Hyderabad: Home Minister Mohammed Mahmood Ali holds meeting with RGIA officials on Haj pilgrims' needs

Hyderabad: A review meeting was conducted by Home Minister Mohammed Mahmood Ali with officials of RGIA on Monday on various issues such as prayer area and ablution, sitting arrangements for the Haj pilgrims During the meeting, Telangana State Haj Committee chairman Mohammed Saleem insisted on a separate Haj terminal for the pilgrims at the airport because airport tax is being collected from them. Facilities should also be provided to them. He told the airport officials that 80 per cent of pilgrims are aged between 60 and 65 years. They need special attention. He said places for prayers and ablutions should be arranged separately for men and women.

Mahmood Ali directed the airport officials to make best arrangements for pilgrims, because they are guests of almighty. He asked them to provide better facilities. Principal Secretary, Minority Welfare department, Ahmed Nadeem, State Haj Committee Executive Officer B Shafiullah gave concrete suggestions to the officials. Shafiullah said, as capacity of the Haj flight is 350, necessary arrangements should be made.

31/05/22 Hans India

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Indore: ​Technical glitch in Jeddah delays flight from Mumbai by 5 hrs

Indore: The AI-635 from Mumbai to Indore which then goes to Delhi was delayed by over 5 hours as a result of which many passengers missed their connecting flights from New Delhi.

According to information, the main reason for the delay was a technical snag developed in the aircraft in Jeddha as a result of which the Jeddah-Mumbai flight was delayed. The same aircraft becomes AI-635 Mumbai-Indore flight.

The plane was supposed to land in Indore at 8.40 am and then take off for Delhi at 9.25 am, and passengers started reaching the airport from 6.30 am on Monday to go New Delhi by this flight.

However, on reaching the airport, the passengers were informed that this flight would come a little late. Later it was informed that the flight would arrive at 2.05 pm and leave at 2.35 pm - a delay of five and half hours.

This big delay angered many passengers as they missed their connecting flight from New Delhi. Air India offered to refund their money and also provided them with free snacks.

31/05/22 Free Press Journal

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Nepal air crash: Kin of Odia family feared dead to visit Kathmandu

Bhubaneswar: The family members of Ashok Kumar Tripathy, who is feared dead along with his wife Vaibhavi Bandekar, son Dhanush and daughter Ritika in a plane crash near Thasang-2 in Nepal's Mustang district, will leave for Kathmandu on Tuesday morning.

Rescuers have so far pulled out 20 bodies from the wreckage of the crashed plane and all 22 on board, including three crew members, are feared dead. The Indian Embassy in Nepal contacted Ashok's twin brother Rajen Tripathy, who stays in Pune, and they requested him to reach Kathmandu. Ashok’s family members are yet to come to terms with the loss.

"My younger brother Rajen and son Anshuk along with some family members of Vaibhavi will leave from Mumbai for Nepal on Tuesday morning. The Indian Embassy has not shared much details but we suspect the recovered bodies are unrecognisable," said Ashok's elder brother, Satyabrata Tripathy.

Satyabrata recalled that Dhanush was very studious and Ashok planned a family vacation only after he completed his course from Birla Institute of Technology and Science, Pilani. "The incident has left us all shocked and Nepal Government must thoroughly investigate the matter," he said.

According to a preliminary investigation of Civil Aviation Authority of Nepal (CAAN), inclement weather condition was the reason behind the crash of the Tara Air plane in Nepal’s mountainous Mustang district on Sunday.

31/05/22 New Indian Express

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Ethiopian Airlines set to launch flights to Chennai, India

Addis Ababa: Ethiopian Airlines, a leading airline in Africa, is set to start thrice weekly operations to Chennai, India from July 2, 2022, marking the airline’s  fourth destination in the country after New Delhi, Mumbai and Bengaluru.

Ethiopian started its service to India with a debut flight to New Delhi in 1966, just 20 years after the airline was founded. Ethiopian pioneered the air transport linkage between Africa and India. Recently, Ethiopian marked its 50th year anniversary of uninterrupted service to Mumbai, the commercial capital of India.

The flights to Chennai will fly a B737-8 aircraft on the Addis Ababa-Chennai route.

