Third aerobridge at Tiruchi airport by December

Tiruchi: Amid steep rise in overseas passenger traffic at the Tiruchi international airport, the Airports Authority of India (AAI) has embarked on the task of establishing the third aerobridge for the benefit of the travellers.

The third aerobridge would be an additional facility with the works being carried out in two phases in the wake of rise in overseas flight operations as well.

Phase- I work of construction of a Rotunda – a base structure to connect the international terminal building and link corridor was taken up. Airport sources told The Hindu that the construction of the Rotunda – a civil work had been completed setting the stage for taking up the next work under phase-II.

Indian travellers might just be able to use in-flight internet by August 2017

It was after the hijacking of an Indian Airlines flight from Delhi to Kathmandu in 1999 that the Ministry of Civil Aviation decided to ban the use of in-flight services for any and all aircrafts flying in the Indian airspace, for security reasons.
This rule has been applicable since, even for international flights entering the Indian airspace, besides of course domestic flights.
Things, however, are set to change, hopefully. We may finally be able to access internet services while flying, after the central government gives its permission to allow airlines to offer in-flight internet in a few months.

‘Operating costs are pretty high in India’

Singapore Airlines surprised its investors by reporting a net loss in the March 2017 quarter, while full-year profit halved from its numbers in FY16. In an interview with BusinessLine, David Lim, General Manager – India, Singapore Airlines, speaks about Singapore’s national carrier’s commitment to the Indian market, despite the tough times that the parent company is facing, and the changes he’d like to see in the domestic aviation scene. Excerpts:

It’s been a difficult quarter for Singapore Airlines. Does this change strategy for markets like India?

With fares falling rapidly, yields are falling for airlines and all airlines are suffering. But we are prepared for competition and for yields to continue to be under pressure. We are working on managing costs better and in recent years, we have been helped by fuel prices coming down. But it’s a difficult time for the aviation business in general. But our East-bound market is continuing to grow. Also, if you look at our financial results, we have also mentioned that we’re going into the next phase. With our portfolio size, we are able to right-size our aircraft. We’re seeing some of this (in other markets). We (Singapore Airlines) used to fly to Hangzhou in China, and we were flying to Jeddah for Haj pilgrims; now we’ve passed on both to Scoot (the low-budget division of Singapore Airlines). Between the four airlines — Singapore Airlines, SilkAir, Scoot and Tigerair — we’re able to right-size the product.

Are you considering making further investments in India?

India looking to extend UDAN scheme to Bimstec countries

New Delhi: In a bid to boost its engagement with Bimstec, India is looking to expand the UDAN scheme of its aviation policy to countries of this regional bloc, Minister of State for Civil Aviation Jayant Sinha said on Tuesday.

"What the government of India would like to see is that we can take the policy design behind UDAN (Ude Desh ka Aam Naagrik or 'common people of the country can fly') and extend it across the Bimstec region," Sinha said while speaking at an event here to mark the 20th anniversary of the establishment of the Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation (Bimstec).

Qatar crisis forces Indians to call off travel plans

The ongoing crisis around Qatar is forcing Indian travelers to Europe to put their plans on hold. This is after major airlines in the middle east such as Etihad, Emirates, Air Arabia, and Flydubai suspended flights to Doha, a key hub in the Middle East for transit between Europe, America and Asia.  Qatar Airways has also suspended all flights to Saudi Arabia.

Anxious customers are queuing up for cancellation and refunds, leading travel portals told the Economic Times.

A number of Arab countries including Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Egypt, UAE and Yemen have snapped diplomatic ties with Qatar for its alleged support to Islamist groups. These countries have even cut off land and sea access to Qatar.

India’s airlines studying the Gulf fallout

Air India Express (AIE) is compiling a list of the weekly flights it operates to Doha to be sent to UAE (United Arab Emirates) authorities so that there is no disruption to the service.

This follows the decision of the UAE asking airlines not registered in the region but intending to use it airspace while flying to or from Qatar to get “prior approval” from the General Civil Aviation Authority (GCAAA). The UAE has banned airlines registered in Qatar from overflying its territory. A senior AIE official said that a clearer picture on whether flights to Doha will have to be diverted will emerge in the next day or two.

The airline operates a daily flight from Kozhikode to Doha apart from a four-times-a-week connection from Mumbai. It also connects Mangaluru with Doha thrice a week. The UAE shutting its airspace could also affect flights operated by Jet Airways and IndiGo.

Saudi-Qatar rift: Indian flights to Doha operating normally

Mumbai: Indian carriers continue to main regular schedule to Doha but there could be some flight delays due to restrictions in airspace in the Gulf region.

United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia and Bahrain today cut diplomatic ties with Qatar and have imposed restrictions on Qatar Airways. Flights to and from Doha and other Gulf cities too have been suspended.


While there are no restrictions on Indian carriers, UAE has issued a notice to airmen which states airlines not based in that country need to take prior approval when using its airspace for Qatar-bound flights. It is not clear whether the approvals need to be taken one time or before each flight.

