinder the economy in the coming months and could worsen the nation’s trade balance.

This is the country’s biggest single manufactured export product, Aboulafia said.

In a statement, Boeing said it will determine later when production can resume, based largely on approval from government regulators.

We believe this decision is least disruptive to maintaining long-term production system and supply chain health, the statement said.
17/12/19 AP/India Today

Read More

London Stansted To Mumbai Non-Stop? Air India Considers The Route

Air India is keen on expanding its operations to London. However, slots at Heathrow and Gatwick Airport are few and far between, attracting a fairly high cost. The solution? London Stansted Airport has very few long-haul flights, yet plenty of space for further operations. Air India could add to its Stansted operations in order to increase capacity into London.
According to Livemint, Air India’s Regional Director Ravi Bodade commented that the Indian flag carrier has an interest in flying to London’s low-cost hub from Mumbai. The airline is reportedly already studying the feasibility of launching such a route to the London area.
Indeed, while the carrier is evaluating the route, it is said that services could commence as soon as during the IATA winter schedule. This ends after the 28th of March, meaning that we could see a second Air India service at Stansted before April.
To a certain degree, it makes perfect sense for Air India to utilize London Stansted Airport in order to launch further flights to London. For starters, the airline launched its first route to Stansted on the 31st of October. As a result, the airport isn’t totally unknown to the Indian flag carrier.
16/12/19 Tom Boon/Simple Flying

Read More

Zurich Airport, Which Won The Bid For Noida's Jewar Airport, Gets 1st Nod

Lucknow: The conditional letter of award pertaining to the Noida International Greenfield Airport, Jewar, was handed over to CEO of Zurich Airport International AG Daniel Bircher on Monday, the UP government said.
"In the presence of the Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister, conditional letter of award pertaining to the Noida International Greenfield Airport, Jewar, was handed over to CEO of Zurich Airport International AG Daniel Bircher by UP Chief Secretary RK Tiwari," it said in a statement.
Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath said the development of the airport will be done in a time-bound manner.
On Dec 9, the Uttar Pradesh Cabinet approved Zurich Airport International as developer for Jewar airport.
The formal approval of the Uttar Pradesh government comes after a bidding process in which Zurich Airport beat Delhi International Airport Limited (DIAL), Adani Enterprises and Anchorage Infrastructure Investments Holdings Limited on Nov 29.
The winning bid was then put up before the project monitoring and implementation committee (PMIC) of the state government, before being forwarded to the Cabinet.
"Four bids had come for the airport. On the basis of weighted averages, Zurich Airport International was chosen," UP minister Siddharth Nath Singh had then said.
17/12/19 PTI/NDTV

Read More

UK and AAI train Kolkata Airport Staff on handling passengers with Special Needs

Kolkata: The Airports Authority of India (AAI) and British Deputy High Commission Kolkata jointly started a two-day training on ‘Soft Skills Development’ from Tuesday for the staff on how to handle passengers with special needs at Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose International Airport in Kolkata. Experts from Institute of Neurosciences Kolkata, Medica Superspeciality Hospital and Jeeja Ghosh trained the participants at the workshop.

Over 80 staff benefitted from the training, which covered various techniques and methods of handling people with special needs. Topics included increasing the awareness, skills and expertise of airlines, security personnel, ground crew and staff at Kolkata Airport in handling passengers with special mental and physical requirements.
British Deputy High Commissioner to Kolkata Nick Low said: "The UK works with partners across India to promote the importance of mental health and wellbeing. I am delighted to be collaborating with Airports Authority of India in dealing with this issue by training their staff. I believe this workshop will significantly enhance their level of skill and confidence in handling people with special needs."
17/12/19 Rajib Chowdhury/Asian Age

Read More

UK group to invest Rs 950 crore in Turbo Aviation's new airline TruStar

Hyderabad: A UK based business group is planning to enter the Indian aviation sector by acquiring majority stake in Hyderabad-based Turbo Aviation.

Founded by V Umesh, Turbo Aviation is planning to launch a new airline called TruStar to run the commuter air services under UDAN scheme starting next year. It had earlier launched TruJet commercial airliner in addition to other services like aircraft maintenance and ground clearance in the past.

"We had signed an agreement with a large UK business group to dilute majority stake in Turbo Aviation in its favour. We will announce the name of our partner and other details once the security clearances are in place,"Umesh said on Monday. The yet to be operational TruStar airline has already been awarded 10 routes across seven states including Uttar Pradesh under the UDAN Scheme.
According to Umesh, the company's strategic investor has plans to pump in as much as 100 million Pounds (about Rs 950 crore) in the airline company operations over a period of five years. The TruStar plans to launch its operations in February-March next year with an initial fleet of 5 ATRs and 5 Airbus 320s. The company would also apply for Pan-India operations soon thereafter as the foreign partner would want to build a large Indian airliner over a period of time.

