Students catch eye of travel agents, airlines

Mumbai: Students travelling abroad for studies are fast catching the interest of airlines and tour operators alike. Extra baggage allowance, discounted fares, commission waiver on foreign exchange, insurance covers and a bouquet of other goodies are coming their way.
According to Thomas Cook India, the market for students going abroad is witnessing a 40-45 per cent year-on-year growth.
Starting this year, the travel company will also assist students in getting an education loan, for which it has tied up with HDFC Bank, State Bank of India and some other private banks. It is also offering extra baggage of up to 78 kg to London and to the US and Canada up to 110 kg. Exclusive fare of Rs 13,000 plus taxes is being offered on the Mumbai-to-London sector, while special discounts are also being given to family members accompanying students.
The list of perks does not end here. Students can avail themselves of one per cent discount on the foreign exchange rates from Cox and Kings and Thomas Cook. Cox and Kings also waives the commission on the forex otherwise charged from customers.
While India’s national carrier, Air India, is offering extra baggage allowance for students travelling to the West, Far East and South-East Asian countries on its flights till October 31, 2008, Jet Airways flies further: its offerings include special fares and a chance to earn 1,000 bonus JPMiles subject to terms and conditions.
30/07/08 Shubhra Tandon/Business Line

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Jet Airways Cuts Overseas Seats, to Use Smaller Planes

Jet Airways has cut capacity on some of its overseas routes to lower costs.
The airline this month switched to flying an Airbus SAS 330, which can carry as many as 335 passengers, from a Boeing Co. 777, with a capacity to seat as many as 479, to Brussels, Chief Executive Officer Wolfgang Prock-Schauer said on a conference call today. It will fly a Boeing 737, which can carry a maximum 189 passengers, instead of an A330, to Kuala Lumpur, he said.
Jet Airways joins Qantas Airways Ltd. and Korean Air Lines Co. in cutting capacity as the near doubling of jet fuel prices in the past year inflates the biggest expense of most Asian carriers. The airline, which yesterday reported profit increased fivefold after reversing a depreciation charge, filled a lower proportion of seats from a year earlier as rising fares and a slowing economy has discouraged flyers.
The company expects net yields for airlines to rise after the payment of a 5 percent commission is withdrawn to travel agents, Prock-Schauer said. Travel agents account for 80 percent of the airline's business, he said.
Jet Airways has room to increase fares further by 10 percent, raise fuel surcharges and lower catering costs, Prock-Schauer said.
30/07/08 Subramaniam Sharma/Bloomberg

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Asia Pacific airports lead fastest growth-ACI report

Nearly 4.8 billion passengers arrived and departed the world’s airports in 2007, a growth of 6.8 percent on the previous year,
according to the 2007 World Airport Traffic Report released by the Airports Council International (ACI).
The busiest airports in the world remained in their dominant position, Atlanta staying on top with over 89 million passengers, followed by Chicago O’Hare (76m), London Heathrow (68m), Tokyo Haneda (67m) and Los Angeles (62m). However, when just international traffic is taken into account, the top five busiest airports are London Heathrow (62m), Paris Charles de Gaulle (55m), Amsterdam (48m), Frankfurt (47m) and Hong Kong (46m).
The report showed that the fastest growth in passengers occurred in the Middle East with an 11.3 per cent increase, followed by Africa
(11.2 %) and Asia-Pacific (9.1%). The North America region showed the slowest growth at 3.5 per cent, demonstrating the region’s maturity as well as the capacity and congestion issues it faces. Europe showed growth of 7.4 per cent and, at 31 per cent of world passengers, looks set to overtake North America (32%) as the largest region for air traffic in the next few years if current growth patterns hold.
While worldwide passenger numbers grew by nearly seven per cent, the growth in aircraft movements was at 2.4 per cent, showing that the industry worldwide has moved to larger aircraft and are flying with higher load factors. Aircraft movements handled by the world’s airports totaled 76.4 million last year. Nine out of the top ten airports with highest aircraft movements are in the USA, reflecting
the large share of domestic and regional traffic in that market.
The report also revealed that nine out of the top ten fastest growing airports in 2007 were in Asia-Pacific. The fastest growing market for passengers was India with 24 percent growth and the largest single market in the world remains the USA, which handled 1.4 billion
passengers last year. The second largest market was China with 350 million passengers and third was the United Kingdom with just under 250 million.
31/07/08 micebtn, Australia

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Serbia seeks investors for JAT airline

Serbia’s government Tuesday sought buyers for its ailing JAT airline, saddled debt and aging planes.
JAT’s debt totaled €247 million ($388 million) and its assets €162 million at the end of 2007, the Serbian privatization agency said in its notice in the Politika daily, which called for tenders within two days. Serbia is lowering its price for JAT from a hoped-for €150 million for a 51% stake, Economy Minister Mladjan Dinkic said last week. The state may sell up to 75% of the airline if the offer is right, he said.
Serb media have cited Russia’s Aeroflot, Icelandair and Air India as possible buyers for the 81-year-old airline, which has nine Boeing 737s and three ATR turboprops. JAT was hit hard by UN sanctions during the 1990s for Belgrade’s role in the bloody breakup of Yugoslavia. The sanctions grounded most of the airline’s flights.
30/07/08 m&c.com/Budapest Business Journal, Hungary

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Iraqi couple held for travelling with stolen visas

Hyderabad: A couple from Iraq landed in prison in the city for trying to fly away to an European country via Hyderabad with stolen visas.
The couple along with their 14-month-old child boarded a flight to Frankfurt via Mumbai where they were caught with fake documents and were deported back to the city.
According to police, the couple from Baghdad—Ammar Muhammed Jeelani (32) along with his wife Majida (30) and their son— landed in Mumbai on May 14. After staying there for a month, they came to Hyderabad.
They approached AKR Travels in the city and brought tickets to Frankfurt on Air India flight. They flew to Mumbai on Saturday to take a connecting flight but were caught when they were taking the boarding passes in the airport.
The couple told police that they were fed up with the conditions prevailing in their country and wanted to settle down in a European country. They approached a broker there who gave them the stolen visas for 15,000 dollars each, police said.
29/07/08 Siasat Daily

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Serbia Probes Flying School Fraud

Belgrade : Serbian authorities are probing the activities of a state-run flying school, following charges from the country’s civilian aviation authority, Balkan Insight has learnt. Read On >>

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Singapore Airlines won't ground planes to cut costs

Singapore: Airlines that do not believe in grounding their planes in times of rising fuel prices and sombre economic trends are taking clever measures to coast through these tough times. Like luxury, economy too, is in the detail.
Singapore Airlines (SIA) is looking at small changes that will hopefully add up to big savings such as having seats made of composite materials that make them 20-25 per cent lighter and by using new-age plastic glasses to sip champagne from.
Cheng Eng Huang, Executive Vice-President -Marketing and Regions, told a team of visiting Indian newspersons that SIA was also exploring shorter alternative routes. The airline plans removing entertainment catalogues and in-flight shopping brochures, following the logic that to watch a film, travellers would switch on the system, in any case.
Seasonal changes in trafficare also being incorporated, flights are being reduced during non-peak seasons and moved to routes showing more demand.
30/07/08 Meera Mohanty/Business Line/Sify

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Sri Lanka shifts site of planned second international airport

Sri Lanka's ports and aviation ministry has stopped work on a controversial new international airport in the island's south and decided to shift it to a new location.
A ports and aviation ministry statement said the decision was taken after protests from farmers in the original site in Weerawila, in the Hambantota district, and owing to numerous environmental problems.
Weerawila airport cochin site:avindia.blogspot.com
Ports and aviation minister Chamal Rajapaksa has asked the airports and aviation services authority to make arrangements to shift the planned second international airport to a new site in Mattala in the same district.
Plans to build the airport in Weerawila drew protests from farmers as well as environmentalists who said it was too close to the Bundala bird sanctuary on the south coast.
The government had already laid the foundation stone for the new airport even before the environmental feasibility study was completed.
The ports and aviation ministry said the decision to shift the site was taken after Rajapaksa met farmers in the area recently.
Building the airport at the original site in Weerawila would have prevented cultivation in paddy fields and other lands in area, it said.
The proposed new airport has attracted interest from India's Cochin International Airport Limited (CIAL).
CIAL earlier this year had talks with Rajapaksa, who is the brother of President Mahinda Rajapaksa, whose political constituency is Hambantota.
28/07/08 Lanka Business Online, Sri Lanka

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Airlines to add flights to meet demand

New Delhi: From October, travellers will have more flights to choose from while going to various international destinations including Beijing, Kuala Lumpur and Bangkok.
The start of the airline winter schedule, which globally starts in October, will see several airlines including Air China, Thai Airways International and Malaysian increasing the frequency of flights to and from India.
From October 2, Thai Airways will offer 10 weekly flights from Mumbai to Bangkok up from the current daily service operated on the sector. In the same month, it also plans to operate three more flights a week from Bangalore. Similarly, Singapore Airline hopes to be able to offer a double daily flight between Delhi and Singapore by the end of the year.
Air China will offer a daily service between Delhi and Beijing from October up from three weekly flights being operated currently, the airline’s country manager, Zhao told Business Line. “We are extremely bullish on India and will look to serve Mumbai and Kolkata as the next step,” Zhao added.
One of the primary reasons for airlines adding flights to India is the increase in travel between India and the world.
27/07/08 Ashwini Phadnis/Business Line

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Kingfisher to make Amsterdam global hub

Vijay Mallya’s Kingfisher Airlines will make Amsterdam its hub for international operation, which is likely to commence next month. Its European hub at Schiphol airport in Amsterdam will provide enhanced connectivity between India and Europe, Africa and North America.
Subject to government approval, Kingfisher plans to operate its international flights from Bangalore, Mumbai, Delhi, Ahmedabad, Hyderabad and Chennai through the Amsterdam hub.
According to a aviation industry source, Kingfisher Airlines is likely to sign an MoU with Dutch airline KLM for code share, frequent flyer partnership.
It will also sign an MoU with Amsterdam airport for passenger through-check-in facility. This follows the Dutch Government’s invitation to Indian aviation companies to set up operational hubs in Amsterdam.
28/07/08 Chanchal Pal Chauhan/Economic Times