Ethiopian Airlines Group CEO Mesfin Tasew said: “I am excited that we are getting closer to our customers with our signature service and global connectivity options. We have been connecting Asia and Africa for 55 years now facilitating trade between the two continents. The addition of Chennai as a fourth passenger destination in India is a testimony of our resilience and unwavering commitment to serve our customers in India and the continent at large. We will continue to serve India with enhanced frequency and more destinations in the future. “

Chennai is a modern cosmopolitan city and the most prominent cultural, economic and educational centre of South India. Ethiopian has been serving India without any interruption even during the pandemic cementing the longstanding bilateral relationship between the two countries.

31/05/22 Trade Arabia

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Singapore Airlines To Increase Flights In India

Buoyed by a strong recovery in travel demand in the Indian market, Singapore Airlines plans to increase the number of flights to India where the group is currently operating at around 75 per cent of its pre-pandemic capacity.

Singapore Airlines (SIA) Group -- comprising full service carrier Singapore Airlines and low-cost airline Scoot -- currently serves 13 destinations across India.

On Monday, a senior Singapore Airlines executive said the carrier expects to announce more flights to India in the coming months.

''The Indian market is recovering very strongly as well. We are seeing good load factors... we will be able to hopefully announce increases in flights over the next two schedules... whether it is for the winter schedule starting from October or even for next year,'' Lee Lik Hsin, Executive Vice President Commercial at Singapore Airlines, told reporters at an interaction at Changi airport here.

At present, Singapore Airlines operates 73 weekly flights to Singapore from eight Indian cities -- Chennai, Mumbai, Delhi, Bangalore, Kolkata, Ahmedabad, Kochi and Hyderabad. Scoot operates 38 flights from six cities -- Amritsar, Coimbatore, Hyderabad, Tiruchirappalli, Trivandrum and Visakhapatnam.

According to an airline spokesperson, SIA Group is currently operating around 75 per cent of its pre-COVID capacity.

30/05/22 Businessworld

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Kin of Odia family on board the ill-fated Tara Air flight clutch on to last hope of a miracle

Bhubaneswar:  Even as search and rescue were called off due to inclement weather for Tara Air flight that crashed in Nepal on Sunday, kin of the Odia family that was on board the ill-fated aircraft still hold on to the last hope of miraculous survival.

The flight carried Ashok Kumar Tripathy (55), his wife and two children. Elder brother of Ashok, Satyabrata Tripathy was lost for words as the devastating news broke. “I had spoken with Ashok about two days back. We still hope and pray that my brother and his family survive the crash,” he told The New Indian Express. 

Satyabrata, a former president of Kalahandi district consumer court, said he came to know about the crash through social media at about 12 pm. He immediately contacted the Indian Embassy in Nepal to collect details about his brother and other family members. He lives in Sonepur town.

Ashok’s wife Vaibhavi, son Dhanush and daughter Ritika were among the 19 passengers on board the Twin Otter 9N-AET plane belonging to Nepal’s Tara Air. Ashok is an HR consultant by profession and lives in Jaydev Vihar area of the Capital. His wife works in Mumbai and their two children stay with her.Son Dhanush completed his studies at Birla Institute of Technology and Science (BITS Pilani) and he had recently joined a private company. 

“Ashok and his wife left for Nepal on May 27. They had plans to visit Pokhara and Jomsom. We last spoke with Indian Embassy in Nepal at about 5.30 pm today and they informed us that the search and rescue operation was called off due to inclement weather conditions,” said Satyabrata. Some friends of Ashok also urged the Odisha government to coordinate with the Centre and help Nepal with a more vigorous search and rescue operation near the crash site.

Ashok is the fourth-youngest among the five brothers and their late father Krushna Prasad Tripathy was a district judge. Ashok’s twin brother Rajen stays in Pune. Tara Air flight 9N-AET took off from Pokhara at 9.55 am on Sunday with 22 people on board, including four Indians before it lost contact. Search and rescue operation is on. The embassy is in touch with their family, tweeted the Indian embassy in Nepal.

30/05/22 Asish Mehta/New Indian Express

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Tanzanian held with heroin worth Rs 20 crore at Kochi airport

Kochi: The Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) on Saturday nabbed a Tanzanian national with heroin worth Rs 20 crore in the international market when he reached Kochi airport on a flight from Cape Town in South Africa via Dubai. 

DRI officials said the person identified as Mihammed alias Kuyamno, 57, was nabbed based on specific intelligence input. He arrived from Tanzania via Dubai by a flight in the early morning. Officials said his travel records showed that he began his journey from Cape Town.

