Civil aviation ministry clearance for flights to Dubai, Bangkok from Chandigarh

Chandigarh:  The ministry of civil aviation on Thursday gave clearance to start international flights from Chandigarh for Dubai and Bangkok. This decision was taken by the Union civil aviation minister Ashok Gajapathi Raju Pusapati during a meeting held with Punjab chief minister Parkash Singh Badal in New Delhi. Sources said the minister for civil aviation confirmed to Punjab CM that Indigo, Spice Jet and UAE airlines had been given permission to operate their international flights from Chandigarh to Dubai and Bangkok in near future. The Union minister also expressed that new flights would cater to major rush from Punjab, Himachal Pradesh, Chandigarh and Haryana, who have to go to Delhi, saving their time, money and energy.

Super-saver Gajapathi Raju puts ministry in power-save mode

New Delhi: His job may be to take care of Indian skies, but aviation minister P Ashok Gajapathi Raju's has shown equal concern for mother earth. The erstwhile royal of Vizinagaram in Andhra Pradesh is getting a master power switch installed in his office chamber at the ministry headquarters, Rajiv Gandhi Bhavan, so that the minute he walks out, this is turned off and no lights remain on inside unnecessarily.

The minister wants to set an example for others and the move is going to be replicated in offices of all departments that come under the ministry nationwide. "We have seen that people are in the habit of keeping lights, ACs, TVs, computers and other electronics switched on even when they are not in their rooms or when they are not required.

Aviation ministry to press for airlines' direct import of fuel

New Delhi: The ministry of civil aviation is to recommend that oil marketing companies be asked to share their infrastructure with airlines, to facilitate direct import by the latter of aviation turbine fuel (ATF).

Such direct import was formally allowed in February 2012 but the aviation companies lack the infrastructure to do so. A senior official at the ministry said, “We are looking at measures by means of which oil companies can share their infrastructure for transporting the fuel. This can be done at an agreed cost.”

Fuel costs are half the operational expenses of an airline in India. The value added tax on ATF ranges from four per cent to 30 per cent, depending on the sales tax levied by a state. If an airline can import fuel directly, it would only have to pay customs and countervailing duties, saving on state levies.

Civil Aviation Ministry to develop low-cost airports

Hyderabad:  The Civil Aviation Ministry plans to set up a string of low-cost airports in the country to improve regional air connectivity.
The Director-General of Civil Aviation Arun Mishra said the Ministry was in the process of drawing up an action plan to develop such airports at strategic locations. There are 463 airports and airstrips across the country, some of which could be developed into low-cost airports with reasonable investments, he said at a special session at the World Travel and Tourism Council meet here today.
“These will be no-frills airports — something like a school gymnasium, with perhaps no air-conditioning also. These will be structured in such a way that there will be no parking or landing charges for airlines. The respective State Governments will be investing in security and other passenger amenities,” he said.
Mishra, however, said one challenge would be the lack of adequate smaller aircraft.
Read News In full 14/09/13 Business Line

DGCA to be replaced by Civil Aviation Authority

New Delhi: A bill to replace the DGCA by a new aviation regulator, the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA), with full operational and financial autonomy is likely to be tabled in the upcoming Monsoon Session of Parliament.

Jet-Etihad deal fiasco: What it means for Jet

Mumbai: The secrecy behind the Jet-Etihad deal and the way it was announced within moments of seat enhancement agreement signed between the two countries had the stink of controversy. And you do not need a canine’s ability to smell a controversy in this deal.