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Kingfisher to induct 70 foreign pilots for int flights

New Delhi: Vijay Mallya-promoted Kingfisher Airlines plans to hire 70 foreign pilots for its international operations which it is starting from September.
"We plan to get around 70 foreign pilots on our rolls, apart from the ones we already have, for our overseas operations scheduled for launch from September," a senior Kingfisher Airlines official told PTI.
The airline, which has ordered 10 wide body aircraft for its international services, has already started looking for pilots and would bring them to the country by close to the start of its foreign operations.
"We have started looking and would hire them closer to the launch of international operations in early September." For its various domestic sectors, Kingfisher had 110 pilots from abroad on its rolls in the beginning of the year.
The carriers in the country have resorted to hiring foreign pilots as a measure to mitigate the shortage of trained pilots available within the country.
27/07/08 Press Trust of India

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Gulf Air travellers stranded

Manama: Nearly 140 passengers flying to Bahrain from India were stranded last night due to a technical snag on a Gulf Air flight. They had booked to fly on GF138 from Indira Gandhi International Airport, New Delhi, at 8.30pm, many travelling hundreds of miles to catch the flight. Some have also missed connecting flights from Bahrain to other destinations.
"This is the only international airport in northern India that operates flights to Bahrain," said a frustrated passenger.
"Many flew in by other flights or travelled by train from distant places to catch this flight. So we could not go back to our homes.
"We demanded hotel rooms, but these weren't provided until we put up a fight.
"The passengers were not informed until just four hours before the actual departure time about the cancellation.
"Nearly 90 passengers who live in New Delhi were sent back home.
"Alternative flights were arranged for those passengers who had already booked a connecting flight from Bahrain," he added.
The remaining passengers have been booked on another Gulf Air flight that is to depart from India at 7.30am (Indian time) and due to reach Bahrain at 9am (Bahrain time) today.
28/07/08 Begena P Pradeep/Gulf Daily News, Bahrain

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NAS gets plane maintenance cert

Kuwait : Kuwait’s National Aviation Services (NAS) said here on Sunday it had acquired maintenance certification for Boeing 777 and 737, Airbus 320 aircraft. The award is another accomplishment for the rapidly expanding ground handling company further solidifying its reputation of being a world class service provider and a market leader. This came in line with a certificate acquired by the NAS from the European Aviation Safety Agency, in 2006, to check planes landing at the Kuwait International Airport, Engineer Nasser Al-Obeid of the NAS, said in press statement. These engineering operations began with the provision of services to aircraft Airbus 320 in 2006, Boeing New Generation (NG 737) in 2007 and recently Boeing B-777, he said. This came after the company successfully completed its EASA Audit conducted by the European Aviation Safety Agency.
Accordingly, the company has acquired the approval of civil aviation agencies in Kuwait, Oman, UAE, India and Britain to check planes landing at these countries, Al-Obeid said. NAS is a leading provider of airport ground handling services to airlines at the Kuwait International Airport.
28/07/08 KUNA/Arab Times, Kuwait

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Belgian fury over cat scan

Mumbai: A Belgian woman allegedly slapped an airline ground staff when she was asked to check in her two pet cats.
On Friday at 10.30am, Melvin Gerard, 28, assaulted Sujata Neelkanth Patil, 45, a duty officer of Air India. Gerard was booked on Air India's flight IC 147 Mumbai-Jamnagar that was to take-off at 11.30am.
“The cage in which the cats were kept was broken, which would have made it difficult to keep them in the cabin. Patil explained this to Gerard who insisted on taking the cats along with her,” said the official.
When Patil told her firmly that she would not be allowed to take the pets inside and that she needed to check them in, Gerard lost her cool and slapped Patil, the offical added.
Air India officials informed the Central Industrial Security Force, who took her to the Santa Cruz airport police station. During her argument with Patil, Gerard spoke in English, but when the cops started asking her name she feigned that she did not know English.
The cops informed officials of the Belgian embassy in Mumbai, who came to the police station in the afternoon. A non-cognisable offence was lodged against her under Section 323 (voluntarily causing hurt) of the Indian Penal Code. She, however, gave a written apology to the airline.
26/07/08 Navita/Daily News & Analysis

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GMR, Reliance may bid for Prague Airport

Prague: The Czech government has launched a tender to choose an advisor on the sale of state-owned Letiste Praha AS, or Prague International Airport, the Finance Ministry said Friday.
The ministry, which handles privatization on the government's behalf, is seeking to sell 100% of the airport by early next year.
Preliminary bids in the advisor tender for the planned sale are due by Aug. 29, the ministry said.
In September, the ministry will choose the five best preliminary bidders and ask them to submit formal and binding bids.
Earlier this week, Prague International Airport said its first-half traffic rose 6.3% year-on-year to 5.93 million passengers, following the record 12.5 million passengers using the airport in 2007.
Analysts have estimated that the government may garner as much as EUR3.8 billion from its sale.
Among others, Aeroports de Paris (1034014.FR), a major French airport authority, and Indian infrastructure companies GMR Group and Reliance Airport Developers Ltd., have said they may bid for Prague Airport.
25/07/08 Leos Rousek/Dow Jones Newswires/EasyBourse.com, France

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Singapore Airlines introduces cabin products

Singapore: Indian travellers can now indulge in the best possible luxuries while travelling East as premier carrier Singapore airlines has introduced its latest cabin products on two of its most profitable routes to India.
Available on the new B777-300 aircraft flying to Singapore from New Delhi and Mumbai, the new cabin products were developed by the carrier along with London-based leading transportation interior designer James Park Associates at an investment of $360 million.
Singapore Airlines General Manager in India C W Foo said the carrier has introduced its best products on two Indian routes as the country stood very high on its list of priority markets across the world.
The new 278-seater, which has replaced Boeing 777-300 night flight from the routes, features fully flat bed cum seats in First Class and Business Class, more spacious Economy Class seats as well as a cutting edge inflight entertainment system featuring the widest TV screens ever seen in all three classes, Foo said.
25/07/08 Press Trust of India/Business Standard

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Indian expatriates in Gulf fall victim to fake passport rackets

Kozhikode: Police in Kerala believe well-entrenched networks are supplying fake passports to Indian expatriates in Gulf countries, with as many as five arrests this week.
Immigration authorities at the Kozhikode International Airport here apprehended five people coming from the United Arab Emirates (UAE) with fake passports in the last four days.
The latest arrest was made on Thursday. The man in question, Pushkaran, 30, was a native of Kasargod district in northern Kerala. All those arrested arrived by RAK Airways from the emirate of Ras-al-Khaimah.
''Pushkaran told us that he had bought the passport from a person named Gafoor and paid 3,000 UAE dirhams for it,'' an immigration official said.
Police say many of the victims of the racket are expatriates who had deposited their passports with their employers or those who have lost the document.
''When they can't get their passport from their employers, they think the easy way is to arrange a fake passport,'' said a police official.
According to Police, the networks have deployed its members in Kerala to collect Indian passports and smuggle them abroad. On July 6, customs officials at the airport arrested a youth, Nissar, who was travelling to Sharjah, and seized 31 passports from him.
''We are sure that Nissar is a member of one such racket. He had made several trips to Gulf. He used to board the flight from Mumbai,'' C Vijayakumar, deputy superintendent of police who is handling the case said.
26/07/08 Indo Asian News Service/NDTV.com

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Jet Airways offers special package for Indian students flying abroad

Jet Airways has announced a special promotional package for students flying to its destinations in the United States, Canada, United Kingdom, Europe or Asia.
Jet Airways special promotional package is valid for outbound travel on or before October 31, 2008. Existing as well as new students will receive a whole host of benefits including excess baggage allowance, special fares and a chance to earn 1000 Bonus JPMiles.
Students availing of this offer will be allowed to carry an extra piece of baggage, with each piece not exceeding 23 kilos, on flights to the US, Canada, UK & Europe; and an additional 10 kilos on flights to Asia (Shanghai, Hong Kong, Singapore, Kuala Lumpur and Bangkok), on Jet Airways’ online destinations.
With Jet Airways special promotional package, students will also receive exclusively designed ‘Student Kits’, in association with our partners. These may be collected after the purchase of a ticket at any of Jet Airways’ city sales offices around India. Each kit contains a Matrix mobile connection with free talk-time worth Rs.4000 in the US ,UK ,Singapore and Australia, ICICI Bank Travel Cards for hassle free transactions across the world, a free Tata Indicom Wi-Fi Roam Card enabling internet connectivity from over 50,000 hotspots in the US ,UK, Austria, Czech Republic, Germany, Netherlands, Switzerland, France and Japan; Bajaj Allianz Travel Insurance with special privileges and low premiums and VIP vouchers worth Rs.500/- on purchase of VIP travel accessories.
Jet Airways also offers students a revolutionary new Economy product on its new Boeing 777-300 ER and Airbus 330-200 aircraft, in operation on key international routes. Besides an ergonomically-designed seat with hammock style head rest and foot support, the airline also provides its Economy passengers a personal reading light, on demand In-Flight Entertainment and access to over 200 hours of Hollywood and Bollywood movies, Regional films, and Television and short programs.
Commenting on the same, Mr. Sudheer Raghavan, Chief Commercial Officer, Jet Airways said, “With more Indian students choosing to study abroad, Jet Airways is keen to offer students a safe, value-packed and quality travel option. With Jet Airways’ large international network, further enhanced by our numerous codeshare and interline agreements, students may avail of a seamless, world-class service at low prices. Our special student promotion package has been tailored to this end.”
25/07/08 PRESS RELEASE/Jet Airways

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Aviation industry ready for take-off again