The drug was found concealed in a secret compartment of a trolley bag. A probe is on to ascertain whether the accused brought the contraband for supply in Kerala or was he proceeding to some other place. DRI has upped surveillance in Kochi airport as there has been a rise in the number of drug smugglers arriving from African countries in the past few years.

29/05/22 New Indian Express

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Lankan crisis turns blessing for Thiruvananthapuram international airport

Sri Lanka’s fuel crisis is proving beneficial for Thiruvananthapuram airport. SriLankan Airlines, owned by the government of the island nation, has chosen the capital as the refuelling and crew change spot for its long-distance services, bringing in revenue to the airport.

Already, two SriLankan Airlines flights from Colombo, one bound to Frankfurt in Germany and the other to Melbourne in Australia, had a stopover at Thiruvananthapuram on Friday and Saturday. Each long haul flight, with around 12 hours of flying time, needs to refuel at least 120 tonnes. A rough calculation indicated the airport earns Rs 1 crore from refuelling alone. 

Sources at the airport said the stopovers were also for cabin crew layover and technical landing. “The halts would help the fuel supply units at the airport generate more income and also fill the state and Centre’s coffers with tax revenue,” said a source. “More SriLankan Airlines flights would land here for refuelling. This has spiked the demand for fuel at the airport and oil firms have had to ensure more supply,” said a source.

India has been a major supplier of fuel to Sri Lanka ever since crisis hit at the island nation, said the source. “Many crude oil tanker ships were directed to travel to Sri Lanka for supplying fuel. So Colombo airport has sufficient fuel storage for other international private flights and domestic operations. However, SriLankan Airlines relies on Thiruvananthapuram airport as it is closer to Colombo,” the source said.

The arrival of the flights would net Thiruvananthapuram airport revenue from landing and working charges too. 

“Besides revenue from refuelling, the airport will also make money from landing and parking charges. We have a vast area for parking even the biggest Airbus Boeing 777. So the airport has good opportunities. More flights will come here,” said the officer.  

28/05/22 Krishnachand K/New Indian Express

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Pilot's Phone Helped Track Likely Location Of Missing Nepal Plane: Report

New Delhi: The probable location of a plane with 22 people on board - four of them Indians - that went missing in Nepal today was tracked down using the GPS coordinates of the pilot's phone, according to local media reports quoting airport authorities.

The plane was being flown by Captain Prabhakar Ghimire.

"The cell phone of Captain Ghimire of the missing aircraft has been ringing and Nepal Army's helicopter has landed in the possible accident area after tracking the captain's phone from Nepal Telecom," Prem Nath Thakur, general manager of Kathmandu's Tribhuvan International Airport, was quoted as saying by Nepal's MyRepublica news portal.

The plane went missing this morning in a mountainous region soon after taking off from the tourist city of Pokhara for Jomsom, officials said.

The Twin Otter 9N-AET aircraft belonging to Nepal's Tara Air lost contact with the control tower 15 minutes after it took off, an airline spokesperson has said.

The passengers comprise four Indian nationals, two Germans, 13 Nepalese passengers and a three-member Nepalese crew, said airline spokesperson Sudarshan Bartaula. The four Indians have been identified as Ashok Kumar Tripathi, Dhanush Tripathi, Ritika Tripathi, and Vaibhawi Tripathi.

"Tara Air flight 9NAET that took off from Pokhara at 9.55 AM today with 22 people onboard, including 4 Indians, has gone missing. Search and rescue operation is on. The embassy is in touch with their family. Our emergency hotline number :+977-9851107021," the Indian embassy in Nepal tweeted.

29/05/22 PTI/NDTV

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My Mother is Critical, Don't Tell Anything to Her: Sister of Woman on Board Crashed Nepal Plane Requests Police

Mumbai: When Mumbai police personnel on Sunday contacted the elder sister of Vaibhavi (Bandekar) Tripathi, who was on board the plane that crashed in Nepal earlier in the day, she requested them not to tell anything about the incident to her mother, saying she was already in a critical condition, an official said. The fate of Vaibhavi Tripathi, her husband Ashok Kumar Tripathi and their children children – Dhanush and Ritika – residents of Thane city adjoining Mumbai, and 18 others travelling with them in the Tara Air plane, is yet to be known hours after the aircraft crashed in the mountainous region of the Himalayan nation minutes after taking off, officials said.