Umesh, currently holds 6-7 per cent stake in TruJet as the Hyderabad-based MIAL Group had subsequently got a controlling stake following the launch of the airlines in 2015.
16/12/19 B Dasarath Reddy/Business Standard

Read More

SIA to fly B787-10 Dreamliner to Chennai

Passengers travelling between Singapore and Chennai will get to experience Singapore Airlines’ Boeing 787-10 Dreamliner aircraft from May 20, 2020.

The airline will be replacing the Airbus A330-300 aircraft with the 68-metre 787-10, which is the longest variant of Boeing’s Dreamliner range of aircraft.

With this, Singapore Airlines will increase its frequency out of Chennai to 13 flights a week as compared to ten. Also, combined with its subsidiary Silkair, this number will eventually increase to 17 flights a week by June 1, 2020.
16/12/19 Nisha Shroff/Business Traveller

Read More

Air Seychelles to start daily service to Mumbai, India in 2020

Air Seychelles celebrated its five years of non-stop service between Mumbai, (India) and Seychelles. As part of its commitment to further support the passenger as well as cargo suppliers to and from Mumbai, in 2020, the airline will increase its services to India from six flights per week to daily thus providing holidaymakers and business travellers more choice when planning their travel during the peak seasons.

Launched as a three per week service in December 2014, Seychelles flag carrier currently operates six weekly flights to India’s financial capital apart from having transported more than 900 tonnes of cargo over the same period between the two countries.

Speaking on this historic milestone during an event held in Mumbai, Remco Althuis, CEO, Air Seychelles said, “Marking five years of successful operations between Seychelles and Mumbai is definitely a proud moment for Air Seychelles. In fact, today, Air Seychelles is also celebrating one year of a successful codeshare partnership with India’s flag carrier, Air India. The continuous support received throughout the one year of the alliance has enabled both airlines to increase inbound and outbound tourism across their network, besides gaining great visibility plus marketing opportunities. The collective efforts of all stakeholders across our network are also important in the success of any route and the occasion today also serves as a moment to express our gratitude to all our partners in India as well as our guests for their loyalty over the years of service.”
16/12/19 Logistics Update Africa

Read More

Bangladeshi caught with Indian passport at KIA

A 26-year-old Bangladeshi national was caught at the Kempegowda International Airport here after
he flew in from Sri Lanka on a valid Indian passport, officials said.
Hilal Mia, 26, had changed his name to Ridou Sheikh and was living in Shivajinagar for the past two years. He was caught during an immigration check on Saturday, a senior police officer said.
The suspect was born in Hongalakaddi village, Bangladesh, and studied until class 7. He crossed over to India through the Benapole border in 2010 and lived in West Bengal until 2017 before moving to Bengaluru, the officer said.
Mia, the officer continued, produced a fake certificate to obtain the Aadhaar card. He later
submitted the Aadhaar card and the house rent agreement to obtain an Indian passport. He also
possessed a Bangladeshi voter ID, the officer said.
Mia has been booked under various sections of the Passport Act and the Foreigners Act. A court has
remanded him in judicial custody.
16/12/19 Umesh R Yadav/Deccan Herald

Read More

Air India mulls launching Mumbai-London Stansted service

Mumbai: Disinvestment-bound national carrier Air India is mulling launching a flight service to London Stansted from the country's financial capital, a senior airline official said.
Air India currently operates a flight to Stansted from Amritsar. It also has operations to London Heathrow from Mumbai.
British Airways and Virgin Atlantic are the two other airlines flying to London from Mumbai. Air passenger traffic on Mumbai-London route has spiked 25 per cent in the last five years. It is expected to go up by 27 per cent this fiscal following the resumption of services on the route by Virgin Atlantic in October, despite the grounding of Jet Airways which used to have three daily flights to London Heathrow from the city.
"There is a need for more traffic to London region. However, due to the slot constraint issues at the London Heathrow, we are not able to add new flights on the Mumbai-London route.
"There are options to go to London Stansted from Mumbai. We are evaluating this route," Air India Regional Director Ravi Bodade told reporters on Saturday during a media tour of the airline's various facilities, including its Maintenance, Repair and overhaul (MRO) facility and the iconic Air India Tower.
15/12/19 PTI/Economic Times

Read More

MPs seek Saudi flights from Kial

Kannur: Amid uncertainties over the development of Kannur International Airport Ltd (Kial), which has been denied ‘point of call’ status by the Centre, thus preventing foreign airlines from operating here, the Parliament members from the north Malabar region have launched a joint effort to get more flights, especially wide-bodied aircraft, to various destinations in Saudi Arabia.
Since many people from the region are working in the Middle East, and also there are many people who go for the pilgrimage like Umrah and Haj, the airport needs wide-body aircraft to Jeddah and Dammam in Saudi Arabia, which Air India can operate, said MPs K Sudhakaran, Rajmohan Unnithan, K Muraleedharan and K K Ragesh in a memorandum to civil aviation ministry secretary Pradeep Singh Kharola on December 13. Since the government has not given the point of call status to Kial, foreign airlines cannot operate from Kannur and in this condition, the only option is to ask Air India to operate bigger aircraft to accommodate more people, and hence the campaign.
Sudhakaran had earlier raised the issue in Parliament demanding the Centre to change its stance and permit foreign airlines as many operators have expressed their willingness to come to Kannur. Various trade bodies and other organizations have also launched the campaign to bring foreign airlines to Kannur, without which the airport, which completed one year this month, cannot improve at the revenue front or successfully launch cargo service in the international sector.
15/12/19 Times of India

