Air India signs code-share agreement with Hong Kong Airlines

Mumbai: Air India, national carrier of India has signed a code-share agreement with Hong Kong Airlines (HKA).
Pankaj Srivastava, commercial director, Air India and Li Dianchun, commercial director, Hong Kong Airlines, signed the agreement at a ceremony at Airlines House, New Delhi.
Under the code-share agreement, HKA will place its code on direct flights operated by Air India between Hong Kong and three cities including Delhi (DEL), Osaka (KIX) and Seoul (ICN) respectively.

Qatar Airways keen on picking up equity stake in IndiGo

Doha: Premier Gulf carrier Qatar Airways, on Monday, said it was keen to acquire a stake in IndiGo ‘if available’, praising the Indian no-frill carrier for its efficiency in containing costs.

The statement came from the Qatari national carrier’s CEO, Akbar Al Baker, when he was asked whether the Gulf airline was keen to pick up stake in the low-cost Indian carrier, which now has the largest market share among all its competitors.

“We are keen to invest in IndiGo, if it (stake) is available. It is the most successful Indian carrier, the most cost-efficiently run Indian carrier and the most progressive one. We, as you know, always like to associate ourselves with success,” Al Baker said at the 70th annual general meeting of the International Air Transport Association (IATA) here. There was no word from IndiGo CEO Aditya Ghosh in response to the messages.

Double standards by US in PAN AM 73 flight incident, HC directs Centre to take action

Chandigarh: The Punjab and Haryana high court has directed the Central government to take up the issue of discrimination by the USA government against Indian victims of 1986 PAN AM 73-hijack case.
The directions, passed on May 29, have come in the wake of a petition filed by Chandigarh resident Aneesh Bhanot whose sister, Neerja Bhanot, a chief purser with Pan Am Airlines, was gunned down by the terrorists who had entered the aircraft posing as Pakistani police personnel carrying arms and hand grenades. Neerja, the country's first woman Ashok Chakra winner, was gunned down when she tried to save three US children from the bullets of the terrorists.
Bhanot had sought directions to the central government to take up the issues pertaining to the safety and security of Indian passengers on-board US airlines in case of a terrorist attack and not allow the USA to abandon the Indians like they did in the case of PAN AM 73. He had also sent a representation to the ministry of civil aviation on January 6, 2014 to take up the issue but no action has been taken.

Security swipe at Priyanka

New Delhi: ior home minister Kiren Rijiju today wondered why Priyanka Gandhi Vadra was trying to “politicise security issues”, days after she sought to pre-empt the BJP-led regime by requesting that the exemptions from checks her family enjoys at airports be withdrawn.

Rijiju’s contention came on a day CISF officials claimed the exemption Priyanka’s husband Robert Vadra enjoys from frisking related only to “privilege” and had nothing to do with security.

Rijiju didn’t name Priyanka but left no doubt whom he was referring to. “One should not politicise security issues. I have failed to understand why someone is trying to score a political brownie point. Security does not depend on the whims and fancies of any individual,” he said.

Emirates to ask new Indian gov't for more landing rights

Emirates Airline will imminently ask the new Indian government to increase the carrier's seat capacity to the Asian nation, CEO Tim Clark has revealed.
UAE airlines are continuously fighting for more access to India, which provides about 900,000 workers to the Gulf country.
The previous Indian government had long restricted landing rights but it was replaced in May by new right wing Prime Minister Narenda Modi, who has a track record of economic reforms.
Clark told Arabian Business he would move swiftly to "again bang the drum" for Emirates to have greater flying rights.
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AirAsia India 'illegal', FIA turns to Narendra Modi govt to scrap permit

Claiming that the approvals granted to AirAsia India were "illegal", Federation of Indian Airlines (FIA) has asked the Narendra Modi government to advise aviation regulator DGCA not to allow the new no-frill airline to launch its operations which is set for June 12.
"It is our request that the government advise the DGCA not to permit AirAsia India to proceed to fly, that too with merely one aircraft with the sole intent of making the decision (to let them fly) a fait accompli and difficult for the government to review," FIA, a grouping of Indian carriers, said in a letter to Finance Minister Arun Jaitley.

AirAsia offers 10,000 seats more at Rs 5

Mumbai: AirAsia’s Rs 5 basic fare offer has triggered competition and criticism from rivals, with market leader IndiGo launching a Rs 1 basic fare on AirAsia’s inaugural routes and SpiceJet Chief Operating Officer Sanjiv Kapoor questioning the silence of the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) on the price war.