“Following the incident, the Indian Embassy in Nepal contacted the Mumbai police asking them to find the residence of the four family members who were on board the plane, and inform the relatives about it. Accordingly, a team of the Borivali police station got in touch with one Seema Prabhu, who resides in Vaibhavi (Bandekar) Tripathi’s housing society. She gave Vaibhavi’s elder sister Sanjeevani Sadani’s contact number, who lives with her mother in Thane," an official said.

“The police contacted Vaibhavi’s sister and shared the information with her. But she told our personnel that she had already got in touch with the Indian embassy in Nepal. She then requested the police not to tell anything about the incident to her mother as her health condition is critical," he added. The official said that the address mentioned on Vaibhavi’s passport said she is a resident of Bhushan Park View Society at Chikuwadi in Borivali. But when the police team went to that place, it was found that the flat had been rented out, he said.

29/05/22 PTI/News18.com

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Among Indian victims of Nepal air crash are separated couple headed to meet children

Mumbai: After a Tara Air flight carrying 19 passengers, including four Indians, from Nepal’s Pokhara to Jomsom in Mustang district crashed near the Lete hill area on Sunday, details are emerging of the victims.

Senior inspector Uttam Sonawane of Kapurbawdi police in Thane said that two of the four Indian victims—Ashok Tripathy and Vaibhavi Bandekar—were separated and that their children had to spend 10 days with Tripathy as per court orders. They were headed to Muktidham in Nepal to meet their children when the air crash happened.

Bandekar, 51, worked at a private company in Mumbai’s Bandra Kurla Complex while her husband lived in Odisha. She had stayed in Borivali before moving to the Athena Apartment at Majiwada in Thane.

Suman Dahal of Kailash Vision Trek said, “This family had booked their trip through a company in Delhi, which in turn approached us. I met this family on May 27 and they were really excited about this tour to Muktidham. They travelled from Kathmandu to Pokhara and were on a flight from Pokhara to Jomsom.”

Tour manager Sagar Acharya told The Indian Express, “I met the family first when they came to Kathmandu on May 27. They were very excited and we all had dinner together. Later they also went to the Pashupatinath Temple and attended aarti. On May 28, they travelled from Kathmandu to Pokhara by road and I went by air. On Sunday, their flight was to depart at 6am from Pokhara and their takeoff was delayed because of bad weather. Around 9.45am, two aircraft of Summit Airways took off, followed by the Tara Air flight at 9.55 am. Before taking off, Ashok Tripathy had called me to say things were okay. Those two flights of Summit landed safely and then we heard the news that the Tara Air flight lost contact with the ATC. Since I know some helicopter companies, we sent a helicopter to the crash site.”

Acharya said the couple had kept some of their excess baggage in his room. “We only know that the flight has crashed and don’t know about the details of passengers and a massive search has been started for them,” he said.

29/05/22  Yogesh Naik, Pallavi Smart/Indian Express

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Afghan Man Caught At Delhi Airport With Medicines Worth ₹ 64 Lakh

New Delhi: An Afghan national travelling to Kabul via Dubai by Spicejet flight No. SG-05 was caught by Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) after noticing suspicious activities of a foreign passenger while entering the departure building of T-3 IGI Airport, New Delhi airport. Identified as Fazli Ahmad Shah Mohammad was arrested for allegedly trying to smuggle a huge quantity of medicines of approximate value of INR 64.40 lakh. On suspicion, the man was taken to the random checking point for thorough checking of his luggage. 

During x-ray screening of his bags, CISF personnel noticed suspicious images inside the bags. On physical checking, a huge quantity of different types of medicines of approximate value of INR 64.40 lakh was detected. On inquiry, the passenger could not produce supporting documents or a Doctor’s prescription for carrying such a huge quantity.

The accused Fazli Ahmad was intercepted on Wednesday night not long before he was going to load up a SpiceJet trip to Kabul by means of Dubai from the terminal-III of the Indira Gandhi International Airport, a senior Central Industrial Security Force official said.

Various bundles, of tablets comprehended to be utilised for the treatment of brain tumour, worth ₹ 64.40 lakh were recuperated from his hand stuff, the CISF official said.

26/05/22 Neeraj Rajput/ABP Live

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Cathay Pacific to increase flight services from Mumbai and Delhi to Hong Kong

Cathay Pacific on Thursday announced increasing the frequency of its flight services from Mumbai and Delhi to Hong Kong. The Hong Kong-headquartered airline had stopped flying to India in late March 2020 due to the suspension of passenger traffic to and from India.