Read More

Two Syrian men held with Rs 69 L worth US dollars at Kolkata airport

Kolkata: Two China-bound Syrian nationals have been apprehended by CISF personnel at the Kolkata airport for allegedly trying to smuggle US dollars worth Rs 69 lakh, officials said on Sunday.
The two passengers -- Al Sabbagh and Bassam Alsabbagh -- were apprehended on Saturday at the Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose International Airport and have now been handed over to Customs authorities.

A total of USD 97,600 was recovered by Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) personnel from the two passengers who held a Syrian passport and were bound for Kunming on a China Eastern airlines flight, the officials said.

The travellers had wrapped the dollars in a newspaper and concealed them in their socks while some of it was recovered from their hand baggage, they alleged.
15/12/19 PTI/Outlook

Read More

Chandigarh airport loses Dubai flight, left with only one overseas destination

Mohali: Chandigarh International Airport is quickly losing the international tag as Indigo suspended its Dubai flight from December 14 to February 15, fearing frequent cancellations due to poor visibility, owing to the ill-equipped airport using outdated landing system. Chandigarh is now left with only Sharjah international connection.

According to sources in Indigo Airlines, regular delays, diversions and cancellations of flights occur during the winter season at the Chandigarh airport.

Last winter, out of the 33 operational flights, around 70% saw delayed arrivals, causing inconvenience to the passengers as well as airline operators.

Notably, Punjab and Haryana high court has been pulling up the Airport Authority of India (AAI) for not operating overseas flights from the Chandigarh International Airport. The high court had already asked the authority to discontinue the International Airport tag given to the Chandigarh airport, following which AAI had submitted an affidavit stating that by March 2019, the flight operations at Chandigarh airport would be made round-the-clock.
14/12/19 Banrinderjit Saluja/Times of India

Read More

Horrific accident seriously injures Indian and Philippines flight attendants of Saudi Airlines

Riyadh: Three expat flight attendants of Saudi Arabian airlines (Saudia) two from India and a third originally hails from the Philippines meet in a tragic accident when their minibus collided with a crane while going back from airport to their accommodation in Riyadh.

One of the injured cabin crew is believed to have already been discharged from hospital while the other two remain in the intensive care unit of a Riyadh area hospital.

Sources say the drivers who are themselves expat workers mostly from the Indian subcontinent are expected to work for 16-hours per day with just one day off a week.
14/12/19 Arab Times

Read More

Oxford, Mississippi doctor pleads guilty to groping woman on plane, will leave the U.S.

A pediatrician practicing in Oxford, Mississippi has pleaded guilty to groping a sleeping woman's breast during an airplane flight from New York to Memphis.

He will pay a fine and leave the United States, according to federal court documents.

Dr. Rajesh Subramanya had worked at Baptist Memorial Hospital-North Mississippi through a staffing agency but was removed following his arrest, a spokeswoman for the Baptist hospital group said.

The doctor entered a guilty plea Thursday to a charge of simple assault, a misdemeanor, according to recently unsealed court records.

He was sentenced to one year probation, a $3,000 fine and a special assessment of $10, according to the records.

The physician holds passports from both the United Kingdom and India, according to the records. A court docket entry says, "Defendant to return to the United Kingdom."
14/12/19 Daniel Connolly/Memphis Commercial Appeal

Read More

Foreign smugglers puzzle Rajiv Gandhi Hyderabad International Airport officials

Hyderabad: Smuggling gold by concealing in the spaces under the passenger seats in an aircraft is not new.  But RGIA officialis say this is the first time foreign nationals were arrested for smuggling gold into Hyderabad. It is suspected that both the passengers, a South Korean national and a Chinese national, were not just transporting gold but had a bigger role in the racket.

Inquiries revealed that the South Korean national was travelling to Hyderabad for the second time and the Chinese man was here for the first time. They boarded a flight at Dubai and landed at Hyderabad.
In the past there were cases of smuggling gold bars by concealing them in hollow spaces under the seats of aircraft that were detected by the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI). In such cases, gold is smuggled in international flights and the passenger disembarks at Hyderabad.

