Imran loses luggage during 'Ek Main...' promotional tour

New Delhi: Bollywood actor Imran Khan lost his bag at the Dubai airport while in transit for the promotional tour of his forthcoming romantic comedy "Ek Main Aur Ekk Tu".

Imran and Kareena have been travelling abroad to spread the word about the Dharma Productions and UTV Motion Pictures co-production. But Imran ended up in a bit of a mess in Dubai last week.

"It turns out that somebody else on the flight had the exact same bag as mine and naturally he took my bag with him. I have managed to buy some fresh pairs of shirts and socks from the Dubai mall and at least I won't be with the same clothes for the next few days," said Imran who retrieved his bag after 24 hours.

30/01/12 IANS/Deccan Herald

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Buddha Air flying to Varanasi from March

Kathmandu: Buddha Air -- one of the leading domestic carriers -- is operating scheduled flights to Varanasi of India from March 1, 2012.
The airlines will operate four flights a week -- on Sundays, Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays -- between Kathmandu and Varanasi. The one way fare for the route has been fixed at Rs 5,031.
“There exists a huge potential for pilgrimage tourism between Kathmandu and Varanasi,” Buddha Air said in a statement on Sunday, adding that the flight would be useful for students and business travelers.
The one-hour flight to Varanasi will leave Tribhuwan International Airport (TIA) at 3 pm.
29/01/12 Republica

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Tourism sector hopes for a lift-off with FDI in aviation

New Delhi: The aviation industry is not the only one betting its future on the proposed foreign direct investment (FDI) in the sector. The tourism industry, too, is hoping to get a boost through improved air connectivity, higher fleet capacity and competitive fares.
Peter Kerkar, director, Cox & Kings, said, “Aviation is an important component of the travel business and a strong aviation infrastructure will act as a catalyst for the growth of the travel and tourism industry.” He said there was a need to connect to Tier II and Tier III cities, which would come with more investment in the sector.
Calling it a step in the right direction, for a country which is an underserved market in terms of connectivity, travel companies say airlines can build more synergies with international players in route management.
“There will be more access to hinterland. Onward flight linkages would be possible. India’s bilateral rights are also not utilised well and this is a good opportunity to cash in on that for improved tourism,” said Arjun Sharma, managing director, Le Passage to India. Among international destinations, which stand to gain, are the US, Europe and Australia, which are currently connected in a limited way.
The government is planning to allow foreign airlines to pick up to 49 per cent stake in Indian carriers. At present, up to 49 per cent FDI is allowed in the aviation sector, but foreign airlines are not permitted to pick up a stake.
29/01/12 Ruchika Chitravanshi/Business Standard

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Hundreds of Russian tourists stranded at Goa airport

Panaji: Around 500 Russian tourists have been stranded at Goa airport as a result of a sudden suspension of operations by Russia's biggest tour operator Lanta Tur Voyage due to its "financial collapse", officials said today. The tour operator has announced the stoppage of operations, airport officials said adding that many tourists have been stranded at the airport since last night, while many others are hauled up in various hotels. "Many tourists had arrived in the state a fortnight ago and are waiting to fly back home," an airport official said. The Russian Consulate in Mumbai has been informed about the situation. Consulate's Goa representative Vikram Varma said that they have received the information about the tourists stranded in the state. "We have been informed that there are 500 Russian tourists, who are stranded. All the efforts are being made to assist them in their return to Russia," he said.
28/01/12 PTI/IBN Live

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Man conceals 6 gold bars in his body, caught

Chennai: Air customs on Saturday seized 600gm of gold bars worth 17 lakh from a passenger at the Chennai airport who arrived from Colombo.
Kader Mohideen Syed Mohamed Buhari, an Indian national who concealed six gold bars in his rectum and tried to pass through the green channel, was arrested.
Customs officials had increased surveillance of passengers arriving from sensitive airports. As Colombo was classified as sensitive, officials were monitoring passengers who arrived by a Jet Airways flight when they saw Kadar Mohideen passing through green channel. When questioned, he appeared to be nervous. He later confessed to carrying gold bars hidden in his rectum.
The gold bars had foreign markings saying they were 999.0 pure. "The passenger, in his voluntary statement, confessed he was a carrier and concealed six gold bars in his rectum for a pecuniary consideration and with an intention to avoid Customs duty. The passenger was arrested under the Customs Act, 1962," said a press release.
29/01/12 Times of India

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Aborted take-off by Air India Express pilot being probed: DGCA

New Delhi: Aviation watchdog Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) on Friday said that it is looking into an incident of aborted take-off involving an Air India Express flight from Singapore to Trichy carrying around 90 passengers.

The incident took place on Monday, when the pilots of Air India's low-cost international subsidiary went in for take-off procedures without receiving prior clearance from Singapore Air Traffic Control (ATC) at Changi airport.

The pilot was hauled up by the ATC, following which he aborted the take-off at very high speed, thus risking the lives of the passengers.

"We have started an investigation into the incident and we have to see in what circumstances did the pilots abort the take-off," senior DGCA official told.

According to the official, the aviation regulator is examining technical data to ascertain what all safety aspects were flouted in the process of the abortive take-off.

27/01/12 IANS/Economic Times

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Jet reschedules European, American ops on Belgium strike

Mumbai: Jet Airways today said that it has decided to reschedule its operations from and out of Europe and North America, besides shifting operations to Amsterdam from Brussels, its European hub, on Sunday and Monday due to the strike call by Belgians on January 30. Accordingly, flight timings from the country to the European and US and Canadian destinations will be impacted, the country's largest airline said in a statement. The Belgians are striking on Monday to protest against their government's austerity measures, which include stricter retirement norms and cut back on unemployment benefits. "As per the revised schedule, flight 9W 229 from Toronto will depart on January 29 at 2140 hrs local time and arrive at Amsterdam at 1100 hrs local time the next day and depart for Delhi at 1300 hrs local time arriving at 0110 hrs on January 31 local time," Jet said. Jet's flight 9W 227 from New Jersey on January 29 will depart at 2140 hrs local time and arrive in Amsterdam at 1100 hrs hrs local time the next day. It will depart at 1300 hrs local time and arrive in Mumbai at 0220 hrs local time on January 31, the statement said.
28/01/12 PTI/IBN Live

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International drug dealer arrested at Kochi airport

Thiruvananthapuram: The Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) on Thursday arrested Solonorice Jimmy Vicenp, an Ecuador national considered to be an important link in the international drug mafia that operates in India,at the Nedumbassery International Airport in Kochi.

A huge quantity of cocaine was found in his possession. The consignment was concealed in condoms in his bags during a security check by officials of a private airline. Vicenp’s accomplice, a Nigerian national named Ossy, managed to give the police the slip.

Ossy, who had already acquired his boarding pass at the time of Vicenp’s arrest, slipped out of the airport after convincing the security personnel that he needed to withdraw money from an ATM.

According to the Kochi police, Vicenp is a leader of a gang which smuggles drugs through India.

27/01/12 Deccan Herald

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Pilot of Indian Origin in fatal Denver crash was shooting photos

Thornton: A pilot who died when his Cessna aircraft crashed into an open field in June and burst into flames apparently was "shooting thousands of pictures" of residential and commercial real estate just prior to the wreck.

A National Transportation Safety Board report released this month said pilot Salil Sinha, 41, was highly skilled, with a commercial pilot certificate. A flight instructor who gave Sinha his last flight review said Sinha "was a step above other pilots that he gave flight reviews to," according to the report.

The crash happened June 29. Witnesses said the Cessna R182 exploded after it flipped and fell to the ground between Quebec Street and Riverdale Road, near East 124th Avenue. No one else was aboard.

Witnesses told investigators it appeared Sinha's plane struggled against heavy winds and possibly a microburst as a storm system moved through the metro area, temporarily grounding flights at Denver International Airport.

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Indian pilot killed in crash near Thornton had earlier close call

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Sinha was president and owner of Julair LLC, which provides aerial-photography services nationwide. Sinha was from Marshfield, Wis.

Family members said Sinha came to the United States from India when he was 18. He flew for another aerial-photography company and saved his money to buy his first plane and start his own company.

The report — which doesn't offer any conclusions about the crash — said Sinha spoke to his wife just before he took off and told her he was going to "shoot a couple of thousand pictures."

Sinha's wife said he voiced no concerns about the weather or how his plane was performing.

26/01/12 Monte Whaley/The Denver Post

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MAHB expects to close 2 new deals by year-end

Airport operator Malaysia Airports Holdings Bhd (MAHB) expects to close two new airport concession deals in Asia by the year-end in a drive to improve its earnings from overseas, its chief said.

Managing director Tan Sri Bashir Ahmad said MAHB is in preliminary discussions with local parties in China and Indonesia to form a consortium and bid for airport concessions in the two countries.

Bashir declined to reveal the parties involved. It is learnt that MAHB may rope in India’s GMR Group as its consortium partner. MAHB has been partnering GMR since 2002.

Its most revent tie-up with GMR is to develop and manage a resort terminal in Maldives, which is set to be opened in 2014.

The two are managing and developing three other airports internationally.

Bashir said as more and more airports get privatised, established airport operators like MAHB as well as those managing Changi and Frankfurt airports are looking at opportunites to be involved in the management and development of airports overseas.

“There is big potential in China and Indonesia and we are looking at growth in those areas. There are many airports that need upgrading. We think we could close two airport deals by year-end,” he said.

On funding for the potential concessions, Bashir said MAHB will use internally-generated funds.

27/01/12 Business Times

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Dancing flight attendants mark India's Republic Day

The crew of the Finnair flight AY201, which was flying from Helsinki to New Delhi on January 17, broke out into dance moves reminiscent of an Indian blockbuster.

Around 24 of the airline's crew emerged in traditional Indian attire, then proceeded to dance in a highly choreographed fashion to Bollywood music.

Finnair employees said the dance was intended to commemorate India’s 63rd Republic Day.

According to the New York Times, Helena Kaartinen was the flight attendant who came up with the idea. “It was a good way to show respect,” she said.

Ms Kaatinen, who has reportedly worked for Finnair for 32 years, recruited crew members in December, and organised twice weekly rehearsals near Helsinki Airport.

She received help and feedback from a former flight attendant based in Mumbai, who is also a Bollywood dance instructor.