Flights to Qatar will operate, but may get longer, costlier

New Delhi: Qatar may be cut off from rest of the Gulf countries+ but flights between India and Doha will operate as usual for now. The travel time, however, will most likely increase with countries like Saudi Arabia and Bahrain closing their airspace for flights from Qatar.
"The UAE has told Indian carriers that their aircraft overflying or crossing its airspace on India-Doha route must take its permission before doing so. If they allow, it is okay. Otherwise flights from places other than north India like Mumbai and the south will have to take a much longer route: fly north over the Arabian Sea, enter Iran and then fly straight over the Persian Gulf to Doha. The same route will have to be taken on return if the UAE denies permission," said the operations head of an Indian airline.
Three Indian carriers - Jet Airways, AI Express and IndiGo - and Qatar Airways+ (QA) fly between India and Doha. All QA flights between India and Doha will also be affected. Only flights from Delhi will not be affected as they will fly over Pakistan and then enter Iran. Indian carriers fly only between India and Doha and do not fly beyond from there.
For long haul passengers on QA, direct routing of flights between Doha and Europe and North America - the two most popular destinations for Indians choosing the airline - may have to be changed that may lead to an increase in flying time. With UAE banning Qatari-registered planes from its airspace, flights between the West and Doha may have to take a longer route via Iran.

Kazakh envoy welcomes opening of direct flights between Delhi and Astana

Welcoming the opening of direct flights between New Delhi and Kazakhstan capital Astana from July 2, Kazakhstan's Ambassador to India Bulat Sarsenbayev described it as a significant development in the 25th year of the establishment of diplomatic relations between the two countries.

In a statement given out the media, Ambassador Sarsenbayev said, "I am very glad to note that we managed to agree on the opening of direct flights between the capitals of the two countries during the significant year of celebrating the 25th anniversary of the establishment of Kazakh-Indian diplomatic relations. Starting from 2nd July of this year, company "Air Astana" will operate three times a week direct flights on the route Astana-Delhi-Astana, which will harmoniously complement the already existing daily flights Almaty-Delhi-Almaty."

Chandigarh International Airport: AAI awards tender for 14 food and beverage outlets

There is a reason to cheer for passengers at the Chandigarh International Airport as the Airports Authority of India (AAI) has awarded a tender for setting up 14 food and beverage (F&B) outlets at the airport. Airport officials expect the outlets to come up in the next two to three months. The new terminal of the International Airport was inaugurated in 2015. But not many facilities are available for the passengers at the airport so far.
“We have awarded a tender to a Delhi-based food chain and they will set up 14 food and beverage outlets at the airport,” Chief Executive Officer of the airport Sunil Dutt told Chandigarh Newsline on Tuesday, adding that the outlets would come up in two-three months. Dutt said that the firm had to decide which all brands would come up at the airport and AAI had not been informed about it. “All the 14 outlets will come up in the area, including departure, and security hold area,” he said.
To Read the News in Full 07/06/17 Adil Akhzer/Indian Express

Plea to develop Coimbatore International Airport

Coimbatore: When representatives of seven districts of the western region met Chief Minister Edappadi K. Palaniswami and Municipal Administration Minister S.P. Velumani in Chennai recently, there was a promise that they would do the needful to expedite land acquisition process for expansion of Coimbatore International Airport.

“We estimate that about ₹ 40 crore would be needed to acquire 45 to 50 acres for the first phase of expansion. If the government can allocate this amount and expedite the process, the expansion work will start off,” said Vanitha Mohan, convenor of Kongu Global Forum.

Air India Express CEO visits Surat airport to explore Surat-Dubai flight service

Surat: CEO of Air India Express has expressed his strong desire to launch international flight service connecting Surat to Dubai in the next couple of months.
Air India Express CEO, K Shyam Sundar, visited the Surat airport to inspect the runway and terminal building and other infrastructure on Friday. Sundar, who met the members of the social groups crusading for increased air-connectivity, stated that the company is keen to launch Surat-Dubai services, provided the infrastructure in the form of extended runway at 2,905 meters and the customs notified airport status are in place.
Air India Express is an Indian low-cost carrier headquartered in Kochi. It is operated by Air India Charters Limited (AICL), a wholly owned subsidiary of flag carrier airline Air India. It operates around 550 flights per week to 29 destinations including the Middle East and Southeast Asia.
To Read the News in Full 03/06/17 Melvyn Reggie Thomas

India may soon get robots at airports to help passengers check-in

Spending hours in a long queue at an airport could soon be passe as researchers have designed a new check-in robot that will walk to passengers to assist them, a "wonderful" innovation that may also be deployed at an Indian airport.

The robotic kiosk KATE, which can work autonomously as well as part of a team of several robots, has been developed by the research arm of air transport IT provider SITA.

The intelligent check-in kiosk can identify crowded parts of an airport with the help of flight and passenger flow information and move in that direction to assist struggling passengers to locate check-in counters.

Out of the three prototypes developed, one is likely to be deployed at an Indian airport to be tested in real situations for range, safety and remote operations, according to SITA's head for India and the subcontinent.

"A kiosk attending a big crowd of passengers can tell another kiosk that I am busy, come help me," Renaud Irminger, Director, SITA Lab told PTI at the Air Transport IT Summit held in Brussels last week.

Soon, budget flights from India to North America

New Delhi: You may soon have the option of flying low cost all the way from India to North America. Norwegian, the world's seventh largest budget carrier which recently announced fares starting at $65 from Europe and US, says it is considering India as a destination. Its India-Oslo flights will provide connections on Norwegian's budget network to US and the Caribbean from the Norway hub.
A Norwegian spokesperson said: "As an ambitious airline with a huge aircraft order, Norwegian are always looking at potential new routes and while there are no immediate plans to serve India at this stage, it remains a market we are interested in, in the future.

Chennai airport to become 90 percent solar dependent next year

Chennai: The Chennai international and domestic airport is set to become 90 per cent dependent on solar power from the beginning of next financial year, said R Balasundaram, an engineer at the Airport Authority of India, who is part of the team deploying the project.