When the aircraft’s next flight is within India, it is retrieved by their agent who travels in the domestic run. But in Thursday’s case, DRI nabbed the passengers who travelled on the same flight, in which they concealed gold under their seats.
14/12/19 New Indian Express

Read More

GoAir starts maiden flight to Saudi Arabia

Kochi: GoAir, has started new flight between Kannur and Dammam in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA). The inaugural flight will take-off from Kannur on December 19, 2019 and land in Dammam the same day. This will be GoAir's maiden flight to KSA, 5th destination in the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries, 9th international and 34th sequential destination.
GoAir will operate Kannur – Dammam – Kannur non-stop flights four days a week.
Speaking at the occasion, Jeh Wadia, managing director, GoAir said: “With the new flight to KSA, GoAir further consolidates its international network - within a short span of 14 months we have added 9 destinations. Our flights to Dammam are already receiving an overwhelming response. Dammam is GoAir's 4th international destination from Kannur International Airport. I’m sure that the new flights will add a lot of value to Indian workforce who are looking at working in or visiting Dammam.”
13/12/19 Economic Times

Read More

SpiceJet apathy - Dubai-Mangaluru flight delayed by 24 hours, cancelled finally

Dubai: As many as 177 passengers, who were supposed to fly by SpiceJet flight SG 60 from Dubai to Mangaluru at 12.50 pm of Wednesday, had a horrid time as their flight was continuously deferred by the SpiceJet authorities and finally cancelled the flight after 24 hours of keeping the passengers on hook.

The authorities of SpiceJet did not inform the passengers clearly about the reason for delay. Initially operational issues were cited as the reason for the delay but at the end when the flight was cancelled, it said that the flight is cancelled due to technical fault in the tire of the flight.
To increase the agony of the passengers, there was no senior SpiceJet representative at the airport to answer and pacify the anxious passengers. The passengers were not provided taxi fare to go back to their homes and were also not provided hotel accommodation saying that it is a 'Budget Airline'.
Food and refreshment was provided only once in 24 hours delay. That too the families, including children and elderly people, were asked to walk two floors up to have a Macdonald's meal.
In total eight mails were sent to the passengers after two or three hours and in each mail the time of the flight was kept on deferring. However, at the end the flight itself was cancelled.
12/12/19 daijiworld

Read More

Flights going almost full, we are seeing healthy returns: Virgin Atlantic

Mumbai: Virgin Atlantic founder Richard Branson is a man who loves to take up challenges. At the age of 69, he has launched a cruise line, is preparing for a test flight in a spacecraft and taking on established airlines on the India-UK market. Virgin Atlantic failed on the London-Mumbai route twice before but Branson hopes the airline will be third time lucky.
It is capitalising on the growth in traffic, decline in capacity following closure of Jet Airways and its partnership with “big brother” Delta Airlines of the US.
The UK airline resumed its Mumbai flight in October and will be adding a second London-Delhi flight next March.
Branson, who was in Mumbai to promote the new flights, has ruled out investing in Air India. Branson, however, plans to invest in a hyperloop to connect Mumbai-Pune in 15 minutes. He will meet Maharashtra chief minister Uddhav Thackeray on Wednesday to clear misunderstanding around the project.

“There is no money expected from government. It will all be private investment and the public will benefit immensely because of the hyperloop,” he asserted.

While air traffic between India and the UK has grown, closure of Jet Airways reduced capacity in the market, opening up opportunity for Virgin Atlantic. Currently, Air India, British Airways and Emirates dominate the traffic on routes between the two countries.

“Our flights are going almost full and we are seeing healthy returns,” said the airline’s (Virgin’s) executive vice-president Juha Jarvinen. “We are here to stay. Adding a second Delhi flight is our commitment to the Indian market,” he added.

The airline is also exploring the option to connect Manchester with India.
11/12/19 Aneesh Phadnis/Business Standard

Read More

Indian man charged with trying to enter US on fake Slovenian passport

Washington: A 20-year old Indian man was charged with violating US immigration law after he tried to enter the country by presenting a counterfeit Slovenian passport as his own to federal border authorities at the airport here.

The man, who was not named, arrived from Accra, Ghana and presented the Slovenian passport as his own for admission to a US Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officer at Washington Dulles International Airport. The inspecting officer detected inconsistencies while inspecting the traveler and his passport, and referred him to a secondary examination, the federal agency said in a statement.

Secondary officers detected several irregularities with the passport and on a Slovenian national identity card, and determined that the documents presented by the man were counterfeit. During questioning, the man admitted to being a 20-year-old Indian national and that the documents were not his.
12/12/19 Tribune

Read More

Flyers stranded for 43 hours as flight gets diverted to Singapore

Bengaluru: In one of the worst nightmares for any flyer, a GoAir flight carrying 158 passengers, suffered a technical glitch mid-air, 33 minutes after it took off from Singapore’s Changi Airport to Bengaluru, in the wee hours of Monday. It had to return to Changi to carry out repairs. Passengers reported to have smelled heavy oil and smoke in the cabin. After repairs were carried out, the flight allegedly took off nearly 43 hours after the scheduled departure time, leaving many stranded at the airport without any information. However, the a i rline billed it as a 36-hour delay.