Aviation is attempting to remain bullish about future prospects as the credit crisis and the effects of the huge jump in the price of fuel bite deeper.
Last week's Farnborough Air Show, the industry's premier showcase, may have lacked the debut of an eye-catching new airliner but total orders and options unveiled by Boeing and Airbus, the two commercial aviation giants, topped $50bn (£ 25bn), almost all from one airline, Etihad, the Abu Dhabi based carrier with ambitions to match the achievements of Emirates, its Dubai-based neighbour.
Further down the aircraft food chain, Rolls-Royce announced £ 4.6bn worth of new aero-engine orders, well down on the Paris total of £ 7.5bn but well above the combined tally of £ 3bn from rivals General Electric and Pratt & Whitney.
There is a tradition of using Farnborough and its ''sister'' air shows as a platform to demonstrate vitality in order book terms. This year would have been a flop but for Etihad with orders for 205 planes costing $43bn at list prices.
Airbus claimed business worth $40bn of the $50bn package but both the European planemaker and Boeing have healthy order books with enough business to keep production and assembly lines working almost flat out for six years. Farnborough also saw the arrival of competition at the bottom end of the market for the two majors with Canada's Bombardier pushing the CSeries, a 110-130 seater rival for the A320 and Boeing's 737 on to the runway with Lufthansa as a first customer.
Boeing produced the most bullish and detailed projections. Its planners estimate that by 2027 there should be a market for 29,400 new aircraft to replace older planes and accommodate the growth of air travel. The order flow and traffic growth allied with retirement will create the need for another 360,000 pilots, equivalent to an extra 18,000 a year while at ground level a further 480,000 jobs should be provided for servicing and maintaining the new fleets.
In Europe, pilot numbers could grow from 40,000 to 70,000 and in North America from 60,000 to 98,000 but the fast-growing economies in the Far East could see a fourfold increase. The number of pilots in China is projected to reach almost 50,000 by 2027 and 15,500 in India.
The Middle East, where Emirates and Etihad are competing to become the biggest in the region, will be instrumental in fuelling demand for 17,500 pilots, again a fourfold increase on current levels. Etihad's shopping list at Farnborough was one of the biggest in commercial aviation history, comprising 100 firm orders and options for another 105.
25/07/08 Roland Gribben/Telegraph.co.uk, United Kingdom

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India, EU to sign open skies pact

New Delhi: Air India, Jet Airways, JetLite and the Deccan-Kingfisher combine will soon get more access to European destinations. A liberal aviation pact between India and the European Union is on the cards, which will enable this as well as give EU carriers better access to India.
In a way, the pact will work like an ‘open skies’ agreement between India and the EU.
According to civil aviation ministry sources, Indian carriers will get to operate a virtually unrestricted number of flights to European destinations like London, Paris and Frankfurt. They can also enter into code-share pacts with European carriers without seeking government approval.
On a reciprocal basis, European carriers will also get similar market access in India and be able to ink pacts with Indian counterparts without going through elaborate government clearances.
The proposed horizontal aviation agreement between the two sides provides far more flexibility than the air service arrangements being pursued by India with individual EU members. The liberal aviation pact between the two of the world’s largest trading partners is expected to be signed in September when prime minister Manmohan Singh visits France to participate in the India-EU summit.
Currently, 26 bilateral air services agreements exist between EU members and India.
The horizontal agreement between India and the 26-member EU would also allow people from either side to book an integrated ticket for travelling by different modes of transport such as road, rail, air and sea. It will also ensure technical co-operation between the two sides in areas like aviation safety, security and traffic management.
25/07/08 Nirbhay Kumar/Economic Times

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Fire-crackers in shoes: Cops suspect a recce trip

Mumbai: Just the intention to hide fire-crackers in three pairs of shoes while taking a flight back to Muscat appears suspicious enough for police to further investigate the matter and find out what exactly was the motive, said Deputy Commissioner of Police (Zone VIII) Nissar Tamboli while commenting on the Wednesday’s incident at the Chhatrapati Shivaji International Airport (CSIA).
On Wednesday evening at 5:30, the ground-handling staff of Air India had detected 30 fire-crackers hidden inside the soles of plastic shoes in the baggage of 29-year-old Omani national Badar Naser Allidi. According to officials at the Sahar police station, Allidi is said to have told interrogating officers that the shoes were given to him by another person in Mumbai and were meant for someone else in Muscat, with him just being a carrier.
Police officials, however, do not seem convinced. Even the services of an Arabic translator were hired as Allidi can neither understand nor speak either Hindi or English.
“The prime focus of our investigation is to get to the man who gave Allidi the shoes, if that really is the case,” said Tamboli. He also said that the case, under current circumstances, also appears to be the one of a ‘recce’ trip to assess ground realities. Though Tamboli did not elaborate on the matter, sources told Newsline that the recce angle is being seriously looked into.
While the modus operandi of Allidi is yet to be ascertained, it does bring back the memory of Richard Colvin Reid alias Abdul Rahim who became famous as ‘the shoe bomber’. He was prevented from blowing an American Airlines flight from Paris to Miami in 2001 by detonating plastic explosives contained in his shoes.
24/07/08 Shashank Shekhar/Mumbai Newsline

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Tragedy averted at IGI as aircraft catches fire, bird hit suspected

Ahmedabad: A Major tragedy was averted at the Indira Gandhi International Airport on Thursday after an Air Mauritius flight caught fire, reportedly after being hit by a bird. All 241 passengers on board and 11 crew members were safely evacuated.
The incident occurred at 2.08 pm on Thursday when the flight, MK 745, was taking off. According to initial reports, a bird had entered the aircraft’s engine, and the pilot tried to immediately stop the plane that had already picked up speed for take-off. The sudden brakes overheated the plane, which led to a fire in the belly of the aircraft in the left carriage, airport officials said.
The fire was detected when smoke started coming out of the aircraft. The pilot immediately informed the apron control. The airport’s fire and rescue team doused the flames within 15 minutes. “The cargo is stored just above the left carriageway. Thankfully, the fuel tank of the aircraft is on the flaps, far away from the point where the fire started. Otherwise, it could have been a big tragedy,” said an airport official. The passengers were disembarked through the chute of the plane. “All passengers and crew members are safe. The cause of the incident is being investigated but a bird hit, as reported by the pilot, cannot be ruled out,” said an official statement from Delhi International Airport Limited (DIAL).
As many as 53 passengers, most of them honeymooning couples, were reported to have suffered minor bruises. The airport officials said the rescue team had put the chute at the emergency exit through which the passengers slid out and sustained injuries in the process.
The aircraft has been grounded and is undergoing repairs at Bay -87 at the IGI. The passengers were transferred to Le Meridien and Maurya Sheraton.
24/07/08 Expressindia.com

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Canada’s top aviation school coming to India to train pilots

Toronto: A Winnipeg-based aviation school, which is first-choice training facility for Indian students aspiring to become pilots, will soon start its training programme in India where the aviation industry continues to soar. Read On >>

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Germany's Cockpit4u receives approval for type rating courses from DGCA India

Cockpit4u receives from DGCA India the approval as a Type Rating Training Organization (TRTO) for pilot training courses on Airbus and Boeing aircraft. Read On >>

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Air-India resumes Kolkata-London direct flight

Air-India sources said today that the Kolkata-London flight would be operated on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays, leaving Kolkata at 1315 hours, reaching London at 1935 hours.
The London-Kolkata flight on Tuesday would leave London at 1905 hours and reach Kolkata at 0925 hours next day.
The flight on Thursday and Saturday would leave London at 2125 hours and reach Kolkata at 1145 hours next day.
24/07/08 Press Trust of India/Business Standard

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Fire-crackers found in shoes inside air passenger’s baggage

Mumbai: The Air India ground-handling staff at the Chhatrapati Shivaji International Airport on Wednesday found fire-crackers hidden in the soles of three pairs of shoes in the bag of a 29-year-old man.
The man, whose identity has not been revealed by the police, was to board an Oman Air flight to Muscat at 5:30 pm. “While checking the baggage, the Air India ground-handling staff discovered three pairs of shoes inside his bag in which the soles had been cut out and were filled with fire-crackers. He was immediately detained and handed over to us for further questioning,” said Senior Police Inspector Dilip Patil from the Sahar police station.
Patil said when the man was asked why he was carrying fire-crackers in his bag, he replied that he had been given the shoes by someone in the city to transport them to Muscat.
24/07/08 Expressindia.com

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Boeing raises India sales forecast by 10%

New Delhi: Boeing, the world's second-biggest commercial aircraft maker, has raised India's 20-year aircraft sales outlook by 10 per cent on expectation of a rise in travel demand.
Boeing projected a demand for 1,001 aircraft from 2008 to 2027, which is worth more than $105 billion at current list prices of aircraft around 10 per cent more than its last year's outlook for 2007-2026, which stood at 911 aircraft.
Of these, 24 will be freighter aircraft while the rest will be passenger planes.
"We have developed the forecast in a manner that considers today's market environment but, more importantly, takes a long-term view of this dynamic industry and the fundamentals that drive commercial aviation," Dinesh Keskar, senior vice-president (sales), Boeing, said in New Delhi.
As many as 313.72 million people are expected to travel by air by 2012 from the present level of 116 million, KPMG said in a report in June. Record economic growth and introduction of discount carriers have made air travel more affordable in India, the world's second fastest-growing major economy.
The 2008 outlook for India included 59 regional jets, 728 single aisle, 203 twin aisle and 11,747 and larger aircraft. Compared with last year's forecast, Boeing projected a 9 per cent increase in demand for single aisle aircraft and 18 per cent increase in demand for twin aisle aircraft.
24/07/08 Business Standard

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Kingfisher Airlines to go global from September

Mumbai: Kingfisher Airlines Ltd, controlled by billionaire businessman Vijay Mallya, is preparing to launch its global operations in September. Besides the US, the Bangalore-headquartered carrier plans to start flights to the UK, Singapore, Pakistan, the United Arab Emirates and Hong Kong — all in that month.
Flying overseas: A March photo of a Kingfisher aircraft as the airline tested its international arrival process at the new Bangalore airport.
Flying overseas: A March photo of a Kingfisher aircraft as the airline tested its international arrival process at the new Bangalore airport.
Apart from its proposed non-stop flight to San Francisco from Bangalore, the first for any Indian airline, Kingfisher also has plans to fly to the west coast via Shanghai, a senior executive of the airline said. “This could be used as one-stop for our San Francisco flights. This will help the airline get more passengers” and serve as a break in the long flight to the US city, said the executive, who did not want to be identified because the launch plans are not final. The airline is applying for permissions to fly through the Chinese city, he added. Earlier this year, after several months of seeking permissions and lobbying, Jet Airways India Ltd, India’s largest airline group by passengers, received approval to fly to Shanghai. It now has a flight to San Francisco through the Chinese city.
The Union government is starting to notify 13 international destinations Deccan Aviation Ltd, with which Kingfisher Airlines is merging, can fly, Mint reported on 11 July.
24/07/08 P.R. Sanjai/Livemint