The crew were dancing to the tune of “Deewangi Deewangi”, from the film Om Shanti Om, directed and choreographed by Farah Khan.

27/01/12 Telegraph Travel

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Indian with suspicious passport arrested at Detroit Metro Airport

The Department of Homeland Security arrested an airline passenger from India who arrived at Detroit Metro Airport Monday with a suspicious passport: His Saudi Arabian visa had been burned and torn out of the booklet.

Documents filed in U.S. District Court say Safdar Quddus told border officials he had held his Saudi Arabian visa over a fire to peel it out of the passport, and the visa burned, so he cut the page out.

He did not explain why he wanted to remove the page.

Quddus made an appearance in federal court in Detroit on Thursday. He is being held in jail after agreeing to detention.

According to an affidavit filed Wednesday in federal court, Quddus arrived from India via Frankfurt. He presented himself as a returning student visa holder. At primary inspection booth No. 29, he stated that he had been outside the U.S. since Dec. 15 and presented his Indian passport.

While in baggage control, another officer asked Quddus how many times he had been to Saudi Arabia, records show. Quddus said twice, but the officer noticed he didn't have stamps on his Saudi Arabian visa, records show.

27/01/12 Tresa Baldas/Detroit Free Press

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Montreal man claims RCMP offered him $1 million to help solve murder of Air India witness

A Montreal man charged in a cocaine conspiracy claims the RCMP offered him $1 million to help solve the 1998 murder of a B.C. newspaper publisher who was killed after agreeing to testify in the Air India bombing case.
Jean Gaetan Gingras was captured on a wiretap telling an undercover Mountie that police met with him and his lawyer at a Montreal law office to make the offer after Tara Singh Hayer was assassinated.
A recording of the conversation was played for B.C. Supreme Court Justice Carol Ross on Tuesday in Vancouver at the conspiracy trial of Gingras and co-accused Bruno Diquinzio.
"They offered me $1 million in the lawyer's office," he said.
Gingras stressed to the operator, who cannot be identified because of a publication ban, that he told the police nothing and that they had nothing on him in connection with a 1986 attempted bombing at Hayer's newspaper office.
But he admitted to the cop that he arranged for the bomb to be placed outside Hayer's Surrey, B.C., office after being approached by a Sikh friend in Montreal.
"The guy in Montreal brought somebody from Vancouver," Gingras told the operator.
He said he sent his team out here to do the job, which was only to "send a message" to Hayer and not to kill him.
Gingras, 68, was arrested in Vancouver, minutes after the May 31, 2008, conversation about Hayer and charged with conspiracy to traffic cocaine and money laundering.
26/01/12 Kim Bolan/Vancouver Sun/The Gazette

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Out of bilateral air services pact, global terminal status eludes Madurai airport

Madurai: Non-inclusion of Madurai airport in bilateral air services agreement (BASA) with countries having potential for international passenger and cargo traffic from here has been a major bottleneck in converting Madurai airport into an international terminal. This has been holding back operation of international flights from Madurai to popular destinations such as Singapore, Kuala Lumpur, Dubai, Muscat and Sharjah.

Traders and travel agents are looking up to the Union Ministry of Civil Aviation for including the airport in the bilateral agreement to realise the immense potential for international air services from Madurai and southern districts.

“Sri Lankan Airlines is likely to announce its schedule to Madurai any time. Madurai is listed among the airports in the bilateral agreement with Sri Lanka. But operation of flights from other countries cannot be done without the bilateral agreement,” Senior President of Tamil Nadu Chamber of Commerce and Industries S. Rethinavelu said.

While laying the foundation for the new terminal building in 2008, the then Civil Aviation Minister, Praful Patel, had promised that the first international flight would land on the day of its inauguration.

26/01/12 S Sundar/The Hindu

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Air India Express pilot defies ATC for take-off, puts flyers at risk

Mumbai: In the span of about 30 seconds, an Air India Express aircraft with about 90 passengers on board created a double scare at Singapore's Changi airport on Monday.

First, its pilot did not wait for the vital take-off clearance from the air traffic controller concerned. As the Boeing 737-800 aircraft sped along the runway for a take-off, the alarmed air traffic control officials hauled up the pilots and ordered them to stop. The jet had reached the critical speed of 260 kmph and was seconds away from lifting off the runway when the pilot pulled the throttle back to abort the take-off.

It was a highly controversial move, fraught with risk, as take-offs cannot be aborted at such high speeds without putting the aircraft and its occupants at risk. It did not end badly though, as the pilots could bring the aircraft to a halt before it reached the runway end. Had it been a short runway or a wet one, the aircraft could have gone off the runway. The airline has grounded both the pilots and an investigation is on.

27/01/12 Manju V/Economic Times

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Air Mauritius adds frequencies to Mumbai and expands codeshare with Air France

It was learned late yesterday that Air Mauritius will offer additional flights between the island of Mauritius and Mumbai, India, from April this year, bringing the total number of flights to four per week. Increased investment and trade between India and Mauritius, along with the appeal of the island as a holiday destination, are the main factors seen in taking this decision.
Aviation analysts also point to the fact of increased frequencies by Emirates to Mauritius, offering daily convenient flights from all their Indian gateways via Dubai, and the fact that Air Mauritius really had no choice but to either increase their presence with nonstop flights between Mumbai and the island or else leave the market altogether.
A source from Port Louis said the four flights were “a step in the right direction but ultimately our airline has to fly daily nonstop or Emirates, with 12 flights a week from Dubai and multiple destinations in India, will simply sweep our national carrier aside.”
Lessons learned from neighboring Vanilla Island Seychelles perhaps where that flights from Frankfurt had to be dropped when Emirates started to increase frequencies in earnest, eventually followed by all the airline’s mainstream European ports of call like London, Paris, Milan, and Rome, unable to compete with the frequencies, the extensive network from other airports in these countries, and ultimately on fares.
25/01/12 Wolfgang H Thome/eTN

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COPA Airlines chooses Kale`s interline solution

Kale Consultants part of the Accelya Group, a leading solution provider to the airline and travel industry, today announced that COPA Airlines, a leading Latin American carrier, has selected REVERA Interline service for processing their passenger interline billings.
Commenting on the occasion Luis Zelaya, Revenue Accounting Director, COPA Airlines said, ``Kale`s expertise in Revenue Accounting and their role in IATA`s SIS initiative is well known in the industry. We could see a clear business case for us to migrate our interline processing on to Kale`s Revera Interline Service.``
REVERA Interline service will enable COPA to:
> Instantly comply with IATA's SIS (Simplified Interline Settlement) requirements
> Improve interline billing accuracy and reduce rejection rate
> Strengthen airline cash flows
> Keep their operating costs under control
25/01/12 IANS/My Iris

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Thai AirAsia to pull out from Delhi airport

New Delhi: After AirAsia and Air AsiaX, Thai AirAsia has announced it would withdraw flights from India in two months from now. The subsidiary of the AirAsia Group announced it would do so from March 24.
An AirAsia executive in India confirmed on Tuesday that the airline had announced withdrawal of its flights between New Delhi and Bangkok, owing to high operating costs that include high airport and fuel charges. Thai AirAsia operates a daily flight between the Indian and Thai capitals, besides a weekly flight between Kolkata and Bangkok. The Kolkata flight will continue to operate, the executive added.
Withdrawal of the service between Delhi and Bangkok will begin with a cutback to four flights a week on February 14, from what is seven now. On March 24, it would come to a complete suspension.
Recently, Air AsiaX, a long-haul subsidiary of AirAsia that operated flights from Delhi and Mumbai, also announced cancellation of flights from India, also owing to high operating costs. Air Asia, too, had announced it was pulling out flights from Hyderabad, owing to high user development fee at the Hyderabad airport.
25/01/12 Business Standard

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GMR withdraws Croatia airport bid, looks to Brazil

GMR Infrastructure has withdrawn its bid to modernise and expand an airport in Croatia, but is preparing to bid on similar projects in Brazil, a company official said.

"Croatia, we evaluated, then we decided not to go ahead. Looking at the project's economics, they were not working out," the official, who declined to be identified, told Reuters.

GMR, which built and operates Istanbul airport in Turkey and is building an airport in Male, Maldives, said in August it had qualified to bid on the Zagreb Airport project.

The Brazilian government plans to modernise and expand Sao Paulo's Guarulhos airport, Viracopos airport near Sao Paulo,

The deadline for the bids is February 2, he added.

GMR is in discussions with construction and infrastructure firms in Brazil but has yet to decide on a possible joint bid, the official said.

24/01/12 Reuters India

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FDI in aviation may give flight to domestic airlines

NewDelhi: Operating through a tough financial environment, Indian carriers see a ray of hope in the government proposal to allow foreign airlines to invest funds and expertise in them so as to bring back the zing in the sector.

"A market growing at over 15 percent, huge untapped market in the interiors, growing per capita incomes and propensity to fly make India an attractive aviation market to be in," said Amber Dubey, a director in global consultancy firm KPMG.

Civil Aviation Minister Ajit Singh will move a cabinet note seeking 49 percent foreign direct investment (FDI) by foreign carriers in domestic airlines. The Group of Ministers will take up the issue of direct ATF imports and discuss plans to revive the aviation sector.

Currently, the government allows for FDI up to 49 percent in Indian carriers by non-airline players but bans foreign airlines from directly investing for security concerns.

