Showing posts with label Foreign Sep 2014. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Foreign Sep 2014. Show all posts

Monday, September 29, 2014

PM Modi's US visit: Boeing keen on greater engagement with India

New York: Defence major Boeing today proposed greater business engagement with India, as Prime Minister Narendra Modi promised the US companies to provide friendlier business environment in the country.
In a one-on-one meeting with Modi, Boeing CEO James McNerney said that the company wants to accelerate its engagement with India.
The meeting followed a power-packed breakfast meet Modi had with CEOs of other 11 large American corporations including PepsiCo, Citigroup, Google, Cargill and Carlyle Group.
With nearly USD 87-billion annual turnover globally, Boeing is a major player in Indian defence and aerospace sectors. Its engagement with India is nearly 70 years-long and Boeing jets are one of the mainstays of the country's domestic and intercontinental commercial fleets.
In June 2011, India signed an agreement with the US government to acquire 10 Boeing C-17 Globemaster III airlifters. The C-17 is the largest defence contract signed by the Indian government with the United States.
29/09/14 Economic Times

Oman Air fighting hard to stretch pacts to add more destinations

Muscat: Oman Air is working hard to expand the scope of bilateral agreements in place with the Indian subcontinent to add new destinations.

"There are new policies now. But we are increasing the number of aircraft and adding more destinations like Goa, Dhaka in Indian subcontinent and Manila and Jakarta in South East Asia. In addition to this, we are trying to add more destinations by stretching the bilateral agreements with authorities concerned in the Indian subcontinent," Oman Air CEO Paul Gregorowitsch, told Times of Oman on the sidelines of the opening of the upgraded Oman Air check in facilities for first/business class passengers on Tuesday.
The new check in facilities were opened by Dr. Mohammed Bin Nasser Al Zaabi, Chief Executive Officer of the Public Authority of Civil Aviation.

"An increase is witnessed in the number of business class passengers and as part of providing extra convenience, the new check in facilities were set up. We want to provide seamless travel for high profile passengers," Oman Air CEO added.

According to Sheikh Ayman Al Hosni, Director General of Muscat International Airport, Oman Air is studying all options and alternatives to facilitate travel procedures for all passengers travelling via Muscat Airport and Salalah Airport through the provision of a variety of top level services to the first and business class passengers, as well as economy and transit passengers.
30/09/14 Rejimon K/Times of Oman

Sunday, September 28, 2014

AirAsia announces resumption of flight services to Hyderabad from Kuala Lumpur

Mumbai: No-frills carrier AirAsia today announced resumption of its flight services to Hyderabad from Kuala Lumpur and also offered a promotional all-inclusive fare of Rs 2,099 for a one-way journey.

The airline had discontinued the route in 2011. "The recommencement of Hyderabad-Kuala Lumpur route will enable many guests to experience our 'fly-thru' service through Kuala Lumpur. The resumed service will also connect to other exciting domestic destinations such as Penang, Langkawi, Kota Kinabalu, Kuching and many more," AirAsia head of commercial Spencer Lee said in a release.

"The latest flight service which is set to stimulate and encourage more travel and enhance the international market from our Kuala Lumpur hub will strengthen AirAsia position in India", he said.
29/09/14 PTI/Economic Times

PM Modi's US visit: Boeing keen on greater engagement with India

Defence major Boeing today proposed greater business engagement with India, as Prime Minister Narendra Modi promised the US companies to provide friendlier business environment in the country.

In a one-on-one meeting with Modi, Boeing CEO James McNerney said that the company wants to accelerate its engagement with India.

The meeting followed a power-packed breakfast meet Modi had with CEOs of other 11 large American corporations including PepsiCo, Citigroup, Google, Cargill and Carlyle Group.

With nearly USD 87-billion annual turnover globally, Boeing is a major player in Indian defence and aerospace sectors. Its engagement with India is nearly 70 years-long and Boeing jets are one of the mainstays of the country's domestic and intercontinental commercial fleets.

In June 2011, India signed an agreement with the US government to acquire 10 Boeing C-17 Globemaster III airlifters.
29/09/14 PTI/Economic Times

Tiruchi airport witness to frequent arrival of bodies

Tiruchi: Embalmed in a wooden coffin, a body of a migrant labourer arrived at the international airport here a couple of days ago. Hailing from Darapuram in Tirupur district, the labourer in his mid-thirties worked in Saudi Arabia where he was alleged to have committed suicide.

The body was handed over to the receiver after thoroughly verifying documents to ascertain the genuineness and sent by an ambulance to the native place of the deceased.

Days earlier, bodies two other labourers arrived at the airport - this time too from Saudi Arabia. One of them was a 27-year-old migrant worker from Sivaganga district who went to the Arab state for job.

The three are the latest in the long list of similar phenomenon at the international airport here which has been witness to frequent arrivals of bodies of migrant workers who had gone in search of greener pastures in various overseas destinations.

On an average, 20 to 30 bodies arrive at the Tiruchi airport every month with most of them coming from the oil-rich Gulf countries, say airport sources. There have been cases of bodies of migrant labourers having arrived from South East Asian countries.
29/09/14 R Rajaram/The Hindu

Friday, September 26, 2014

EU to review air safety in India in November

Mumbai: European Union will review air safety in India in the light of US Federal Aviation Administration down grading India in February. It has sought details of action taken by the Directorate General of Civil Aviation since February before the review in November.

FAA downgraded India’s safety ranking from category-II from -I after an audit revealed deficiencies in regulatory oversight. FAA’s decision can have ramifications and now regulators in Europe are stepping up the heat. Any adverse findings could result into Europe imposing operational restrictions or bans on Indian carriers.

European Commission spokesperson Dale Kidd said EU Air Safety Committee in its March meeting decided to invite the Indian authorities for a meeting in Brussels to discuss aviation safety in India, and to brief about actions being undertaken by them. "The European Commission and the EU Air Safety Committee will then – following the upcoming meeting in November – assess the situation and decide on the best course of action under the various options in the EU Air Safety List regulation,'' he added. At present Air India flies to London, Birmingham, Paris, Frankfurt, Milan and Rome. Jet Airways flies to London, Brussels and Paris.
27/09/14 Business Standard

Raju: For flights abroad, fly more to small towns

New Delhi: Newer airlines which have been urging the government for scrapping the antiquated provision which bars them from flying overseas till they have completed five years of operations and have 20 aircraft (5/20) would soon see their wish being granted.
However, this would come at a price — they may be asked to fulfil some regional connectivity criteria before they can spread their wings. This means that if airlines like AirAsia or Tata SIA’s Vistara fly a certain quota of flights, which the Centre earmarks to smaller towns and cities, they can fly abroad.
Speaking at the Express Group’s Idea Exchange programme, civil aviation minister P Ashok Gajapathi Raju said that the 5/20 rule is antiquated and without rationale, and needed to be scrapped.
However, it needs to be replaced with something and regional connectivity is the government’s priority. Interestingly, Raju’s ministry has recently come out with draft guidelines mandating airlines to deploy on regional/remote routes the same capacity which they deploy on the 30 trunk routes. This has been opposed by all the carriers as it would increase their cost at a time when most of them are posting losses. Vistara has specifically said that newer airlines should be exempt from this rule. Raju also said that the scrapping of the 5/20 rule would enable the country to utilise higher number of seats under the bilaterals.
27/09/14 Indian Express

Air India may cut flights to Australia from 7 to 5 per week

New Delhi: Air India (AI) may curtail flights on the India-Australia sector to five days a week from seven currently after posting a loss of about Rs 150 crore in the first year of operations.The airline flies the Delhi-Sydney-Melbourne route on four days and Delhi-Melbourne-Sydney on the other three days. Two officials confirmed that a five-day-a-week plan is being discussed."The losses are huge and the curtailment to five days a week is being discussed. The days on which the flights will be stopped are still being finalised," a senior Air India official said.
27/09/14 Economic Times

Technical snag delays flight's departure

Kochi: Air Arabia's Sharjah-Kochi-Sharjah (rpt) Sharjah-Kochi-Sharjah flight developed a technical snag following which its onward journey was delayed tonight.

The flight was scheduled to take off from Kochi at 7.30pm. Airport officials said the snag has been rectified and the flight will take off later tonight.
27/09/14 PTI/Business Standard

Air India signs code-sharing agreement with Air Canada

Mumbai: Air India has signed a code-sharing agreement with Air Canada, a Star Alliance member. This is Air India’s first such pact with a member of the 27-member global airline alliance, after it joined the group in June this year. The code-sharing pact covers Air India’s domestic flights and Air Canada flights to Canada from London, Paris, Hong Kong and Shanghai.

Code-sharing agreements allow one airline to sell seats on another’s network and increase revenue.

Air India expects a four to five per cent growth in its revenue thanks to the wider commercial partnerships and integration of frequent-flyer programme with other Star Alliance carriers. This will boost business-class occupancy on Air India flights, which is currently at 45-50 per cent.

Frequent-flyer programme integration allows passengers to redeem miles on any of the Star Alliance airlines.
26/09/14 Aneesh Phadnis/Bunsiness Standard

Thursday, September 25, 2014

Finmeccanica figures in "Make-in-India" list

New Delhi: VVIP chopper scam-tainted Italian firm Finmeccannica, which was recently barred from doing business in future with the Defence Ministry, has been listed as one of the investors in the defence sector in 'Make in India' project.

The 'Make in India' website, created for the campaign, listed Finmeccannica along with other companies such as the American Lockheed Martin, Boeing and the BAE Systems under the "foreign investor" list.

The Defence Ministry had put on hold all dealings with the Italian firm and then later barred the company from doing any future business with it on basis of the opinion of the Attorney General.

The website also has factual errors in the list as it mentions 'Raffel (France)' as one of the investors whereas there is no such military firm doing business with India.
25/09/14 PTI/Business Standard

Aviation expert Cramer Ball takes over as Jet Airways CEO

New Delhi: Cramer Ball, an aviation expert who has worked in several global airlines and is credited with turning around Air Seychelles, today formally took over as the CEO of Jet Airways after government granted him security clearance.

46-year old Ball, an Australian national, was appointed in May by the Board of Jet Airways which had also approved a three-year restructuring programme then.

In a letter to the employees, Jet Chairman Naresh Goyal said, "Pursuant to the approval of the Board of Jet Airways (India) Limited on 27 May, 2014, regarding the appointment of Cramer Ball as its new Chief Executive Officer, we now confirm that Ball has received all regulatory approvals including his security clearance."

"He will now officially take charge as the Chief Executive Officer of Jet Airways (India) Limited," Goyal said.