The incident may give rise to rumours that it was grounded in Singapore. This version was ruled out by the airline. According to an airline spokesperson, “The flight (G8-28) had an air turn back on priority, shortly after take off, following a technical issue.” The flight has a scheduled departure time of Indian time 1.50 am (Singapore time: 4.20 am), on Monday and arrival at 6.50 am at KIA.

The technical problem that occurred was resolved by the GoAir engineering team, following which the flight was given clearance for take off on Tuesday night around 9 pm (Indian time) he added.
11/12/19 New Indian Express

Read More

Maldives Tourism Minister Inaugurates GoAir Flight To Malé

Ali Waheed, Minister of Tourism, Maldives inaugurated this season’s first flight of GoAir  that recommenced its Malé operations with direct flights, five days a week from Mumbai, New Delhi and Bengaluru.

To commemorate the inaugural flight, Minister Waheed, Sunjay Sudhir, Indian Ambassador to Maldives, in the presence of Moosah Solih, acting MD of MACL (Maldives Airports Company Limited) and Ruchika Singh, VP Sales, GoAir welcomed the flight at the Malé airport. The function also included a medley of Maldivian & Hindi songs by Maldivian Idol - Shalabee.

Effective December 2019, GoAir now operates direct flights to Malé five days a week from Mumbai, New Delhi and Bengaluru till January 31, 2020, aligned with the ongoing holiday and wedding season in India. The incoming flights from India are aligned perfectly to enable smooth transit for seaplane journeys onward to the various islands of Maldives.
11/12/19 T3

Read More

Good news for Vistara as DGCA approves Boeing training facility in Singapore for B787

The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) has approved a Boeing training facility at Singapore for B787 aircraft as the domestic training facility does not have spare capacity.

"In a first of its kind move, we have granted approval to a foreign Approved Training Organization as per our certification process. In the current case, approval has been accorded to Boeing training facility in Singapore for B787 type of aircraft,” DGCA director general Arun Kumar said.

This will help in timely induction of aircraft as more options will be available to Indian operators for training infrastructure. Regular surveillance and oversight will be done by DGCA and we will ensure that training content, qualification of trainers and training devices will be as per Indian standards, Kumar added.

Currently, national carrier Air India has the only domestic training facility for B787 aircraft but it does not have any spare capacity to train pilots of any other airline, sources aware of the development said.

The move is likely to bring much relief to domestic full-service carrier Vistara as it gets ready to induct the wide-body aircraft from February.

The joint venture of Tata Sons and Singapore Airlines started hiring for Boeing 787 aircraft last month as it invited applications for first officers with an experience of minimum 500 hours on B787 after line release.
10/12/19 Anu Sharma/CNBC TV18

Read More

Kerala flyers reenact dream Abu Dhabi flight

Dubai: Around 100 passengers, who were aboard the Kannur-Abu Dhabi maiden flight on December 9 last year, flew together again on the same route to mark the first anniversary of Kannur International Airport in India on Monday.

The passengers, including some UAE residents and prominent members of the Malayalee community in Kannur in the south Indian state of Kerala, reenacted their “dream flight” not just to relive those moments of celebrations.

Wearing uniform jackets, members of the “historic flight journey” WhatsApp group were also on a mission seeking development of the fourth airport in the state.

Though the inaugural flight was operated by Air India Express, the group chose to fly Go Air on the same route for the anniversary flight due to cheaper tickets.

Prior to boarding the flight, they held a seminar in the airport premises following the grand anniversary celebrations inaugurated by the Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan.
On arrival here on Monday night, they were accorded a warm reception at the Abu Dhabi International Airport by the expat community group We All Love Kannur (WALK).

“This is said to be the first-of-its-kind flight in the world,” Ranjith N.P.C, a Malayalam journalist, who was on board last year and this year, told Gulf News.

“This is also a flight that seeks development of the airport and the nearby areas.”

Another passenger Abdul Khader Panakkat, a technical consultant with an insurance firm in Dubai, said the main demand of the flyers is the approval for wide-body aircraft and foreign carriers’ operations.
“The airport and the surrounding localities will prosper only if the central government gives permission to operate wide-body aircraft and foreign airlines,” said Panakkat.
10/12/19 Sajila Saseendran/Gulf News

Read More

International airlines make a beeline for Indian skies

It has been a busy week for international airlines in India.
On December 9, Vistara signed a code share agreement with German carrier Lufthansa.  Two days earlier, on December 7, United Airlines, the third largest carrier in the world, started non-stop services between Delhi and San Francisco.
Later that day, VietJet Air - Vietnam's low cost airline - launched first direct flight between Hanoi and New Delhi.
The end of the year will also see Delta Air Lines, another American aviation major, restart its non-stop flight between Mumbai and New York after a decade.
According to a report by CNBC-TV18, apart from Vietjet, six more new international airlines will launch services to India this winter. The other five include Air Tanzania, Arkia Israeli Airlines, Azerbaijan Airlines, Lot Polish, Nok Air, Nok Scoot Air
It's not that earlier part of the year was any less hectic. While Virgin Atlantic relaunched its service between Mumbai and London, Qatar Airways signed a code share agreement with IndiGo, giving  the former greater access to the Indian aviation market. Not to talk about the buzz around Emirates, which signed a codeshare agreement with SpiceJet.
Lufthansa's George Ettiyil sums up the attraction overseas airlines have for India. "By teaming up with Vistara we will strengthen and expand our position as the leading and most popular European airline in India – a country all set to become the third-largest aviation market in just a few years’ time," said the senior director sales for the Lufthansa Group Airlines in South Asia.
09/12/19 moneycontrol.com