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Safe check-in: Secure landing

Detailed passenger manifests will be electronically transmitted to airports in India within 15 minutes of take-off by UAE carriers with effect from August 1 as part of stepped up security measures, airlines here have said.
This will include names, birth dates, nationality, sex, passport numbers, visa details, place of passport issue and country of permanent residence.
The airlines have hitherto communicated general flight manifests specifying the number of passengers and cargo load.
August 1 is the deadline set by the Indian government for international air carriers to comply with this security requirement.
Emirates airline and Etihad Airways are gearing up to meet the deadline.
Indian carriers have been implementing this Advance Passenger Information System (APIS) on their flights from the Gulf region since June 1.
"Emirates is currently working closely with the government of India and Indian immigration authorities to ensure that all processes involved in the APIS are in place," a spokesperson of the airline told XPRESS.
Anne Tullis, Etihad’s Manager for Corporate Communications, said the airline was ready to implement the APIS on India-bound flights.
24/07/08 Subramani Dharmarajan/XPRESS, United Arab Emirates

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Slowdown in Indian aviation may end in a year: Boeing

Mumbai: The current downturn in the Indian aviation industry would end in the next 10 to 12 months as the sector reduces flights and resolves overcapacity issues, said the US-based aircraft manufacturer Boeing here on Wednesday.
Declaring the Boeing’s market outlook for India in 2008, Mr Dinesh A. Keskar, Senior Vice-President, Sales, Boeing Commercial Airplanes, said that the Indian carriers can resolve the overcapacity problems by flying to smaller towns and expanding overseas operations.
“The solution is not in grounding the aircraft but optimizing their usage. One definite good news for the industry is that not much capacity is being inducted this year,” Mr Keskar said.
Maintaining that passenger traffic growth in India will remain bullish, he said, that the demand for air travel will match the high rate of economic growth in the country.
According to Boeing’s 2008 forecast, the air travel in India will grow at an average rate of 8 per cent annually over the next 20 years, the fastest pace in the world, and more than twice the global average, he said.
In its annual outlook, Boeing forecast that India will need 1,001 new aircraft worth $105 billion by 2027.
The maximum increase will come in for commercial planes in the 100 to 400 seat categories, the company said.
23/07/08 Business Line

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Air India offers special baggage scheme to students

Mumbai: National air-carrier, Air India, has announced a special offer aimed at the students travelling to the West, Far-East and South-East Asian countries on its flights.
Under the offer, a student with a valid visa, can avail additional free baggage allowance, ranging between 10-40 kilograms, an official release said here on Wednesday.
Students travelling to Frankfurt, Birmingham, Paris and London or via Frankfurt/London/Paris to the interiors of UK/Europe can avail free baggage allowance of 20 kg in addition to the 20 kg, allowed on the ticket, the release said.
For Singapore, China and New Zealand, they can carry an additional 40 kg baggage on their out-bound journeys, whereas students travelling to Australia on a one-way ticket can avail a free baggage allowance of 10-kg, in addition to the 40-kg, the release said.
However, for the students travelling from gateway points in the US, one additional piece weighing 23-kg is allowed along with the permitted baggage of 46-kgs, the release said. The offer is valid up to October 31.
23/07/08 PTI/Economic Times

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Boeing to compensate for delay in delivery of 787 Dreamliner

New Delhi: US-based aviation major Boeing has said that Air India would be "duly compensated" for the delay in delivery of 787 Dreamliner.
"Every contract that we sign has a clause which deals with what happens in case of such eventuality. Accordingly, Air India would be compensated as per the contract signed," Senior Vice-President (Sales) Boeing Commercial Airplanes Dinesh Keskar said."
He said the firm was happy with the orders it has received from India since 2004 which amounts to 164 airplanes.
He, however, said that Jet airways might just "rework" its order depending on its plan for the future.
Keskar pointing out the delivery schedule for India said that there are about 100 airplanes scheduled for delivery till 2014 which mainly includes planes for Jet Airways.
23/07/08 PTI/Economic Times

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Air India relying on fare cut to woo international flyers

New Delhi: Here’s the Air India Maharaja’s strategy to negotiate turbulance. While other carriers are increasing basic fares as well as fuel surcharge to stay afloat, the national carrier is all set to slash fares on international sectors. The aim of the fare cut is to aggressively woo back passengers and improve loads.
Air India cut down basic fare on some Gulf sectors by up to 20% last week. It’s also expected to bring down fare by about 5-10% on Delhi-London and other international routes.
At a recent review meeting, civil aviation minister Praful Patel asked the carrier to get back passengers (the airline’s passenger load factor is below the industry average of 60%) and check losses. An Air India official said the carrier would adjust fares moderately as lean season had begun.
“While foreign airlines flying out of India can manage the load factor of 70-75%, we don’t think why Air India should lag behind. Though we don’t interfere in the airline’s operations, we have asked them to take measures to contain losses. They have to attract passengers to increase load and revenue,” said a civil aviation ministry official.
Air India, however, denied the move to cut airfare was related to the civil aviation ministry’s suggestion.
22/07/08 Nirbhay Kumar & Vishakha Talreja/Economic Times

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Mahindra arm in talks with airlines for supply chain

Mumbai: The Mahindra Group’s wholly owned subsidiary, California-based Bristlecone, which provides supply chain management (SCM) services, is in talks with a few global airline operators to offer SCM solutions.
The company is discussing possible tie-ups in the SCM space with airline operators that are looking for outsourcing components and other related services from India.
Confirming the company’s initiative to foray into the aviation sector, Mr Satish Moorjani, Vice-President (Consulting Services), was however not willing to identify the airline operators.
“It is too early for that. We are only at preliminary discussion stage,” he told Business Line. He said the aviation sector could throw up significant business potential for SCM service providers.
In India, it is associated with about 30 companies, including Hindustan Unilever, Asian Paints and Ranbaxy. Its focus at present is on the pharma, FMCG, oil & gas and automobile sectors.
“For example, we provide SCM solutions for Ranbaxy’s entire Indian operations. And now, we are rolling out our services for Ranbaxy’s US operations,” Mr Moorjani said.
22/07/08 Business Line/Moneycontrol.com

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Mahindra arm in talks with airlines for supply chain

Mumbai: The Mahindra Group’s wholly owned subsidiary, California-based Bristlecone, which provides supply chain management (SCM) services, is in talks with a few global airline operators to offer SCM solutions.
The company is discussing possible tie-ups in the SCM space with airline operators that are looking for outsourcing components and other related services from India.
Confirming the company’s initiative to foray into the aviation sector, Mr Satish Moorjani, Vice-President (Consulting Services), was however not willing to identify the airline operators.
“It is too early for that. We are only at preliminary discussion stage,” he told Business Line. He said the aviation sector could throw up significant business potential for SCM service providers.
In India, it is associated with about 30 companies, including Hindustan Unilever, Asian Paints and Ranbaxy. Its focus at present is on the pharma, FMCG, oil & gas and automobile sectors.
“For example, we provide SCM solutions for Ranbaxy’s entire Indian operations. And now, we are rolling out our services for Ranbaxy’s US operations,” Mr Moorjani said.
22/07/08 Business Line/Moneycontrol.com

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Air Works announces JV with Air Livery Plc

Mumbai: Air Works, the largest independent general aviation and commercial maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO) company in India, has announced a joint venture with Air Livery Plc, Europe's leading aircraft refinishing company to offer services in India.
As per the joint venture agreement signed by Air Works and Air Livery, the new company will be India's first dedicated paint facility for commercial, VIP, executive and military for narrow and wide body aircraft up to and including the B777-300, said a press release.
Air Works will invest $50 million for setting up the paint shop, interior completions and engine MRO facilities over the next three years.
"This joint venture between Air Works and Air Livery Plc is an integral part of our strategy and represents another step in our commitment to build a strong aviation infrastructure in India," said Fredrik Groth, Chief Executive Officer of Air Works.
As part of the joint venture, Air Works and Air Livery will provide dedicated aircraft painting services at its MRO facilities at Hosur Airport with a view to serve the entire Asia Pacific region.
This venture will offer paint maintenance service to commercial airlines, VIP and business jet operators at their own facilities or a complete repaint service at Hosur.
21/07/08 Business Standard

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Barber in coma flown home from Bahrain for treatment

An Indian man, who has been in a coma for nearly six weeks, was flown home yesterday morning.
Mohammed Mustafa Abdulrasheed, 48, who suffered brain haemorrhage, required four litres of oxygen per minute for a seven-hour journey to Cochin, said NACIL-I (formerly known as Indian Airlines) country manager Niranjan Kumar.
The aircraft was already equipped with seven oxygen cylinders.
"We arranged eight extra oxygen cylinders from Delhi to meet any emergency in case of any diversion of the flight," he told the GDN.
"The oxygen was provided to the patient free of cost by NACIL-I."
Mr Abdulrasheed was re-examined in the aircraft by a team of doctors and nurses of the airport clinic before fixing the stretcher on board to ensure safe airlifting to India, said Mr Kumar.
"We are thankful to the Civil Aviation Affairs, Airport Security, police team, the Salmaniya Medical Complex (SMC) team and the Bahrain Airport Services' special handling team who have well co-ordinated the handling of the patient right from SMC up to the aircraft."
"At the destination, our NACIL team co-ordinated well in advance with all the agencies at Cochin International Airport for providing special handling and immediate clearance from customs, immigration and security," he added.
Mr Abdulrasheed was found unconscious by his roommates in their Manama apartment on June 7 and he was later admitted to SMC, where he was lying in a coma condition.
Mr Abdulrasheed has been working in Bahrain for nearly 19 years as a barber at a small saloon in Manama. He is the only bread-winner for his wife, 16-year-old daughter and two sons aged 10 and seven.
22/07/08 Soman Baby/Gulf Daily News, Bahrain

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Indian dies at Riyadh airport lounge

Dubai: An Indian worker, who was going home after four-and-half years, died of a heart attack at King Khaled International Airport in Riyadh.
Koya Kutty (52), who worked as a labourer in Qunfuda, collapsed at the departure lounge, a few minutes before he was to board an Air India flight for Mumbai.
He was to take another flight from Mumbai to Calicut in his home state Kerala.
21/07/08 PTI/The Hindu