The project estimated to cost nearly Rs 30 crore will generate nearly 32,000 units of electricity a day. The first phase of this project was implemented in August last.

e-Visa facility at airport evokes moderate response

Kozhikode: Two months after its launch, the response to the visa-on-arrival (e-Visa) facility for foreign tourists in Kozhikode has been moderate.

Most foreigners who arrive at the Calicut International Airport are from the Gulf countries, especially the United Arab Emirates and the Sultanate of Oman. The e-Visa facility was rolled out from April 1. “About 150 to 200 foreigners arrive at the Calicut airport daily. However, only 10 to 15 arrive via Electronic Travel Authorisation,” said an official attached to Foreigners Regional Registration Office, Kozhikode.

Russia overtakes India in domestic air travel growth: IATA

New Delhi: India is no longer the world’s fastest growing domestic air travel market. Russia overtook India by witnessing 16.7% growth in April 2017, over the same month last year, while India grew in this period at 15.3%, according to International Air Transport Association (IATA). The global average domestic air travel growth rate this April (over the same month last year) was 7.7% and in the new pecking order, India is at number two followed by China at 12.7%, Japan at 6.7% and the US at 4.7% ..

Don't bother about stamping baggage at airport any more

Chennai: Chennai airport has done away with stamping of baggage tags for cabin baggage from Monday after Central Industrial Security Force implemented the no-baggage stamping policy.
A senior official of Airports Authority of India said the first day went without a hassle as the authorities has already completed a week long trail in the first week of last month "The move has eliminated an unnecessary inconvenience for the passengers.

Turkish Airlines has completed a successful Decade of flying in India

Turkish Airlines, one of the fastest growing international airlines proudly announces its completion of 10 successful years of its operations in India, truly standing for its motto-“Widen Your World”. The airline is operating in India since 2003 and has achieved major milestones since then in the country.Flying out of the two most important cities of the country, New Delhi and Mumbai, Turkish Airlines has become one of the most popular airlines serving the Indian traveller.
To Read the News in Full 02/06/17  Good Herald

India groups partner to train 35,000 for the aviation sector

The Bird Group has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the National Skill Development Corporation (NSDC), under which it will train 35,000 people in the aviation sector and also set up centers of excellence in various cities.

The pact was signed by Ms. Radha Bhatia, Chairperson of the Bird Group, which runs the Bird Academy. R. N. Choubey, Secretary of the Ministry of Civil Aviation in India was present at the ceremony.

NSDC and Bird Academy collaborate to train 35,000 candidates in aviation

New Delhi: With a strong focus to enhance skills and create a market ready workforce in the Aviation & Aerospace Sector, National Skill Development Corporation (NSDC) has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Bird Academy to impart training to 35,000 candidates and set up Model Centers and CoEs across several locations across India.

The MoU was exchanged by Jayant Krishna, Executive Director & Chief Operating Officer, NSDC and Radha Bhatia, Secretary Bird Academy & Chairperson Bird Group in the presence of the Rajiv Nayan Choubey, Secretary, Ministry of Civil Aviation.

Hike in air fare, drop in subsidy push up Haj cost

Mumbai: Haj pilgrimage this year is slated to be costlier by Rs 20,000 per person ostensibly due to hike in airfare and decrease in Haji subsidy, said the Haj Committee of India. From Rs 400 crore last year, the subsidy has reduced to Rs 200 crore this year. The Supreme Court has asked to end the subsidy by 2022.
For this year's Haj, scheduled in the first week of September, of the 1.7 lakh pilgrims from India, 1.25 lakh will travel through the Haj panel, while 45,000 will go through private tour operators (PTOs).

Flights may resume from Mysore Airport in September

Mysuru: If all goes well, commercial flight operations will resume in Mysore Airport in September. The authorities are planning to introduce a service between Mysuru and Chennai.

The airport authorities said, following an initiative of the government, two private airlines have shown interest in starting commercial flights from Mysuru. However, the schedule is yet to be finalised.

The Union Ministry of Civil Aviation and the Karnataka and Tamil Nadu governments have entered into an agreement under the regional connectivity scheme (RCS), popularly known as UDAN, to provide the service.

Jet Airways plans to take on lease up to 8 single aisle aircraft

Mumbai: Private carrier Jet Airways today said it plans to lease 6-8 single aisle aircraft in the fleet this fiscal. The airline has already leased one B-737NG of these planes this fiscal and the rest will be inducted in the fleet by March next year, the Naresh Goyal-promoted carrier said. The city-headquartered airline currently has 103 aircraft in the fleet, with 69 of them B-737s. “Our new fleet of Boeing B737-Max will come from June next year onwards.

Private airlines in India to add 1,000 more passenger aircraft in next 10 years

Mumbai: Already number three in terms of passenger traffic, India will also become the third largest buyer of passenger with private airlines firming up orders of over 1,000 passenger aircraft. India will be behind United States and China after this mega order of passenger planes.
Indian civil aviation industry is one of the fastest growing industries with 19 per cent growth reported in the last three years. There are 496 aircraft in operation today and orders for 654 aircraft already placed and more are in pipeline, according to official data.
IndiGo has the largest order book in the region (and one of the largest in the world) at 415 aircraft, followed by SpiceJet (156) and GoAir (139), Centre for Asia Pacific Aviation (CAPA) report said.