Read More

Vistara passengers can now earn and burn frequent flier miles on Lufthansa

New Delhi: Vistara and Lufthansa today said that they have signed a codeshare agreement, further strengthening their existing interline partnership enabling frequent fliers of both airlines to earn miles/points when travelling on each other’s networks and other benefits.
As part of the agreement, Lufthansa will add its ‘LH’ designator code to nearly 18 Vistara operated flights, starting December 16, 2019, every day covering 10 cities, including four metro cities, Ahmedabad, Bengaluru, Goa, Hyderabad, Kochi and Pune.
“As a growing global carrier, one of our key goals is to offer an extended international network to our customers through such strategic associations. Our codeshare with Lufthansa is another important step in this direction and helps us widen our customer base outside of India,” Vistara’s Chief Strategy Officer Vinod Kannan was quoted in the statement.
09/12/19 Economic Times

Read More

Vistara signs codeshare agreement with Lufthansa, 6th with overseas airline

New Delhi: Vistara has entered into a codeshare pact with German airline Lufthansa, the sixth such agreement with an international airline as the domestic full service carrier seeks to expand its overseas network.

As part of the agreement, Lufthansa will add its 'LH' designator code to nearly 18 Vistara-operated flights every day covering ten Indian cities, including Delhi, Mumbai and Chennai.
The two carriers already have an interline partnership. Vistara is the second airline after Air India to have a codeshare agreement with Lufthansa.

In a release on Monday, Vistara said the two airlines are planning to soon expand scope of the agreement, enabling frequent fliers of both airlines to earn miles/ points when travelling on each other's networks and enjoy other benefits.

Codesharing allows an airline to book its passengers on its partner carriers and provide seamless travel to destinations where it has no presence. An interline arrangement refers to a pact to issue and accept tickets for flights that are operated by the partner airline.

Apart from Delhi, Mumbai and Chennai, the codeshare agreement with Lufthansa will cover Ahmedabad, Bengaluru, Goa, Hyderabad, Kolkata, Kochi and Pune.

"Sales under the codeshare agreement progressively open today on all channels and major GDS systems for flights starting December 16, 2019," the release said.
09/12/19 PTI/Business Standard

Read More

Lufthansa expands India network with Vistara codeshare agreement

New Delhi: German major Lufthansa, which has 56 weekly flights to four metros, is expanding its network in the country from Monday through a codeshare with Vistara.

With this tie-up, six new destinations — Ahmedabad, Kolkata, Kochi, Hyderabad, Goa and Pune — will be added to Lufthansa's network, that is currently limited to Mumbai, Bengaluru, Chennai and Delhi. More destinations in Vistara’s network will be brought under the ambit of the codeshare agreement from next year.
Lufthansa already has a codeshare with Air India, which the government has decided to divest in. Lufthansa and Vistara are in the final stages on enabling customers to earn miles flying Vistara or Lufthansa. From April 1, 2020, Lufthansa will start five times weekly on Bangalore-Munich route, taking its weekly frequency to 61 flights between the four Indian metros and its European hubs.

George Ettiyil, senior director sales for Lufthansa Group Airlines in South Asia, said: “This marks Lufthansa’s commitment to offering its Indian customers world-class international travel experiences and will enable them to use their preferred mileage program on codeshare routes. By teaming up with Vistara, we will strengthen and expand our position as the leading and most popular European airline in India – a country all set to become the third-largest aviation market in just a few years’ time.”
09/12/19 Sauabh Sinha/Times of India

Read More

B.C. man acquitted in Air India bombing travels to India

Ripudaman Singh Malik’s visit to his birth country has been featured in the Indian media in recent days.

In March 2005, Malik, along with Ajaib Singh Bagri, was acquitted in the June 23, 1985 terrorism attack against India’s national airline that left 331 dead.

Two bomb-laden suitcases were checked in at Vancouver Airport and tagged for Air India flights heading in opposite directions around the globe. One exploded at Tokyo’s Narita Airport killing two baggage handlers. The second blew up aboard Air India Flight 182, killing all 329 aboard.

Evidence at Malik and Bagri’s trial pointed to a conspiracy by B.C. Sikh separatists to retaliate for the Indian government’s attack in June 1984 on the Golden Temple, Sikhism’s holiest shrine.

The only man convicted in the bombing plot, Inderjit Singh Reyat, was later found guilty of perjury for lying at Malik and Bagri’s trial.