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Indian Customs detains man caught with 231 arowana fish from KL

Chennai: A chappati-maker returning to India after a four-month stay in Kuala Lumpur was detained by airport officials yesterday for smuggling in 231 Arowana fish, intended for supply to a local buyer in the southern city.
Chennai Airport Customs, during a routine check, questioned the passenger of Air India flight IC956 after he crossed the green lane with his baggage.
Chennai Customs (Airport) Joint Commissioner K. Engineer said the 38-year-old suspect was believed to have worked in a restaurant in Kuala Lumpur since April and was used as a courier by a Chennai-based syndicate.
“He carried only one baggage with him which was filled with ornamental fish. They were small and medium-sized, all packed in polythene covers filled with oxygen and water. All the fish were alive. We believe he is just a courier,” Engineer told Bernama.
The seized ornamental fish, which is popular and fetches good market price in India, was estimated to be worth RM12,300.
All the fish were returned to Malaysia last night by the same flight, to be deposited at the Malaysian Customs, Engineer added.
22/07/08 P. Vijian/Bernama/New Straits Times, Malaysia

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Dog Alerts to Mislabeled Mangoes Charges Filed Against Bombino Express

Sacramento, California: A parcel inspection dog named C.C., working last year near Ontario International Airport, sniffed out a mislabeled box of mangoes from India. The detection set in motion a year-long investigation culminating in a lawsuit brought by the California Attorney General’s Office against an international shipping company. Bombino Express was the label on the package.
The complaint alleges that the company regularly shipped mislabeled produce to skirt state and federal inspection and treatment regulations designed to protect against invasive species.
“This is an important example of the risk we face from invasive species introduction each day in California,” said CDFA Secretary A.G. Kawamura. “This type of situation is one of several ways that new spot infestations of exotic pests develop. We are pleased to partner with the Attorney General’s office in the pursuit of this lawsuit, and we salute the excellent work of parcel inspection dogs and their handlers.”
According to state and federal law, fruit imported from India must be treated before being sent to the United States. The packages must then be accompanied by certificates stating that they were treated. This apparently did not occur for the mislabeled mangoes.
C.C. was rescued from an animal shelter in Florida and trained as a parcel sniff dog by the USDA. The dog and her handler, Michael Cochrane, regularly screen parcels shipped into California via Ontario International Airport.
21/07/08 Imperial Valley News, CA, USA

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Flop flight to Dhaka

Calcutta: The Calcutta-Dhaka service of Air India Express, the low-cost carrier of Air India, made a disastrous debut on Sunday with the inaugural flight carrying just one passenger from the city to the Bangladesh capital.
The 186-seater Boeing 737-800 arrived at Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose International Airport from Dhaka in the morning with only four passengers, said airport sources.
“It took off from Calcutta at 2.05pm with two passengers. One of them was making an onward journey from Bangkok,” said an immigration official.
Md Moazzem Hussain, a 58-year-old Australian citizen, was the only passenger to board the flight from Calcutta. According to airline sources, there are very few bookings for the next two days.
A Boeing 737-800 aircraft burns around three tonne of aviation turbine fuel (ATF), which costs around Rs 2.4 lakh, for a round trip between Calcutta and Dhaka.
The flight will operate throughout the week, except Saturday, with a minimum fair of about Rs 3,000. It is an extension of the airline’s services on the Singapore and Bangkok sectors.
“We expect the passenger load to increase soon,” said an Air India Express official. “The travel agents were not informed. There was no awareness drive.”
Industry watchers feel the Dhaka-Calcutta route is currently not viable. Before Air India Express came in, Biman Bangladesh, Jet Airways and GMG Airlines shared around 300 seats daily. Less than half the seats are being filled up, said an airport official.
21/07/08 The Telegraphnew

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12 years after air tragedy, new rules on fuel tanks

Precisely 12 years ago today, TWA Flight 800, flying from New York to Paris, blew up in midair off the coast of Long Island, killing all 230 people aboard. Terrorism was the initial suspicion.
Terrorism was the initial suspicion. But not long after, federal safety investigators found the likely cause - an explosion of the center fuel tank - and recommended several ways to make the tanks less vulnerable to similar blasts.
Inexcusably, it took until Wednesday for the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) to order manufacturers and airlines to upgrade their fuel tanks to reduce the chance of a repeat of the 1996 tragedy. During the lag, two foreign commercial airline explosions, one in Thailand and one in India, were traced to their fuel tanks.
The problem of clearing dangerous vapors from fuel tanks required new technology. In 2002, an ingenious FAA scientist found that a relatively inexpensive device could do the trick, and airplane manufacturer Boeing ran with that idea, testing the device in real-world conditions. That led to Wednesday's new safety requirement, though it took another six years.
The tank upgrades and operations - expected to cost $1 billion over the next 35 years - come as airlines are struggling to survive sky-high jet fuel prices. Had they been ordered sooner, the airlines would have been in better position to pay for them.
20/07/08 US Today/Kurdish Globe, Iraq

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Jet makes a ‘major coup’

With border incursions and trade deficits grabbing the headlines on the Sino-Indian front of late, there has been a low profile but nonetheless significant development in cross-Himalayan ties.
On June 14, India’s Jet Airways started up the first direct flights connecting Mumbai and Shanghai, bringing the commercial capitals of two of the world’s fastest growing economies closer together physically and symbolically. But of even g reater consequence is the fact that Jet simultaneously became the first foreign airline to be granted what is called “fifth freedom traffic rights” by China.
This refers to the rights of an airline from one country to land in a second country and pick up more passengers before flying on to a third country. Jet’s daily flights to Shanghai thus proceed to San Francisco in the United States, allowing the airline to route passengers directly from both Mumbai and Shanghai to the U.S.
That the first non-American or non-Chinese airline to connect the United States and China is an Indian one is a “major coup” according to sources in the Indian embassy in China, who say negotiations leading up to the deal were arduous.
Although the provision for a bilateral granting of fifth freedom rights was built into a civil aviation agreement signed between the two countries in 2005, when Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao visited New Delhi, it took almost three years for Jet to finally win Chinese government clearance.
The reason for the foot dragging on the Chinese side was that New Delhi had at one point blocked the entry of Chinese cargo carrier Great Wall Airlines to Mumbai and Chennai, reportedly due to key nuclear facilities being located near these two airports.
21/07/08 The Hindu

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AI's American pilot found dead in hotel

Mumbai: A 62-year-old American national working as a pilot with Air India was found dead in a hotel room at Royal Palms, Goregaon (E), on Sunday.
Richard Robert was visiting an airhostess, also employed with the same airline, at her room in Park Plaza. The police suspected that he suffered a heart attack. No external injuries were found on the body and an autopsy would be conducted at the Borivli post-mortem centre on Monday.
Robert, a resident of Water House Circle in California, shared a friendly relation with the airhostess, Ranjeetkaur Khalsa (47), a native of Haryana. On Saturday, Khalsa came to Mumbai by flight AI 130 from London. She reached the hotel, where AI provides accommodation to its employees, around noon.
Around 6 pm, Robert arrived at the Mumbai airport and headed for the hotel to meet Khalsa. "..Robert stayed over on Saturday and the two had dinner..." said inspector Vilas Sanap.
Around 5.30 am, Robert had a severe bout of cough. When Khalsa asked him if he was unwell, Robert replied that he was fine. He had a glass of water, but soon lost consciousness. Khalsa immediately alerted the hotel staff, who summoned a doctor from Hiranandani Hospital in Powai.
A doctor examined Robert and declared him dead.
The police brought the matter to the notice of the AI management, who will get in touch with the American consulate and inform Robert's California-based family about the incident. The family is likely to arrive in Mumbai on Monday.
21/07/08 Times of India

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Noor Aga gets justice after 10 years in jail

Chandigarh: Ten years after he remained imprisoned in Amritsar jail on allegations of flying into India with drugs in a grape carton from Afghanistan, Noor Aga, a member of Ariana Afghan Airlines crew, has now got justice from the Supreme Court. It was a typical case of justice delayed but not denied.
It was 1st August 1997 when his plane landed at the Raja Sansi International Airport in Amritsar, says a report in the daily Tribune. He was arrested for allegedly carrying 1.4 kg of heroin. He was prosecuted under Sections 22 and 23 of the NDPS Act. He was convicted by the trial court at Amritsar on 7th June. His appeal against the conviction and sentence was dismissed by the Punjab and Haryana High Court on 9th June 2006.
Appearing on behalf of Aga before the Supreme Court, Tanu Bedi countered the conviction on law points and exposed lacunae in the prosecution case. She asserted the prosecution had not produced physical evidence before the court, including the sample of the purported contraband, and even the carton.
She argued that independent witnesses had not been examined and there were discrepancies in the statements of official witnesses on search and seizure.
20/07/08 TwoCircles.net/Mudassir Rizwan/Indian Muslims, USA

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Doctor now regrets pleading guilty over incident on airplane