The airline resumed its services to Mumbai and Delhi from May 4 and May 6, respectively, this year, after the government lifted the ban on March 27.

Cathay Pacific resumed operations from Mumbai and Delhi with three flights in May. For June, the airline will operate eight flights from Mumbai and nine flights from Delhi, it said in a statement.

From July onwards, Cathay Pacific said it will operate two flights per week on the Hong Kong-Mumbai route and vice versa on Friday and Sunday. On the Delhi-Hong Kong-Delhi route, the airline will have four flights per week -- Tuesday, Wednesday, Friday and Sunday.

26/05/22 PTI/Economic Times

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2 Women Hid 181 Cocaine Capsules In Stomach, Arrested At Delhi Airport

New Delhi: Two women travelling from Uganda were arrested at Delhi's Indira Gandhi International Airport after cocaine worth ₹ 28 crore was found hidden in their stomachs, said custom officials.

The two women had hidden cocaine in pills and swallowed them, the officials said. The seized cocaine weighs nearly 2 kg.

One of them was caught on Thursday. She told police that she was carrying 81 pills inside her stomach. She was then taken to Ram Manohar Lohia Hospital where cocaine weighing around 0.891 kg was found inside her. The recovered drug is valued at ₹ 13.6 crore in the international market.

Around 80 capsules were found hidden in the stomach of the woman arrested on May 22. She too was taken to Ram Manohar Lohia Hospital for an x-ray examination. The cocaine found inside the pills weighed 0.957 kg and is valued at ₹ 14 crore.

27/05/22 NDTV

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Qatar Airways Cargo moves 30 million COVID-19 vaccines from India

Given that the Indian pharmaceuticals market is the world's third-largest in terms of volume, and the country caters to around 60% of global vaccine demand, it comes as no surprise that the pharmaceuticals industry plays such a central role in Indian air cargo. When Qatar Airways Cargo launched its pharma product in January 2014, India was one of the first markets to offer it. The airline has since grown to become one of the ISC's leading cargo carriers, and today, with a pharmaceuticals market share of almost 18% in India, practically every fifth pharma shipment leaves the country on board a Qatar Airways Cargo plane.

"The Indian pharma market is very important for Qatar Airways Cargo," Ehab Matta, Senior Manager Regional Cargo Indian subcontinent, Middle East & Pakistan – Qatar Airways, explains. "We work closely with major vaccine manufacturers in India through our global partnerships with international as well as leading local freight forwarders." It is this close collaboration with customers that led to Hyderabad (HYD) becoming the first station in the Qatar Airways Cargo network, to deploy Envirotainer's new Releye® RLP containers as soon as they had been approved for carriage on Qatar Airways aircraft. Hyderabad also holds the national record for the most active pharma containers on one flight, having once moved 11 ULDs in one flight. The city is home to over 2,500 of the country's 3,000 pharma companies and 10,500 manufacturing units, and is India's main pharma export station, though Mumbai, Ahmedabad, Delhi, Bengaluru, and Chennai also play important roles given the widespread pharma production facilities across India.

"India produces and exports both conventional vaccines as well as COVID-19 vaccines," Matta continues. "Ten COVID-19 vaccines are approved for use in India, whilst Indian manufactured vaccines are approved in over 138 countries globally. We have moved close to 30 million COVID-19 vaccines to date to several destinations across our network including Africa, the Middle East, the Americas, Europe, and Asia. We expect to move more since the COVID-19 vaccine export restriction was lifted by the Indian Government late last year. Our participation in the UNHCR vaccine programme, through Kuehne and Nagel, is a good testimony to our commitment."

The increasing involvement of both India and Qatar Airways Cargo in supporting healthcare by means of charters and transporting not just pharmaceuticals, but all kinds of aid and relief material, and vaccines, has led to the airline sourcing a suitable candidate to act as Regional Cargo Sales Manager – Products. Sunita Sanghvi, who joined the airline in Mumbai on 14 March 2022.

26/05/22 ITLN

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Kozhikode-bound Air India, Air Arabia flights from UAE diverted to Coimbatore due to bad weather

Due to bad weather in Kerala, three planes from Sharjah and Abu Dhabi bound for Kozhikode were diverted to Coimbatore. At roughly 7.15 a.m., two Air Arabia flights from Sharjah and an Air-India flight from Abu Dhabi were diverted to Coimbatore's international airport. However, the flights left Kozhikode airport after an hour as soon as the visibility improved. Though, the passengers on the flight were annoyed because of the delay, reports PTI.

