India's Zoom Air mulls int'l ops to Myanmar, Bangladesh

Zoom Air (India) (Delhi Int'l) is planning to launch its maiden international services connecting Kolkata Int'l and Guwahati in India's North-East with each of Chittagong in Bangladesh and Yangon in Myanmar, CEO Koustav Dhar has told the PTI newswire.

"We will be able to introduce international flights from Kolkata because from now on, we will park two aircraft in the city at night," Dhar has said.

The routes could be launched following the addition of the fifth CRJ-200ER to the carrier's fleet. Zoom Air has recently announced it has entered into an agreement with a fellow Indian operator Club One Air (Delhi Int'l) covering the dry-lease of the unit.

Unrestricted night flights to Chandigarh from 2019: IAF

Chandigarh: Currently undergoing runway expansion, Chandigarh International Airport may offer unrestricted night flights from August 2019 after the authorities complete third phase of expansion, an Indian Airforce spokesperson said on Wednesday.

He said phase III expansion involves fitment of runway lights and other navigational aids. Completion of phase III would permit unrestricted day and night operations at Chandigarh airfields. Completion of phase III is envisaged in the first half of 2019.

"Airport Authority of India (AAI) is assessing feasibility of fitment of Category III Instrument Landing System (ILS) on one of the runways at Chandigarh.

Lambert Airport's next international destination: India

WOW Air will launch a new route from the U.S. to New Delhi, India, later this year.

Beginning Dec. 5, travelers can take off from St. Louis Lambert International Airport and eight other airports to Indira Gandhi International Airport in New Delhi, India, with a stop in Iceland. One-way fares will start at $199.

"We are passionate about continuing our mission of enabling everybody to fly by making international travel accessible and affordable for all and look forward to expanding our global service to provide travelers with the opportunity to see many parts of the globe, whether for business or pleasure," Founder and CEO Skúli Mogensen said in a statement.

WOW Air, a budget airline based in Iceland, announced last year that it would service Lambert and become the airport's only carrier flying to Europe.

Hubballi starts reaping benefits of UDAN scheme

Hubballi: With SpiceJet starting its flight services to Hyderabad and Chennai from Hubballi from Monday under the regional connectivity scheme, the air connectivity of the region has improved. Apart from this, the airlines is also operating two flights between Hubballi and Bengaluru and Hubballi and Mumbai.

In the second round of bidding for UDAN (Ude Desh ka Aam Nagarik) scheme, the Ministry of Civil Aviation had picked Hubballi and SpiceJet was allotted three routes - Chennai, Hyderabad and Pune. Now the operator has decided to start services in two routes out of the allotted three. It may start service to Pune in the coming days.

DGCA has granted permission to operate night flights at Srinagar airport

Srinagar: The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) has granted permission for operating night flights to and from the Srinagar airport, for which the necessary infrastructural upgradation is being done by the Airport Authority of India (AAI), a spokesman of the Jammu and Kashmir government said here today.

"The Srinagar airport will soon have night-landing facility, for which all preparations are being done by the agencies concerned," he said, after a high-level meeting chaired by Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti.

The DGCA had granted permission for operating night flights and the necessary infrastructural upgradation in this regard was being done by the AAI and state agencies, the spokesman said.

Indians frequent flyers

Indians are taking off and how. In an annual survey on flight and hotel behaviour of travellers across 23 countries in the world, it was revealed that Indians were the third most frequent travellers in the Asia- Pacific region. The survey revealed the results of the Expedia flight and hotel etiquette study 2018.

Given our gift for striking up friendships, it is not surprising that Indians are globally number one in engaging in a conversation, when sitting next to someone they don’t know (59 per cent) and probably the reason why 70 per cent Indian travellers also dread sitting next to someone who talks too much.

E-Kiosks at Indian Airports to Ensure Speedy Immigration Clearance for Foreigners

The Indian government is planning to install special automated kiosks at airports to enable foreign travelers who are included in the low risk category to undergo quicker immigration checks, PTI reported. These kiosks, expected to be set up by January 2019, will help the foreign travelers to complete the identity verification process in seconds, the report quoted officials as saying.