On the evening of June 26, as Southwest Flight 1226 neared the end of its 31/2 hour journey from St. Louis to Las Vegas, Dr. Sivaprasad Madduri, a 64-year-old urologist from Poplar Bluff, Mo., left his seat in the sixth row and began heading toward the front lavatory.
The captain was using the lavatory at the time, and a flight attendant told Madduri to return to his seat. When Madduri saw the captain leave the lavatory, he got up again. It is against FAA regulations to approach the cockpit when the cockpit is not secure. Madduri claims he did not know this. A spokeswoman for Southwest Airlines claims that two flight attendants explained the regulation to the doctor. At any rate, some pushing ensued. "She pushed me back into my seat," said Madduri. Yes, but that was only after he tried to force his way past her, the spokeswoman for Southwest said.
When the plane landed, two police officers came on board and escorted Madduri off the plane. He was turned over to the FBI. He was taken out of the airport in handcuffs, then taken to a detention center.
"The officers took mugshots and fingerprints, and I was ushered into a large jail cell," the slight physician later wrote in a letter he sent this newspaper and Southwest Airlines. "I looked around and there were already 43 inmates. All of them were young, abusive and using language I never heard of. There were small fold-down benches along the wall. Having no place even to sit, I spent half of my night standing."
In the morning, he was taken to federal court. He said a court-appointed attorney told him he could plead guilty to misdemeanor assault and pay a fine of $2,500. Or else he could plead not guilty and expect a protracted and costly legal fight that would almost certainly require multiple trips to Las Vegas. He pleaded guilty and eventually made his way to the meeting that had brought him to Las Vegas in the first place — the annual convention of the American Association of Physicians of Indian Origin.
Was he a victim of racial profiling? Or over-zealous flight attendants? Or post-911 paranoia? Or were the problems mostly of his own doing? Or could it be a little bit of all of the above?
"I can tell you this, these types of cases are taken very seriously by the U.S. Attorney's office, particularly when you have somebody who is trying to force his way to the front of the airplane when the pilot is out of the cockpit and the cockpit door might have been open," said Ray Gattinella, the assistant U.S. Attorney who handled the case.
Well, yes, but if you believe the Southwest version of events, this is a 64-year-old guy who was unable to overpower a flight attendant. Should this really have been a federal case? Then again, rules are rules, and this particular regulation was put in for a reason.
"I didn't know about this law," Madduri told me.
Brandy King, the spokeswoman for Southwest Airlines, said flight attendants were required to explain the cockpit-door and front-galley regulations as part of the preflight announcements.
Yes, but many of us zone out during those announcements.
King said the flight attendant tried to explain the regulation to Madduri during the incident. The criminal complaint, filed by the FBI, makes mention of a second flight attendant who allegedly tried to explain the regulation to Madduri after he returned to his seat after his first effort to get to the lavatory. The complaint says the first flight attendant again tried to explain the regulation to Madduri when he made his second attempt. The complaint states that Madduri said, "I'm not listening to you."
Did the FBI talk to any of the other passengers? That would settle the argument. Sadly, the FBI office in Las Vegas did not return repeated phone calls.
20/07/08 Bill McClellan/St. Louis Post-Dispatch, United States

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Passengers see fares to India slashed

Indian Airlines cut its fares from Dubai and Sharjah to destinations across India by as much as 30 percent after Dubai-based Emirates said it will raise ticket prices up to 10 percent in the face of soaring fuel costs.
Flights from Sharjah to New Delhi are down 30 percent to 740 dirhams ($201), while flights from Dubai to New Delhi have dropped 26 percent to 790 dirhams, India’s Business Standard reported on Friday.
Fares from Dubai to destinations in Kerala have been cut around 12 percent to 790 dirhams, while fares from Dubai to Mumbai have gone down about 10 percent to 790 dirhams.
The newspaper said Indian Airlines began the promotion last Monday.
Emirates said earlier this month that from from Aug. 1 it will raise ticket prices on all routes by 10 percent for first and business class passengers and by 5 percent for those in economy.
It is the second time Emirates has hiked its fares in the last few months after increasing ticket prices by 9 percent in June.
The entire aviation industry is coming under increasing pressure due to record oil prices, which have sent the cost of jet fuel skyrocketing.
19/07/08 Dylan Bowman/ArabianBusiness.com, United Arab Emirates

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Bahrain Air announces Kochi-Jeddah flights

Kochi: Low-cost carrier Bahrain Air on Saturday announced the launch of a new flight between Kochi and Jeddah from Wednesday.
Kochi would be the carrier's first destination in the Indian sub-continent and the service will operate bi-weekly on Mondays and Wednesdays with an Airbus A-320 aircraft, an airline statement said.
Bahrain Air will offer attractive fares and a one-way ticket, inclusive of taxes, will cost Rs 11,800, at least 40 per cent lower than what other airlines offer, the statement said.
The new service is expected to come as a boon to thousands of Kerala residents working in Bahrain and Jeddah.
19/07/08 IANS/Economic Times

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Cheap flight to Dhaka takes off

Calcutta: The first low cost flight between Calcutta and Dhaka will take off tomorrow.
Air India Express will fly six days a week, an airline spokesperson said today.
The 186-seater Boeing 737-800 will not fly on Saturdays.The operation between Calcutta and Dhaka will be an extension of the services on the Singapore and Bangkok sectors, the airline spokesperson added.On Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays the flight that reaches Calcutta from Dhaka at 6am will take off for Singapore at 6.50. It will return to Calcutta at 4pm before flying to Dhaka at 5.10. On Tuesdays, Thursdays and Sundays the plane will fly to Bangkok at 6.50am after reaching Calcutta from Dhaka at 6. It will return at 1.20pm and then fly to Dhaka.
Air India sources said the minimum one-way fare for a flight between Calcutta and Dhaka would be around Rs 3,000, including taxes.
GMG Airlines now operates two flights daily to Dhaka and four flights a week to Chittagong. Biman Bangladesh and Jet Airways operate one flight each everyday.
19/07/08 The Telegraph

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AI reduces flights to Port Blair

Kolkata: Due to scarcity of passengers, Air India (AI) has decided to reduce the number of flights to Port Blair till September-end.
"During the monsoon, tourists generally don't turn up and we have to depend only on the passengers going there for work," said airline's public relations officer. "This leads to a heavy financial loss for the company and so we have decided to reduce the number of flights."
On many occasions, there are only five to seven passengers on a flight, Mukherjee said.
Previously there, was a daily flight to and from Port Blair. Now there will be only four flights a week -- on Monday, Wednesday, Friday and Sunday.
Besides AI, Jet Lite and Air Deccan each have two flights per day. Jet Airways flies to Port Blair on Monday, Wednesday and Friday while SpiceJet has one flight a week.
18/07/08 Press Trust of India/Business Standard

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A cuts fares on UAE-Delhi, Mumbai routes by 20%

Dubai: At a time when major carriers operating in the UAE have hiked their fares, Indian Airlines has adopted a new aggressive marketing strategy by reducing fares to most Indian destinations.
IA has cut fares on the UAE to Delhi and Mumbai routes by 20 per cent. The one-way fare has been cut from Dh 500 (about Rs 5,500) to Dh 400 (Rs 4,400), while the fuel surcharge remains same. The new fares came into effect from July 14.
Indian Airlines Regional Manager Abhay Pathak said the airline had introduced special fares to Delhi and Mumbai last Monday.
On May 5, fuel surcharge was hiked to Dh 390 from Dh 350.
During the peak summer period, the fare would be Dh100 cheaper although the fuel surcharge would remain the same. "We have a large number of blue-collared workers. We don't want to distance our customers. I think we'll maintain the fare," he said.
18/07/08 Press Trust of India/Business Standard

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Even my lost baggage makes news in India: Amitabh Bachchan

Toronto: Amitabh Bachchan may have lost his clothes on a British Airways flight from London to Toronto, but he kept his shirt on at a press conference here to kick off the Unforgettable Tour. Amid peals of laughter, Big B said his loss of luggage had become big news in India. “As we talk, I am happy to know that just because I have lost all my baggage on British Airways, it is national news in India,” he said Thursday.
“I mentioned it in my blog and they (the media) have all means of communication - mobile phones and SMSes. Just before coming here we got delayed because I had to answer about 15 questions on what was the nature of my baggage and whether I was going to sue British Airways. I was told that I should really come on the phone.
“We will welcome your (the media) spirit, your enthusiasm and your interest in us and in our baggage,” Bachchan said amid another round of laughter.
And the 66-year-old Bachchan family patriarch said the Unforgettable Tour could not be his last show abroad. He couldn’t wait to shake his leg tomorrow, he added.
The biggest-ever live Bollywood show will take the Bachchan family - Amitabh, Jaya, Abhishek and Aishwarya - and their co-stars across the globe. This will be the first time that the whole family will perform in a live show.
18/07/08 IANS/Thaindian.com, Thailand

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Woman Smuggling Ketamine As Baby Food Held In Chennai

Chennai: A woman bound for Kuala Lumpur, who tried to hoodwink Chennai Airport Customs by concealing three kilogrammes of ketamine in children's food tins was detained yesterday.
Chennai Commissioner of Customs (Airport) Parminder Singh said officials questioned the suspect out of suspicion when they saw her lugging a heavy hand luggage filled with foodstuff at the airport checkpoint.
"When we questioned her, she said someone outside the airport gave the foodstuff to her. We suspected and immediately unpacked her hand luggage and found four tins of children's food.
All the foodstuff had been removed and the tines were filled with ketamine and nicely sealed again," Parminder told Bernama.
The seized contraband, nicknamed party drug, was estimated to be worth about RM230,000 in the international market.
The 38-year-old suspect, who hails from Trichy, admitted that she was hired to carry the consignment to Kuala Lumpur and was assured some money for the service. He said that this was the first time that a woman passenger attempting to smuggle ketamine had been apprehended by the department. The suspect was booked on Air India flight IC955 bound for Kuala Lumpur.
17/07/08 P.Vijian/Bernama

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Flying Angels Come Forward to Help Stranded Students

Hayward: As many as 50 former students of the failed American School of Aviation have retained a lawyer who is now gathering information in pursuit of a lawsuit against the school. Read On >>

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AI Express takes off to Kuwait amidst fanfare

Mangalore: This coastal city is well on the way to become the second largest air hub of the state after Bangalore and that of the West Coast. The airport at Bajpe which was elevated to the status of an international airport in 2006 added one more feather to its cap by being the only airport to begin direct operations to Kuwait from the West Coast of India after Mumbai directly. The Air India Express (AIE) which has now straight connection to Dubai and various other destinations in the West Asia today launched its direct flight to Kuwait.
The present flight will originate in Kozhikode will stop over at Mangalore and then fly to Kuwait direct without touching Mumbai. It will have one stop over at Sharjah before arriving in Kuwait.
The inaugural flight carried 87 passengers from Mangalore to Kuwait. According to the airport officials the flight began its journey to Kuwait via Mangalore and arrived at Bajpe at 6.05 pm and took off from Bajpe airport at 7.40pm.
The direct flight to Kuwait has also become easier on the pockets of the flyers. Earlier to travel from Mangalore to Kuwait it used to cost approximately Rs. 21,000 for a single seat, but now it could be availed at half of that price.
17/07/08 Mangalorean.com

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We have huge cash flow: Vijay Mallya