Ball's appointment in May had come four months after Gary Kenneth Toomey stepped down from the position after a stint of just seven months. Toomey was appointed in mid-June 2013 when Nikos Kardassis resigned as CEO after serving his second term with the carrier as CEO from October 2009 to May 2013. He had previously served the airline between 1993 and 1999.
25/09/14 PTI/First Post

International Aviation Conclave from December 11

Mangalore: The International Aviation conclave, originally planned for October 9, will now be held from December 11 in New Delhi. The event was postponed on request of the India Trade Promotion Organization due to clashing of dates with another event organized by the Ministry of Science and Technology.

The International Aviation Conclave Organizing Council met on Wednesday September 24 to discuss the situation with key potential stakeholders and accepted the proposal of the India Trade Promotion Organization to postpone the event. The new dates finalized and confirmed for this event with the India Trade Promotion Organization are December 11 to 13.

The IAC- 2014 Series, an annual event, comprising of a three day Conference, Exhibition and Awards Night is supported by the Ministry of Civil Aviation, Directorate General of Civil Aviation, US-India Importers Council, ADS-UK, and Other National and International Organizations. The theme for the inaugural year is 'Empowering Aviation - Encouraging Stability towards Sustainability'.
25/09/14 Stanley Pinto/Times of India

International Aviation Conclave from December 11

Mangalore: The International Aviation conclave, originally planned for October 9, will now be held from December 11 in New Delhi. The event was postponed on request of the India Trade Promotion Organization due to clashing of dates with another event organized by the Ministry of Science and Technology.

The International Aviation Conclave Organizing Council met on Wednesday September 24 to discuss the situation with key potential stakeholders and accepted the proposal of the India Trade Promotion Organization to postpone the event. The new dates finalized and confirmed for this event with the India Trade Promotion Organization are December 11 to 13.

The IAC- 2014 Series, an annual event, comprising of a three day Conference, Exhibition and Awards Night is supported by the Ministry of Civil Aviation, Directorate General of Civil Aviation, US-India Importers Council, ADS-UK, and Other National and International Organizations. The theme for the inaugural year is 'Empowering Aviation - Encouraging Stability towards Sustainability'.
25/09/14 Stanley Pinto/Times of India

Tuesday, September 23, 2014

Centre's No to FlyDubai from BPIA

Bhubaneswar: The proposal to permit international operations by FlyDubai on Bhubaneswar-Dubai route has been turned down by the Civil Aviation Ministry on Monday.

The decision was taken as bilateral air traffic rights between India and UAE could not materialise, sources said. The State Government has been pushing for the commencement of international operations on this route with the Centre since long.

On September 17, Chief Secretary Gokul Chandra Pati had submitted an application to Secretary in the Ministry of Civil Aviation, V Somasundaran, and requested for provisional permission to FlyDubai to start international flight operations from Bhubaneswar.  Among the international operators, which had approached the Biju Patnaik International Airport (BPIA) authorities to operate through Bhubaneswar, only FlyDubai had announced its schedule for Odisha.
23/09/14 New Indian Express

Pratt And Whitney’s Geared TurboFan Engine To Lead The Next Revolution In Aircraft Engines

The engines on the pretty aluminum wings of the metal clad birds, that you see flying over your head are one of the biggest differentiating features between various airplanes. The challenge for the engine manufacturers, for years, has been the same, to come up with the most economical, safe as well as noise- proof flight experience. We have gone through the age of turboprop engines to turbofan engines and the development has been remarkable.
With environmental factors more important than ever, the focus today has been on clean and quieter flying enhancing the comfort level, yet producing enough thrust to carry the payloads that would be economically fruitful. Pratt and Whitney along with Rolls Royce and GE has been one of the resident names when it comes to making aircraft engines. No doubt, they have been hard at work trying to come up with the above-stated solutions.
Pratt and Whitney had successfully tested the PurePower 1000G engine in July 2008. The Geared Turbofan engine since then has gone through rigorous testing and experimentation. The series is set to be introduced in full-scale operations by 2015. The Geared Turbofan engine boasts of 40% fewer airfoils than the existing families of engines, which accounts for a 10% reduction by weight as well as comparatively easier maintenance. In fact, the Geared Turbofans promise to deliver a double-digit reduction in maintenance costs, which is a big win as well as a promise of 16% fuel burn reduction, 50% reduction in NOx emission and 75% noise reduction. All of this accounts for a potential savings of about $1.5 million per aircraft per year.
Pratt and Whitney have stated that they already have more than 5,000 orders for the engine worldwide with the likes of IndiGo and GoAir placing orders for 150 and 72 Airbus A320 Neos respectively. India is set to be one of the first countries to receive the Geared Turbofan engines and in fact, will be the country with the largest order size outside the US. With stiff competition from the upcoming LEAP engines from GE, one thing is for sure, you and I are set for quieter, cleaner and perhaps a little more affordable flying, that is what we always wanted, right?
23/09/14 Arpit Verma/Gizmodo India

MoU signed between AAI - US agency

New Delhi: For the development of the aviation security equipment testing and evaluation programme, an agreement has been signed today between the Airports Authority of India (AAI) and US Trade and Development Agency (USTDA).

This will enable AAI and Bureau of Civil Aviation Security (BCAS) to create clear standards, specifications and testing procedures specific to India's own standards of aviation security.

These procedures will be also in alignment with international practices for three types of aviation security equipment.

These three equipments are designed to scan carry-on luggage, checked baggage and passengers.
23/09/14 ANI/Business Standard

Govt wants more Indian airlines to take up international routes, civil aviation minister says

Coimbatore: The government wants Indian airlines to take up more international routes and is ready to sign new bilateral agreements towards this, said Union civil aviation minister Ashok Gajapathi Raju Pusapati on Monday.

"The government would definitely not mind the increasing number of international passengers and raising freight. But this should contribute to our economy's GDP and not to another country's GDP," the minister said while reacting to a request from the industry to directly connect Coimbatore with Dubai.

The minister was in the city on an invitation from Indian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (ICCI), which submitted a memorandum to him on improving the Coimbatore airport's infrastructure and connectivity.
"It would be a great help if Coimbatore was connected directly with Dubai because then we are directly connected to any destination in Europe," said ICCI president D Nandakumar.
22/09/14 Times of India

Jet Airways to add fifth daily Dubai-Mumbai service

Dubai: India’s Jet Airways is adding a fifth daily service between Dubai and Mumbai next month, airline announced last week.
The airline said the additional flight, effective from October 14, will enhance convenient onward connections.
The new flight will initially depart Dubai at 4.55am and arrives in Mumbai at 9.30am, and the return flight will depart Mumbai at 2am and arrive in Dubai at 3.40am.
22/09/14 Gulf News

Qatar Airways asked to pay Rs one lakh for deficiency in service

New Delhi: A consumer forum has directed Qatar Airways to pay Rs one lakh to a man for loss of his baggage during his journey from London to Doha in 2007, saying it was a case of "deficiency in service" leading to "harassment".
The New Delhi District Consumer Disputes Redressal Forum, presided by C K Chaturvedi, asked the airline to pay the money to Pradeep Saluja, whose baggage was lost during the journey in September 2007.
"It is an admitted case of rendering imperfect services, by not being able to prevent the baggage from being stolen or lost or remaining untraced for six months," the forum said, while noting that airlines had placed its liability as per weight--USD 20 (Rs 1,217.45) per kg.
The forum said that it was a case of "deficiency in service" leading to the loss and "harassment" and not for liability according to the Carriage by Air Act.
"Considering all the aspects...we value the loss, mental agony, time in wait and harassment including litigation expenses at Rs 1 lakh," the forum's bench, also comprising its member S R Chaudhary, said.
23/09/14 PTI/Financial Express

Shooters stranded at Incheon Airport

Six Indian shooters were stranded at the Incheon Airport for over 12 hours after the Korean custom department declined to clear their weapons.
Omkar Singh, Mansher Singh, Shweta Chawdhary, Malaika Goel, Om Prakash and Kynan Chenai were to board the early morning Thai Airways flight but just when they were about to board the flight they were stopped. India's Chefde-Mission Adille Sumariwala confirmed that there was a problem but said it was resolved and the shooters were on their way to India.
23/09/14  Abhijeet Kulkarni/Mumbai Mirror 

Monday, September 22, 2014

Air India to lease an A320 from Gambia's Aeolus Air for Hajj

Aeolus Air  will lease one of its two A320-200s, C5-AAO (cn 368), to Air India (AI, Mumbai Int'l) for the duration of the Hajj season AeroTransport has reported. At present, Air India has also wet-leased in a pair of B767-200(ER)s from Dynamic Airways (2D, Greensboro) and Jet Asia Airways  respectively to cover its Hajj charter flight needs.
22/09/14 ch-aviation

139 passengers stranded after bird hits aircraft

Trichy: At least 139 passengers were stranded at the Trichy Airport after a Sri Lankan Airlines aircraft from Colombo was allegedly hit by a bird while landing in the city on Sunday.

The Airbus A320 flight with 80 passengers from Colombo was hit by a bird while landing at the Trichy Airport at 2pm on Sunday. The flight was scheduled to leave with 139 passengers at 3.30pm but was grounded following the bird-hit.

The flaps located above the propellers of the aircraft are believed to have been damaged by bird-hit.