The weather in India has recently been disrupting the flight schedules in different states of the country. Earlier, The heavy rain storm in the national capital also affected flight operations at Delhi's Indira Gandhi International (IGI) Airport, with the airport authority requesting the passengers to contact the airline concerned for updated flight information.

At the time, Delhi airport said in a statement, “Due to bad weather, flight operations at Delhi Airport are affected. Passengers are requested to get in touch with the airline concerned for updated flight information.”

Meanwhile, many airlines advised the passenger to keep some buffer travel time on their hands and check the latest status of their flights in view of the bad weather.

26/05/22 Zee News

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Jet fuel shortage forces Sri Lankan Airlines to refuel in India, UAE, Singapore

Sri Lankan Airlines has started refuelling its aircraft from Chennai, Dubai, and Singapore due to a shortage of jet fuel in Colombo amid a foreign currency scarcity, sources said.

The shortage also has led the Airport and Aviation Services (Sri Lanka) (Private) Limited (AASL) to inform foreign flights to take necessary steps in refuelling.

“There is less jet fuel in Colombo. So we have been using Chennai, Dubai, and Singapore to refuel Sri Lankan Airlines’ flights,” a source from the state-run SriLankan Airlines under anonymity confirmed to Economy Next.

The island’s main Bandaranaike International Airport has a 7.8 million liter capacity fuel tank while Mattala International airport has a 3 million liter fuel tank.

However, Sri Lanka’s economic crisis with a severe shortage of dollars has led to a scarcity of fuel as the Indian Ocean island nation has no dollars to import oil.  Sri Lanka has been sourcing fuel from an Indian credit line.

“We informed the (foreign) airlines 10-days ago that the airport is running on limited fuel, so to take necessary measures,” another source from Sri Lanka’s airports said.

“We do have fuel for emergency purposes but this matter is entirely handled by CPC (Ceylon Petroleum Corporation). They are the ones who supply the fuel to the airports.”

Officials from CPC were not immediately available for comments.

25/05/22 Mahadiya Hamza/Economynext

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Thailand’s budget carrier Nok Air to take off for India soon

Thailand-based budget carrier Nok Air is set to launch non-stop flights to India from winter 2022. The airline will offer connections via its hub at Don Mueang International Airport (DMK) in Bangkok.

To mark its presence in India, Nok Air has appointed DEX GROUP as its General Sales Agent (GSA) in India. “We are confident that DEX Group will support Nok Air to establish a strong sales and marketing network across India to achieve our commercial goals in the Indian market,” the airline said in a statement.

Nok Air’s new routes will be operated by state-of-the-art Airbus 737-800 with 189 seats. The flights will provide the convenient connections from various Indian gateways to Bangkok, and beyond to over 20 destinations in Thailand including Phuket, Chiang Mai, Chiang Rai etc.

“It is time that we look forward to expanding our markets towards the west, especially India. There are many areas there we have not yet tapped into to gain more revenue. As the airlines are slowly gaining their strength, it would be wiser for us if we are the first to take advantage of the situation and gain a foothold through this door. Indian market is booming and it would benefit us greatly if we are one of the few airlines that the Indian people choose to travel to Thailand with,” Wutthiphum Jurangkool, CEO, Nok Air said.

24/05/22 Megha Paul/Travel Daily Media

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Ugandan man swallows 63 capsules containing 794 gm heroin, held at Chennai airport

Chennai: Chennai Air Customs seized 794.64 grams of heroin worth Rs 5.56 crore and arrested a Ugandan man who had swallowed 63 capsules containing heroin.

It was on May 17 at around 4.30 AM, that a passenger identified as Lauben Mbangire (42) who had arrived at the city airport from Sharjah was intercepted by Air Intelligence Officers of the Chennai Customs.

Subsequently, a search and a medical examination was conducted which led to the recovery of 794.64 grams of heroin worth Rs 5.56 crore. The passenger had swallowed 63 capsules containing ivory coloured powder material later found to be heroin.

A total of 794.64 grams of heroin with an estimated value of Rs 5.56 crore was seized from the passenger.

Meanwhile, the passenger was arrested under the provisions of NDPS Act, 1985 read with Customs Act, 1962.