SpiceJet commences three new daily flights from Surat to Hyderabad, Goa and Jaipur

Budget carrier SpiceJet on Thursday (June 1) launched three new daily direct flight services connecting Surat to Hyderabad, Goa and Jaipur. With these new flights, SpiceJet takes a step forward in its endeavour towards improving and strengthening connectivity from Surat.
Surat will get its first ever direct connection to Hyderabad and Goa while the diamond merchants of Surat will get their much needed daily flight to Jaipur.

Air India to hold random checks at Mumbai, Delhi airports for cleanliness

Mumbai: Air India chief Ashwani Lohani has instructed senior officials of the national carrier to visit Mumbai and Delhi airports in midnight by turn for a random inspection of cleanliness and upkeep of aircraft before their departure for international destinations.
The instructions came following Lohani receiving a complaint recently about cleanliness of the airline's Hyderabad-Chicago flight via New Delhi.
As part of the three-week long special exercise, which commenced yesterday, Lohani will visit the Indira Gandhi International Airport (IGIA) today to inspect all aspects of the aircraft, according to a circular issued by AI on Tuesday.

Baggage tag stamping ends at six airports

New Delhi: The Airports Authority of India (AAI) on Thursday said that the security related procedure to stamp hand baggage tags has been done away with at six airports. According to AAI, the practice was stopped at Chennai, Trivandrum, Lucknow, Jaipur, Guwahati and Patna airports from Thursday. The state-run enterprise said that the procedure was stopped after trial runs were carried out at these airports by the Bureau of Civil Aviation Security (BCAS) after the installation of HD CCTV cameras at pre-embarkation security check (PESC) points and boarding gates in coordination with CISF.
To Read the News in Full 01/06/17 IANS/Sify.com

Aviation: Karnataka on top among southern states

New Delhi: Karnataka airports had the highest number of fliers among South Indian states while it ranked third nationally in 2016-17.

According to the statistics provided by the Ministry of Civil Aviation, Karnataka also topped the number of aircraft movement among five South Indian states and two Union Territories.

There were 247.4 lakh passengers who took flights from Karnataka in 2016-17, clocking a growth of 21.2% compared to 2014-15, according to a report by Ministry of Civil Aviation.

Air India to add 7 international destinations this year

New Delhi: Air India will start direct flights between Delhi and Copenhagen from September 16, making the Danish capital its 11th destination in Europe.
Air India chief Ashwani Lohani said that the flight will operate thrice a week initially and later be made a daily service.
The airline will start flying to two new international destinations from Delhi in the coming months — Washington (from July 7) and Stockholm (August 16). It also plans to add three more cities by the end of the year, including some in the US.

Air-India to start Indore-Gwalior-Mumbai flights

Indore:  Air India on Tuesday announced to start two flights between Indore, Gwalior, Mumbai and Delhi. The move is in line of the government's 'Udan' scheme to provide connectivity to tier two towns with metro cities.
"Air India in its vigorous drive to provide connectivity to its passengers, is going to start two flights from Wednesday connecting the states of Delhi, Madhya Pradesh and Maharashtra," said officials from Air India, Bhopal.
According to officials, this would provide an unmatched linkage between these three states with two aircrafts.

Air India flight for Bangkok to take off in October this year

Chandigarh: An Air India flight from Chandigarh to Bangkok has appeared in the winter schedule of Chandigarh International Airport. According to the schedule, the flight would operate from October. Officials, however, said the flight could start operating earlier, too. Air India has already announced the direct flight to Bangkok from Chandigarh. Chairman-cum-Managing Director (CMD) of Air India, Ashwani Lohani, had said that the flight would start in the first week of June. But it failed to take off.

If you truly love Air India, let it fly away

The Indian government is veering towards finally letting the beleaguered national airline, Air India (AI), fly away.
NITI Aayog, a government policy think tank, has suggested that the Narendra Modi government divest its stake in the airline. In a report submitted to the prime minister, NITI Aayog recommended writing off of Rs30,000 crore of its total debt of about Rs60,000 crore; the new buyer must bear the remaining liability. In return, the buyer will own the airline’s fleet of over 140 aircraft. It has also said that AI’s real estate assets, located at prime spots, be hived off into a separate firm.
The government seems to favour these recommendations.
“We are very proud of AI and will consider all possible alternatives for it. All options are open. NITI Aayog has suggested steps for a strong and viable airline,” India’s aviation minister, Ashok Gajapathi Raju, said at a press conference to mark three years of the Modi government.

Mumbai airport flies high on carbon neutrality

Mumbai: The Mumbai airport was on Tuesday awarded a level 3+ carbon neutrality certification by the Airports Council International (ACI), after it progressed from level 1 in five years.
Airport operator Mumbai International Airport Ltd (MIAL) had adopted the ACI’s airport carbon accreditation programme in 2011 and has since gradually earned the four certifications through a series of initiatives. A MIAl spokesperson said the measures included greenhouse gases accounting and management, adopting a greenhouse gas and energy policy, implementation of energy management system, and solar power installations.

Class divide tells on Calcutta skies

Calcutta: Vistara will stop its flights on the Bangalore-Calcutta-Guwahati route from June 16, reflecting the drought of business class traffic between the eastern cities and one of the most popular destinations in the country.

The airline, owned by the Tatas and Singapore Airlines, has reposed faith in Calcutta as a "destination of strategic importance" but analysts pointed out that the discontinuation was another telling sign of the paucity of corporate traffic from and to Calcutta.

The lack of demand for premium seats has been the reason several international airlines had dropped Calcutta from their radar.

Low-cost airlines have found the going smoother in the city, operating all-economy class flights and depending largely on students and patients on their way to educational institutions and healthcare facilities in the south.