Low-risk travelers from some select countries will be able to enter India without having to stand in long queues at immigration counters once the e-kiosks are put up. Low-risk travelers are those who don’t have any criminal or financial cases against them.

The entire process is expected to be completed within a matter of a minute when a traveler comes to any e-Gate kiosk. The electronic gates will be installed at the arrival wing of international airports, and the foreign travelers can present their machine-readable passports, following which they can place their fingerprints on the scanner for verification and complete a customs declaration, the report added.

UDAN ops in India's North-East kick-off with Air Deccan

Air Deccan launched flights out of Kolkata Int'l to a number of airports in India's North-East on April 26, 2018, marking the inauguration of operations under the government's Regional Connectivity Scheme (RCS or UDAN) in the region, The Times of India has reported.

Initially, the carrier based one Beech 1900D aircraft out of Kolkata, deploying the turboprop on services to each of Agartala, Aizawl, Dimapur, and Shillong. Following the positioning of a second unit of the type in mid-May 2018, the carrier plans to launch services to Durgapur, Cooch Behar, Bagdogra, and Silchar.

Out of these airports, only Cooch Behar currently does not see any scheduled traffic.

From Chennai to Guwahati, govt likely to privatise 8 major airports

The government’s attempt at privatising maintenance of airport terminals has drawn a blank from investors. And, has forced the Narendra Modi government to mull complete privatisation — a plan initiated by the previous United Progressive Alliance government but dropped by the current regime, facing protest from employee unions.

The plan is to privatise at least eight government-owned airports — Chennai, Kolkata, Kochi, Pune, Ahmedabad, Jaipur, Lucknow and Guwahati.

The civil aviation ministry is having discussions on designing the model on how the airports would be bid out, according to sources. It is likely the airports will be bid out for 30 years and the tariffs will be fixed upfront.

Air India revenue up 20% at Rs 30 billion, set to increase flying hours

New Delhi: Air India has recorded a 20 per cent growth in revenue in March-April 2018. The carrier has also embarked on a route-analysis exercise, focusing on increasing flying hours of its aircraft, to add more trips, Chairman and Managing Director, Pradeep Singh Kharola, said.

The airline is focussing on improving the operational efficiency, both in the domestic and international sectors, even as it is buoyed over the load factor, on time performance and revenue growth, Kharola said.
"The revenue has increased by about 20 per cent as compared to the same period last year at roughly about Rs30 billion, though expenses continue to remain high," he said, adding the airline has benefitted from the overall growth in the aviation market.

IndiGo firming up international flight plan, to add 24 destinations

No-frills carrier IndiGo will expand its flight offerings to include 24 foreign destinations over the next 18 months, a person aware of the development said. The new routes will include 18 shorthaul destinations in the Middle East, Southeast Asia and China, and six longhaul flights to cities in France, Germany, Belgium, the UK and Switzerland, the person cited earlier said, adding that the airline may order dual-aisle aircraft for the purpose.

“The plans for international expansion are firmed up and the airline may order wide-bodied aircraft at the Farnborough air show to be held in July,” the source said, requesting not to be named. An email query to Indigo, the country’s largest carrier by market share, remained unanswered until press time, but a government official confirmed that IndiGo has firmed up plans to launch international operations in a big way, which will be its second phase of expansion. In an interview with ET earlier this month, IndiGo cofounder Rahul Bhatia had said that domestic and international expansion along with addition of new aircraft are the airline’s priority.

Air India records 20% growth in revenue

New Delhi: Air India has recorded a 20 per cent growth in revenue in March-April 2018 and has embarked on a route analysis exercise, focussing on increasing flying hours of each of its aircraft, to add more trips, the airlines chairman-cum-managing director, Pradeep Singh Kharola, said.

The airline is focussing on improving the operational efficiency both in the domestic and international sectors even as it is buoyed over the load factor, on time performance and revenue growth, Kharola told PTI.