22/01/12 ZeeNews

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Ghana man arrested at airport with cocaine

New Delhi: A 32-year-old man from Ghana was arrested from Indira Gandhi International airport here allegedly with 200 grams of cocaine with street value of around Rs two crore, police said today. Paul Dika Acquah was apprehended last Friday from the airport parking soon after he came from Mumbai, Sanjay Bhatia, Additional Deputy Commissioner of Police (Crime), said. "The cocaine was concealed in two polythene packets and was kept in the sole of his shoe," Bhatia said. Acquah had come to to India in October 2010 on a business visa and started exporting clothes from Mumbai. "After some time, he travelled back to his country and returned to India in November, 2010. He again started dealing in garments and shoes. He visited Tiripur in Tamil Nadu and Mumbai for business purpose. In Mumbai, he came in contact with another Ghana national Timoti.
23/01/12 PTI/IBN Live

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HC relief for Israeli girl held in cartridge case

Mumbai: The Bombay High Court has discharged an Israeli national, arrested at the international airport here last October after two live cartridges were found in her backpack, noting that it was not a "conscious possession".
Nurit Toker was arrested on October 27, 2011 at the Mumbai Airport. Toker, in India on a holiday, was on her way to Kathmandu. She had to spend four days in the police custody before the magistrate's court granted her bail.
She then approached the High Court, seeking to quash the criminal case registered against her. According to Toker, she had been given an M-16 assault rifle during her compulsory military service in Israel which ended in October.
22/01/12 Zee News

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FDI in aviation may give flight to domestic airlines

New Delhi: Operating through a tough financial environment, Indian carriers see a ray of hope in the government proposal to allow foreign airlines to invest funds and expertise in them so as to bring back the zing in the sector.
"A market growing at over 15 percent, huge untapped market in the interiors, growing per capita incomes and propensity to fly make India an attractive aviation market to be in," said Amber Dubey, a director in global consultancy firm KPMG.
Civil Aviation Minister Ajit Singh will move a cabinet note seeking 49 percent foreign direct investment (FDI) by foreign carriers in domestic airlines. The Group of Ministers will take up the issue of direct ATF imports and discuss plans to revive the aviation sector.
Currently, the government allows for FDI up to 49 percent in Indian carriers by non-airline players but bans foreign airlines from directly investing for security concerns.
But would foreign carriers be keen to invest in a bleeding sector where three listed players -- Jet, Kingfisher and SpiceJet -- are reporting heavy second quarter losses?
Industry watchers say 'yes'. The Indian aviation market is one of the fastest growing in the world. Last year, it expanded by 20 percent.
22/01/12 IANS/Economic Times

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Direct ATF import plan sent to GoM

Mumbai: The Cabinet will soon meet to decide on allowing domestic airline companies to import aviation turbine fuel (ATF) directly, without routing it through the oil companies acting as canalising agent.
Official sources say the Directorate General of Foreign Trade (DGFT), the body for handling trade issues, has already given the in-principle approval to the proposal and sent its comments to cabinet. “The Group of ministers’ meeting to decide on this issue will be held very soon”, sources said. Thereafter, DGFT will issue a notification to this effect.
The DGFT has offered three options on this issue. First, to allow all airline companies to import ATF directly by amending the rule. Second, to allow companies on a case-to-case basis without amending the law. The second option will not be a relaxation for all airline companies across the board. Each company will have to take permission to import individually, after submitting enough justification for the action. The third option is to allow direct import of ATF without routing it through trading agents and thus abolishing the law.
The permission in the first and second option for direct import has one rider through. “The permission for direct import is only for own use of airline companies and not for selling elsewhere, even among themselves. This is called “actual user basis”. The onus of proving the end use lies on the airline companies who will be required to submit a monthly report to the regional offices of DGFT detailing their usage. Severe penalty will be imposed if there is any default amounting to a loss to the exchequer”, explained the source.
22/01/12 Anindita Dey/Business Standard

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Passengers protest rescheduling of Singapore flight

Passengers of the Air Inida (AI) 632 flight protested at the Kolkata airport against the cancellation of the Singapore-bound flight that originated in Dhaka. The flight was supposed to take off at 3.30 am on Saturday. Passengers boarded the aircraft at 3.10 am and at 4.35 am, they were asked to de-board when a technical snag was detected. “We have been made to wait at the lounge since then without any food or toilet facilities,” alleged one of the passengers.
Airport authorities, however, said passengers were provided with everything necessary. “We give utmost priority to passenger security and couldn’t take a chances till experts gave us a go-ahead. The flight has been re-scheduled at 3.30 am tomorrow and we have ensured that all the 130 passengers have been taken care of,” said an Air India spokesperson.
He added that Kolkata residents had been offered a to-and-fro taxi fare to return to their residences. Indian citizens were given hotel accommodation and for foreigners, proper arrangement for accommodation and food was been made at the airport.
22/01/12 Express India

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CBI officer wants £ 50,000 from A-I for 12-hour torture

Mumbai: A senior Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) officer has sued Air India for £50,000 (Rs 39 lakh), accusing the national carrier of in human treatment, flying with an underqualified pilot and providing false information. CBI DIG Praveen Salunkhe’s complaint to the Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission comes after his flight was stranded for more than 12 hours at UK’s Gatwick airport.
During the 12 hours that they were forced to stay on board, Salunkhe says in his complaint, the airline provided them with no food or water. And when exhausted passengers started complaining, the officials on board called the local police instead of calming them down, he alleges.
On November 16, senior IPS officer Salunkhe boarded Flight No AI 131 from Mumbai to Heathrow to attend a mid-career training for IPS officers in UK. More than 30 IPS officers from across the country were on the flight to attend the training programme.
Minutes before 7 am GMT, when the flight was scheduled to land at the Heathrow airport, it was diverted to Gatwick. The pilot announced that due to bad weather at Heathrow Airport the flight was being diverted to Gatwick Airport — a few miles away.
Upon landing, the pilot reassured the passengers that the flight would proceed to Heathrow by 9.30 am GMT. However, when it did not take off that time, the passengers started getting restless.
The flight remained grounded at Gatwick airport for 12 hours, during which Air India allegedly failed to take care of the passengers as stocks of water and food ran out.
22/01/12 Mumbai Mirror

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Indian air not clear for foreign airlines

New Delhi: As the centenary celebrations (1911-2011) of civil aviation in India taper off, all the airlines recently faced a rap from the aviation regulator for cutting corners on safety-related issues due to mounting losses and perceived lack of funds but the carriers can heave a sigh of relief as the government on Tuesday decided to consider allowing foreign airlines pick equity in Indian airlines.
With almost all Indian carriers, including state-owned Air India, battling hard to tide over their losses, whether the permission, if granted, to foreign airlines to pick up 49 per cent stake in Indian airlines will be able to do wonders to the sagging civil aviation sector in the country remains to be seen.
As per the existing norms, foreign airlines, if allowed, will be able to pick up to 49 per cent stake in publicly quoted carriers, aviation analysts say. In such a scenario, only Jet Airways, Kingfisher and SpiceJet would qualify. Other private carriers such as GoAir and IndiGo are completely privately-owned.
Norms of the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) will also be applicable to foreign airlines, meaning they would need to pick up shares of the Indian carriers from the open market as well. Given the fragile state of financial health of Jet Airways, the largest private carrier owned by Naresh Goyal who still holds 80 per cent shares, and Vijay Mallya-promoted Kingfisher, it would be anybody's guess as to which foreign airlines would wholeheartedly invest in them.
20/01/12 Vinay Kumar/The Hindu

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More cracks found in Airbus A380 wings

Airbus insisted its A380 superjumbo is safe to fly after another set of cracks was discovered in the wings of the worlds largest jetliner, though an engineering union said it was downplaying the issue and some Asian airlines said they would develop inspection programs . It is the second time in as many weeks that hairline cracks have surfaced inside the mammoth double-decker jet, which entered service four years ago, and their discovery is expected to lead to expanded safety checks. Airbus said the cracks were found on a number of 'non-critical' brackets inside the wings of two aircraft during routine two-year inspections, after similar flaws showed up in five aircraft in early January. It said the cracks did not prevent the A380 flying safely, but the Australian engineering body which handles routine servicing and engine checks on the superjumbos operated by Qantas Airways said Airbuss reaction was concerning. ' They (Airbus) have described these as tiny cracks, but every crack starts off as a tiny crack and they can grow very quickly ,' said Stephen Purvinas, Federal Secretary of the Australian Licensed Aircraft Engineers Association . ' I would be worried that Airbus arent taking seriously the ever increasing number of cracks being found in the wings of their A380 aircraft . Put it this way, I wouldnt put my family on an A380 at the moment ,' he said. Qantas said the latest cracks were not found in its fleet of 12 A380s. Airbus has dismissed calls to ground its superjumbo fleet over the cracks, which first came to light during repairs of a Qantas A380 damaged by an engine blowout shortly after taking off from Singapore in November 2010. 'It is embarrassing, but we will do everything to ensure safety is not compromised,' Chief Executive Tom Enders said. 'We have a pretty good understanding, but the investigation is ongoing. What we have developed already is a repair solution and this is what we will apply on the various aircraft if and where it is necessary,' he told CNN television.
20/01/12 Tim Hepher/Reuters/IBN Live

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Delhi Airport Proposed Fee Hike Alarms International Airlines

Several international carriers are threatening to reduce or eliminate service to Indira Ghandi International Airport (IGI) because of a dramatic increase in fees proposed by the facility’s operator, Delhi International Airport Pvt. Ltd. (DIAL)
“The proposed multi-fold increase of landing charges at IGI airport is counterproductive, since India risks pricing itself out of the market for regional aviation hubs in Asia and the Middle East,” says Axel Hilgers, Lufthansa’s director for South Asia. Flights will be diverted from India and its new international gateway at Delhi for the benefit of competing airports in the region, Hilgers says. “Increasing flight traffic, not charges, is the only sustainable way to improve airport utilization and revenues,” he adds.
India’s Airport Economic Regulatory Authority [AERA] met Jan. 18 with stakeholders to discuss the 774% hike in landing, parking, navigation and other charges sought by DIAL, beginning April 1. AERA proposes an increase of 334.6%. According to a government official, almost all representatives of international airlines at the meeting opposed the increase, saying the time is not right for this “drastic step.”
The official says airlines like the British Airways, Air France-KLM and Lufthansa strongly opposed DIAL’s proposal.
20/01/12 Jay Menon/Aviation Week

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Dirty toilets, no water for passengers to Singapore