Jet Air likely to buy 100 more narrow body aircraft: CAPA

New Delhi: The Centre for Asia Pacific Aviation (CAPA) expects Jet Airways to place an order for a further 100 narrow body aircraft – taking its total of the type to 175, while Vistara is likely to order 50 narrow bodies and 50 wide bodies.

"Jet’s existing order for 75 737 MAX aircraft, which are scheduled for delivery between 2018 and 2023, will mostly be used for replacement. At present half of its narrow body fleet is aged 9 years or older. Meanwhile, the new order for 100 aircraft is intended for expansion,” CAPA’s outlook for FY 2018 says.

Airlines revive small-town connections

Chennai: As regional airlines are poised to connect tier II and tier III cities, low-cost carriers are reviving their small-town connections.
While Spicejet, which has 78-seater Bombardier Q400 aircraft, is eying small airports in the south, Indigo has ordered 50 ATR planes ideal for flights to such cities.
Low-cost airlines and full service carriers may get an edge as the ministry of civil aviation, at a regional connectivity scheme (RCS) meeting held in New Delhi on May 25, suggested that the three-year exclusive rights to fly a route accorded to regional carriers be cut down to one year.
Airlines have been tweaking their schedules in the past couple of months by including tier II city connections during many of their promotions.

Danger in the skies

Traffic is in a mess not just on Indian roads. Its skies too, it seems, have become chaotic with the country’s aviation infrastructure inadequate to cope with growth in air traffic.
The result is a sharp increase in near misses or air proxes — in aviation parlance, it is when aircraft are separated by less than 1,000 feet vertically and 30,000-150,000 feet horizontally, in effect just a few seconds apart. Data from the aviation regulator show a 28 per cent increase in such incidents in 2016 from a year earlier.

How a three day flight ticket sale by Jet Airways, Spicejet, IndiGo help

Indian domestic airlines began a fresh round of sales on flight tickets this week with one staging the play and the rest who followed. After Spicejet, Indigo, Jet Airways and AirAsia too announced discounts on flight tickets for travel period between June and March next year.

The airlines have promptly declared base fares starting as low as Rs 11 and Rs 12, but how much do these sales help them?

The sales window period ranged between three to five days but customers were free to plan their travel going into next year March 2018.

Ever Wondered How Much Advertising Happened on Cabin Luggage Tags in Indian Airlines? All That is Gone Now

If you are a frequent flyer, you must have noticed that you don't need to get those cabin luggage tags in some cities and in the others just the tag without any stamping at the security check is sufficient. The Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) in March-end had announced phased discontinuation of cabin luggage tags from April 1, 2017. As per published reports, while the aviation security regulator, the Bureau of Civil Aviation Security (BCAS), was thinking of doing away with these tags last year itself, CISF wanted to deploy appropriate security infrastructure before this could be implemented.

Jet Airways honoured at HolidayIQ's Better Holiday Awards

Mumbai: Jet Airways, India's full-service international airline, has been honoured as 'India's Best Full Service Airline', at HolidayIQ's Better Holiday Awards – 2017.

Selected by millions of community members who make up HolidayIQ, it reflects Jet Airways’ excellent record in satisfying the needs of its guests with tailor-made travel solutions.

The award ceremony was attended by a host of dignitaries including Jitendra Singh, Union Minister of State (Independent Charge), Ministry of Development of North Eastern Region; Arun Nanda, Chairman & Founder, Mahindra Holidays & Resorts India Ltd.; Priyank Kharge, Minister of State (Independent Charge) Tourism and Information Technology, Government of Karnataka, and Umang Bedi, Managing Director, Facebook (India & South Asia).

Naveen Patnaik demands Visa On Arrival facility at Bhubaneswar airport

Bhubaneswar: Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik today demanded that steps should be initiated by the Centre to provide 'Visa on Arrival' facility at Bhubaneswar airport and include the capital city of Odisha as a stop Colombo-Varanasi flight started by Air India recently.

The chief minister made the requests in separate letters to external affairs minister Sushma Swaraj and civil aviation minister A Gajapathi Raju. "The state government has established international connectivity recently with Air Asia starting its operations between Bhubaneswar and Kuala Lumpur.

Tweak in UDAN to woo more airlines

New Delhi: The government is planning to allow relaxations under its Ude Desh ka Aam Naagrik (UDAN) scheme to boost air connectivity to underserved routes. It   hopes to attract more airlines to the loss-making regional aviation sector.
The Union ministry is likely to now allow an underserved route between two regular airports. For instance, Lucknow and Varanasi: these have regular connectivity to other centres but not between themselves.
Earlier, operators were allowed to bid for services only between two underserved airports.
“A number of stakeholders and airline operators have evinced interest in undertaking operations under the scheme,” said a ministry statement on Wednesday. “Learning from the experience of first round of bidding… (the ministry) is… taking stock of regional connectivity… [to make rules] simpler and attractive.”

Foreign players owning airlines in India can have security issues: FIA

Mumbai: Continuing its opposition to the government allowing foreign players to own an airline in India, the Federation of Indian Airlines (FIA) has said the move could have serious "security" implications besides other issues.

In a letter to the government recently, the FIA also said that the decision to allow foreign carriers owning an airline in the country will create a very inequitable competitive environment for them.

The letter comes against the backdrop of Qatar Airways announcing its plans to set up an airline in India with the Gulf nation's sovereign wealth fund, and the government recently saying that it is looking at bringing the rules and regulations regarding ownership and control of an airline in conformity with the new FDI norms.