An airline official said: "All the passengers have been offered accommodation in a nearby hotel and flight maintenance is underway."
22/09/14 Times of India

Sunday, September 21, 2014

SriLankan Airlines employee's sexual harassment complaint: HC seeks police reply

New Delhi: The Delhi High Court has sought the city police's response on allegations of an Indian employee of SriLankan Airlines that a sexual harassment case lodged by her against her senior Lankan colleague is not being probed fairly.
Justice Pratibha Rani has issued notice to Delhi Police and sought a status report of the investigation carried out on the FIR lodged against the woman's senior colleague under section 509 (uttering any word insulting modesty of a woman) of the IPC.
The court has now listed the matter for further hearing on November 27.
It passed the order on the woman's petition for transfer of her case from Barakhamba Police Station, which is probing the matter, to the Crime Against Women cell in Nanakpura here.
The woman, a sales executive in the airline, in her petition filed through advocate Ajay Verma alleged that her senior colleague had in 2009 sexually harassed her, by way of inappropriate language and gestures, which she had reported to the management of the airlines.
Thereafter, the senior official had transferred her to the airline's Kochi office and while she was there, he used to continuously harass her by calling on her phone and abusing her, the petition alleged.
21/09/14 PTI/Financial Express

Saturday, September 20, 2014

Goof by Air India leaves Nirmala without dinner dress

New Delhi: She reached Australia in time to attend the G20 summit's dinner for finance ministers and central bank governors slated for Friday. But Air India 'mistakenly' took off the checked-in luggage of Sydney-bound Nirmala Sitharaman, Union minister of state for commerce, in Melbourne. With her saris and formal clothes, among other things, in those missing bags, the eloquent Sitharaman — known for her fine sartorial taste — spent Friday evening in her hotel as she did not have a dress for the occasion!
Sitharaman boarded AI 302, Delhi-Melbourne-Sydney, on Thursday afternoon from here. She was supposed to take a connecting flight from Sydney to Cairns, where the G20 summit is taking place to represent India.
On landing in Sydney on Friday morning, the BJP leader discovered to her horror that her checked-in bags had gone missing. "Landed in Sydney to take a connecting flight to Cairns. My checked in luggage not traceable. :( :(... On board my connecting flight to Cairns. All my formal wear in the lost suitcase! Not sure I can buy Saris in Cairns! Situation precarious!... Hopefully, you (AI) will get it in time for me," she said in a series of tweets.
The minister then flew on to Cairns. By then AI realized her baggage was mistakenly taken off at the Melbourne stopover. The airline then made frantic attempts to fly the bags to Cairns. But they could not send it in time for Sitharaman to attend the Friday evening reception. "Sorry to miss the evening reception at the Palm Cove, Cairns. Staying put in the room. No word yet on my lost luggage," a sad sounding tweet from her said.
But when the bags eventually did reach her, Sitharaman did get somewhat cheered up. "At last, my lost luggage arrives. Thanks every one for your wishes. Thanks #Air India. Oh yes, relief first to get the phone & iPad chargers!" she tweeted.
20/09/14 Times of India

Goa expects to cross 1,000 chartered flight arrival this year

Panaji: Goa tourism department is anticipating a 30 per cent rise in arrival of chartered flights during the upcoming tourist season, crossing 1,000 mark.

"Due to the ongoing Ukraine-Russia crisis, there are talks of some tour operators going bankrupt. But it is not going to seriously affect tourist inflow in Goa," State Tourism Director Amey Abhyankar, told PTI today.

He said they are expecting 1,200 chartered flight arrivals this year against last year's 900.

The first chartered flight of the current season is expected arrive in the first week of October.

Abhyankar said that the arrivals in Goa are largely from Russia, Germany, UK and other European countries.
20/09/14 Economic Times

Friday, September 19, 2014

Air Seychelles to operate direct flights to Mumbai

Mumbai: Air Seychelles, in which gulf carrier Etihad holds 40 per cent stake, announced here today that it will launch direct flight services to Mumbai from December, making its foray into the Indian aviation space.

The Seychelles national carrier will operate three flights a week on the Seychelles-Mumbai route from December 2, subject to regulatory clearances, the airline said in a release.

“We are thrilled to launch flights to Mumbai. As one of the largest, fastest-growing, and most exciting travel markets in the world, India represents a considerable opportunity for Air Seychelles,” Air Seychelles chief executive Manoj Papa said in the release.
19/09/14 The Hindu

More international, domestic flights to fly from Ahmedabad

Ahmedabad: Come winter and Amdavadis can fly to newer destinations directly from the city. A string of airlines have rolled out their plans to begin operations on new international and national routes. Airlines including Air India, Tata-Singapore Airlines joint venture airline — Vistara, AirAsia and Jet Airways will be introducing direct flights on routes such as London, Abu Dhabi and some tier II cities in India.

Ahmedabad will soon have direct air connectivity with London as Air India is in process of assessing the logistics for the same. This followed discussions between Gujarat civil aviation minister Saurabh Patel and Airports Authority of India (AAI) chairman S Raheja in Gandhinagar earlier this month.
19/09/14 Piyush Mishra/Times of India

Upbeat on India, will invest more: British Airways

One of India’s oldest foreign airline, British Airways which completed 90 years yesterday, is celebrating this in style. The airline has launched a special offer for Mumbaikars planning to travel to London. The company is offering an incredible discount of up to 90 percent on return tickets from Mumbai to London, starting at just Rs 40,252 for trips between 1st to 31st October. In an exclusive chat with CNBC-TV 18's Aastha Maheshwari, Christopher Fordyce, Regional Commercial Manager, British Airways, South Asia said that he is upbeat about growth in India. He also spoke about how he expects British airlines to invest and grow steadily over the next few years in India.
19/09/14 moneycontrol.com

Thursday, September 18, 2014

Jet Airways Launches Fifth Daily Service Between Dubai And Mumbai

Indian carrier Jet Airways has announced the launch of its fifth new daily service between Dubai and Mumbai.

Jet, in which Abu Dhabi’s Etihad Airways recently bought a 24 per cent stake, said that it plans to commence operations on the new service from October 14, 2014.

The airline will deploy its next – generation Boeing 737-800 aircraft on the route, offering twin class configuration of premiere and economy class, it said in a statement.

From October 14- 25, flight 9W 580 will depart Mumbai at 0200hrs (local time) and arrive Dubai at 0340 hrs. On the return leg, 9W 579 will depart Dubai at 0455 hrs and arrive in Mumbai at 0930 hrs.

However, from October 26 onwards, the Mumbai departure time will move to 0140 hrs, arriving in Dubai at 0335 hrs. On the return leg, 9W 579 will depart Dubai at 0500 hrs and arrive in Mumbai at 0930 hrs.
18/09/14 Aarti Nagraj/Gulf Business

With GMR out, Chinese firm bags Male airport deal

Beijing: A Chinese firm has bagged a deal for upgrading the international airport in Male, the capital of Maldives, after President Xi Jinping visited the island nation on Monday. The Maldives government had earlier given the $511 million contract to an Indian company, GMR Infrastructure, and cancelled it two years ago over user charges. The deal has now gone to Beijing Urban Construction Group Company Ltd.

The move has strategic significance in the Indian Ocean area, particularly in light of Chinese contractors building sea ports in Sri Lanka. Significantly, the Maldives also accepted President Xi's request to join the Chinese Maritime Silk Road programme, aimed at linking China to Europe through the seas of South Asia. Sri Lanka and Singapore have earlier expressed their desire to join the programme, which will connect China with the Indian Ocean.

President Xi, it is learnt, is expected to request Prime Minister Narendra Modi for his green signal for India's participation in the plan to transform the Indian Ocean zone into the regional shipping and aviation hub.
18/09/14 Saibal Dasgupta/Times of India

British Airways gives massive discount on Mumbai-London ticket

New Delhi: British Airways announced a flash one-day sale today, offering massive discount of up to 90 per cent on return tickets between Mumbai and London to commemorate nine decades of its India operations.

Under the offer, the lowest-priced Mumbai-London return ticket would start at Rs 40,252 for economy travel from October 1-31, this year, the airline said in a statement.

"We, at British Airways, are pleased to introduce this once-in-a-lifetime offer for our customers from Mumbai as part of our 90 years' anniversary celebration in the market," Christopher Fordyce, BA's Regional Commercial Manager (South Asia), told PTI from Mumbai.

To questions, he said this one-day offer was not "just another flash sale" but meant only to commemorate the 90th anniversary.
Asked whether several foreign airlines like Lifthansa, Qatar Airways and Emirates were offering to attract Indian customers due to excess capacity, Fordyce said such offers were a regular feature in the aviation market and not generally driven by excess capacity.
18/09/14 PTI/Business Standard

Jet expands foreign base, adds new Gulf routes

Mumbai: In its schedule for the coming winter season, Jet Airways is expanding its international services, with new flights to Dubai, Doha and Abu Dhabi. The airline feels increasing foreign operations will boost foreign exchange earnings and offset rupee’s depreciation.

New services have been planned to Dubai from Kochi and Mumbai; Doha from Mumbai, Kozhikode and Thiruvanthapuram; and Abu Dhabi from Ahmedabad, Lucknow and Goa. The airline has already announced new flights to Ho Chi Minh City in Vietnam via Bangkok from November, as well as additional flights on the Mumbai-Bangkok and Mumbai-Colombo routes. International operations account for 56 per cent of Jet’s overall revenue; the airline plans to increase this to about 60 per cent. It is scaling down domestic services, adding flights on short international routes, and exploring new flights to Yangon and Seychelles. It is also considering resuming services to Kuala Lumpur.
18/09/14 Aneesh Phadnis/Business Standard

Emirates Airline will not invest in Indian domestic passenger carriers

Emirates Airline has said that it will not invest in any of the Indian domestic passenger carriers and that it will grow its operational organically in India, report The Hindu.
Essa Sulaiman Ahmad, vice president, India and Nepal for Emirates said: “We at Emirates believe in growing our business organically. Adding that there are no plans to invest in any of the Indian passenger carriers by the Dubai-based airline.
Analyst Saj Ahmad commented: “The beating heart of Emirates' international expansion for the last 20 years or more has been based on organic expansion. As big a market as India claims to be, it is still highly immature, underdeveloped and nearly every Indian airline loses money and its little wonder that Emirates isn't at all interested in buying or investing here.”
18/09/14 Arabian Aerospace

Wednesday, September 17, 2014

GMR surprised with decision to give airport development to Chinese firm

Indian infrastructure company GMR has told media of its surprise that the development of Ibrahim Nasir International Airport (INIA) has been given to a Chinese firm.

“Sources in the GMR expressed surprise at the move by the Maldives government as it has entered in a new contract for construction work at airport without paying damages as suggested by the tribunal,” wrote the Economic Times today.

The preliminary contract agreement for the development of the airport was one of eight MoUs signed between the Chinese and Maldivian governments during the recent presidential visit by the Chinese President Xi Jinpeng.

The terms of the agreements have not yet been released to the media, though it was revealed that the new contract to develop the airport was given to Beijing Urban Construction Company Limited.

President Xi’s visit to the Maldives – part of his South Asia – tour was reported to have added to Indian concerns regarding Chinese ambitions in the region.
17/09/14 Ismail Humaam Hamid/Minivan News

Dassault chief to be here to discuss delay in MMRCA deal

New Delhi: The Chief of French firm Dassault Aviation, which has been selected for supplying 126 multirole combat aircraft to the IAF, will be here later this week to meet top Defence Ministry officials to discuss delays in finalisation of the multi-billion dollar contract.

The firm was selected two years back by India for supplying 126 Rafale medium-multirole combat aircraft to the Air Force.

The firm's CEO Eric Trippier is scheduled to meet top Defence Ministry officials to discuss issues related to finalisation of the much-delayed contract, sources said here.

India and the French firm have been discussing the deal for over two years.