Calcutta: The 130 passengers of a Singapore-bound Air India Express flight were kept waiting for over 12 hours today on the plane and at Calcutta airport, with its “overflowing” terminal lounge toilets and “non-existent” drinking water facilities, before the flight was cancelled.
The Boeing 747-800 was scheduled to take off at 3.25am but developed a snag. By the time it had been rectified, the pilot’s flying time was over.
As Air India Express, the low-cost wing of government carrier Air India, does not have an engineering base at the airport, equipment and technicians had to be flown in from Mumbai, an Air India official said tonight. He said the flight would take off at 3.25am on Sunday.
“Once the repair was over by 1pm, the flight duty time limitation period of the pilots was over and so the plane couldn’t take off,” an airline spokesperson said.
The passengers alleged they had been kept on board for two-and-a-half hours and that even after disembarking, the airline’s staff did not provide them with proper information on when the flight might take off.
“We had boarded the aircraft at 2.30am. Initially, the pilot announced that the flight was delayed because of bad weather in Singapore but later, he said there was a technical problem,” said Santanu Sanyal, a Calcutta-based general surgeon who was going to Singapore on a vacation with four other doctors.
He said the passengers were asked to disembark around 5am and brought to the transit lounge of the airport’s international terminal building.
21/01/12 The Telegraph

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Memory cards seized from air passenger

Thiruvananthapuram: The Air Intelligence Unit of the Air Customs has seized 10,500 memory cards from a passenger, hailing from Tamil Nadu, who arrived at the international airport here from Singapore on Wednesday night.
Murugan Ramar, 29, a native of Ramanathapuram, was arrested on Thursday morning and produced in the Economic Offences Court at Kochi, Customs officials said.
The passenger, who arrived from Singapore, was questioned by AIU investigators as his passport showed that he was a frequent traveller through Chennai airport.
20/01/12 The Hindu

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Cathay Pacific Cargo to add more freighter ports in India

Mumbai: Cathay Pacific Cargo is likely to add Ahmedabad and Hyderabad in its freighter port network in India. Currently, the airline operates from New Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai and Bangalore.
Cargo accounts for almost 30 per cent of the overall revenue of Cathay Pacific Airways and the cargo revenue for India alone is close to 28 per cent of the total India revenue.
The freighter airline recently launched freighters directly from Chennai to Frankfurt twice a week, Bengalore to Hong Kong daily and Delhi to Zaragoza as well as Amsterdam. It also has a direct service connecting India to Spain.
“With all these additions we are now at 33 departures a week from India using four metros namely Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai and Bengalore,” said Mr Ashish Kapur, Regional Cargo Manager – South Asia, Middle East and Africa, Cathay Pacific Airways. “India is a very important market for us. Apart from strengthening the existing routes and ports we are studying various routes at this moment for a possible launch in 2012,” he added.
19/01/12 Nivedita Ganguly/Business Line

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Asian Carriers Inspect Airbus A380 Aircraft For Fresh Cracks

Singapore: Asian carriers are inspecting the Airbus A380 aircraft in their fleets after fresh damage was discovered on structural components inside the wings of the world's biggest passenger aircraft, renewing safety concerns about the super jumbo.
Singapore Airlines Ltd., Qantas Airways Ltd. and Korean Air Lines Co. Ltd. , among the seven carriers that fly A380s globally, said on Friday that they will inspect the planes on their fleet and do what's necessary to ensure safety.
The move comes as Airbus, the unit of European Aeronautic Defence & Space Co. EADS N.V. that manufactures the planes, confirmed Thursday the discovery of the cracks, but insisted the A380 remains safe. European air-safety regulators are poised to mandate enhanced inspections in the wake of new cracks found on an A380, according to government and industry officials.
Airbus didn't name the airlines whose planes have been affected nor give the number of planes on which the new cracks were found.
The European Aviation Safety Agency directive, which is likely to come later Friday, marks the second time in recent months that industry and government officials have focused on cracks inside A380 wings.
20/01/12 Dow Jones/Wall Street Journal

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Foreign Investment Could Boost India's Beleaguered Aviation Industry

New Delhi: India’s beleaguered aviation industry is hoping to be more profitable if the government allows foreign airlines to invest in the sector. So far, massive passenger growth has not translated into profits.
By the end of the financial year in March, India’s domestic airlines will have piled up losses of an estimated $2.5 billion. Coming on top of losses sustained in previous years, the aviation industry is deep in debt.
But the cash-strapped sector has finally heard some good news. A group of ministers this week agreed to allow foreign airlines to buy stakes of up to 49 percent in domestic carriers. The proposal - being seen as a lifeline for the industry - is expected to get formal approval in the coming weeks.
The Indian aviation industry is among the fastest growing in the world with traffic increasing by over 17 percent last year. But the industry continues to lose money.
That is largely because aviation fuel prices - already high due to local taxes - have risen sharply. However airlines have been unable to offset those costs by raising fares due to cut throat competition in the sector.
20/01/12 Anjana Pasricha/VOA News

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Indian air not clear for foreign airlines

New Delhi: As the centenary celebrations (1911-2011) of civil aviation in India taper off, all the airlines recently faced a rap from the aviation regulator for cutting corners on safety-related issues due to mounting losses and perceived lack of funds but the carriers can heave a sigh of relief as the government on Tuesday decided to consider allowing foreign airlines pick equity in Indian airlines.
With almost all Indian carriers, including state-owned Air India, battling hard to tide over their losses, whether the permission, if granted, to foreign airlines to pick up 49 per cent stake in Indian airlines will be able to do wonders to the sagging civil aviation sector in the country remains to be seen.
As per the existing norms, foreign airlines, if allowed, will be able to pick up to 49 per cent stake in publicly quoted carriers, aviation analysts say. In such a scenario, only Jet Airways, Kingfisher and SpiceJet would qualify. Other private carriers such as GoAir and IndiGo are completely privately-owned.
Norms of the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) will also be applicable to foreign airlines, meaning they would need to pick up shares of the Indian carriers from the open market as well. Given the fragile state of financial health of Jet Airways, the largest private carrier owned by Naresh Goyal who still holds 80 per cent shares, and Vijay Mallya-promoted Kingfisher, it would be anybody's guess as to which foreign airlines would wholeheartedly invest in them.
20/01/12 Vinay Kumar/The Hindu

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Foreign airlines get all-clear signal on FDI

New Delhi: A key group of ministers on Tuesday reached a consensus on allowing foreign airlines to buy up to 49 per cent stake in Indian carriers. Foreign carriers are not currently allowed to directly or indirectly make any investment in Indian carriers.
“We have reached a consensus on allowing foreign carriers to buy 49 per cent stake in Indian airlines and a Cabinet note will be moved soon,” said Union Civil Aviation Minister Ajit Singh after a meeting with Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee, also attended by secretaries of the civil aviation, commerce and petroleum ministries.
The move is expected to open the doors to international carriers looking to leverage the large domestic network of Indian carriers. It could also provide a reprieve to airlines under financial strain and looking to raise funds. Private equity funds are not interested in the sector and raising money through debt is becoming difficult, with banks not keen to fund the sector further.
Varying views have been put on the table on what the cap should be for foreign carriers wanting to invest in Indian carriers. The limit was a bone of contention between the civil aviation ministry and commerce ministry. The aviation ministry had recommended a figure of 24 per cent but the commerce ministry wanted 26 per cent. The commerce ministry felt no foreign carrier would come if it did not get a say (which it would if allowed to buy 26 per cent). The civil aviation ministry was averse to 26 per cent as that could trigger an open offer, giving 20 per cent more to the buyer.
18/01/12 Business Standard

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U.S. Airlines Show India Not as Hot as Thought

Mumbai: For all the talk about economic growth in India, here's a metric that raises questions about U.S. engagement there: Two of the U.S.' big three international carriers have tried and failed to operate nonstop service between the U.S. and India. Most recently, bankrupt AMR said last week that it would eliminate Chicago-New Delhi service on March 1.

Delta , meanwhile, operated from New York's Kennedy International Airport to Mumbai from 2006 to 2008. Then it moved the flight to Atlanta and operated from there in 2008 and 2009.

In June 2009, Delta said it would move the flight back to New York. But in October, it ended the service altogether.

Delta still flies to Mumbai, but not from the U.S. Rather, it flies from Amsterdam and operates under aviation's fifth freedom, which enables flying between two foreign countries when the flight originates in the home country. In this case, Delta has Atlanta-Amsterdam-Mumbai daily routing for an A330.

United, the last survivor, flies daily from Newark to New Delhi and Mumbai. Additional service from the U.S. to India is on Air India, which flies three U.S. routes -- Mumbai-Newark, New Delhi-Chicago and New Delhi-New York as well as New Delhi-Toronto.

17/01/12 Ted Reed/The Street

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Dubai - Mangalore AI Express Cancels Wednesday Flight

Mangalore: With the Indian aviation industry battling economic crisis, domestic as well as international passengers continued to face inconvenience due to cancellation, delay in flights.

According to the latest report, Mangalore - Dubai Air India Express flight scheduled to leave at 9.30pm on Wednesday January 18, stands cancelled due to 'technical' reason. The same aircraft which was scheduled to leave Dubai airport at 1.15am on Thursday, Jan 19 is also cancelled.

All the Mangalore passengers will be accommodated on Thursday noon and evening flights. Same will be done for Dubai passengers.

18/01/12 Daijiworld

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Scoot and IndiGo use route exchange to launch RFPs to airports

Scoot, the new medium and long-haul, low-cost division of Singapore Airlines (SIA) and IndiGo, the Indian low cost airline will launch their request for proposals (RFPs) from airports via Route Exchange.
After the first successful RFP by Air Asia X last year, Routes is delighted to announce two new RFP’s for 2012, both launched already yesterday.
Scoot, which was formally launched on 1st November 2011, are using Route Exchange to issue a formal RFP for potential routes in China, Asia and into the European market. Scoot will have 2 more B777-200 joining its fleet from Q1 2013. The target markets for Scoot will be North Asia, Indian sub-Continent, Middle East and Europe. In this RFP, Scoot is sourcing for airports, within its target markets to serve from April 2013. “We at Scoot view Route Exchange as the perfect platform to deliver the significant opportunity that this RFP will provide to airports offering a transparent process to everybody,” said Campbell Wilson, Chief Executive Officer, Scoot.
17/01/12 Travel Daily News

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FDI in aviation set to take off

New Delhi : Senior ministers will meet tomorrow to take a decision on the contentious issue of permitting foreign airlines to invest in domestic carriers. The meeting will be attended by Civil Aviation Minister Ajit Singh, Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee, Petroleum Minister S Jaipal Reddy and Commerce Minister Anand Sharma.

Also, on the agenda are decisions whether to allow Indian carriers to directly import fuel, which could lead to Rs 2,500 crore worth of annual cost savings for airlines, and extend the credit period given for payment of airport fees and fuel.