24/05/22 Pramod Madhav/India Today

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Kuwait state-backed aircraft lessor Alafco explores sale

Dubai: Kuwait-headquartered aircraft leasing firm Alafco is exploring a sale and has held talks with private equity firms and other aircraft lessors, sources familiar with the talks said.

Alafco, whose shareholders include the Kuwaiti government, has a fleet of 77 wide- and narrow-body Airbus (AIR.PA) and Boeing (BA.N) aircraft operated by airlines and another 68 on order.

Alafco and major shareholder Kuwait Finance House did not respond to emailed requests for comment.

The potential sale comes as the lessor reported a 79% increase in half-year losses to 4.5 million dinar ($14.71 million), which it blamed on impairment charges.

Over the same period, Alafco's leasing revenue fell 2% to 51 million dinar ($166.75 million).

The potential sale comes as aircraft lessors around the world are confronted with inflation, higher borrowing costs and the impact of Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

Alafco's customers include Air India, Indonesia's Garuda, Malaysia Airlines, Kuwait Airways and Italy's new carrier ITA.

23/05/22 Reuters

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2 American Super Hornets in India as Boeing looks to showcase fighters for Navy deal

New Delhi: Two Boeing F/A-18 Super Hornets, on lease from the US Navy, have arrived in India to showcase their ski-jump from the shore-based test facility (SBTF) at INS Hansa in Goa and project their capabilities to operate from Indian aircraft carriers, ThePrint has learnt.

Sources in the defence and security establishment said Monday that the two aircraft arrived on 20 May and will be undergoing a series of drills starting this week.

The two aircraft have been borrowed by Boeing from the US Navy and have undergone mechanical and software changes for the demonstration. 

The visit by the Super Hornets comes close on the heels of a similar trip by its competitor Rafale M of Dassault Aviation in January to impress the Navy, which is looking at about 26 multi-role deck-based fighters for its aircraft carrier.

While the Navy currently operates the MiG-29K from the INS Vikramaditya, it is looking at getting a new set of fighters as India’s first indigenous aircraft carrier gets set to be commissioned in August this year.  

Besides the ski-jump capability, Boeing executives will also be briefing Indian Navy officers about the aircraft’s capabilities, specially vis-à-vis Rafale.  

The aircraft will perform ski-jump take-off with and without a payload. The payload will include two dummy Harpoon missiles.  

23/05/22 Snehesh Alex Philip/Print

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Bhagwant Mann Bats For Direct US Flights From Punjab

Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann on Monday directed the state civil aviation department to immediately tie up with the Centre for direct flights to countries like the US and Canada from the international airport in Chandigarh.

At present, only two international flights are operational from the airport to Dubai and Sharjah.  

Chairing a meeting to review the functioning of the civil aviation department, Mann said a large number of people from the state are settled in countries like the US, Canada, UK, New Zealand and Australia.

This initiative will facilitate the Punjabi diaspora settled abroad to visit their native places in the state in a seamless manner, he said.  

To give an impetus to the agro and food processing industry in the state, Mann also asked the department to immediately start cargo flights from the international airport, according to an official release.  

The chief minister said this step will go a long way in giving much-needed boost to the export of food products across the globe and especially in supplementing income of state farmers manifold through this farmer-friendly initiative.  

Mann also asked the department to immediately convene a meeting with the Haryana civil aviation department for evolving a broad consensus on naming the international airport here as Shaheed-e-Azam Sardar Bhagat Singh International Airport.  

23/05/22 Outlook

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Indian golf star Aditi Ashok calls out French airlines over her missing kit bag

New Delhi: Indian golf star Aditi Ashok on Monday has called out France airlines for immediate action over her missing kit bag and said she needs it for an upcoming tournament. Raising the issue that her golf kit bag didn`t make it to the flight from the Charles de Gaulle Airport in Paris, the Indian golf sensation took to Twitter and requested the airlines to take action immediately and said she needs the kit bag immediately for a forthcoming tournament.

"Need your immediate response @airfrance my golf bag didn`t make it on the flight from CDG. I have already shared the bag tag details on DM. I need it immediately as I have a tournament. Respond immediately and make sure my bag arrives by tomorrow. #MissingGolfBag," Aditi Ashok tweeted.

Deaflympics star last played in the Founders Cup tournament at the Upper Montclair Country Club course, which was held from May 12-15. 

23/05/22 ANI/WION

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