Airfares soar as Indians pack bags for foreign holidays

New Delhi: Making last-minute plans for an international holiday this summer will leave you sweating.
Spot ticket prices to popular destinations have gone up by as much as 30% from last summer with London witnessing the fastest jump in airfares.
But even these high spot fares are not deterring last-minute holidayers.
Indiver Rastogi, president of corporate travel at Thomas Cook (India) Limited, says airline bookings are witnessing a "surge of over 40%" as compared with that in last year.
However, leaving on a jet plane this summer break is proving tough as visa processing at the consulates of the most popular destinations is taking a lot of time due to the rush.

Naveen wants Bhubaneswar on Air India's Varanasi-Colombo route

Bhubaneswar: Chief minister Naveen Patnaik has pitched for including Bhubaneswar in Air India's Varanasi-Colombo circuit. The step, Patnaik, feels would contribute to promoting Buddhist tourism and boost tourist footfalls.
In a letter to civil aviation minister Ashok Gajapathi Raju, he said, "In the recently held International Buddhist Conclave and other discussions in different forums, the tour operators, academicians and revered monks from Sri Lanka have expresses strong desire to come to Odisha to explore the Buddhist heritage sites.

Airports Authority of India plans to integrate terminals at airport

CHENNAI: The Airports Authority of India is moving closer to building new terminals proposed as part of phase II expansion of Chennai airport. A detailed project report has been submitted and a tender will soon be floated to find a contractor.
The proposal to build two buildings after demolishing the old ones and integrate them with the steel and glass terminals currently being used was announced when the new terminals were inaugurated in 2013.
Airport director G Chandramouli said, "We will be holding meeting with stakeholders [airlines and terminal users] to finalise details." The buildings, AAI hopes, will help push the aiport's passenger capacity to 30 million from the existing 23 million.

DGCA rules on no-fly list: Regulations need to balance passenger rights too

New Delhi: The Director General of Civil Aviation (DGCA), India’s aviation watchdog, recently issued a Civil Aviation Requirement (CAR) regarding the handling of unruly and disruptive passengers. Issued under the Aircraft Rules, 1937, and framed in pursuance of the Indian Aircraft Act, 1934, the CAR acknowledges that unruly behaviour of any sort, on board an aircraft or during embarkation and disembarkation, interferes with the performance of crew members’ duties. It also notes that such disruptive behaviour jeopardises the safety of the aircraft, the persons on board and, most importantly, affects good order and discipline on a plane. Recognising the potential harm, any kind of disruptive behaviour is now likely to invite penal action in accordance with these proposed requirements.
The definition of a disruptive passenger under the CAR is very wide and also somewhat vague to include any passenger who disturbs “good order” and “discipline”. These terms haven’t been defined in the proposed requirements but include inter-alia individuals who illegally consume narcotics or cigarettes while on board, individuals who refuse to comply with safety instructions, any passenger who verbally or physically confronts a crew members or other passengers or threatens them which could affect the safety of the crew, other passengers and aircraft or any individual who sexually abuses or harasses a member of the crew or another passenger.

Jet Airways announces 3rd non-stop Mumbai-London Heathrow flight from October

Mumbai: Private carrier Jet Airways today announced the introduction of its third daily non-stop service to London Heathrow from the city, starting October. The new flight will boost Jet’s passenger and cargo capacity between India and the United Kingdom by almost 33 per cent, the airline said in release here.
The service enhances onward connectivity over London Heathrow to North America with partners Delta Air Lines and Virgin Atlantic, it said.

Night parking facility at Visakhapatnam International Airport soon

Visakhapatnam: The Visakhapatnam International Airport will soon have night parking facility for the aircrafts arriving in the evening. The works at the airport for creation of six more parking bays is in full swing and the project will be completed in the last week of June.

The night parking facility will increase the number of early morning flights to several parts of the country from the city and also increase the night landing of flights in the airport.

Telugu at Andhra Pradesh airports

Visakhapatnam: Civil Aviation minister P Ashok Gajapathi Raju promised that henceforth the public announcements would be made in Telugu language besides English and Hindi in all flights, operated by various airlines and also at five airports across Andhra Pradesh.

Responding to the letter of Andhra Pradesh Assembly deputy speaker  Mandali Buddha Prasad on February 16, 2017, the Civil Aviation minister released an official letter on Thursday announcing that the request would come into force soon.


Though it is very difficult to train the crew in making announcements in all regional languages (18 languages are recognised in the Constitution) in India, he promised that the announcement would be made in Telugu language in all airports of the state.
To Read the News in Full 26/05/17 New Indian Express

Mumbai airport refuses slot for flight linking Mumbai, Surat, Bhavnagar

Surat: In what has come as an upset for the Surti fliers, the Alliance Air, airline partner of Air India (AI), has been refused slot for its Mumbai-Surat-Bhavnagar daily flight services by the Mumbai International Airport Limited (MIAL).
Sources said that the Alliance Air had submitted a proposal for providing slot at the Mumbai airport for operating its proposed daily flight between Mumbai-Surat-Bhavnagar. The MIAL vehemently denied the proposal, citing reasons about the heavy traffic and the unavailability of the slot at Mumbai airport.