A final decision on the FDI issue is crucial, especially at a time when many domestic carriers have been deep in debt and require a sizeable infusion of cash, which is not available in the domestic market. Many international carriers such as British Airways, Singapore Airlines and Air Asia, among others, had shown interest in investing in Indian carriers. The domestic airline industry, despite a feared slowdown, has been doing reasonably well, with passenger growth at 18 per cent in the last calendar year. It is expected to grow at a comfortable clip of above 15 per cent this year. The market has seen fares go up by around 15 per cent.

17/01/12 Business Standard

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GoM gives nod to 49% FDI in civil aviation

New Delhi: Accepting a major demand of the cash-strapped aviation industry, the government on Tuesday said it would soon launch the process to allow foreign airlines 49 percent stake in Indian carriers.
A meeting between Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee and Civil Aviation Minister Ajit Singh also decided to immediately release Rs 150 crore for payment of portion of pending salaries and allowances of Air India employees, including pilots.
Replying to questions after the 75-minute meeting, Singh said "the question was to allow foreign airlines to participate in FDI. I discussed it with the Finance Minister and he has agreed. We will bring out a note for the Cabinet now."
Allowing foreign airlines to pick up stake in Indian carriers would mark a major policy shift. Earlier foreign airlines were not allowed to invest in Indian airlines though foreign direct investment was allowed.
17/01/12 ZeeNews

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Carbon tax: India may put curbs on EU carriers

New Delhi: India has threatened to review the benefits it provides to European airlines as it mounted its opposition to the EU move to impose carbon tax on Indian carriers operating through Europe, a source said.
Under a Horizontal Aviation Agreement between India and the 27-nation bloc EU, New Delhi allows any European airline to operate flights between India and any European Union member state.
The tax, which airlines flying into or out of EU airports have to pay to cover carbon dioxide emission during their flights over the European skies, has come into effect from 1 January. The move was strongly criticised by several countries including the US, China, Brazil, Russia, Japan and India.
“Efforts are going on to resolve the issue… but if they do not exempt India from this, we may review our horizontal agreements with them and put some restrictions,” the source said, while speaking on the proposed retaliatory measure.
Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee has also strongly opposed the EU plan at the last G20 meeting.
15/01/12 First Post.com

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Gold Worth Rs 14 Lac Seized

Kasargod: The custom officials have seized 523 grams of gold ornaments worth Rs 14 lac at the Thiruvananthapuram International Airport and in connection have arrested K A Hamsa, a Nellikunje resident.
On Friday January 13 at 5.30 am when Hamsa landed at the Thiruvananthapuram airport after flying from Dubai in Air India the custom officials examined his body through a metal detector and found that he was hiding the gold ornaments inside his clothes.
15/01/12 Daijiworld.com

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Emirates wants to add more seats, destinations to India

Dublin: Already a big player in India, flying to 10 cities, the UAE's flag carrier Emirates hopes the next bilateral pact between the two sides will remove air pockets to facilitate more capacity and routes to India to utilise the full potential.

The carrier, which operates as many as 185 flights a week to India, also hopes to fly the Airbus A380 to India, riding on the latent capacity for such gigantic aircraft and the interest the bird had evoked on a solo promotional run to Delhi two years ago.

"We are very keen to expand further into India. This is a major growth market for us, not just for flights into Dubai, but also beyond to any destination in Europe and beyond," said Tim Clark, president of Emirates.

"But all that depends on the Indian government. We hope as and when the bilateral pact is reviewed next, our request is accommodated," Clark told IANS on the margins of an event here marking direct Dubai-Dublin flights.

15/01/12 IANS/Economic Times

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CAL, Air India in collaboration talk

Caribbean Airlines is currently in discussions to form a significant partnership with Air India to explore the possibility of the two airlines collaborating in areas such as special pro-rate agreements (SPR), ground handing,maintenance/ repair/ overhaul (MRO), training and code shares. Caribbean Airlines board member, Avendanand Persad met with assistant general manager, Alliance Management and International Relations of Air India Madhu Shorff.
The business possibility follows bilateral talks with India’s Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar and Minister of Transport Devant Maharaj—who signed an air services agreement with the Indian Government.
15/01/12 Guardian Media

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Chinese firms eyeing acquisitions in India

New Delhi: For the second time in less than a month, a Chinese company has hit the headlines in relation to a potential investment in an Indian company, signalling the growing interest in India among Chinese businesses.

Chinese airline and hospitality player HNA Group is reportedly keen on buying the India operations of travel services major Thomas Cook (India) Ltd.

Although Thomas Cook has denied media reports to the effect, industry sources said HNA is scouting for India buys in the travel and hospitality space.

It is also one of the bidders for Aman Resorts, a luxury property which was put on the block by DLF Ltd.

There have also been reports that the Hong Kong-based Bravia Capital may have infused some funds into the cash-strapped Kingfisher Airlines. Bravia already has a joint venture in India with IL&FS.

14/01/12 Business Line

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Sebi rejects plea to dilute Takeover Code

New Delhi: The Securities & Exchange Board of India (Sebi ) has ruled out any dilution in the Takeover Code, a move that will force the government to rework its plan to permit foreign airlines to acquire a 26% stake in Indian carriers.
The government wanted Sebi to make a special exemption for civil aviation as acquisition of a stake that's 25% or more triggers an open offer from the acquirer to buy another 26% in the target company . In fact, an exemption from Sebi was being sought for all sectors following an anomaly that was pointed out by the department of industrial policy and promotion (DIPP).
Although the finance ministry has not sent a formal proposal to the market regulator, a government official confirmed that discussions have taken place. Now DIPP, which is piloting the proposal, is waiting for word from both finance and civil aviation ministries on Sebi's stand before sending the proposal for Cabinet approval.
As a result, the department is still working on a plan to permit 26% stake. Under existing regulations, FDI up to 49% is permitted in civil aviation, although foreign airlines are barred from stake acquisition.
14/01/12 Sidhartha/Times of India

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Airlines Fail to Stop U.S. Bank Loan Guarantees to Air India

U.S. pilots and airlines failed to persuade a judge to temporarily block the Export-Import Bank of the United States from providing Air India Ltd. with $1.3 billion in loan guarantees to buy Boeing Co. (BA) aircraft.
U.S. District Judge James Boasberg in Washington yesterday rejected arguments by trade associations for the largest U.S. airlines and pilots who said allowing the guarantees to proceed while their legal challenge is being considered would harm domestic airlines. Boasberg’s ruling came three days before Boeing is scheduled to deliver one of its aircraft to Air India.
“Any injury to plaintiffs that may be caused by the delivery of one or two planes to Air India is, at this stage, wholly speculative,” Boasberg said. None of the airlines participating the lawsuit offer a direct flight between the U.S. and India, the judge said.
The Air Transport Association of America Inc., now called Airlines for America, filed the lawsuit in November claiming the bank didn’t seek public comment or consider the effect on the U.S. airline industry before approving $1.3 billion in loan guarantees and $2.1 billion in preliminary commitments to support the sale of 30 Boeing aircraft to Mumbai-based Air India.
14/01/12 Tom Schoenberg/Bloomberg.com

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GoM to look into foreign capital in domestic airlines

New Delhi: A group of ministers (GoM) is expected to meet next week to look into the demands raised by some of the major airlines to allow foreign capital and to import jet fuel directly, informed sources said Friday.

The development comes after a committee of secretaries proposed a cap of 49 percent foreign direct investment (FDI) by foreign airlines. The commerce ministry's department of industrial policy and promotion (DIPP) had recommended a 26 percent cap.

"Private airlines in the country are in need of funds for operations and service upgradation to compete with other global carriers," the DIPP note said.

Currently, the government allows for FDI up to 49 percent in Indian carriers by non-airline players but bans foreign airlines from directly investing due to security reasons.

The issue of FDI from foreign airlines was also raised by airlines chiefs' when they met Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Nov 26, 2011.

13/01/12 IANS/Economic Times

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HC pulls up police for taking contradictory stand in a case

Mumbai: The Bombay High Court today pulled up city police for adopting contradictory stand in the case of 23-year-old Israeli national Nurit Toker, who was recently arrested at the international airport here with two live firearm cartridges. A bench headed by Justice A M Khanvilkar asked the police not to change their stand frequently with regard to investigations in this case. The police had earlier filed a report before a city magistrate seeking closure of the case on the ground that there was no evidence. The magistrate refused to accept the plea and had directed further investigations. Toker then moved the High Court to quash proceedings against her as she was carrying cartridges by mistake. However, the police took a contrary stand saying they would not resubmit their earlier plea of closing the case. This prompted the judges to remark, "Why are you changing your stand. If you have evidence then file a report or else say that you have no evidence and bring this on record". The bench asked prosecutor Aruna Pai to take up the matter with the concerned authorities and inform the court on January 17 about the stand taken by the police in this case. Toker was arrested at the Mumbai airport while she was in transit from Israel to Nepal. She pleaded that cartridges were kept in her bag by sheer mistake.

13/01/12 PTI/IBN Live

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Russian tourist dies at airport

Patna: A septuagenarian Russian woman, Samazhad Ninaeva, died due to heart attack at the city airport on Friday afternoon, sources said.

Along with a group of about a dozen Russians, she was reportedly returning from Gaya after attending the Kalachakra Puja performed by the Tibetan spiritual leader, the Dalai Lama, at Bodh Gaya recently.

The woman had arrived at the airport to take a flight for Delhi. Suddenly she complained of breathlessness and collapsed outside the airport terminal, sources said.

14/01/12 Times of India

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German bank says may repossess 2 Kingfisher aircraft

Singapore: Germany's DVB Bank SE said it may repossess two Airbus A320 aircraft from troubled Kingfisher Airlines Ltd if the carrier failed to meet its commitment to the lender in due time.
The cash-strapped carrier, controlled by liquor baron Vijay Mallya, is having trouble making interest payments and paying salaries.
"It is a painful situation, it requires a lot of time and work," Bertrand Grabowski, a member of the board at the bank which oversees the aviation business, told Reuters on Friday. "We have said to Vijay (Mallya) that we cannot continue like this. If we are not paid on due time, we will certainly consider repossession of the aircraft," he said, while declining to comment if there was a certain deadline the bank had set.
“DVB has purportedly said they may repossess two aircraft if we do not pay them as agreed. Kingfisher Airlines fully intends to honour its payment obligations to DVB and other lessors,'' a Kingfisher spokesperson said.
14/01/12 Business Standard

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Debris of crashed Wordl War II US aircraft found in Tripura

Agartala: Fragments of a US military aircraft, used during World War II, have been recovered in northern Tripura 66 years after it crashed, defence sources said here Saturday.