Despite his acquittal 14 years ago, Malik, now 72, was unable to get a visa to return to India, where The Vancouver Sun interviewed his extended family in 2003.

But in September, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi removed 312 names of Sikhs living abroad from the 35-year-old blacklist. Only two names remain.

Ripudaman Singh Malik, circa 2001. One of the co-accused in the 1985 Air India bombing, he was acquitted in 2005.
Ripudaman Singh Malik, circa 2001. One of the co-accused in the 1985 Air India bombing, he was acquitted in 2005. PNG FILES

Leaders of the Babbar Khalsa, Dal Khalsa and other groups banned as terrorists in India have been returning to their homeland from the U.K., Germany, France and North America.

Former Liberal MLA Dave Hayer, whose journalist father was murdered after agreeing to be an Air India witness, said Monday that he is surprised by India’s reversal on former militants and extremists returning to the country.

And he said it is too bad Malik would not first provide Canadian investigators with information about his former associates that might aid ongoing cases.
09/12/19 Kim Bolan/Vancouver Sun

Read More

Why Indian-Americans with OCI card are forced to cancel India trip

OCI card is a facility that brings the Indian diaspora in USA and other countries, at par with NRI’s (Non-Resident Indians), in financial, educational and economic matters, granting them multiple entries and multi-purpose life-long visa to visit India. The OCI card however, does not help them with property- agricultural land or plantation properties.

It was recently reported by PTI that many Indians are being forced to turn back mid-way while visiting India, as airlines refuse to ferry passengers whose OCI card numbers do not match with the ones on their passport. The reason behind this problem is lack of awareness about strict enforcement of a rule on renewal, Prem Bhandari, chairman of Jaipur Foot USA, Indian-American has said in a petition to the Indian Ambassador.

“Airlines and immigration officials cite a recent advisory issued by the Ministry of Home Affairs and Ministry of Civil Aviation and demand that passengers below 20 years of age and above 50 years of age need to have their OCI cards renewed after renewal of their passports. This has resulted in many passengers being turned back from the airports,” Bhandari said.

He urged Indian Ambassador to the US Harsh Vardhan Shringla to help in fixing this issue through public information and awareness campaigns in the USA and at the same time getting the OCI cards rules simplified from the Ministry of Home Affairs.

“The purpose of OCI card inter alia was to ease the travel experience of holders and not to cause avoidable anxiety and distress,” he said, adding that in his next India visit he plans to raise the matter with the Ministry of Civil Aviation so that airlines could be suitably briefed.

Bhandari said that he has also raised this issue with Pradeep Singh Kharola, secretary of Ministry of Civil Aviation.
09/12/19 Indica News

Read More

Will free body repatriation to Kerala from UAE really help?

Dubai: The Kerala government recently entered into an agreement with Air India for free repatriation of bodies of distressed Keralites in the Gulf countries, including the UAE.
However, social workers in the UAE are questioning the efficacy of the south Indian state’s scheme alleging it is a duplication of service offered by Indian missions. They have also claimed that there will be hardly any beneficiary since it is to transport the mortal remains of a distressed Keralite only if there is no financial assistance from the sponsor or the Indian mission.
In the annual budget speech in January, the state’s finance minister Thomas Isaac had said the Department of Non Resident Keralites Affairs (Norka) will bear the repatriation costs of Malayali expatriates’ bodies from abroad.There are an estimated one million Kearlites in the UAE,
After signing the pact with Air India on November 26, Norka, however, made it clear that the scheme will be available only in the cases when there is no aid from employer/sponsor or embassy.
The scheme also provides free ambulance service to transport the body from the respective airports to the houses of the deceased.
08/12/19 Sajila Saseendran/Gulf News

Read More

Dubai-Mangalore Air India Express flight delayed for 15 hours

Dubai: An Air India Express flight from Dubai to Mangalore in south Indian state of Karnataka was delayed for nearly 15 hours due to a technical snag.

A total of 186 passengers of IX814 were to depart at 11:40pm on Saturday night. However, the flight took off at 2:10pm on Sunday.

An airline spokesperson told Gulf News that the delay was caused due to a technical snag that required repairs for which a team had to come from India.

“We provided hotel accommodation to about 80 passengers and also accommodated a couple of passengers with emergency issues like deaths in the family on other flights.”

He said taxi fare was also offered to passengers who opted to go back home, which some passengers availed of.

Prior to boarding around 1.20pm, passenger Sumith. V said he was stranded in the terminal two of the airport as he was leaving Dubai after cancelling his visa.
08/12/19 Gulf News

Read More

GMR developed Cebu airport wins award

Hyderabad: The Mactan-Cebu International Airport’s terminal 2, developed by India’s GMR Group-led consortium, has won the world architecture award at the World Architecture Festival held in Amsterdam between December 4 and 6. The Terminal was adjudged winner in the Completed Buildings-Transport category, by beating the other iconic names in list such as Singapore’s Changi Airport, Hong Kong’s West Kowloon Station and several other structures.