More international flights from Lohegaon airport in the offing

Pune: Doors to the Middle East are all set to widen for Pune-based travellers as at least two flights are expected from here to the United Arab Emirates soon.
The new flights will also give a boost to passenger traffic, besides attracting foreign tourists, airport sources told TOI.
"A private airline is set to start flight operations to Dubai from the Pune airport in three months. Air India will also start an international flight to Sharjah, the final plans are being chalked out," the official said.
At present, four international flights — two to Dubai (Air India and SpiceJet), one to Abu Dhabi (Jet Airways) and one to Frankfurt (Lufthansa) — operate from the Pune airport.
To Read the News in Full 26/05/17 Joy Sengupta/Times of India

100% FDI in Airlines Poses Threat To National Security

Allowing 100% foreign direct investment (FDI) in scheduled Indian carriers could poses a serious “security threat” to the country’s “national security”, the Federation of Indian Airlines (FIA) has told the government.

FIA has termed the government’s decision to relax the foreign investment norm to 100% as “unprecedented” in its latest salvo against the move. The decision on FDI has not only left the aviation industry bewildered but even many in the government have questioned the move.

FIA consists of IndiGo, SpiceJet, Jet Airways and Go Air, which have a combined domestic market share of around 80%.

“By India permitting 100% FDI in scheduled airlines, the Indian government will have no visibility on where control lies. Such a move could also have serious repercussions on India’s national security,” FIA said in a letter earlier this month.

Central Govt. likely to allow Wi-Fi on flights by August-end

As per the TNN report, Central Government of India is likely to approve Internet on flights by the end of August this year. Lalit Gupta, Joint DG, Directorate General of Civil Aviation said, "We're awaiting clearance from the Department of Telecommunications.”

Gupta said, "International airlines are in talks with the aviation ministry. Currently, they have to switch off Wi-Fi in the Indian airspace (where inflight internet is banned on security grounds)." He also said that Indian carriers like Jet Airways and SpiceJet are slated to take deliveries of the Wi-Fi-fitted Boeing 737 MAX by mid-2018.
To Read the News in Full 24/05/17 Travel Biz Monitor

Will Airlines Cut Air Fares After GST Rollout? Don't Count On It

The Goods and Service Tax (GST) for most products and services have been finalised by the GST Council headed by Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley in Srinagar last week. As the Ministry of Civil Aviation tries to make flying affordable for the masses, GST on the economy class air travel has been lowered to 5 per cent, down 100 basis points from the existing service tax rate. Meanwhile, GST on business class air travel has been raised 3 per cent to 12 per cent. However airlines may not transfer the benefits of a lower tax on economy class tickets to passengers, said credit rating agency ICRA Ltd, adding that the GST tax reforms will not have any material impact on air passenger growth either.

Air India still on a wing and prayer. Is it time to privatise it?

Air India could finally be getting on the nerves of the government. In an interview with Financial Express, Ashok Gajapathi Raju, the Civil Aviation Minister, said the Rs 30,000-crore bailout plan charted out in 2012 to save Air India has not solved problems. “TAP [Turn Around Plan] or the financial reconstruction plan were good intentions and money has been infused from the government’s kitty, but it has not solved any problems,” said the minister.

On the operational front, there are signs of a turnaround with improvement in passenger load factor, on-time performance and utilisation of aircraft. However, the company is facing a legacy issue which is pulling the national carrier down.

And so it begs the question: is it time to privatize the national carrier?

Vistara receives first A320neo aircraft

Full service carrier Vistara today received its first A320neo aircraft which is expected to join the Tata-SIA run airlines fleet of 13 Airbus A320 planes as of now.
Vistara received the new aircraft, which is fitted with CFM Internationals advanced LEAP-1A engine, at the European aviation major Airbus Toulouse (France) headquarters.
Commenting on the delivery of the first A320 New engine option (Neo), Vistara Chief Executive Officer Phee Teik Yeoh, said, "The A320neo ensures operational enhancement as well as cost leadership for us, with extra payload capacity, greater fuel efficiency, and improved range, perfectly aligning with our growth strategy.

Phase 2 Of UDAN: New Routes To Be Announced On August 9

The civil aviation ministry plans to roll out the second phase of its regional connectivity scheme UDAN in June, with bids closing on July 9, Aviation Secretary RN Choubey said on Wednesday.
“We will be in a position to award flights under Phase-II of UDAN scheme by August 9,” he told reporters in New Delhi at an event to announce achievements of aviation ministry in the three years of the Narendra Modi government.
Incidentally, only two out of the five airlines that won bids in the first phase of the scheme have started operations thus far, with one of them being national carrier Air India’s subsidiary Alliance Air.

Salem-Chennai direct flight sought

Salem: The public and the members of trade and industry have pleaded for a direct flight connection from Salem to Chennai. At present, the Ministry of Civil Aviation has provided licence to the Air Odisha to operate its flight from Chennai to Bengaluru with two stopping at Puducherry and Salem.

Reaching Chennai from Salem after a stopover at Puducherry will be a roundabout route and will prove wastage of time, the local people feel.

SpiceJet introduces self check-in for baggage in Mumbai to make travel hassle free

Now no more waiting in long queues! SpiceJet has again raised the bar for customer experience by offering – ‘Self Bag Drop’ (SBD) at Mumbai’s Chhatrapati Shivaji domestic airport. Through this initiative, the first by a budget airline in Mumbai, SpiceJet aims to provide its customers with a seamless baggage check-in process that saves them from the hassles of standing in long queues at check-in desks.
The feature radically reduces the time needed for baggage check-in while providing the most convenient on-ground service for passengers by Common Use Baggage Check-in systems. Independent of counter opening hours passengers can simply drop-off their luggage easily by themselves, without having to wait in long queues. Besides faster baggage drop-off and shorter passenger queues, the service is expected to reduce training costs while offering flexibility in staff employment.
To Read the News in Full 23/05/17 Sandhya Dangwal/India

Jalandhar’s Adampur Airport To Begin Flights Under Udaan Scheme Soon

Jalandhar’s Aadampur Airport is setting itself up to start its domestic airline services from September this month. The date for new flights from Jalandhar has been fixed as 25th of September.