"During March-April, the revenue has increased by about 20 per cent as compared to the same period last year at roughly about Rs 3,000 crore, though expenses continue to remain high," he said, adding that the airline has benefitted from the overall growth in the aviation market.

Good news for foreigners visiting India: Get immigration clearance seconds from January; details here

New Delhi: Come January 2019, low-risk foreign travellers will not have to wait in long queues at airport immigration counters as the government plans to install special automated kiosks for speedy document and identity verification. Low-risk travellers from select countries from January 2019 can enter India without standing in long queues at immigration counters as the government has plans to install these automated kiosks, officials said today. These kiosks will ensure smooth entry of foreigners in seconds after verification of antecedents, they said. Electronic gates or e-Gates will be put in place at the arrival wing of international airports where foreigners can present their machine-readable passports, place their fingerprints on the scanner for verification and complete a customs declaration.
Without any human intervention, e-cameras will clear the travellers who present approved biometric. They can then go straight to the baggage claim area after de-boarding the plane and then to the exit, a Home Ministry official told PTI.

E-Gates to give immigration clearance in seconds to citizens of select countries

New Delhi: Come January 2019, low-risk foreign travellers will not have to wait in long queues at airport immigration counters as the Government plans to install special automated kiosks for speedy document and identity verification.

Low-risk travellers from select countries from January 2019 can enter India without standing in long queues at immigration counters as the Government has plans to install these automated kiosks, officials said today.

These kiosks will ensure smooth entry of foreigners in seconds after verification of antecedents, they said.

Low-risk travellers are people who do not have any criminal or financial cases levelled against them.

Jet Airways to connect Tiruchi with Bengaluru

Tiruchi: Domestic movement at Tiruchi international airport is set to soar further with the Jet Airways proposing to start a daily service in the Tiruchi - Bengaluru- Tiruchi sector.

The private airline which already operates flights in the Tiruchi- Chennai - Tiruchi and Tiruchi - Mumbai-Delhi sectors has planned to launch the service to Bengaluru from here on July 1.

Airline sources said the proposed new service to Bengaluru would be operated using an 'ATR'-72 type aircraft. The daily service to the garden city would be operated in the morning.

Govt holds discussions with telcos, airlines on in-flight wi-fi services

The government today held detailed discussions with telecom operators and airlines on framing guidelines for in-flight data and voice services, sources said. The meeting comes within a fortnight of the Telecom Commission, the highest policy making body of Department of Telecom (DoT), clearing a proposal for allowing in-flight connectivity.

Once the guidelines are in place, it would allow travellers to use internet and voice services on mobile phones during flights in the Indian airspace.

Jet Airways To Commence Operations Under RCS

Jet Airways today announced the launch of operations under the ‘Ude Desh ka Aam Naagrik’ (UDAN) scheme.  The airline has been awarded four routes under the Regional Connectivity Scheme (RCS) and will launch operations on three new routes out of the four routes awarded, and will subsequently launch Lucknow-Bareilly-Delhi-Bareilly-Lucknow.

 On the occasion, Gaurang Shetty, Whole time Director, Jet Airways said, “Jet Airways started off with the aim of introducing India to a world class travel experience and connectivity embodied in the ‘joy of flying’. Having pioneered the operations of the ATR aircraft in India, the launch of these new flights mainly onboard ATR aircraft, will allow Jet Airways to embark on a journey to ensure that unserved regions and underserved airports are maximized to their full potential.

Simple in design, new terminal building of airport

Pune:  The new terminal building of the Lohegaon airport will be the simplest in design and segregate the domestic and international flyers completely.
A source told TOI, “The terminal building will be integrated for both domestic and international flyers but there will be different security hold areas for each section. The passengers will be experiencing the kind of facilities available in Delhi and Mumbai airports once the new terminal building is ready.”
The Delhi airport, for example, has three terminal buildings. All of them are integrated for domestic and international flights. But international flyers are completely separated from domestic passengers through a proper system of checks and immigration.