The negotiations have lately slowed down over some issues, including the imposition of liquidity damages or penalties for any delays in the supply of the aircraft to be manufactured in the country.
17/09/14 PTI/Business Standard

Odisha seeks permission from Center for to allow Fly Dubai to start operations from Bhubaneswar

Bhubaneswar: The Odisha government has once again urged the Union Civil Aviation Ministry to accord permission to ‘Fly Dubai’ to start operations from from Biju Patnaik International Airport in Bhubaneswar. Odisha chief secretary Gokul Chandra Pati, in a letter to secretary of Union Ministry of Civil Aviation V Somasundaran, said “Fly Dubai has submitted an application for permission to operate international flights from Bhubaneswar. I would appreciate if provisional permission to Fly Dubai to start international flight operation can be granted, pending finalisation of bilateral air services agreement,”.
17/09/14 Odishadiary.tv

Tuesday, September 16, 2014

Jet Airways, Qatar Airways offer steep discounts on business class

Mumbai: The price war in the skies has spread to the business class. Jet Airways and Qatar Airways are offering huge discounts in a desperate bid to take on Emirates and Singapore Airlines whose recently started A380 flights are scooping passengers in big chunks. Jet Airways is offering all-inclusive one-way business class fares to London at just Rs 28,382 from Delhi and Rs 27,727 from Mumbai, which are just onefourth of usual business class fares and almost half of regular economy fares.
The offer is effective for bookings between September 16 to 18 for travel between October 16, 2014 and July 31, 2015. Under the same offer, one can fly to Singapore in business class at just Rs 18,672 from Delhi and Rs 18,282 from Mumbai, about one-third of normal fares. Jet, however, clarified that none of these fares are valid on flights that operate via its new international hub Abu Dhabi. The airline made Abu Dhabi its global hub after selling 24 per cent stake to Etihad last year.

Earlier in the day, Qatar Airways wrote to travel agents offering an up to 25 per cent discount on all its 130 direct and indirect destinations from India on economy, business and even first classes on bookings made till September 17 for travel between September 21 and June 15, 2015. Industry experts said poor demand has forced airlines to this.

"Demand is a problem. Business class seats for many airlines have been going empty or half full at best," said an industry watcher who didn't want to be named. "What's more, the oncoming festive season never means the same spurt for business class as it does for the back end of the flight." Further, the 500-plus-seater A380 jumbo jet services started by Emirates and Singapore Airlines have made a dent in the market.
16/09/14 Anirban Chowdhury/Economic Times

Vinod Rai's new book highlights deep mess in Boeing 777 sale

New Delhi: Former Comptroller and Auditor General of India (CAG) Vinod Rai has referred to two stories broken by Mail Today in April to highlight the deep mess in the aviation sector in his controversial book The Diary of the Nation's Conscience Keeper-Not Just an Accountant.

The book refers to the Mail Today stories about Air India's (AI) Boeing 777s that were purchased for a staggering Rs 1,300 crore apiece and expected to serve the national carrier for 25 years. However, they were sold at a dirt-cheap price in a distress sale to Etihad Airways just five years later.

The chapter on civil aviation opens with, "If the above statements are true, why did we make the purchases and within five years of the delivery of the aircraft, sell them at roughly Rs 427 crore each to Etihad Airways after having purchased them in 2005 for Rs 1,300 per aircraft? How did our assessment go so horribly wrong? Have we held those responsible accountable? Indeed, will we ever be able to so? When will we learn from our mistakes?" Rai told Mail Today in an exclusive interview on Monday, "An inquiry is needed into the issue. Some kind of a post-mortem is required as to why the decision got so horribly wrong."
16/09/14 S.P.S Pannu & Sanjay Singh/Mail Today/India Today

KFA Default Delays Startups' Aircraft Purchase Plan

Bangalore: Startup carriers are having tough time getting aircraft from leasing companies in view of the default in payment by grounded Kingfisher Airlines of Vijay Mallaya.

Air Pegasus, a Bangalore-based airline, has been trying to get 3 ATR 72/500 aircraft to begin operations in South India for over eight months now.

“The delay is not because of us or DGCA, it is because of KfA,” Shyson Thomas, Managing Director and CEO of Air Pegasus, told Express. The airline had planned to start services by March next year.

“Nobody is willing to lease aircraft after Kingfisher Airlines’ problems,” Thomas said. Lessor companies are now demanding many more sureties before a deal is completed.

“They have asked for a security deposit of 10 months and the personal guarantee of all directors in the company,” he said. The company had to pay $1.1 million as deposit which works up to 10 months deposit, though the earlier requirement was only 2-3 months security deposit, he said. Kingfisher Airlines, its promoter Vijay Mallya and three directors have been named ‘wilful defaulters’ by United Bank of India for non-payment of loans.
16/09/14 Sharan Poovanna/New Indian Express

Global carriers announce massive discounts in India; Tigerair offers Rs 10 base fare to Singapore

New Delhi: Initiating a fare war on global routes, Qatar Airways and Singaporean budget carrier Tigerair today announced massive limited-period discounts hoping to corner a chunk of the Indian travel market share.

While Tigerair announced a special one-way base fare of Rs 10 only to Singapore for Indian passengers to commemorate completion of decade-long operations, Qatar Airways launched a global promotional offer of up to 25 per cent savings on its tickets to over 140 destinations across the world.
Tigerair's Rs 10 one-way fare offer to Singapore would be applicable only on round trip tickets from India, under which the fare could be as low as Rs 7,499 including taxes, the airline said in a statement here.

The Qatar Airways' promotional fare tickets under its three-day 'The World is Yours' global sale would have to be bought between today and Wednesday for travel from September 25 till June 15 next year", the airline said in a statement.

The discount of up to 25 per cent is being offered for return travel in all classes for travel from India via its Doha hub, a Qatar Airways statement said, adding that there were limited seats on offer subject to availability.
15/09/14 PTI/Economic Times

Lufthansa A380 loses to Emirates at Mumbai again

Just what is going on at Mumbai airport? I ask because, yet again, Lufthansa appears to have lost out in its bid to launch A380 service to this major Indian city.

As we reported recently, Lufthansa was intending to launch A380 flights to Mumbai from the start of the winter timetable on October 26.

At the same time, Emirates would "downgrade" its existing A380 service to a more modest B777-300ER.

But in a change of tack, Mumbai appears to have reversed its decison. Emirates will now continue its daily A380 flight throughout the winter while Lufthansa will still operate its B747-400 on the route, reports the Times of India. When Business Traveller checked both airlines’ schedules we found the latter had been revised.

Why the change? Neither airline(s) nor airport will provide comment to UK media at the time of writing. But it appears the airport is favouring Emirates over Lufthansa.

In which case, this would be considered unprecedented as major international airports are not supposed to show any favouritism to foreign carriers.

And it's not the first time this has happened to Lufthansa at Mumbai. Earlier this summer, for example, Lufthansa announced it would upgrade its daily Mumbai flight from a B747-400 to a more modern B747-8.
15/09/14 Business Traveller

First batch of state Haj pilgrims flies out of Chennai

Chennai: The first batch of 450 Haj pilgrims from the state flew out of the city on Monday evening. At Chennai airport, the only departure point in the state, the Airports Authority of India has made special arrangements for the 3,000 pilgrims from the state, a majority of them from Vellore district, who will fly out in seven flights until September 27. Foreign exchange counters have been set up, shamianas erected and drinking water facilities and foreign exchange counters have been opened.

The pilgrims who left on Monday had undergone an orientation programme on dos and don'ts and told that anyone staying back in Saudi Arabia after the pilgrimage could be liable for prosecution by the authorities there.
16/09/14 Daniel George/Times of India

SilkAir adds supplementary flights from Bangalore to Singapore

Bangalore: SilkAir, the regional full-service carrier of Singapore Airlines, today said it would operate with variable frequency from Bangaore to Singapore upto five times weekly from December 14, 2014 to January 18, 2015.

Apart from flying on select weekdays, the airline will also fly on Sundays to match the anticipated travel demand, a press release from Silk Air said.

Furthermore, travelers from Bangalore will get to fly the airline’s latest aircraft – the new Boeing 737-800 from October 2014. The new aircraft features a 162-seat configuration, with 12 Business Class and 150 Economy class seats.
 16/09/14 Net Indian

Air France flights to Bangalore, Delhi, Mumbai cancelled on account of strike

New Delhi: Air France flights from Bangalore, Delhi and Mumbai to Paris were cancelled on Monday and could be affected till September 22 following a strike call given by several of the airline's pilots' unions.

The strike has been called to protest the airline decision to shift jobs and operations to low-cost carriers so that the airline is in a better position to face competition. On the first day of the strike, the airline said it expects to operate 48 per cent of its flights.
15/09/14 Business Line

Monday, September 15, 2014

Hope for safety rating lift

New Delhi: Officials of America’s Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) are expected to review the steps taken by India to improve flight safety.

The FAA had downgraded the country’s aviation safety rating to Category 2 in January after the directorate general of civil aviation (DGCA) failed to resolve the concerns flagged off by the US agency.

“We would like India to be Category 1 as soon as possible. We invited them (the FAA) to visit the DGCA for a review in September or October, when our team went to the US and made a presentation to them last month,” civil aviation minister Ashok Gajapathi Raju said while highlighting the ministry’s achievements in the past 100 days.

He said the FAA team would be visiting India and “I am sure India will return to Category 1”.

The FAA had done two safety audits and had found deficiencies on over 30 counts.

One such area is the lack of a technical manpower such as flight inspectors, a large number of whom have now been recruited.

On the regulator serving show-cause notices to 131 pilots of Jet Airways for not clearing the necessary tests, the minister said the DGCA would not compromise on safety.

“There can be no compromise on safety. The DGCA is expected to act according to the law and they are doing it,” he said.
15/09/14 Telegraph

Sunday, September 14, 2014

Now, Malaysia Airlines faces snags on two India flights

New Delhi:  Malaysia Airlines seems to be suffering from a spate of glitches on its India flights. Its Delhi-Kuala Lumpur (KL) flight scheduled to leave India on Sunday noon had to be canceled due to technical glitches. On Saturday night, the airline's KL-Hyderabad flight had to return to Malaysia after the aircraft had an auto pilot defect.

"The Sunday flight to KL was canceled at the last minute. We were all waiting at the boarding gate when first the airline said the flight was delayed to 2.30pm. Later they canceled the flight," said a passenger.