"After more than 66 years of being considered unrecoverable by many, the remnants of an American aircraft, C-47B, which crashed during World War II, were recovered by a team of 34th Battalion of the Assam Rifles last week in northern Tripura," an army official told IANS.

The remains of the aircraft were found at the remote tribal village of Birmani Para in the Dhalai district in northern Tripura, 125 km north of state capital Agartala.

The official said: "A series of search operations had been launched since September last year to find out the crash site in the thick and dense forests of all three hill ridges of northern Tripura -- Baramura, Atharamura and Longtrai. Finally, our troopers achieved success last week."

14/01/12 IANS/Times of India

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India protests EU airline emissions tax

New Delhi: The European Union should immediately withdraw the carbon tax it began imposing on airlines beginning with the new year, India's environment minister said.
Indian Environment Minister Jayanthi Natarajan warned EU Commissioner for Climate and Energy Connie Hedegaard in a letter the carbon emissions tax demanded from international airlines using European airspace is illegal and will hurt future climate-change negotiations, the Indian business news daily Mint reported Monday.
A copy of the letter, sent by Natarajan Dec. 28, was obtained by the newspaper.
In it, the Indian minister said the action taken under the EU's Emission Trading Scheme isn't valid.
"I strongly urge the EU to reconsider and reverse the decision to apply the scheme to non-EU airlines," he wrote, adding, "India strongly feels that a unilateral measure as the one proposed to be taken by EU, stands not only in violation of the principles and provisions of the (international) convention but will also not augur well for the success of future climate change negotiations."
11/01/12 UPI

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Oneworld working with Kingfisher for its entry

Chennai/ Bangalore : With just a month away for Kingfisher Airlines’ entry in to oneworld, the management of the global alliance is working closely with the financially-strapped airline to ensure its readiness. If things go as planned, Kingfisher Airlines will be the first carrier from the subcontinent to join any of the global airline groups — and the first of three airlines to join oneworld in its biggest membership expansion drive for five years. Air India had earlier come close to being part of the rival Star Alliance network, a move which did not fructify.

However, with heavily truncated schedule of flights, Kingfisher Airlines will be faced with a herculean task to keep in step with the demands of network which oneworld alliance will be looking forward to. A spokesperson for oneworld told Business Standard that all oneworld member airlines undergo audits by the alliance as they join and as appropriate as their business models adapt. “These reviews cover virtually every aspect of the airline’s activities - from its customer offering to its safety procedures. We are of course keeping in close touch with Kingfisher Airlines as its oneworld joining date nears and we look forward to welcoming Kingfisher Airlines on board on 10 February,” the spokesperson said.

Working groups from oneworld have been covering some 35 streams of activity to bring Kingfisher Airlines’ various internal processes and procedures into line with the alliance’s requirements, to ensure they are ready to provide oneworld’s customer services and benefits across the expanded alliance from 10 February. Kingfisher Airlines received its green light to board oneworld during mid-December 2011 after successfully completing a thorough review of its readiness conducted by British Airways, which is sponsoring its entry into the alliance, with the oneworld central team.

12/01/12 Raghuvir Badrinath/Business Standard

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AirAsia X To Suspend Services To Europe, Parts Of India

Kuala Lumpur: AirAsia Bhd.'s (5099.KU) long-haul associate AirAsia X said Thursday it will terminate routes to Europe and parts of India, citing high jet fuel prices and weakening demand for air travel.
The budget airline's move comes after AirAsia Bhd., Southeast Asia's largest budget airline by fleet size, said it has been struggling with rising fuel costs, which has also impacted Malaysia's flag carrier Malaysian Airline System Bhd. (3786.KU).
"The continued high jet fuel prices and the weakening demand for air travel from Europe, brought about by the current economic situation together with exorbitant government taxes, have placed cost pressures on operating long-haul low-cost flights between Asia and Europe, compromising our ability to offer the low fares AirAsia X is known for," AirAsia X Chief Executive Azran Osman-Rani said.
The implementation of an emissions trading program and escalating passenger duty taxes in the U.K., which will rise again in April 2012, "has forced our decision to withdraw our services to Europe," he said.
"As for Delhi and Mumbai, the continued visa restrictions for travel between India and Malaysia, and the increase in airport and handling charges have resulted in a structure not conducive to the low-cost model," he said. The airline will look to re-instate these routes "once these structural issues can be resolved."
12/01/12 Ankur Relia/Dow Jones/Capital.gr

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Europe’s Doomed Flight of Decarbonizing Fancy

Green taxes are soaring. To be precise, to 30,000 feet as the EU’s new carbon tax on airlines for all flights to or from Europe kicked in on January 1. While the levies involved will push profit margins to the limit for some, with ETS carbon permits trading at pathetically low levels and expected to stay that way through 2012, the pain in the first year for airlines may not be as much as the €1.1 billion initially projected. Even so, letting the plane take the carbon strain represents seriously poor long-term strategic planning for Europe given the looming global trade war it is about to ignite.
One can only wonder what the Brussels-based mandarins were thinking. The global war on CO2 is going nowhere. By the end of 2011 global emissions had hit an all-time high. China, India and others are fast-industrializing opening new coal-fired power stations more quickly than the EU can shut down the old ones. The Kyoto alliance is crumbling as Russia backs Canada’s pull-out. Renewables subsidies and investments are being devastated by shale extraction investments – ironically, with natural gas from shale impacting CO2 levels far more than the global carbon war has.
To cap it all, the EU carbon price is currently languishing between €6 and €9 per tonne; nowhere near the levels needed to secure industrial action and raise the revenues required to keep renewables on subsidized life support. As well as alienating the airlines and air travellers, the EU is mired in its Eurozone mess. It has chosen this moment to fire the first shot in a global trade war; as Dirty Harry would say: “Outstanding”.
10/01/12 Peter C. Glover/Energy Tribune

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American to drop Chicago-New Delhi flights

Dallas: American Airlines said Monday it will end flights between Chicago and New Delhi and also between Dallas and Burbank, Calif., and separately will cut about 150 jobs next month.
The company blamed the job cuts on loss of a U.S. Postal Service domestic mail contract, closing of an equipment shop in St. Louis, and a reduced winter flight schedule.
Flights between Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport and Burbank will end Feb 9, and Chicago-New Delhi service will stop on March 1. The airline will close its operations in Burbank and New Delhi and reduce airport jobs.
American and its parent, AMR Corp., filed for bankruptcy protection on Nov. 29, but the company said Monday's changes weren't related to the bankruptcy. The company said it was responding to market and other changes to become more efficient.
09/01/12 The Associated Press/Business Week

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Business jet seized at Dabolim gets provisional release

Panaji: A provisional release order has been issued for the Punj Lloyd Group-owned 260 cr Gulfstream business jet seized by the directorate of revenue intelligence (DRI) on January 3 at Dabolim airport.

The jet was scheduled to fly a top company official to Doha. Customs sources have confirmed that the provisional release order was issued on furnishing of a bond of 260 cr (value of the aircraft) and a bank guarantee of 11.5 cr (25% of the duty amount of 47.33 cr) by Punj Lloyd Pte Ltd, Singapore, which owns this aircraft.

The jet is registered in the US and was used to fly company executives from various destinations including India.

11/01/12 Times of India

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Air India to start international flights from Vishakhapatnam

Vishakhapatnam: Air India will start flying to international destinations from Visakhapatnam with first flight to Dubai via Hyderabad scheduled to take off on March 27.
Addressing a press conference here today, Rajya Sabha member T Subbarami Reddy said that the Union Minister of Civil Aviation Ajit Singh would inaugurate the first flight.
He said he has already discussed with the Union Government the proposal for modernisation of the airport here and for night landing facility.
10/01/12 PTI/Economic Times

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Swede found with live cartridge gets bail

Panaji: A Swedish national who was arrested by the Vasco police after CISF staff posted at Dabolim airport found a live cartridge in her baggage, as she was about to board a flight to Mumbai, has been granted bail.

Judicial magistrate first class, Vasco, Edgar Fernandes, granted bail to the Swedish national Kristina Hardingz on a surety of 20,000.

She was arrested on January 2 by Vasco police on allegations of being in possession of one bullet found in her baggage during screening by CISF staff at Dabolim airport as she was about to board her flight to Mumbai.

The police sought to have the bail application rejected chiefly on grounds that the lady was a foreign national and had no residential address in India.

11/02/11 Times of India

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BIA gets British certification

Bangalore: The Bangalore International Airport Limited (BIAL) on Monday announced that its Bengaluru International Airport (BIA) became the second airport in the world to have been conferred with the BS 25999-2:2007 certification for its business continuity management systems (BCMS) by the British Standard Institution.
BIAL, in a press release, said:?“This certification was achieved after following a stringent process lasting almost 10 months. By achieving this honour, BIAL becomes the first airport in the Asia Pacific region and second in the global civil aviation industry to be certified with a BS 25999-2:2007.”
09/01/12 Deccan Herald

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Airline staff goofed fake passport situation: Report

Vasco: Three Sri Lankans were found carrying fake passport documents while boarding a Frankfurt-bound flight at Dabolim airport and two were nabbed. But the third suspect managed to escape.
Top official sources said, the regulatory agencies at the Dabolim airport in a report on the escape of the third suspect believed to be an active member of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Elam, have revealed that the airline staff was not trained adequately to deal with such a situation.
Firstly, if the staff was sure that the documents of the three Sri Lankans were fake, they should have quickly asked for a security escort and should have responsibly handed over the suspects to them.
Secondly, the staff is not the right authority to decide whether documents are real or not. "This process of verification is done by immigration," a source said.
10/01/12 Times of India

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CAL gets clearance for India flights

The way has been paved for Caribbean Airlines (CAL) to fly from Trinidad to India and vice versa, Transport Minister Devant Maharaj said yesterday.
He said a plan has to be formulated and logistics worked out as to acquiring new aircraft and making this initiative a reality.
On Friday after bilateral talks with India’s Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar and Maharaj signed an air services agreement with the Indian Government.
Following the inaugural ceremony of the Pravasi Bharatiya Divas (PBD) at Birla Auditorium, Jaipur, where Persad-Bissessar was the chief guest, Maharaj explained to the Express the details of the agreement.
09/01/12 Stabrock News

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Exempt FDI in aviation from Sebi takeover code: Industry Ministry

New Delhi: In a move to help cash-starved airlines like Kingfisher, the industry ministry is pitching in for exemption of the sector from Sebi's takeover code, which would come in the way of foreign carriers picking up a 26% stake in domestic companies, sources said.