Expedite process for new airport near BBSR

Bhubaneswar: Union Petroleum and Skill Development Minister Dharmendra Pradhan on Saturday wrote to Civil Aviation Minister Suresh Prabhu to expedite the process of identification of land and construction works for the proposed new airport near Bhubaneswar as passenger traffic is growing fast at the Biju Patnaik International Airport (BPIA).

Besides, he demanded that airports at Rourkela and Jeypore be operationalised soon under the UDAN scheme.

“As many as 3.25 million passengers, both domestic and international, flew from the PBIA in 2017-18 which marks a record year over year growth of 39.4 per cent. Thus, there is an urgent need to set up a new airport at Bhubaneswar,” wrote Pradhan.

Vistara, Jet, and IndiGo top customer's preference list

From a delayed flight to a seat with a broken recliner, from a rude staff member to bad food, fliers lash out at airlines on social media with all sorts of complaints. How well and how soon airlines respond to these complaints is crucial. An airline’s quick customer service and on-time performance help fuel positive conversations about the brand online. An exclusive analysis of online chatter about India’s seven largest domestic airlines (according to passengers carried in January-March 2018) by MavenMagnet for ET Magazine decodes how the brands fare in the minds of fliers on a range of parameters.

Indigo to launch flight services from Surat in next couple of months

Surat: After budget carrier AirAsia India, Indigo is all set to launch its flight services from the Diamond City in the next couple of months.
The private airline has submitted an application to the Airports Authority of India (AAI) for space allotment at Surat airport to carry out operations. Also, the airline is believed to have started recruitment of ground staff for handling flight operations at the airport.

Sources said senior airline officials have visited the Diamond City on three occasions and that they seem to have finalized their plan to connect Surat with other sectors. The airline plans to connect Surat with Jaipur, Amritsar, Goa, Chennai, Hyderabad and other destinations.

Now book cheap Jet Airways, Air India, SpiceJet tickets from IRCTC, here's what you should know

Mumbai: After making things easier for train passengers by introducing more flexible options on multiple platforms , the Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corp (IRCTC) has also decided to strengthen it's foothold in the aviation sector by giving best fares in major airlines like Jet Airways, Air India and Air Vistara. Now, through IRCTC, one can book air tickets at the lowest convenience charge of Rs 59, and one can book tickets through mobile apps as well.
On Friday, IRCTC through its Twitter account said, “Get the #best #deals on #flight #tickets when you #travel both within #India and #Abroad! Take your family in full-fledged comfort via the #IRCTCAir app, available for both #iOS & #Android!.”
So, in case if you plan to book an air ticket, here are some few facts you should remember.

Jet Airways (9W), Air India (AI) and Air Vistara (UK) are offered as full service airlines. They offer full services including free in-flight meals.

Navi Mumbai Airport won’t be completed by 2019

There are chances that the under-construction Navi Mumbai International Airport might not be ready by December 2019 as the civil aviation ministry on Thursday said that it will be tough to meet the deadline.

Civil aviation secretary RN Choubey said, “It will be difficult to have the airport ready by 2019, but we’ll try to make it happen.” Chobey was speaking on the sidelines of the US-India aviation summit.

Noida International Airport project to be completed by 2022

New Delhi: The Ministry of Civil Aviation (MoCA) on Tuesday gave in-principle approval to the Uttar Pradesh government to build Noida International Airport at Jewar, a town situated about 100 kms away from New Delhi. This will be the second airport in the Delhi NCR region that will be expected to give relief to the existing airport in Delhi which is bursting at the seams.

The bidding process is likely to start in the first week of July, says Arun Vir Singh, CEO of Yamuna Expressway Industrial Development Authority (YEIDA), the nodal agency for the airport project. "We haven't prepared the bidding document as yet. It is still at the discussion stage. The EoI (expression of interest) document will be floated in the first week of July," he says. The think tank NITI Aayog had prepared a model bid document, and the YEIDA will do tweaking to that document over the next two months.