IGI Airport sources say the Boeing 737-800 which was to operate out of Delhi had a technical glitch. "Their engineers tried to resolve the problem but could not do so. Then Malaysian offered its passengers two choices that they could take another flight or be sent to hotels. Some Delhi flyers chose to return home," the official said.
A spokesperson for the airline confirmed that technical issues had led to the cancellation of the Delhi-KL flight on Sunday afternoon.
14/09/14 Saurabh Sinha/Times of India

Air India Express to start 7 new Gulf flights

Kochi: Air India Express (AIE) will introduce seven new flights to the Gulf countries from Trivandrum, Cochin, Calicut and Mangalore airports. From October 26, the airline will introduce an additional weekly flight each from Trivandrum and Cochin to Muscat, two direct flights from Calicut to Doha and three weekly flights on the Mangalore-Bahrain-Kuwait route.
14/09/14 T Ramavarman/Times of India

MHA opens window for foreign business jets

New Delhi: The ministry of home affairs (MHA) has started issuing temporary landing permits (TLPs) to air crew of foreign-registered business jets.

“The ministry of civil aviation and the directorate general of civil aviation (DGCA) had written to them (to restart doing so), as it was severely affecting the movement of foreign-registered business jets into the country,” said Rajesh Bali, secretary, Business Aircraft Operators’ Association (BAOA).

In May, the MHA had stopped issuing TLPs to air crew of non-scheduled operators (NSOPs) flying into the country, citing security concerns. NSOPs could only fly in with crew visas, which took up to five weeks to process, depending on the country of application. According to industry sources, nearly 60 per cent of the 24,000 general aviation aircraft movements registered every month had been affected due to the sudden change in regulatory norms. Most of these flights were coming from America, Canada and countries in Europe.
14/09/14 Sharmishta Mukherjee/Business Standard

One kg gold concealed behind mirror in Jet Airways flight from Dubai

Mangalore: In another major breakthrough in busting gold smuggling, the officers of customs at Mangalore International Airport on Sunday September 14 recovered gold worth over Rs 31.73 lac hidden inside a Jet Airways flight No 9W531 that arrived from Dubai.
The gold was found concealed in two packets wrapped with black insulation tapes, affixed behind the mirror of the rear toilet of the aircraft.
The gold was found during rummaging of the Jet Airways flight that arrived from Dubai at 8.45 am.
Each of the packets was found to contain tola bars/biscuits, and totally there were ten tola bars/biscuits weighing 1166.7 grams, valued at Rs 31,73,424.
14/09/14 Daijiworld

Raj Thackeray kin’s check-in baggage goes missing

Mumbai: Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) chief Raj Thackeray's daughter lost a laptop and camera as her check-in baggage went missing when she flew to New York via London on British Airways in July.

The airline last Thursday sent an email to Dr Sanjay Borude, the senior-most member of the travelling group that included Raj's children, Urvashi and Amit, acknowledging the items were missing and suggesting they "claim directly from their travel insurance policy".

An airline representative told TOI that they would revert but never did.
Sharmila Thackeray told TOI her daughter Urvashi was going on a vacation with some others on July 25. "After a stopover in London, when they arrived in New York, they realized two bags were missing, one of which belonged to Urvashi. Her laptop, camera, battery backup and chargers, including one of a mobile phone, were in that bag," she said. Sharmila said the items were in a bag that she had given her daughter to keep all that she was intending to shop for in New York. "A few days later, when she received the bag, the items were missing," she said.
14/09/14 Rebecca Samervel/Times of India

Saturday, September 13, 2014

Air India Express to reintroduce Mangalore-Kuwait service

Mangalore: Air India Express will reintroduce the flight between Mangalore and Kuwait in its winter schedule. The winter schedule of Air India Express will be effective October 26.
A press release by Air India Express said here on Saturday that it plans to reintroduce the link between Mangalore and Kuwait. Flights from Mangalore to Kuwait were discontinued in February due to the grounding of the leased planes.
It said that the thrice-weekly flights from Mangalore to Kuwait will operate in a triangular manner covering Bahrain.
The days of operation will be Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays with departure from Mangalore to Kuwait at 7.30 a.m.
The airlines said that the arrival and departure schedule is in local time.
It will arrive and depart from Bahrain at 9.20 a.m. and 10.15 a.m., respectively. The flight will arrive in Kuwait at 11.15 a.m. In the return direction, the flight from Kuwait will operate directly to Mangalore with departure from Kuwait at 12.15 p.m. and arrive at Mangalore at 7.25 p.m.
13/09/14 A J Vinayak/Business Line

Who will demolish the slums near the airport?

Mumbai: Concerned about the slums right next to the city airport, Aviation Minister Ashok Gajapathi Raju Pusapati, on Wednesday, wrote to Chief Minister Prithviraj Chavan raising a flag about the delay in shifting the slums. Now, the blame game has begun as to who is responsible. While the state government bureaucrats blame the legal tussle between the airport authority, Mumbai International Airport Pvt Ltd (MIAL), and the builder HDIL, that was supposed to rehabilitate the slum dwellers, the builder has blamed the state government for the delay.
A senior airport official alleged, “The contract for rehabilitation was given to HDIL four years ago, and as per the agreement they were to shift 90,000 families and begin the work. But, this did not happen. HDIL has lost all the court cases and have now got into arbitration.” The contract itself has been terminated and awarded to another organisation.
However, state government is blaming the legal tussle between the HDIL and MIAL-GVK for the delay. A state government bureaucrat, requesting anonymity, added, “When the government has allotted four different places (Bhandup, Kurla, Chunabhatti, Chakala) under the slum rehabilitation scheme, why has the work not begun? The matter has stretched due to the legal matters between HDIL and airport handling authority.”
13/09/14 Neha LM Tripathi/Mid Day

Haj pilgrims stranded at Jaipur airport

Jaipur: The Haj pilgrims from western Rajasthan were stranded for more than 12 hours in Jaipur after the pilot ran short of his flying hours. State Haj committee blamed Air India which has outsourced its services to Thailand-based Jet Asia airlines. The flight which was scheduled to depart at 8.30pm, departed at 8.30am on Friday. The passengers were shifted to a five star hotel, near Airport and were provided refreshments by the national carrier.

The rules say that every crew has certain flying hours (depending from country to country), starting with the take-off from the original destination. After the stipulated hours, it is considered that the crew is not capable of flying. "The crew, including the pilots, used up their flying hours, flying continuously between Jaipur and Jeddah. They reported the fact to the airport authorities and then left, to rest at a private hotel, till their next cycle of flying hours began in the morning," said an airport official.
13/09/14 Times of India

Friday, September 12, 2014

Emirates Airline keen to promote tourism in Gujarat

Ahmedabad: UAE based Emirates Airline's senior vice president Majid Al-Maula Sheikh paid a courtesy visit to chief minister Anandiben Patel here. During the meeting Sheikh showed keen interest in strengthening the bilateral relationship for mutual benefits in the fields of tourism, commerce, commodities and others.

The meeting was also attended by Gujarat's tourism and civil aviation minister Saurabhbhai Patel. In the meeting, Sheikh briefed Patel that the Emirates Airline is having flight-connectivity with over 145 destinations of the world over. Thus, his airline would like to ink a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Gujarat tourism to attract and bring more tourists to Gujarat from the United States, Europe, Middle East, Africa and other places of the world over.

The chief minister also extended a formal invitation to Sheikh to participate in the forthcoming Vibrant Gujarat Global Investors' Summit-2015, to be held in Gandhinagar in January-2015. She also urged him to extend all possible help in flight bookings and others to the tourists arriving here from world over to attend the mega Vibrant Summit-2015.
11/09/14 Piyush Mishra/Times of India

ANA to Fly Cargo to India Amid Freighter-Fleet Expansion

ANA Holdings Inc., the only Japanese airline that operates freighters, plans to add cargo routes to India to tap South Asian demand for car parts and electronic components.

The carrier plans to add two Boeing Co. 767 freighters to its fleet of 12 aircraft by March 2017 to accommodate the expanded service, Akira Okada, the president of ANA Cargo Inc. said in a Sept. 10 interview. Rather than round-trip flights, the Tokyo-based company is considering triangular routes to better capture demand between regions along the way.

The announcement comes less than two weeks after Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi completed a visit to Japan in which he sought to expand trade ties between Asia’s second- and third-largest economies. ANA Cargo is expanding operations after ANA Holdings, Japan’s biggest passenger airline by volume and sales, spun off the freight-and-logistics business as a wholly owned unit in April.
11/09/14 Masumi Suga and Kiyotaka Matsuda/Bloomberg

Thursday, September 11, 2014

Boeing Delivers Fifth Maritime Patrol Aircraft to India

Washington: Boeing has delivered the fifth maritime patrol aircraft to India, on schedule as part of a contract for eight aircraft to support the Indian Navy's maritime patrol requirements.

The aircraft arrived at Naval Air Station Rajali, after a flight from Seattle's Boeing Field, and joined the four previously delivered P-8Is, according to a media release from Boeing.

"The P-8I programme is progressing on schedule, and the aircraft are providing the capabilities to meet our maritime reconnaissance and anti-submarine warfare requirements," said Vice Admiral RK Pattanaik, India Deputy Chief of Naval Staff.

He added that the partnership between Boeing and India has been very professional to date.

"This is another important milestone for the programme, and we look forward to continuing our great relationship with India," said Dennis Swanson, BDS vice president in India.

"We'll deliver one more P-8I before the end of the year, followed by two in 2015."

Boeing is building India's aircraft through a contract awarded in 2009. Based on the company's Next-Generation 737 commercial airplane, the P-8I is the Indian Navy variant of the P-8A Poseidon that Boeing builds for the US Navy.
11/09/14 IANS/New Indian Express

Etihad may absorb some senior pilots from JetLite

Mumbai: Abu Dhabi-based Etihad Airways may explore the possibility of absorbing some senior pilots from JetLite — the no-frills airline operated by its Indian partner Jet Airways — that will soon cease to exist. The move is aimed at addressing the concerns of JetLite pilots who were given the option to join Jet Airways, but at the cost of foregoing their seniority.
On September 9, a team of about 40 JetLite pilots met Jet Airways' chief executive designate Cramer Ball, chief operating officer Hameed Ali, senior vice-president for flight operations Nikhil Vaid, vice-president of human resources Samar Srivastava, and a senior Etihad Airways official at New Delhi airport’s T3 to discuss and resolve issues pertaining to the integration of JetLite’s pilots into Jet Airways’ fold. FE couldn’t immediately ascertain the name of the Etihad Airways official present at the deliberations.
According to three people familiar with the development, the Etihad Airways official suggested at the meeting that the international carrier could absorb some senior JetLite pilots since it was in the process of expanding its fleet and would require 200-250 additional pilots by next year. None of them wanted to be identified.
11/09/14 Rhik Kundu/Roudra Bhattacharya/Financial Express

Air India Express increases flights to three south Indian cities

Muscat:  As part of its new winter schedule, Air India Express will increase the frequency of flights to Kochi, Thiruvananthapuram and Mangalore to four times a week from October 26.