On Friday night, AirAsia said it was offering 15,000 tickets at a basic fare of Rs 5 on the Bangalore-Goa and Bangalore-Chennai sectors. In reaction, IndiGo launched its Rs 1 basic fare on these routes. The fares of both exclude taxes and fees. An all-inclusive fare on the Bangalore-Goa route works to Rs 490.

Gloves off between AirAsia’s Tony Fernandes and desi carriers

New Delhi: Just days ahead of AirAsia India Pvt Ltd's (AAIPL) launch, a full-blown battle has broken out between the budget carrier's chief Tony Fernandes and the rest of Indian carriers represented by the Federation of Indian Airlines (FIA). Fernandes tweeted on Saturday night: "Some airlines scared of us. We must be doing something write. Help us people of India. Don't let cartels win and not let ordinary man fly."

Air India to go to Modi with lifeline proposal

New Delhi: State-owned Air India is likely to seek permission from the new government of Prime Minister Narendra Modi to raise Rs 10,000 crore through an issue of tax-free bonds in the current financial year.

The airline is additionally seeking immediate cash infusion of Rs 3,000 crore to repay loans it had taken last year to clear dues to vendors, in the event of a shortfall in the equity infusion earlier promised by the government.

Jet Airways may lease three planes to Etihad Airways

Mumbai: Naresh Goyal-promoted Jet Airways is likely to lease three of its Boeing 777-300 ERs to its equity partner Etihad Airways after they return from Turkish Airlines later this year, according to sources.
Jet was earlier planning to induct these wide-bodied planes, which are on lease with Turkish Airlines and will be coming back by October this year on completion of the lease period.
However after Etihad’s proposal, it shelved the plan, they said.
“Jet Airways wanted these three Boeing planes to be put on its international network. However, Etihad requested Jet to lease out these planes to them as it wants them to deploy for its overseas network, which is under consideration,” a source said.

Air India posts staff abroad for ghost flights

New Delhi: Notwithstanding the accumulated loss of  Rs.33,200 crore it has piled up, the perpetually sick Air India has posted an absurd number of staff at foreign stations like New York, Paris, London and in many other Gulf countries. It has on its rolls highly- paid staffers at cities in the US and Canada, even at the stations where it does not operate any flight. AI has 53 foreign stations of which 24 are offline, where the carrier does not have flights.
The carrier has close to 100 employees in America, and an equal number of agents and handlers to oversee its limited operations.

IATA meet to focus on MH370 disappearance, financial stress

Doha: Continuous tracking of aircraft following the mysterious disappearance of MH370, carbon- neutral air travel and financial stress hitting the airline industry would be the focus of debate among global aviation chiefs at the IATA meet starting here tomorrow.
At the three-day International Air Transport Association's (IATA) 70th Annual General Meeting and World Air Transport Summit, heads of over 300 airlines, aircraft manufacturers and other related organisations, would also deliberate on issues like the "economic shock" hitting the industry, high taxation and burgeoning fuel costs.

FAA downgrade: US to fund India’s efforts to boost air safety standards

New Delhi: The US government will fund India’s efforts to upgrade its air safety standards, five months after the country saw its safety rating downgraded to category 2 by the US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA).
India has decided to opt for a bilateral assistance programme from the United States Trade and Development Agency (USTDA), under which private sector consultant, The Wicks Group PLLC (TWG), is being hired to monitor the country’s air safety preparedness.
Two officials in the ministry of civil aviation told FE that the regulator Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) will start work with Washington-based TWG for a one-year contract starting Monday.

Naik should solve airport crisis: Travel and Tourism Association of Goa

Panaji: Solving Goa's 'airport crisis' should be top priority for Union minister of state for tourism Shripad Naik, say stakeholders.
Preparing for their first meeting with the minister on Sunday, management of the Travel and Tourism Association of Goa will urge Naik to address the "poor infrastructure and shoddy services" that air passengers are smacked with at Dabolim airport's new terminal building. They also have a suggestion for the old terminal building-hand it over to budget airline Air Asia, for its Goa hub.

SpiceJet welcomes AirAsia with fresh fare war

New Delhi: Even before AirAsia India takes to the skies from June 12, a fare war in anticipation of the tough competition the new player will bring has already started. On Thursday, a day before AirAsia India opened its ticket sales, the country’s second-largest low-cost carrier (LCC) SpiceJet announced discounted fares starting Rs 1,499, for exactly the same two routes that the new airline will start with — Bangalore-Goa and Bangalore-Chennai, sources said.
What is even more interesting is that the offer is for travel starting June 12, exactly the same day that AirAsia starts operations. SpiceJet, in fact, has not kept a closing date for the offer, which is a departure from previous sales and which means that one can effectively book tickets at discounted fares for the routes valid for travel till the end of the year.