Indore airport to have ‘Drishti’ system

Indore: Devi Ahilya Bai Holkar Airport will soon have an Aviation Weather Observing System (AWOS) or Meteorological Park for smooth flight operations especially during bad weather conditions.
The Met park will be equipped with a Runway Visibility Range (RVR) equipment which will help flights land even in zero visibility.
Airport director Aryama Sanyal said that RVR, which is also called ‘Drishti’ system, includes a set of visibility sensors and communication device, and it is capable of detecting accurate visibility range to help pilot in safe landing and take-off.

Flights from Mumbai among the most expensive in India

Mumbai: The city has become India’s most expensive to board a flight from. Unlike the country’s other cities, there are hardly any flights out of Mumbai on which last-minute fares aren’t high. If you live in Bengaluru, Rs 2,500 will buy you a one-way air ticket to Goa this weekend. If you’re in Delhi, you could fly to Kolkata for Rs 4,000 or Dehradun for Rs 5,000 on a non-stop flight.

In Chennai, you will get the best international deals as Rs 10,000 would put you on a flight to Singapore, while Rs 15,000 will buy you a ticket to Dubai. If Chennai’s residents believe that the fares are high, they can take solace in that the cheapest fare from Mumbai to Dubai is Rs 20,000, while to Singapore is Rs 30,000.

India’s airports infrastructure set for a big leap! 7 developments that will cheer passengers

Big boost for airports infrastructure! India is a rapidly growing economy, with infrastructure expansion across sectors a key focus area. Be it roadways, railways or aviation, infrastructure forms the backbone of a developing country. As Indian airports continue to rank among the world’s best, the good news is that more and more world-class airports are coming up to meet the growing demand for air travel and also enable regional connectivity through Modi government’s UDAN scheme. The aviation sector of the country set for some massive developments. Many crucial airports across the country will soon undergo a major expansion. Apart from expansion and development of the existing airports, soon new international airports will come up, which will sport world-class features. Interestingly, earlier this year, two international airports of the nation- New Delhi’s Indira Gandhi International Airport and Mumbai’s Chhatrapati Shivaji International Airport became the world’s best, beating many international airports of South Korea, China, Singapore etc.

Ukraine International Airlines initiates Indian delight

Ukraine International Airlines (UIA) introduced the Indian capital of Delhi (DEL) to its network on 1 May, inaugurating a three times weekly service from Kiev Boryspil (KBP). The European carrier will connect the two capital cities using its fleet of 767-300s, with the 4,545-kilometre route presently not flown by another airline. Along with Delhi, UIA also serves the Asian cities of Almaty, Astana, Bangkok, Beijing and Colombo. The carrier also serves multiple destinations in the Middle East. See how Delhi Airport’s FTWA compares to others from around the world.
To Read the News in Full 08/05/18 anna.aero

IndiGo seeks government approval for long-haul routes

Budget carrier IndiGo has sought the government’s clearance to commence operations on long-haul routes to destinations such as Birmingham, London, Milan, and Paris in the next few years.

“The company has been eyeing international network expansion for quite some time and has asked for approval from the Ministry of Civil Aviation,” said a senior IndiGo official on the condition of anonymity.

IndiGo’s promoter Rakesh Gangwal had said last July that the airline was aiming to launch long-haul operations soon. “Our internal work shows that IndiGo is a natural player to take advantage of the significant and lucrative international market opportunity that India offers,” he had said.

PM Modi may inaugurate Pakyong airport in Sikkim

Prime Minister Narendra Modi is expected to commission the strategically important Pakyong airport in Sikkim, sources in the Civil Aviation Ministry have said.

The greenfield airport, close to the capital city of Gangtok, received the aerodrome license from the Directorate General of Civil Aviation last Friday for commercial operations. The formal announcement was made by Civil Aviation Minister Suresh Prabhu through his twitter feed.

"The Ministry is in talks with the PMO and hopefully the PM will inaugurate the airport given its strategic importance and significance," sources in the Ministry said, adding the dates are yet to the finalised.