A press release stated that with this new schedule, the total number of flights operated by the airline from Muscat will go up to 19 a week from the current 16. Apart from this, Air India Express will continue to operate two weekly flights ex-Salalah connecting Kochi, Thiruvananthapuram and Kozhikode.

“The decision to increase the frequency is due to demand on the above routes,” Amresh Choudhary, country manager - Oman, Air India Express, was quoted in the release.

It stated that flights on the Mangalore-Muscat route will now operate on Tuesdays, Thursdays, Saturdays and Sundays. Flight IX817 will depart from Mangalore at 10.05am and arrive in Muscat at 2.40pm via Abu Dhabi. The return flight IX818 will leave Muscat at 3.30pm and fly non-stop arriving in Mangalore at 8.10pm.
11/09/14 Muscat Daily

Wednesday, September 10, 2014

Flight delayed after glass door breaks at Chennai airport

Chennai: A Chennai-Doha Qatar Airways flight was delayed by around 10 minutes after a glass door of a boarding gate shattered at the new international terminal of Chennai airport on Wednesday. Nobody was injured in the accident.

According to an official, the incident happened when a Central Industrial Security Force staffer tired to open the glass door of the boarding gate 17 for boarding passengers of the airline early in the in the morning. "House keeping staff had to remove the glass pieces and panels and clean up the place before passengers could board. The accident happened when passengers were about to walk through the gate," said an official.

Meanwhile, sources said due to infrastructure limitation, international airlines were struggling to maintain turnaround time of aircraft. "It is very difficult to ensure that an aircraft can be readied for a return journey after it lands from a destination in Chennai," said an airline official.
11/09/14 Times of India

Nagpur airport readies to scan international passengers for Ebola

Nagpur: Following the directives issued by the Bombay High Court on Wednesday, Nagpur's Dr Babasaheb Ambedkar International Airport is readying itself for scanning international passengers for Ebola virus.

The Bombay HC directed the state government to provide within 48 hours health screening facilities for Ebola at Pune and Nagpur airports on the same lines as Mumbai airport. A division bench of Justice Abhay Oka and Justice Girish Kulkarni heard a public interest litigation by activist Ketan Tirodkar which said India is not equipped to deal with the spread of the deadly virus.

Nagpur has three international flights in a week coming from Sharjah. Tirodkar also submitted an affidavit by the senior regional director of ministry of health and family welfare in which it was mentioned that the state health department has been directed to put in place health screening facilities for passengers arriving at Pune and Nagpur.
11/09/14 Aparna Nair/Times of India

Indian man admits to sexually touching sleeping woman on plane

New York:  62-year-old Indian man has pleaded guilty to sexually touching a woman seated next to him aboard a flight from Houston to Newark and faces two years in prison.

The accused, Devender Singh, a resident of Louisiana, admitted before US District Judge Stanley Chesler in Newark federal court to information charging him with abusive sexual contact, US Attorney Paul Fishman said.

The charge carries a maximum potential penalty of two years in prison and a USD 250,000 fine.

He is scheduled to be sentenced in October.

According to the documents filed in the case, Singh was seated next to a woman who occupied a window seat on a United Airlines flight from Houston to Newark.

While the plane was in the air, the woman fell asleep and awoke to find him kissing her face with his hand inside her shirt.
11/09/14 PTI/Times of India

Tuesday, September 09, 2014

Government may relax eligibility rule 5/20 for domestic airlines to fly on international routes

New Delhi: Hinting at abolishing or relaxing the eligibility rule for airlines to fly on international routes, civil aviation minister Ashok Gajapathi Raju Pusapati on Tuesday said he doesn't "see any reason" for these norms to be there.

At present, a domestic airline needs to be in operation for minimum five years and have a fleet of at least 20 aircraft to be eligible to fly on international routes.
"He (Ghosh) said that the vennorms should not be abolished because IndiGo had to fly domestic for five years to be allowed to fly international. If the rules are relaxed now, it would seem that they are being relaxed for the two new carriers — AirAsia India and Vistara," the person added.
10/09/14 Mihir Mishra/Economic Times

Global airlines, hotels get an Indian makeover

New Delhi: Donning an ‘Indian cap’, international aviation and hospitality players are going all out to lure Indian consumers.

German carrier Lufthansa wants you to believe that, “it’s more Indian than you think”, while international hotel companies such as Hilton, Starwood and Accor have tweaked the services their hotels offer to be in tune with the Indian consumer’s needs.

Though Lufthansa Airlines had introduced initiatives meant for the Indian consumers several years back, it felt that consumers were still not aware about them.

But, its latest India-specific ad campaign has attracted attention. The campaign talks about features such as Indian meals and desi entertainment on-board.

Most airlines such as Singapore Airlines too, apart from the usual practice of having Indian cabin crew on the India-Singapore route and announcements in Hindi and the local language of the State, have menus catered to the local traveller.
10/09/14 Meenakshi Verma Ambwani/Navadha Pandey/Business Line

FAA team likely to visit India soon to review measures by DGCA

New Delhi: Nine months after downgrading DGCA in the aviation safety rankings, a Federal Aviation Administration team is likely to visit India soon to review the corrective measures taken by the Indian aviation regulator to meet the deficiencies listed by its US counterpart.

"We would like India to be Category-I as soon as possible. We invited them (FAA) to visit DGCA for a review in September or October, when our team went to the US and made a presentation to them last month," Civil Aviation Minister Ashok Gajapathi Raju told reporters here.
FAA had conducted two safety audits last year in India and downgraded India's aviation safety ranking to Category-II from the top category as it found deficiencies in over 30 counts. These included lack of technical manpower like flight inspectors, a large number of whom have now been recruited.

To a question on DGCA serving showcause notices to 131 pilots of Jet Airways for not clearing necessary checks, he said "there can be no compromise on safety... DGCA is expected to act according to the law and they are doing it... It will definitely act as per the law."

Asked about aviation bodies Air India, AAI and AERA "remaining headless", Raju said "we don't intend to keep any organisation headless. We are taking care that the work does not suffer. But there is a procedure through which such vacancies are filled up and that is being followed."
09/09/14 PTI/Economic Times

British Airways offers up to 50% off on select flights from India

Mumbai: British Airways today joined its peers in offering limited period discounted tickets to air travellers, rolling out up to 50 per cent lower fares on its flight from India to select global destinations including London, New York and San Francisco.

The airline has already commenced the bookings under the offer from yesterday, which is applicable for the business, premium economy and economy class, British Airways said in a release.
British Airways has provided a nearly four-month window, from September 8 to December 31, for the travel period while the tickets under the discounted scheme can only be booked up to September 30, it said.

The offers are valid for flights from India to select destinations in the UK, USA, Canada, Europe, Latin America and Caribbean.
09/09/14 PTI/Economic Times

Ahmedabad, Surat to get direct flights to London, Dubai

In a move sure to benefit the vast Indian diaspora, Ahmedabad will soon have direct air connectivity with London and Surat with Dubai, official sources said Wednesday.
This followed discussions between Gujarat Civil Aviation Minister Saurabh Patel and Airport Authority of India chairman S. Raheja in Gandhinagar Wednesday.

According to sources in the civil aviation department, a large number of Gujaratis living in Britain and the United Arab Emirates will benefit from the direct flights.

Ahmedabad is now linked directly with most parts of the Gulf region including Sharjah, Abu Dhabi and Doha and indirectly, via Mumbai, with New York, Frankfurt and London.

Wednesday’s meeting also discussed steps to give international status to the Surat airport.

The minister also pressed the need to push the airport development plans of Dholera, a special investment region.
10/09/14 Odisha Sun Times

Qatar Airways to Pay Rs. 70,000 to Indian Passenger For Deficiency in Service

New Delhi: A consumer forum has directed Qatar Airways to pay Rs. 70,000 to a woman who lost her goods and money while travelling to South Africa, while holding the airlines as "deficient" in service.

New Delhi District Consumer Disputes Redressal Forum, presided by C K Chaturvedi, asked the airlines company to pay the money to one Kusum Sehgal.

"She has suffered loss of money and inconvenience for want of information to South Africa Airways, for onward journey and loss of hotel booking and delay in goods delivery etc. "All these facts prove imperfection in the service by Opposite Party (Qatar Airways) which has not been rebutted. We hold it deficient in services and award a compensation of Rs. 50,000 for the deficiency and loss suffered to complainant and allow Rs. 20,000 for litigation expenses," the forum's bench, also comprising its members S R Chaudhary and Ritu Garodia, said.

Ms Sehgal had told the forum that with the purpose to attend an exhibition in South Africa, she had booked ticket for November 15, 2010 from the company.
The flight, however, reached late at Doha and she missed the connecting flight for Johannesburg. She was later allotted an alternative flight and she managed to reach the destination, but South Africa Airways did not allow her journey to Botswana from Johannesburg for want of information from Qatar Airways and she had to buy a new ticket.
10/09/14 PTI/NDTV

Mystery plane spotted by Etihad on flight to Jakarta

Abu Dhabi: A mystery plane was spotted by the crew of an Etihad flight on September 7, resulting in its traffic collision avoidance system (TCAS) alarm going off loudly in the cockpit.
The alarm on EY474 enroute from Abu Dhabi to Jakarta went buzzing at 6.45am (IST) indicating that another aircraft had come dangerously close to the Etihad flight. TCAS goes off when aircrafts breach the vertical safety distance of 1,000 feet between each other, Indian media reported.
Other commercial airlines flying over the Arabian Sea about 450 to 480 kms from Mumbai’s coastline which is under aerial surveillance by global superpowers, also reportedly had their alarms going off.
When contacted, an Etihad spokesperson told XPRESS that at no point did an alarm in the cockpit go off, and “at no stage was the safety of the passengers or crew compromised.”
10/09/14 Anjana Sankar/Gulf News

Empire Aviation Group adds state-of-the-art Gulfstream G650 business jet to its managed fleet

Empire Aviation Group (EAG), the Dubai-based private aviation specialist, has added the world’s most advanced business jet – the Gulfstream G650 – to its managed fleet. The G650 is a fast, long range business jet and will be based at Dubai International, from where EAG will manage and operate the aircraft on behalf of the owner, for whom the company managed the entire aircraft acquisition process. EAG has a second G650 on order and due for delivery by mid-2016.
The Gulfstream G650is a large cabin, Rolls-Royce powered business jet with a long-range cruisespeed of Mach 0.85 and a range of 7,000 nautical miles/12,964 kilometers (nonstop) with eight passengers and four crew – performance enabled by an innovative wing design. The G650 can be configured for up to 18 passengers and offers the comforts of a wide cabin with large panoramic windows and low cabin pressure, and a bundle of inflight technology including broadband internet to keep passengers connected, informed and entertained, whilst putting them in control of the environment through a cabin management system. Advanced cockpit technology helps pilots improve aircraft performance.
Empire Aviation Group launched its India operations in Bangalore, in 2012 (the first overseas branch) and already has aircraft under management there. EAG’s managed fleet of business jets – now spanning the Middle East, Africa and India – continues to grow, with more than 20 business jets from all the major manufacturers under management at any one time.
10/09/14 AMEinfo

Airports Authority of India approves two direct international flights

Ahmedabad: The Airports Authority of India (AAI) has approved two direct international flights from Gujarat - Ahmedabad to London and Surat to Dubai.