London: Prohibitive oil prices that have forced most of the airlines to reduce capacity or curtail number of flights, seem to have had no impact on the UB Group Chairman Vijay Mallya whose expansion programme and acquisition of latest aircraft for his commercial air operations continue. “I have a huge cash flow available,” he told HT.
Nor does the credit and oil crunch seem to have dampened the interest in purchasing civil and fighter planes, specially of Middle Eastern countries.
The number of the top-range Mercs, seven-series Audis and Lexus’ unloading men with serious faces and in designer suits flocking in various Chalets like that of the Airbus at this years Farnborough Air Show—celebrating its 60th anniversary—testified to the immense capacity and eagerness of the buyers the world over to acquire the latest planes and fighters.
Etihad ordered 20 A-320s, 25 A-350 and 10 A-380. It also ordered 45 planes—35, 787s and 10, 777s. The total order is worth $43 billion, based on list price. Saudis and Qatar too are on a buying binge. The star attraction, occupying the most central and visible space at this celebrations marked Air show was Airbus A-380 next to which was parked Airbus A330-200 with Kingfisher emblazoned in large red letters. Naturally Mallya's plane attracted equal attraction and was much talked about for the luxury it offers and the bar lounge—the only Indian carrier to have it—it has in between two compartments of First Class.
16/07/08 Vijay Dutt/Hindustan Times

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Omani national dies of heart attack at the intl airport

Mumbai: Sixty-seven-year-old Sharifa Mohammed, a resident of Oman, died of heart attack at the international airport at Sahar on Wednesday morning. The deceased Sharifa Mohammed and her family had come to visit Mumbai in the first week of July on a tourist visa and were on their way back to Oman when the incident took place.
Around 7am, Sharifa, who was accompanied by her husband, son and daughter, was wheeled by the airline staff to board Oman Air’s flight WY 806 that was parked at bay number 46 of the Sahar terminal. “After she boarded the flight, she complained of uneasiness and was then wheeled out of the aircraft by our staff,” an airport official said.
The airline staff then informed the Mumbai International Airport Limited (MIAL) doctors who reached the spot within 10 minutes. “The doctors found the patient lying unresponsive in the chair. They could not feel the pulse or blood pressure,” the spokesperson for MIAL said.
Sharifa was taken to the Tops Line ambulance and cardio pulmonary resuscitation (CPR) was started immediately. She was also given oxygen, but there was no response from the patient. Around 7.50am, she was declared dead by the doctors and her relatives were informed. The body was sent to the Cooper hospital, Vile Parle (w) for a post-mortem and was handed over to Sharifa’s relatives by afternoon, who took the body to Oman by the evening flight.
17/07/08 Navita/Daily News & Analysis

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New flight service from Mangalore to Kuwait launching today

Mangalore: A new flight service from Mangalore to Kuwait will begin today. Air India Express has introduced flight from Kozhikode to Sharjah and Kuwait Via Mangalore. It will be beneficial to large expatriate population hailing from the coastal districts mainly comprising of Mangaloreans, Udupians and Bhatkalis who have sizable presence in UAE and rest of the gulf region.
It may be recalled that international flight services from Mangalore to Dubai was inaugurated on October 3, 2006. Since then many flights have been introduced by Air India Express connecting Mangalore with Muscat in Oman, Doha in Qatar, Abu Dhabi and Dubai in United Arab Emirates and Bahrain. The new flight will be another milestone in the developement of Mangalore Airport.
17/07/08 SahilOnline

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Raytheon bids to supply equipment to Isro, AAI

Bangalore: US defence contractor, Raytheon Co., has bid to supply equipment for the final phase of India’s satellite based navigation system for aiding civil aviation, being built by Indian Space Research Organisation, or Isro, and Airports Authority of India (AAI).
Isro and AAI, to aid civil aviation traffic movement across the country, are jointly building the Global positioning satellite-aided geosynchronous augmented navigation system or Gagan.
Raytheon has tied up with local firms Accord Software and Systems, Pvt. Ltd and Elcome Technologies Pvt. Ltd for designing global positioning system devices and logistical and on-site support, and Naverus Inc., of Kent, Washington, for performance-based navigation route design, procedure flight validation and other related services. Raytheon had supplied radars in the initial test phase of the Gagan programme.
16/07/08 Livemint

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In airline investment, Wilbur Ross bets on lower oil prices

New Delhi: Wilbur Ross Jr.'s latest deal, an $80 million investment in the flailing Indian airline SpiceJet announced Tuesday, is hardly earth-shaking. But the idea behind it is.
Ross, a contrarian, has decided that high oil prices have hit bubble territory, a bubble that should pop in the next 12 months. In the search for new investments, "we're looking at everything that has been hurt by fuel," he said by telephone Tuesday.
To that end, his firm, WL Ross, which has an estimated $7.9 billion in assets under management, has bought up stakes in railroad freight companies in Europe. It is looking at refineries, gas station chains and even the faltering United States airlines industry.
"The fundamentals don't justify an oil price over $100" Ross said. "It is the nature of bubbles that they expand farther and last longer than anyone logically imagined," he said, but "they always reverse."
Exactly when and where the oil price bubble will burst is still unclear, he said, but he said he thought it could be within the next year.
On Tuesday, SpiceJet said Ross's firm would invest 3.45 billion rupees, or $80 million, in the company, a three-year-old, low-cost airline whose stock has dropped more than 50 percent this year. Ross will take a seat on the SpiceJet board, and said he could invest more capital if necessary. SpiceJet's shareholders include the Dubai investment company Istithmar and banks including BNP Paribas, HSBC and UBS.
15/07/08 Heather Timmons/International Herald Tribune, France

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Rolls-Royce lands long-term deals with Jet and Qatar Airways

Derby-based Rolls-Royce Group yesterday said it had signed a long-term maintenance agreement with India’s oldest privately-owned domestic airline, Jet Airways and Middle Eastern carrier Qatar Airways.
Rolls said Jet, which began international operations in 2004, had signed one of its TotalCare agreements covering the airline’s Trent 700-powered Airbus A330-200 aircraft.
In a separate statement, Rolls said it had signed a similar deal to support Qatar Airways’ fleet of four Trent 500-powered Airbus A340-600s and one VIP-configured Airbus A340-500.
Financial terms of both deals were undisclosed. Meanwhile, Rolls-Royce Abu Dhabi investment agency Mubadala Development Co said they had set up a joint venture to serve the fast-expanding Middle East aviation services market.
The joint venture will offer ‘On-Wing Care’ through Abu Dhabi Aircraft Technologies as well as a wide range of line maintenance services for Rolls-Royce’s Trent family operators in the region.
15/07/08 The Birmingham Post, UK

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FlyDubai readies for takeoff with $4 billion Boeing order

Farnborough, England: Boeing won an order from FlyDubai, a Middle Eastern startup airline, for 54 737-800 short-haul planes worth $3.78 billion at list prices.
The budget carrier, which is owned by the Dubai government and plans to begin flying in the middle of next year, will take delivery of the planes from May 2009 through 2015, Boeing said Monday at the Farnborough International Air Show outside London.
FlyDubai will operate to points not already served by Dubai-based carrier Emirates, which is also owned by the state, including cities in Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Kuwait. The government is spending $33 billion on what it intends to be the world's largest airport at Jebel Ali.
Of the 54 planes, 50 are new and four will be leased from Babcock & Brown Aircraft Management and are already in Boeing's order backlog.
14/07/08 Bloomberg News/International Herald Tribune

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India takes up students' case with China

Beijing: Indian government officials on Monday approached the Public Security Bureau of the Chinese government with regard to the case of 150-odd Indian students, who have been sold air tickets of Emirates and Malaysian Airlines that did not work at the check-in counters at Beijing and Shanghai airports, sources in the Indian embassy said.
The Beijing police have sealed the apartment of the main travel agent, Mohammed Jabbar Miyan, a Bangladeshi national, who supplied the tickets to the Indian students in three different universities in China. He has vanished from the scene. A police case has been filed against him by Sumeet, one of the student-subagents used by Miyan.
A group of 22 students, most of them from Hyderabad, got ready to spend their fourth night in the benches at the Pudong airport in Shanghai hoping to get a flight back home. Scores of other students, who have paid money for the tickets, are struck university hostels hoping that fresh tickets will be issued to them.
Emirates Airlines replied to TNN's queries past midnight Beijing time with a emailed statement saying it "sympathises with the passengers who were unable to board the aircraft.”
The airlines said it was investigating the matter but did not categorically state that the tickets were fake. The statement seemed to give credence to suspicion that travel agents may not be fully responsible for the foul play. There could be either a goof-up or some mischief within the Emirates itself.
14/07/08 Saibal Dasgupta/Times of India

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Jet Airways extends special India - Australia fares

Sydney: Jet Airways has extended its current fares special from Australia to a range of destinations in India, now enabling bookings to be made until July 31.
Travel agents also have a new option to up-sell into higher classes on connecting Qantas flights from Australia to key Asian hubs, from where passengers can connect with onward flights to India with Jet Airways.
Prices start from AU$1190, plus taxes, for departures from Sydney to the gateways of Mumbai, Delhi or Madras, via South-East Asia.
Special fares are also available from Melbourne, Brisbane, Adelaide and Perth.
Connections from Australia are available through Jet Airways’ code-share agreement with partner airline Qantas Airways, and other partner airlines.
The special fares are now available for sale until July 31 for departures until November 17.
16/07/08 Aviation Record, Australia

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Bahrain to give visa on arrival to Indians

Dubai: Bahrain will soon offer visas on arrival to Indians in a move that is expected to attract a major chunk of tourists from the subcontinent to the Gulf country.
Initially the visa will be offered for two weeks, an official said.
India and Russia are being added to the list of countries approved by Bahrain for visas on arrival, Interior Ministry Under-Secretary for Nationality, Passports and Residence Shaikh Rashid bin Khalifa Al Khalifa said.
Currently, nationals of 35 countries are granted visas on arrival at entry points, including Bahrain International Airport and King Fahad Causeway.
The visitors should carry a valid passport and a return ticket and provide either hotel reservation details or family contacts in Bahrain for visas on arrival.
The new flexible rules will come into force very soon, said Shaikh Rashid.
The visa can be extended for a further two weeks through the General Directorate of Nationality, Passports and Residence. Shaikh Rashid warned that there would be hefty penalties for those who misuse the facilities and overstay in the country.
15/07/08 Press Trust of India/NDTV.com