The GMR Group, with its local consortium partner Megawide formed GMR Megawide Cebu Airport Corporation (GMCAC) and developed the terminal, which was inaugurated by The Philippines President Honourable Rodrigo Duterte on June 7, 2018.
While announcing Cebu airport the winner of the award, judges officially recognised it as a “simple and elegant” new airport that uses many locally sourced materials which is well integrated into terminal design and landscape plan.
09/12/19 Telangana Today

Read More

More Indian tourists want to visit Phuket but limited airport slots make it impossible

Phuket: For many Indian tourists, the popular resort island of Phuket has recently become more attractive than ever before. Within four to five hours, they can now fly to the ‘Pearl of the Andaman Sea’ directly from India, without a stopover in the capital Bangkok or other countries such as Singapore or Malaysia. 

Since October last year, Indian low-cost air carriers have operated direct flights between Phuket and three major cities - New Delhi, Mumbai and Bangalore. The result is a big jump in the number of Indian visitors to the popular Thai province - from about 61,000 in 2017 to more than 236,000 in the first nine months of 2019.
Key players in Thailand’s tourism industry expect the number to keep surging even further as Indian airlines have expressed interest in adding more direct flights between Phuket and other Indian cities. But despite the growing demand, the island’s single-runway airport can only accommodate a limited number of direct flights between India and Phuket.

“The Indian market is growing very fast and direct flights have had a big impact. They make it easy for people to travel. Travellers don’t want a stopover nowadays. But the problem is the limited airport slots in Phuket,” said president of the Phuket Tourism Association Bhummikitti Ruktaengam.

Currently, 33 flights are operated weekly by Indigo and the fourth fastest-growing airline in the world, Go Air.
For local business operators, the limited airport slots pose a looming challenge that could damage a vulnerable economy that has suffered from a recent drop in Chinese tourists, following a boat tragedy that killed 47 Chinese last year.
08/12/19 Pichayada Promchertchoo/Channel News Asia

Read More

India Eyes Making Foreign Investment In Domestic Airlines Easier

India has the third-largest domestic aviation market in the world and is now considering making it easier for foreign airlines to invest in Indian airlines.

According to an unnamed source in Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government, tourism website Skift which is Nordic for “shift” or “transformation” is reporting that India is considering amending a foreign ownership rule when it comes to domestic airlines.

When you look at airline ownership rules in India it is a little misleading as the country allows 100% ownership in India-based airlines providing they have government approval.

The truth, however, is that foreign investment in Indian airlines is limited to a 49% stake like Singapore Airlines stake in Tata-owned Vistara.
The reason why the Indian government wants to relax its rule on foreign airline ownership is that it cannot find a private buyer for state-owned Air India.

Debt-laden and overstaffed with around 12,000 employees who enjoy incredible benefits like medical insurance for their entire families for life, if Air India was a horse it would have been shot already.

On a domestic level as a full-service airline, it cannot compete with the private sector and the airfares offered by the likes of Spicejet and IndiGo.

Internationally it has to compete with Gulf carriers Emirates, Qatar, and Etihad who quite honestly provide a better service with more connections to the India subcontinent than Air India could ever manage.

The only thing Air India has that could be enticing to a foreign buyer is coveted landing slots at some of the world’s major airports.

Seriously though, if the Indian government wants to get the loss-making airline of its books it would have to allow the buyer to fire tenured staff and start over with a new business model.

This, of course, is something that airline workers’ unions would never allow, as working for Air India is considered as being a job for life.
08/12/19 Mark Finlay/Simple Flying

Read More

Passengers of Air India Express flight stranded for hours in Dubai

Dubai: An Air India Express flight (IX814) departed from Dubai Airport Terminal 2 to Mangalore, India at 2:10pm today after it was been delayed by nearly 12 hours.

The flight to Mangalore was scheduled to depart at 11.40 pm on Saturday, however, passengers were stranded at the airport till 4am Sunday morning. Most passengers were families, and some were traveling on emergencies.

Meanwhile, Air India Express has cited technical difficulties for the unexpected delays. The passengers were  requested to check-in again at 11 am Sunday.

Ayaz Syed, a Dubai resident told Khaleej Times, "We completed check-in by 9.30pm. After waiting till 1am, we were provided food and snacks from a fastfood restaurant in the airport. We were stranded at the airport till 4am. The airline did offer hotel stay to those interested, but we chose to go back home." Passengers said they were also offered taxi fares to and from the airport.

Another Dubai resident Syed Hassan was on his way to Mangalore to attend his daughter's wedding. "I booked the ticket three months ago. The wedding itself is on 21st, but I have a lot of work to complete and have a planned trip to Mumbai on the 11th," lamented Hassan.
He added, "We began our long wait at 9 pm, and at 2 am we were told about the technical difficulties. We had to exit the airport through immigration all over again."
08/12/19 Dhanusha Gokulan/Khaleej Times

Read More