Air India likely to launch Mumbai-Frankfurt flight from June

State-run carrier Air India is likely to start a direct flight from Mumbai to Frankfurt from June as it seeks to expand its operations to Europe, official sources said.

According to the official sources, the airline would operate thrice a week from the metropolis and depart for Frankfurt in the morning hours.

"We are finalising the slots, and once we are done with it we will make a formal announcement," they said.

The airline currently operates a regular flight on the Delhi-Frankfurt route.

'Foreign airlines could benefit from govt's nod to in-flight internet'

Foreign airlines could be the immediate beneficiaries of the government's recent nod to in-flight voice and data connectivity as the domestic players were not yet equipped for internet services, according to an aviation consultancy firm.

On the pricing issue, a global airline IT solution major feels the price point for domestic flights in India offering voice and data services "will need to be appropriate".

Aviation consultancy firm Centre for Asia Pacific (CAPA) said foreign carriers will be the first to offer onboard connectivity in Indian airspace as domestic carriers were not yet equipped for WiFi.

Airport bags 3rd slot on growth rate route

Pune: The Lohegaon airport has bagged the third slot among 10 facilities in the over 5 million passenger capacity category in terms of the annual growth rate in 2017-18, senior Airports Authority of India (AAI) officials said here on Sunday.
The airport’s growth rate (20.6%) was third after the facilities in Kolkata and Ahmedabad. “Among the 10 airports, Pune is at the 9th place with 8.16 million passengers in 2017-18,” , Pune airport director Ajay Kumar said.
The 10 airports in the category are the ones in Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Cochin, Goa, Ahmedabad, Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata, Chennai and Pune.
When it comes to domestic passengers, the airport recorded a total of 7.89 million passengers in 2017-18 — a growth rate of 21.2%. “Among all the airports, Pune is the only one operating with the ‘Code C’ aircraft. All other facilities are capable of handling bigger aircraft,” Kumar added.
‘Code C’ aircraft have a wingspan of more than 24m but less than 36m. The outer main gear wheel span of such aircraft is more than 6m and less than 9m. Aircraft such as Boeing 737-700, Airbus A-320 and Embraer ERJ 190-100 fall in the ‘Code C’ category. These aircraft cannot carry more than 200 flyers.

Modern infra at airport

Bhubaneswar: The areas surrounding Biju Patnaik International Airport will see an overall development with the housing and urban development department approving the master plan submitted by the airport authorities.

According to the plan, about 54 acres of the airport area will be developed. It includes expansion and beautification projects as well. The Bhubaneswar Development Authority has also amended its comprehensive development plan for the purpose.

Several projects will be taken up in various areas located opposite the domestic terminal near the car parking area. Sources said a three-star hotel, shopping mall and a 4,000-seat convention centre would also be developed in the area.

Jet Airways: 25 years of Indian hospitality in the air

As a corporate traveller, on the road since 2004, there has been one airline I’ve flown more often than any other. That would be Jet Airways. As they complete their 25 years, it is only fitting to reflect how they came to be one of India’s top brand ambassadors abroad. After all, not every day is an airline born, much less, completes 25 years in the business.

My first interaction with the airline happened, indeed in 2004, while I was a young lad fresh out of business school, learning the ropes of frequent flying. I gave an equal opportunity to Air India and Jet Airways back then to win me as a customer, and stuck with the latter. The groundwork for my choice had been laid out by founder Chairman Naresh Goyal, a decade before.

Goyal’s first brush with an airline came right after he left college in 1967, working for his uncle, who would represent various airlines in India. Jet Air, his marketing organisation for various international airlines in India, was his coming into his own in the business when he launched in 1974.

When the government opened up the airline industry to private players, Goyal was one of the first to jump at the opportunity. Jet Airways started operating as an air taxi operator on May 5, 1993, operating their first flight, 9W321, between Mumbai and Ahmedabad. They could fly but not publish a schedule for one and a half years. In 1995, Jet Airways was granted a scheduled airline status after the Air Corporations Act was abolished.