The finance ministry had in the first week of December given its approval to the proposal of the department of industrial policy and promotion for allowing 26% foreign direct investment (FDI) by foreign airlines in domestic carriers.

However, the finance ministry's consent came with the rider that such investments should not violate market regulator Sebi's takeover code, under which an open offer is triggered once an investor acquires a 26% stake in a listed company.

09/01/12 PTI/Economic Times

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JV to do AI ground-handling

Thiruvananthapuram: Even as the national carrier is struggling to revive from the acute fiscal crunches, Air India is going ahead with its plans to hand over the profit making ground-handling services to the joint-venture firm with a Singapore-based private company. The Thiruvan anthapuram Airport, which was earning about `45 crore to the national carrier annually, is the latest to be handed over to the joint venture firm Air India - Singapore Airport Terminal Services (AI-SATS), that too without getting the nod of the Air India director board. It is learnt that a move is on to welcome AI-SATS to Kozhikode airport.
Suspecting malicious intentions behind handing over the profit-making services in Thiruvananthapuram, staff of the Air India Air Transport Services (AIATS) had petitioned the chief vigilance commissioner and central labour commissioner.
09/01/12 Deccan Chronicle

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Male allow GMR to collect airport development, insurance fee from passengers

Bangalore: Maldives authorities have allowed Male International Airport operator GMR Infrastructure to collect airport development and insurance charges from passengers, nearly a month after a local court barred the Bangalore-based company from doing so.
In December, a Male civil court had stopped GMR from collecting airport development charge (ADC), saying it was identical to existing airport service charges being collected from passengers.
GMR, which is overseeing the renovation of the airport, had earlier tried to include ADC in the airline ticket price, but the International Air Transport Association (IATA) had disallowed it.
09/01/12 Sobia Khan/Economic Times

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Polish woman held at IGI with forged visa

New Delhi: A 22-year-old Polish woman headed to Beijing was arrested at IGI Airport on Sunday after police found that she was travelling allegedly on a forged visa.

Marzeena Bartosik was apprehended at the immigration on Saturday night before she was to board an Air China flight, the airport police said.

09/01/12 Times of India

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Seven passengers injured as turbulence rocks superjet in Indian airspace

Seven passengers on a Qantas superjet flying from London to Sydney were injured today when the aircraft struck severe turbulence over the Indian Ocean.
Many of the passengers on board the A380 were Britons heading for the sun in the Australian summer.
Four of the seven who received cuts and bruises were taken to hospital in Singapore for treatment, while the other three were treated at the medical centre in Changi airport.
Qantas said the turbulence was the result of severe thunderstorms over the Indian Ocean, in Indian air space, three hours before the jet was due to land in Singapore for refuelling.
A spokeswoman said the seatbelt sign went on immediately the aircraft hit the turbulence but some passengers were still standing or making their way back to their seats.
She described the injuries as minor cuts and bruises.
08/01/12 Richard Shears/Daily Mail

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3 SL men held at airport with forged passports, 1 flees

Vasco: Dabolim international airport witnessed high drama on Saturday morning when three men, suspected to be Sri Lankan refugees, tried to board a Frankfurt-bound charter on allegedly forged passports issued in Tamil Nadu. While two have been detained and are presently in the custody of Vasco police, the third escaped.
Airport immigration PI Rajan Prabhudesai told TOI that officials of the Goa-Sharjah-Frankfurt Condor Airlines got suspicious about the men as the charter rarely sees non-Germans. Refusing to issue the trio boarding passes, the staff alerted immigration police. As Guruparan Nanasiam alias Muthaiyam Ravi, Kuwasingham Nivakaran alias Rathmanathan Janarthan and Nanvaneethal Santhivatoss (real name not known) were being interrogated by immigration police, Santhivatoss asked to use the toilet and made good his escape.
Sources said he was allowed to go to the restroom without an escort and got away despite the immigration police desk being barely 40-50m away.
08/01/12 Times of India

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Swedish woman applies for bail

Swedish national Christina Hardings, who was arrested on January 2 at the Dabolim airport for carrying live ammunition, applied for anticipatory bail on Saturday before the judicial magistrate first class ( JMFC) court at Vasco. Police said that although she applied for bail, no orders have been received by them. The 45-year-old woman, was arrested while she was boarding an Indigo airlines flight bound for Mumbai.
08/01/12 Times of India

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Ministry may allow foreign airlines to hold up to 49% in domestic carriers

New Delhi: The civil aviation ministry is likely to drop its opposition to higher investment by foreign airlines in the aviation sector and agree to let them hold up to 49% in domestic carriers, handing out a possible lifeline to cash-strapped airlines.
At present, foreign carriers such as British Airways, Singapore Airlines and Emirates are banned from directly pumping money into the aviation sector, although financial and other non-airline investors can invest up to 49% in Indian airlines.
The aviation ministry had traditionally been opposed to allowing international airlines to invest in local carriers, but had relaxed its opposition, partly as a result of hectic lobbying by some loss-making players such as Kingfisher Airlines and GoAir. After first saying global carriers should not be allowed to hold beyond 24%, the ministry had relented to allow them to pick up to 26% stake.
07/01/12 Devesh Kumar & Anindya Upadhyay/Economic Times

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US Exim Bank supports Air India deal

Hyderabad: The Export-Import Bank of the US has justified extending a $1.3-billion loan guarantee support to Air India, stating that the airline has been a “good customer” of the bank.
The bank's Chairman, Mr Fred Hochberg, said the bank had been supporting Air India for many years and it was also a customer of Boeing. “We understand that airlines are going through a difficult period,” he told media persons here on Friday.
The Air Transport Association of America had sued the bank in November last year over the Air India deal. The bank's support to Air India was to help the carrier purchase Boeing's Dreamliner aircraft.
Mr Hochberg said the bank had also financed Jet Airways and Spice Jet in India, but did not quantify the total commitment.
He said India is likely to emerge as the largest destination for the bank in the next 12 to 18 months. The official export credit agency of the US Gfederal government ranks India second, next only to Mexico, in credit commitments.
06/01/12 Amit Mitra/Business Line

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Air India’s U.S. Bank Loan Guarantees Unlawful, Groups Argue

U.S. pilots and airlines asked a federal judge to stop the Export-Import Bank of the United States from giving Air India $1.3 billion in loan guarantees to buy Boeing Co. aircraft.
U.S. District Judge James Boasberg in Washington today heard arguments by trade associations for the largest U.S. airlines and pilots requesting that he block the guarantees while he considers their legal challenge. Boasberg said he would rule on the request by Jan. 13, three days before Boeing is scheduled to deliver one of its aircraft to Air India.
The Air Transport Association of America Inc., now called Airlines for America, filed the lawsuit in November claiming the bank didn’t seek public comments or consider the impact on the U.S. airline industry before approving $1.3 billion in loan guarantees and $2.1 billion in preliminary commitments to support the sale of 30 Boeing aircraft to Air India.
07/01/12 Bloomberg

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Tripura airport being upgraded for Hasina's visit

Agartala: The Indian government is upgrading the Tripura airport with international facilities ahead of the visit of Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, whose aircraft will land here directly from Dhaka next week, a top official said here Friday.
Hasina, accompanied by six Bangladesh ministers, including Foreign Minister Dipu Moni, will make a two-day maiden visit to the northeast Indian state of Tripura Jan 11. A big 65-member delegation of businessmen and intellectuals will accompany her.
"The Airports Authority of India (AAI) following the direction of the central government has been upgrading facilities at the Agartala airport to that of international airports in India," Tripura Chief Secretary S.K. Panda told reporters.
Hasina will arrive in Agartala, which has a domestic airport, on a special flight of Biman Bangladesh Airlines.
06/01/12 ZeeNews

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China, India up ante in spat over aviation emissions

China and India have ratcheted up their rhetoric against the inclusion of their airlines in the EU Emissions Trading System (ETS), with both countries reportedly threatening not to comply with the programme.
"China will not cooperate with the European Union on the ETS, so Chinese airlines will not impose surcharges on customers relating to the emissions tax," Reuters reported Cai Haibo, deputy secretary-general of the China Air Transport Association, as saying.
Meanwhile, Bloomberg quoted an unnamed official within India’s civil aviation ministry saying that the ministry may ask Indian airlines to withhold emissions data from the EU.
From 1 January, all aircraft taking off or landing at an EU airport must surrender allowances equivalent to the emissions for their entire journey – a move that has been strongly resisted by the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), backed in particular by the US, China and India.
The penalty for failing to surrender adequate emissions allowances is €100 ($128) per tonne of carbon dioxide equivalent, plus an obligation to make good on the allowance shortfall. Ultimately, operators could have their licence to operate withdrawn.
05/01/12 Environmental Finance

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Woman held for smuggling in memory cards

Bangalore: A 40-year-old woman was held on Thursday morning for smuggling in 31,520 micro-secure digital chips from Hong Kong.
Officials of the Air Intelligence Unit (AIU), Customs, at Bangalore International Airport (BIA) caught Rosy Bhatia from Delhi red-handed as she tried to walk away with the chips worth Rs 63.04 lakh, packed in 53 polythene pouches and concealed in her stockings, hidden under a salwar suit.
The cards, bearing the “Made in Taiwan” tag, were being smuggled into the country.
The customs sleuths intercepted her after she alighted from a Dragon Airways aircraft from Hong Kong around 2 am and immediately arrested her for offences under Section 108 of the Customs Act, 1962.
Rosy Bhatia, according to a senior AIU official, was carrying approximately 31,520 such cards with the capacity of two gigabytes on her. The officials, following a tip-off, waited for Rosy Bhatia to arrive and watched her moves.
“She was a smart woman. She had packed these chips in 53 small polythene pouches which were concealed in her stockings, over which she was wearing a salwar,” said an official at the airport.
05/01/12 Deccan Herald