The Adampur Airport whose foundation stone was laid by India’s Finance Minister Arun Jaitley on December 16 after taking in account its viability reports drafted by government agencies has been nonoperational and raw since then.

The Jalandhar’s Adampur Airport was going through land acquisition issues in the past. The airport needed atleast 40 acres of land and has got 36 acres right now.

Centre may allow inflight internet by August this year

Customers of domestic carriers may soon be able to access emails and surf the internet with the government pushing for Wi-Fi facility on flights.

Directorate General of Civil Aviation is currently awaiting clearance from Department of Telecommunications on this, a report by Times of India said on Monday.

Citing a DGCA official, the report said that Jet Airways and SpiceJet were scheduled to take deliveries of the Wi-Fi fitted Boeing 737 MAZ by mid-2018.
To Read the News in Full 22/05/17 ZeeBiz 

Aadhaar Will Completely Digitise Air Travel, Says Jayant Sinha

The government plans to use Aadhaar to ‘completely digitise’ air travel amid a raging debate on privacy concerns regarding the world’s largest biometric ID database.
Through verification by Aadhaar, travellers will be able to get a digital boarding pass long before their flight, Minister of State for Civil Aviation Jayant Sinha said in an interview with BloombergQuint’s Sanjay Pugalia.
On reaching the airport, Aadhaar biometrics would allow seamless entry through the security and check-in points, avoiding the need for a hard copy of the boarding pass, Sinha said.
To Read the News in Full 22/05/17 Mahima Kapoor/BloombergQuint

Tourist season clocks rise in domestic fliers

New Delhi: With the tourist season beginning, the number of domestic fliers rose by 15.15% in April, compared with the same month, last year.

A report from the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) said that airlines carried 91.34 lakh passengers last month, compared with 79.32 lakh in the same period of 2016. In March this year, 90.45 lakh people flew with domestic carriers.

For the first four months of 2017, airlines flew 364.13 lakh passengers, against 309.35 lakh, clocking a growth of 17.71%.

According to the DGCA, the passenger load factor in April has shown an increasing trend, compared with the previous month, attributed primarily to the onset of the tourist season.

Air India to get new VVIP long-haul aircraft next year

New Delhi:  India is likely get its new long-haul VVIP aircraft for use of the President, Vice-President and Prime Minister by the second half of 2018 — the final year of Narendra Modi's first term as PM.
Air India is to get a brand new Boeing 777-300 extended range (ER) each month next January, February and March.
The government has decided that two of these three planes will be used as the next VVIP planes, replacing the over 25-year-old jumbo jets India's top dignitaries currently fly for long journeys.

Domestic cargo terminal at airport by next month

Thiruvananthapuram: The Trivandrum International Airport will have a common user domestic cargo terminal (CUDCT) by the end of next month. The facility will come up at the domestic terminal of the airport.
The airport authorities have completed the groundwork for the cargo terminal at the old domestic building at the terminal. Now they are awaiting the arrival of an X-ray machine to complete the installation work. The X-ray machine worth Rs 45 lakh for the CUDCT is being brought from Mumbai.
It was following the directives of the central government that Airport Authority of India (AAI) instructed to provide CUDCT at all airports.
At present, two airlines - Indigo and Jet Airways - operate their flights from the domestic terminal.

Nepal records 100,000 Indian arrivals by air in 2016

Mumbai: Nepal Tourism Board (NTB) has recorded over 100,000 Indian arrivals in 2016 through the air route, said Nabin Pokharel, Sr. Asst. Manager, Corporate Services Department, NTB. He was speaking at the destination training session programme organised by the NTB in association with Nepal Airlines and United Travel Agents on Saturday in Mumbai. Pokharel said that India continues to be the largest source market in terms of arrivals for Nepal, though China is closing the gap between the two countries.

SriLankan poised to become largest foreign carrier to India

SriLankan Airlines will have the largest network in India for a foreign airline with the addition of three new routes in July as a part of its regional expansion plans, the national carrier’s head told the Pacific Asia Travel Association (PATA) Annual Summit that concluded in Negombo yesterday.  “In India we have added on three more destinations, which (will) make SriLankan Airlines the largest foreign carrier to India. We’ve added on Hyderabad, Visakhapatnam and Coimbatore, which makes a total of 12 destinations that we operate to in India,” SriLankan Chairman Ajith Dias said.

Australia launches ‘Great Airfare Sale’ to tap Indian market

Melbourne: In a bid to woo travellers from India, Australia today unveiled a campaign offering lucrative airfare deals to promote the country as a leisure destination. The ‘Great Airfare Sale’ launched by Tourism Australia (TA) – a government agency – covers eight leading airlines.
The industry campaign has roped in Air India, Air Asia, Cathay Pacific, Malaysia Airlines, Qantas Airlines, Scoot, Singapore Airlines, and Thai Airways offering cheaper fares.
Under the programme, return tickets for Australia by Air India will cost from Rs 54,000, Qantas Airlines from Rs 51,000, Cathay Pacific from Rs 57,800, Singapore Airlines from Rs 50,000 and for Thai Airlines it will be from Rs 55,750.