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Infotech, Dassault sign an MoU on MMRCA program

Saint Cloud /Hyderabad: Infotech Enterprises Limited (IEL), a Global Technology Solutions provider, with global headquarters at Hyderabad and Dassault Aviation, one of the major players in the civil and military aviation industry, have signed an MoU at Dassault Aviation Headquarters in France to jointly collaborate and perform activities related to the Ministry of Defense, Govt of India proposed Medium Multi Role Combat Aircraft (MMRCA) offset program. This program is one of the strategically most important and largest Indian defense programs.
Under the agreement, Infotech will be a technology partner to Dassault Aviation and will provide business driven solutions performing engineering, defense related business process and IT services to help Dassault Aviation satisfy offset obligations. The term on the MoU is for 5 years period and can be extended by mutual agreement between the parties.
15/07/08 MarketWatch

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Air Works to launch India's first 3rd party commercial MRO

In its endeavour to build a strong platform for the aviation services infrastructure in India, Air Works India announced its plans to launch a commercial maintenance, repair and overhaul [MRO] facility in Hosur, near Bangalore.
With 5 state of the art and fully equipped hangars, Air Works MRO will offer services like airframe, engine and APU maintenance; aircraft paint shop, engine repair and overhaul, passenger to freighter conversion, interior completions, avionic upgrades, aircraft component repairs and spares. The MRO facility would support a wide variety of commercial aircraft certified to DGCA, FAA, and EASA standards.
At present, Air Works MRO at Hosur has 8000 ft X 150 ft runway to accommodate the landing of all narrow and wide body aircraft. The company plans to start operations by September 2008 with one existing hangar. Airworks will complete two additional hangers by year end designed to accommodate wide body aircraft, and another two more by end of 2009. Going forward, Air Works India plans to invest an upward of $ 50 million for setting up the infrastructure to support the Commercial MRO initiative.
15/07/08 Moneycontrol.com

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Indian pilgrims could be illegal immigrants

Wellington: New Zealand authorities are hunting for 39 Indians who disappeared after apparently using Sydney's World Youth Day as a cover story for an immigration scam.
Australian officials are working with their New Zealand counterparts amid fears other pilgrims who have travelled to Sydney for the religious celebration might also try to stay in the country.
At least 39 Indians, all men aged 17 to 35, were given visitors' visas for New Zealand after saying they wanted to stop in the country en route to Sydney for the huge gathering of young Catholics.
But only 181 of a group of 220 left Auckland for Sydney, despite all being booked to fly on.
A member of New Zealand's Indian community, who is a justice of the peace, said he'd been in contact with some of the men and they intended to remain in New Zealand.
Some claimed to have paid up to $NZ17,000 ($A13,390) to "agents" in India who organised their visas and told the men they would ultimately be able to remain in New Zealand, Sikh Society spokesman Daljit Singh said.
Immigration Service officials confirmed they were investigating the scam.
"Some of those who are missing absconded from Auckland International Airport on arrival in New Zealand in early July, while others absconded from their billets, all but one leaving their luggage there," a spokesman said.
The men's visitor visas remain valid, so they have not yet committed any crime.
15/07/08 Brisbane Times

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Indian pilgrims could be illegal immigrants

Wellington: New Zealand authorities are hunting for 39 Indians who disappeared after apparently using Sydney's World Youth Day as a cover story for an immigration scam.
Australian officials are working with their New Zealand counterparts amid fears other pilgrims who have travelled to Sydney for the religious celebration might also try to stay in the country.
At least 39 Indians, all men aged 17 to 35, were given visitors' visas for New Zealand after saying they wanted to stop in the country en route to Sydney for the huge gathering of young Catholics.
But only 181 of a group of 220 left Auckland for Sydney, despite all being booked to fly on.
A member of New Zealand's Indian community, who is a justice of the peace, said he'd been in contact with some of the men and they intended to remain in New Zealand.
Some claimed to have paid up to $NZ17,000 ($A13,390) to "agents" in India who organised their visas and told the men they would ultimately be able to remain in New Zealand, Sikh Society spokesman Daljit Singh said.
Immigration Service officials confirmed they were investigating the scam.
"Some of those who are missing absconded from Auckland International Airport on arrival in New Zealand in early July, while others absconded from their billets, all but one leaving their luggage there," a spokesman said.
The men's visitor visas remain valid, so they have not yet committed any crime.
15/07/08 Brisbane Times

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Jeppesen to enter India through Hyderabad

Mumbai: Boeing subsidiary Jeppesen Commercial & Military Aviation, known for its navigation and operation solutions to airlines the world over, has expressed concrete plans of setting up shop in India to make its services available to Indian carriers.
Headquartered in Colorado, the company initially began as a publisher of airway manuals and a producer of navigation databases for aviation operators. Today it has diversified into a technology-driven information solutions provider.
The company will set up office in Hyderabad by the third quarter of 2008 and has plans to secure 50 per cent of its clientele in the first two years of operation. "Our initial target will be to get as many airlines as possible to opt for our integrated operations solutions," Max Ali, director (Business Development) for Jeppesen (India, Africa & Middle East), said. Jeppesen's other services include fleet management, dispatch services, movement control, runway analysis, navigation solutions as well as professional services and training.
It is also in talks with Hyderabad-based Flytech Aviation Academy to integrate its commercial aviation training curriculum with that of the institute.
16/07/08 Andrea Lopez/Express TravelWorld

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MAHB plans fifth venture abroad this year

Buttorworth: Malaysia Airports Holdings Bhd (MAHB) hopes to enter a fifth overseas venture this year.
Human resources general manager Ahmad Zuber Abdul said the company had received many enquiries about its services.
“We have to be selective on our overseas ventures. After our latest venture in Turkey, we hope to have a fifth venture this year,” he said after launching the company’s “Beyond Borders” programme at SK Pokok Sena here yesterday.
He said MAHB was a sought-after service provider in airport operations as its staff were experienced and known to be adaptable to various working conditions.
“Another selling point for us is the KL International Airport. It is well-managed and other airports want to learn from us,” he said.
MAHB's venture in Turkey started last year. It would be assigning a number of its experienced personnel to the Istanbul Sabiha Gokcen International Airport to assist in the operations, technical and financial areas when the airport’s expansion is completed in 2010.
It also manages the Hyderabad International Airport and Delhi Airport in India and the Astana Airport in Kazakhstan.
16/07/08 Yeng Ai Chun/Malaysia Star, Malaysia

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Billionaire Ross to Invest $80 Million in SpiceJet

U.S. billionaire investor Wilbur Ross, who made his fortune taking over bankrupt steel, coal and textile companies, will invest 3.45 billion rupees ($80 million) in SpiceJet Ltd., his first investment in an Indian airline.
WL Ross & Co. will make the investment and Ross will join SpiceJet's board, according to a statement by India's second- largest budget airline. Ross will buy foreign currency convertible bonds held by Istithmar PJSC and Goldman Sachs Group Inc., Kishore Gupta, a director of the New Delhi-based airline, said in a phone interview.
SpiceJet's shares have declined 57 percent this year as record fuel prices drain funds needed to pay for new Boeing Co. planes the airline has ordered. Purchasing a stake now may enable Ross to earn a profit as travel demand rises in the world's second-fastest growing major aviation market and mergers reduce competition.
SpiceJet surged as much as 16 percent after the deal was announced today. It changed hands at 29.55 rupees, or 5.7 percent higher than yesterday's close, at 11:55 a.m. in Mumbai.
``We believe in the long-term validity of the low-cost airline model in India, and that fuel prices eventually will stabilize,'' Ross said in the statement.
Ross will buy foreign-currency convertible bonds, or FCCBs, owned by Dubai-based Istithmar and Goldman Sachs, Gupta said. The purchase will enable SpiceJet to use funds from the account it couldn't utilize until now, he said.
15/07/08 Vipin V. Nair/Bloomberg

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Jet flight makes safe emergency landing at Pearson

Toronto: A flight heading from Toronto to India was forced to make an emergency landing at International Airport, Sunday night.
Peel Regional Police told 680News the Jet Airways flight took off just after 8:30 a.m. when one of the plane's engines blew.
CTV News reported the airbus A-330 had to fly over Lake Ontario to burn off and dump fuel before safely touching back down.
14/07/08 680 News, Canada

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Low-Cost Asian Airlines Still Thrive, on Silver Linings Aviation

Tony Davis, the chief executive of Tiger Airways, based in Singapore, readily admits that he is much happier running an Asian- based low-cost airline right now than he would be running one in Europe or the United States.
For one thing, the significant strengthening of Asian currencies against the dollar in recent months has helped mitigate some of the effects of the ever-rising price of oil, traded in dollars, while historically low interest rates have made paying for new aircraft less expensive.
"There are some benefits to being outside of a U.S.-denominated revenue area, and we're certainly taking advantage of those," Davis said in a recent interview.
But maybe most important, there is still very high demand for air travel in the region and no easy alternative in a region that mostly lacks sophisticated railroad systems or road infrastructure. "It would take days for someone to drive from Singapore to Cambodia," Davis noted.
Asian national carriers have not been immune to the sharp rise in the price of oil and the global economic slowdown, and several have had to pare down capacity on some routes. China Airlines, the largest carrier in Taiwan, has canceled about 10 percent of flights, mostly to the United States and Asia, and Thai Airways has canceled its nonstop services to New York and reduced its frequency to Los Angeles. Asiana Airlines, based in Seoul, and Qantas, in Australia, have also cut several routes or reduced capacity.
Still, the gloom that has descended on much of the world's aviation industry is far from affecting everybody, and some Asian low-cost airlines are drawing up expansion plans, looking at opportunities where others see losses.
The Malaysian airline AirAsia, the biggest low-cost carrier in Southeast Asia, measured by fleet size, is also pressing ahead with an ambitious route expansion program. It recently introduced four new destinations - Kuantan in Malaysia, Haikou in China, Makassar in Indonesia and Hong Kong - and its chief executive, Tony Fernandes, says it will fly to southern India by the end of this year.
14/07/08 Sonia Kolesnikov-Jessop/RedOrbit

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