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Lankan held for smuggling gold biscuits

Kochi: The attempt by a Sri Lankan national to smuggle 14 gold biscuits of 100 gm each by concealing them in his rectum was thwarted by the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) officials at the Cochin International Airport here on Thursday.
The Sri Lankan national, identified as Altaf Shahul Hameed, 47, of Colombo, was arrested at the airport by a DRI team led by senior officer N S Dev.
According to DRI sources, the person was nabbed based on an intelligence input.
The person has been shifted to the Government General Hospital to remove the biscuits from the rectum.
06/01/12 Times of India

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Kalam frisking at New York airport was serious blunder: India

New Delhi: Terming as a "serious blunder" the frisking of former President A P J Abdul Kalam at New York's JFK Airport, India today said it would not accept any violation of rules that permit exception for certain dignitaries of the country.
Foreign Secretary Ranjan Mathai said the issue of frisking was laid to rest by the "gracious person" (Kalam) though the Transportation Security Administration of the US was willing to send an official in person to apologise for the incident.
However, Mathai said in cases of frisking of people who are not exempted one should "get used to the way things work in the world, not necessarily the way things work in our own country."
Mathai said India will not accept any violation of rules that apply to categories where people are exempted or privileged.
05/01/12 Indian Express

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China, India Mount Opposition Against EU Aviation Carbon Curbs

The European Union faced increased pressure to scale down its plan to impose carbon curbs on airlines after China’s carriers said they won’t comply with the rules and India signaled it may attempt to scupper the EU plan.
Europe should either scrap or delay its initiative to include flights to and from the region’s airports in its emissions trading system as of this year, according to the China Air Transport Association, or CATA. India may ask airlines to withhold emissions data, a civil aviation ministry official said, a move that would undermine the first expansion of the EU carbon cap-and-trade program beyond its borders.
“What we need to do now is co-operate together and pressure them to scrap this,” Chai Haibo, vice secretary general of Beijing-based CATA, said in a phone interview. Members of the association include Air China Ltd., China Southern Airlines Co. and China Eastern Airlines Corp.
The warnings by China and India follow a declaration adopted in November by the United Nations’ International Civil Aviation Organization calling on the EU to exempt international aircraft operators from its curbs on carbon. The non-binding ICAO statement was supported by 26 countries, including the U.S., Russia and Japan, who said that the expansion of the EU program was inconsistent with international law.
04/01/12 Bloomberg

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GMR may team up with Brazilian construction company Queiroz Galvao for Sao Paulo airport bid

GMR may rope in Brazilian construction giant Queiroz Galvao as a partner to bolster its bid to carry out airport modernization projects at some of Brazil's busiest airports, two people directly familiar with the company's bidding plans said.
Queiroz Galvao is one of the largest privately held construction conglomerates in Brazil and had revenues of over $4 billion in 2010 as per details available in the company's annual report. The company also has operations in the areas of real estate development and oil and gas exploration.
GMR may finally bid only for the Guarulhos airport expansion project at Sao Paulo as it is the most lucrative and busiest airport in Brazil, according to one of the people quoted above. The projected capex for the airport modernization project at Guarulhos alone could be close to $8 billion, according to the same person. Brazil's government will also auction off concessions at Viracopos airport in Sao Paulo and the airport in the capital city of Brasilia to bidders selected through an auction process.
GMR has also been in talks with other large Latin American construction companies and will look to finalize a partner within the next two weeks.
04/01/12 Mohit Bhalla/Economic Times

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'Swedish authorities concerned over army woman's arrest'

Panaji: Swedish authorities as well as people of that country have voiced concern over the arrest of a Swedish army woman in Goa for possessing a live cartridge while she was boarding a flight for Mumbai Monday.
Inger Kristina Hardinz, an arms instructor in the Swedish army, was boarding Indigo flight GE-196 Monday when a live 5.56 mm cartridge was found in her hand baggage during security check at the Dabolim airport here.
Hardinz told the authorities she had "no idea" how the cartridge had slipped into her luggage. She had arrived in India Dec 23, 2011.
Sweden’s leading English newspaper The Local has quoted several Swedish authorities, including army spokespersons who have expressed their concern over the arrest of Hardinz. The newspaper’s website also published several comments from Swedish citizens who have expressed outrage at the arrest.
"As her employers, we have sent down documentation proving that she is trained and licensed to handle ammunition. However, she is in India for private reasons and is not on a mission requiring her to carry bullets," the newspaper has said, quoting Pia Sandstedt of the Swedish Army Logistics Unit.
04/01/12 IANS/Deccan Herald

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Plane found in Himalayas 69 years after it vanished

A family searching for the plane of an American pilot have finally found it - 69 years after he disappeared.
The C-47 transport aircraft was 13,400ft up a Himalayan mountain, and is thought to be the final resting place of its pilot, Jimmy Browne, who was just 21 when he was shot down on a flight between Kunming in China, and Dinjan, India, on 17 November, 1942.
Browne's cousin Bob Willett joined forces with wealthy businesman and adventurer Clayton Kuhles, who led a team that found and identified the wreckage in China's Yunnan Province, according to the Daily Mail.
03/01/12 Ruth Doherty/Travel News/AOL

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Arrested Swedish army woman to be produced for remand

Panaji: A Swedish army woman, arrested at Goa's Dabolim airport a day ago for carrying a live cartridge while boarding a Mumbai-bound flight, will be presented before a court for remand Tuesday, police said. Deputy Superintendent of Police Deu Benaulikar said the Swedish embassy had not established any contact with the state authorities vis a vis the arrest of Inger Kristina Hardinz, an arms instructor in the Swedish army.
Inger was boarding Indigo flight GE-196 when a live 5.56 mm cartridge was found in her hand baggage during the security check.
03/01/12 IANS/Deccan Herald

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Flights to 27 EU nations will have to pay carbon tax

Mumbai: From January 1, carbon emissions by aircraft flying into 27 European Union (EU) countries, including the UK will be measured as the airline industry will come under the EU emission trading scheme, making carriers that exceed their carbon limit liable to pay a carbon tax.
There will be no immediate impact on airfares as the tax will come into effect only after an airline has crossed its carbon emission limit as laid down by the EU. But if an alternative is not worked out by the Indian government and other countries that are opposed to this EU scheme, the one-way cost of an air ticket from India could eventually go up by about Rs 350-750, depending on the length of the trip, say industry experts. Under the scheme, emissions will be measured for the entire length of the trip, irrespective of whether the flight begins or ends at an EU airport. So, for a Mumbai-London flight, the carbon emissions will be measured from the time the aircraft starts moving in the Mumbai airport.
02/01/12 Times of India

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NZ Co LanzaTech to help IOC, JSPL set up bio jet fuel plant

Mumbai: The New Zealand-based renewable energy company LanzaTech is in talks with its partners here - IndianOil and Jindal Steel & Power - to help them set up plant to produce commercial bio jet fuel from ethanol, a top company official has said. As a first step, LanzaTech will open an office in the country in the first half of 2012 as part of its plan to expand its operations here, LanzaTech vice-president for business development for Asia Pacific Prabhakar Nair said.
IndianOil and Jindal Steel & Power (JSPL) are already in discussions for collaborating to accelerate deployment of LanzaTech's technology to produce fuel ethanol from industrial off-gases , he said. "We have done our best to bring these partners (Jindal and IOC) together . While Jindal Steel & Power has the off-gases , IndianOil has facilities to make, store and supply aviation fuel. We expect them to take a decision in a year and a half to set up a demonstration scale plant," Nair said.
However, he said, the proposed plan only includes technology sharing and not any investment in the plant and machinery .
02/01/12 PTI/Economic Times

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India to protest EU carbon tax on airlines

Mumbai: The Union government will protest against Europe’s carbon trading scheme for aviation at the bi-annual India-EU summit in New Delhi next month.
Air India, Jet Airways and Kingfisher Airlines, which fly to Europe, will get hit by the scheme, which caps aviation emissions and require airlines to purchase carbon credits to cover excess emissions. According to an industry source, the scheme may cost each Indian carrier up to euro 2.5 million (Rs 17 crore) next year. The cost varies for each of the airlines, depending on the number of flights to Europe. The scheme comes into effect from January 1.
The European Court of Justice had rejected a petition by US and Canadian airlines against the carbon trading scheme. India, China and the United States are leading the opposition against the European Union Emission Trading Scheme (EU ETS), since the move to impose emission curbs is unilateral and, in some ways, extra-jurisdictional in nature. Industry bodies like the International Air Transport Association are also against the scheme.
The European court ruled that including airlines in the ETS “infringes neither the principle of territoriality nor the sovereignty of third states.’’
In September, India chaired a meeting of non-European states to voice concern against the carbon trading scheme. According to government sources, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh is expected to take up the matter with the president of the European Commission at the India-EU summit in New Delhi in February.
01/01/12 Aneesh Phadnis/Business Standard

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Venomous snake found in cargo unloading area

Kuwait: Firefighters exterminated a rare type of cobra from India which ended up slithering freely in the cargo unloading area at Kuwait International Airport. The endangered species was apparently in a shipment that arrived from India on a cargo plane.
Firefighters responded to the call and eventually killed the snake when they found it between shipments. The snake was later identified as a rare kind of cobra that holds extremely toxic venom, making it one of the most dangerous snakes in the world.
01/01/12 Kuwait Times

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Air India offers NRIs, foreigners domestic travel scheme

New Delhi: In a bid to woo more passengers, Air India Saturday launched a scheme for non-resident Indians ( NRIs) and overseas tourists offering fares starting $200 on its domestic flights for two journeys.
"Air India has launched new year bonanza for non-resident Indians and overseas tourists for their travel on Air India domestic flights with fares starting as low as $200 for two journeys to $720 for nine journey tickets," the airline said in a statement.
The scheme is called the 'Visit Incredible India Pass' and will be available in overseas market from Jan 1, 2012.
31/12/11 IANS/Economic Times

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