The announcement came after state Aviation Minister Saurabh Patel held a detailed meeting with AAI chairman S Raheja, who was here today, along with other top officials of the Union Civil Aviation Ministry, according to an official Gujarat government press release issued here today.
Besides approving two direct international flights from Ahmedabad and Surat, the AAI chairman also gave his nod to handover airstrips at Deesa in North Gujarat and Keshod in Saurashtra region to the Gujarat government, the release added.
10/09/14 PTI/Economic Times

Dear ‘drunk’ Indians on foreign airlines: No you cannot pee on your seat or fly a plane

Recently, an Indian passenger on an Air India flight from Melbourne to New Delhi created such a ruckus in the plane after getting drunk that he had to be tied to his seat.  The passenger allegedly got into a tiff with a few crew members and fellow passengers and then tried to hit them. He allegedly also tore the clothes of two attendants.

Before you dismiss this as a one off incident, think again! Crew members and airline staff have a different story to tell. A Times of India report says that Indian airlines have been long demanding for plastic handcuffs on board and enforce per-passenger drink limit. However, without strict rules in place, the crew members are only forced to do some jugaad.

What's worse, foreign airlines consider Indian flyers worst of all to get drunk on air. The ToI report lists some of the bizarre instances:

"A middle-aged sardaarji was so sloshed, he peed right there on the aisle! The flight was stinking and everyone was talking about how pathetic desi flyers are", a flyer told Times of India when asked about the behaviour of Indian passengers on foreign airlines.

That's not all. According to another passenger, two mid-aged men were so drunk that they decided to fly the aircraft!
10/09/14 Reuters/First Post

Monday, September 08, 2014

AI diverts flight to pick up stranded passengers in Toronto

New Delhi: Air India today diverted its New York-Delhi flight to Toronto to bring home over 250 passengers of Chicago-Delhi flight who were stranded in the Canadian city after a suspected oil leakage in its engine led the Boeing 777 to make an emergency landing there.    The Boeing 777-300 ER (Extended Range), operating flight AI-102 from New York's JFK Airport to Delhi, was flown to Toronto's Pearson Airport to pick up the passengers, airline sources said here.    They said the flight would land here around 2100 hours today, instead of its scheduled time of 1430 hours.    Engineers of Air India and Boeing inspected the aircraft, also a Boeing 777-300 ER that was operating the Chicago-Delhi flight AI-126 yesterday, they said, adding that repairs were being undertaken in the aircraft.  
08/09/14 PTI/enewspapaper of India

MoCA to seek external audit of bilateral seat entitlements

Mumbai: The Ministry of Civil Aviation (MoCA) will seek an external audit of bilateral seat entitlements after it found that some Indian carriers were not fully utilising the seats allocated to them, as per an ET report by Mihir Mishra. The audit will essentially look at the actual utilisation of bilaterals by Indian carriers vis-a-vis their international peers, a senior civil aviation ministry official said.

"The audit of these bilateral entitlements will be done in two phases, first will be done internally, when officials in the Ministry will compile data on bilateral allocation till today and their utilisation. In the second phase, we will hire experts from outside to audit the bilateral entitlements and will seek their suggestions and recommendations on the issue," the official said, requesting anonymity.

Currently, Indian carriers can retain seats for three years. They can also seek an extension from the Ministry over this period. Some experts said while the audit is likely to show unutilised seats in allocations made for flights to countries in West Asia and South East Asia, it will not show disparity in utilisation of allocations to the UK and the US, since India has signed open-sky treaties with these countries, which allow their carriers to operate unlimited number of flights to India and vice versa.
08/09/14 TravelBizMonitor

Drunk British Passenger Dances Naked at Delhi Airport, Creates Ruckus

A 45-year-old drunk British man broke a fire alarm, ran onto the runway area, stripped himself naked and danced in front of other travellers at the Delhi airport on Saturday.

The transit passenger arrived at Terminal 3 of the Indira Gandhi International Airport from London and was supposed to board a flight to Tokyo. Since he had a little time between the two flights, he went to one of the terminal's restaurants and had alcohol, according to the Hindustan Times.

The drunken man grabbed everybody's attention when he started stripping. He went naked and started dancing in front of the public. The travellers present at that moment were stunned and shocked to witness such crazy behaviour, reports Mail Online.

The police said that Daniel, as identified, caused ruckus at the airport after getting drunk. He then broke the fire alarm which set the alarm ringing.
08/09/14 IBTimes

Gazpromneft-Aero Starts Refueling Air India in Russia

St. Petersburg: Gazpromneft-Aero has started supplying aviation fuel for regular flights to Russia by the Indian national carrier Air India in Moscow's Domodedovo Airport.
Gazpromneft-Aero currently supplies aviation fuel for Air India flights on the Delhi-Moscow route conducted on Boeing 787 Dreamliner aircraft four times a week.
The quality of the aviation fuel supplied by Gazpromneft-Aero, and also the company's service comply with the Russian and international standards. The fuel is supplied directly from Gazprom Neft oil refineries.
Gazpromneft-Aero General Director Vladimir Yegorov stated: "The signing of a long-term cooperation agreement with another airline in the Star Alliance is for us the latest consecutive step towards strengthening Gazpromneft-Aero positions on the international market. Today the quality of the company's services complies in full with modern international standards, which allows us to offer our clients a service of equally high quality in any airport where we operate."
08/09/14 PRNewswire

Sunday, September 07, 2014

Engine fails on AI flight with minister

New Delhi: Air India's spate of engine failures on Sunday morning led to a Chicago-Delhi flight making an emergency landing in Toronto. The Boeing 777-300 with 236 passengers on board, including Union minister of state for aviation G M Siddeshwara and his family, landed safely at the Toronto Pearson Airport. The passengers will now be flown to India on Monday on another aircraft.

"The aircraft had been airborne for over two hours. It was half-an-hour away from the Atlantic Ocean when the captain saw oil pressure falling in the right engine of the twin-engine aircraft. Since there was no way he could have ventured over the ocean with engine trouble, he decided to return to Chicago. But the engine's condition kept deteriorating. So the aircraft was made to land at the nearest airport which happened to be Toronto," said a senior official of the virtually headless airline.

The aircraft jettisoned fuel which it was carrying for the almost 14-hour flight to Delhi so that it could come close to maximum landing weight for a safe landing in Toronto. It will now be examined by AI, Boeing and the engine manufacturer. Incidentally, this is the second engine failure AI has suffered in US in past two months. The Federal Aviation Administration, which had in January downgraded Indian aviation safety ranking, may also look at AI's engineering and DGCA's oversight capability.
07/09/14 Saurabh Sinha/Times of India

GMR venture in Philippines to give wings to airport

Cebu (Philippines): Cebu City in central Philippines is eagerly waiting for Indian infrastructure major GMR to upgrade and renovate its existing airport and build a brand new one to accommodate the ever increasing tourist inflow, a top Philippines official said here.

The $320 million project will ramp up the capacity from 4.5 million passengers annually to 12.5 million.

"We are happy that GMR has got the airport work, and we are eagerly waiting for the airport to be ready," Cebu Vice Governor Agnes Magpale told a group of visiting Indian journalists here.

Cebu airport, called the Mactan Cebu International Airport (MCIA), the second busiest in the Philippines, is set to become brighter, get more seating capacity, more aerobridges and other passenger amenities once the upgrade is over, GMR-Megawide Chief Executive Advisor Andrew A. Harrison promised.

Bangalore-based GMR Infrastructure owns 40 percent in the consortium, with Megawide Construction Corporation of the Philippines as a major partner.
07/09/14 daijiworld.com

Airline misplaces 200 bags

Mumbai: Passengers who alighted from a Dubai-Mumbai Emirates flight on Friday were in for a shock when they were told 200 pieces of their luggage were still in Dubai. Attempts to register online complaints on the airline website revealed that most outbound flights from Dubai left without passengers' luggage.

Karan Jamshed, a student, said, "There is a huge issue. Sixty per cent of the passengers' bags did not arrive. When I tried to complaint online their social networking page had complaints from people in Australia who have not gotten their bags."

Passengers like Jamshed, who arrived on flight EK 506, spent most of Friday and Saturday trying to contact the Emirates customer services team without much success, before taking to social networking sites to vent their frustration.

This, in fact, appears to have had some impact, as the bags started coming in to Mumbai late on Saturday afternoon."My last update came from Dubai airport. I called Dubai. They said bags are sitting in a container in Dubai awaiting forwarding information," said another passenger. "No one in Mumbai airport answers the phone. Not a single call was made to passengers to apologise for the glitch and allay their apprehension," he said.
07/08/14 Aditya Anand/Mumbai Mirror

Drunk Tourist Creates Ruckus at Delhi International Airport

New Delhi: A 45-year-old British national, who was in an inebriated state, today created a ruckus at Indira Gandhi International Airport by breaking a firm alarm box.

The incident was reported around 4 AM when the British national, identified as Gabriel, broke the fire alarm box situated near food court at Terminal 3.

Police said as the matter has been reported in transit and no one has come forward to complain against him. No FIR has been registered against him.

Gabriel arrived at Terminal 3 from London at 1.30 AM and had a connecting fight to Tokyo.
Later, he allegedly broke the fire alarm after consuming liquor at the food lounge.
07/09/14 PTI/NDTV.com

Saturday, September 06, 2014

Are doctors personally checking flyers from Ebola-affected nations: Bombay High Court to Centre

The Bombay high court on Friday asked the Centre if the doctors deployed at Mumbai Airport personally check the passengers coming from Ebola-affected countries or they only rely on self-declaration by passengers and machines.

A division bench of justices Abhay Oka and Girish Kulkarni said, "After the passengers pass through the thermal scanner do you (medical team) also do a check-up?" To this, counsel for the central government, Rui Rodriguez, said, "Screening envisages check-up."

Earlier, the centre had informed the court that all safety measures at airports were in place to ensure that there was no outbreak of the deadly virus in India. Thermal scanners have been installed at all international airports and it is mandatory for passengers to be screened through it. The scanners can even the slightest variation in body temperature.

The HC on Friday also directed the Centre to file an additional affidavit explaining in detail the steps being taken to prevent outbreak of Ebola virus in Mumbai. The court gave the direction during the hearing of a public interest litigation filed by former scribe Ketan Tirodkar.
07/09/14 Daily News & Analysis

Muscat to Calicut Air India Express delayed

Muscat: Air India Express flight from Muscat to Calicut was delayed for four hours Thursday. The flight which was scheduled to leave at 12.55pm finally left at 5.10pm.

Most of the passengers travelling on the flight were heading to Calicut to celebrate the festival of Onam.

"The airlines did not give any reasons for the delay.  Food was served. But we were left wondering if the flight would ever take off," a passenger said.
06/09/14 Times of Oman

Friday, September 05, 2014

India Authorizes Purchase of Boeing Apaches, Chinooks

India on August 29 approved industrial offset proposals to acquire 22 Boeing AH-64E Apache attack helicopters and 15 CH-47F Chinook heavy lift helicopters for the Indian Air Force, a transaction valued at $2.5 billion.

The country’s defense acquisition process mandates that contracts in excess of $50 million require 30-percent offsets. Last year, Boeing signed a memorandum of understanding with Dynamatic Technologies of Bangalore to manufacture aft pylon and cargo ramp assemblies for the Chinook in anticipation of the larger agreement.

The Indian government has declared manufacturing and export as priorities. The allowable limit for foreign direct investment in defense has been increased to 49 percent from 26 percent. The caveat that the single largest shareholder be an Indian company has been eliminated, and foreign entities can hold majority stakes. The government believes the revised policy will attract more investment.

The same week as the Boeing transaction, India and Japan directed a Joint Working Group to accelerate progress on a plan for the sale of around six ShinMaywa US-2 amphibians. The Indian government issued a request for information for nine of the amphibious search-and-rescue aircraft in 2012. The US-2’s Rolls-Royce AE2100J turboprops are the same as those powering the Lockheed Martin C-130J transports the Indian Air Force flies.
03/09/14 AINonline

Flight deals take off for UAE residents: Delhi for Dh700, Karachi for Dh722

Airlines are offering up to 20 per cent discount on fares, with return flights to Delhi costing Dh700, while Karachi is Dh722 on flydubai.

Full fare carriers such as Emirates have also announced sales across its economy and business classes, with flights to Europe being offered at Dh1,535, while Turkish Airlines is offering discounts on fares to North America, with up to 15 per cent discounts on the base price.

As schools reopen across the UAE, the lean travel period has seen several airlines serve up discounts for flights to key gateway cities, with low cost carrier flydubai announcing a 20 per cent slash on fares to Asian cities such as Delhi, Karachi, Thiruvananthapuram , Ahmedabad and Colombo, with return airfares starting at Dh700.

The Dubai-based carrier is also offering discounted fares to Mideast destinations, with return fares to Alexandria for Dh858, Amman for Dh840 and Salalah for Dh804.
05/09/14 Binu Rai/Emirates 24|7

Thursday, September 04, 2014

FAA audit likely to take place in November

New Delhi:US's Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) is likely to visit India in November this year for a fresh audit of the country's aviation safety oversight mechanism.
A senior ministry official said, "The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) made a presentation before FAA on the corrective measures taken since the downgrade last week in the US. They are very satisfied with the action taken so far. A fresh audit should happen in the next 2-3 months."

While the DGCA has invited FAA officials to initiate the audit as early as next month, the US regulator may come in November. "FAA follows an August-September financial year. They have said it is more likely that they would be equipped to be in India for the audit in November", informed a senior official in the DGCA. The audit would pave the way for India to regain category I status in safety rankings of the US regulator.

FAA, in safety audits conducted in September and December last year, had expressed severe concerns over the lack of full-time flight operations inspectors (FOIs) in the DGCA and had subsequently downgraded India to category II of safety rankings, clubbing it with countries such as Zimbabwe and Indonesia. The downgraded has barred Indian airlines from expanding operations to the US and impacted code-share arrangements with American counterparts.
04/09/14 Business Standard

Airfare war between foreign and domestic airlines in india

Mumbai/New Delhi: Aiming at attracting Indian travellers to major global and domestic destinations, foreign and Indian carriers are vying with each other by offering discounted tickets.

The latest one to join the race is Air France, which is offering a flat discount on three classes of travel to South and Central America, making the tickets cheaper by up to Rs 10,000.

Under its scheme, Air France is offering its customers a discount of Rs 4,000 in economy, Rs 7,000 in premium economy and Rs 10,000 in business class for limited period online bookings, the airline said in a release.

The offer is valid for e-booking and ticketing till November 2 for travel period up to March 31 next year. The Air France-KLM group operates 250 daily flights across 231 destinations in 103 countries from its hubs at Paris-Charles de Gaulle and Amsterdam-Schiphol.

The Air France offer comes in the backdrop of special offers by several carriers, especially those in the Gulf and Southeast Asia, for flights to North America, Europe and Australia.
04/09/14 PTI/Deccan Herald

GAMA welcomes Mahindra Aerospace and Hutchinson North America as new members

The Executive Committee and the Board of Directors of the General Aviation Manufacturers Association (GAMA) have approved Mahindra Aerospace and Hutchinson North America as new members of the association. GAMA now has 89 members.

Mahindra Aerospace is the aircraft and aerostructures manufacturing business of the Mahindra Group, a $16.5bn diversified multinational headquartered in India. Mahindra’s utility aircraft business is based in Australia’s Latrobe Valley and operates through a global network of reputed general aviation aircraft dealers and customer care. Its facility near Melbourne produces the Airvan 8, an eight-seat utility airplane currently certified in 38 countries. In addition, Mahindra is launching the Airvan 10, a 10-seat turboprop utility airplane, and is working with India’s National Aerospace Laboratories to co-develop the C-NM5, a five-seat, low-wing aircraft. The company’s aerostructures manufacturing business includes facilities in Melbourne and Bangalore, India.
04/09/14 Blue Sky

An Afghan Airlift That Makes Money

Bibihaji Zia returned to Kabul in August after knee surgery in New Delhi. She flew on SpiceJet, the only private Indian carrier with direct flights to war-torn Afghanistan. “There are hospitals in Afghanistan, but the quality of medicine is the biggest issue,” says Zia’s son, Sediq. “Getting Indian visas is easy. The alternative, Pakistan, is less secure and less friendly.”

The demand for medical tourism is a rare bright spot for SpiceJet, which is struggling financially. The number of Afghans seeking treatment, up 21 percent last year to more than 32,000, is set to climb further now that Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi has relaxed visa rules to strengthen ties between the two nations. SpiceJet’s data show it flies about 1,000 Afghan medical tourists and their relatives each month from Kabul to New Delhi, earning the company about 156 million rupees ($2.6 million) a year based on average ticket prices. The carrier says the route is “very positive” when asked about profitability but won’t give details. Mounting costs and competition in India’s skies caused SpiceJet to lose 1.24 billion rupees from April to June, its fourth straight quarterly loss.

Sediq Zia, 24, studies in New Delhi and lives in the city’s Lajpat Nagar neighborhood, a “Little Afghanistan” that draws medical tourists from his country and is dotted with travel agencies bearing signs in Pashto. He says he paid $3,700 for his mother’s knee replacement at Saket City Hospital in India’s capital.
04/09/14 Anurag Kotoky and Soumya Gupta/Bloomberg BusinessWeek

Avia Indra-2014 teaches pilots tactics and precision

The Pogonovo fighting ground near Voronezh hosted one of the main events of the Avia Indra 2014 Russian-Indian exercises on Tuesday, September 2. The joint Russian-Indian crew flew the Mi-35 and Mi-8, as well as the Su-30 CM. Helicopters brought down several thousands of litres of water to the firing ground, practicing fire-fighting, and the fighters hit the ground targets with missiles and bombs.
“The Indian Air Force is not involved in counter-terrorism operations. Their main task is to provide combat support to troops. Therefore, we have chosen operational and tactical aviation exercises at the fighting grounds and practicing of special Army Aviation missions,” said Colonel Alexander Maksimtsev, deputy chief of the Russian Air Force. “This involves interception of air targets, fire-fighting, search and rescue operations and support of ground forces. The Indian Air Force has a lot of experience in the highlands. We are interested to learn about the methods of their work.”

The second phase of the exercises will be held in India in November 2014. “Russia and India have historical Air Force connections,” Indian Air Force Commander Praveen Keshav Vora said. “We are using the Russian equipment from the sixties: MiG-21, MiG-23 and Su of various types. We have similar methods, because our technique is the same. We are carrying out these exercises for the first time and expect that they will serve as the basis for the development of our mutual cooperation. At first glance, this stage went very well, but we will discuss everything in detail when we get back to the base.”
04/09/14 Mikhail Suprunenko/Russia & India Report

Wednesday, September 03, 2014

India seeks pre-clearance facility for flights to US from Mumbai and Delhi

New Delhi: A  proposal that allows passengers travelling from India to the US to complete their immigration and customs formalities in New Delhi or Mumbai is to be discussed between the two countries when Prime Minister Narendra Modi visits the US later this month. While the facility will spare passengers time and trouble when they arrive in the US, it could also help the Delhi and Mumbai airports develop as hubs. Currently, the pre-clearance facility for travel to US is offered in a handful of countries: Ireland, Canada, Bermuda, the Bahamas and most recently Abu Dhabi.
The civil aviation ministry has written to the ministry of external affairs which, in turn, will take up the matter with the US authorities, sources familiar with the development said. The immigration checks would be carried out by US Customs and Border Protection officials and aviation experts believe the facility might encourage international airlines from Malaysia, Thailand and Singapore to fly to the US via India. Approximately 1 million Indians travel to the US each year.
“We want to offer the Mumbai and Delhi airports to the US border agencies for setting up an offshore immigration centre since it helps both countries given the large number of travellers. Talks are on but things will move only after the US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) upgrades our air safety rating, which we expect will happen by September-October,” a civil aviation ministry official said.
03/09/14 RRoudra Bhattacharya , HumaSiddiqui/Financial Express