Mangaluru airport may be shifted to improve facilities

Bengaluru: Mangaluru airport may be shifted from the existing hilltop. The state government is planning a feasibility study for an alternative site between Udupi and Mangaluru for the development of a new airport. Large and Medium Scale Industries Minister R V Deshpande informed this in the council in reply to a query raised by Ganesh Karnik of BJP.

He said that they are also examining the possibility of extension of runway with an extent of 33 acres of land for the critical mandatory requirement for safe landing at the existing airport.

Ranchi to get 2 new flights to B'luru, Kolkata in July

Talking to media persons at the State BJP headquarters here on Friday, Union Minister of State for Civil Aviation added that a revolution is yet to come in the field of regional connectivity as works are already on to promote intra-State connectivity in all the States.

 "Two more flight services of Indigo Airlines will be started from this July for Kolkata and Bengaluru making a total count of flights from Ranchi to 21 which was only 9 two years back," said Sinha. Efforts are also being made to connect Raipur and Bhubaneswar from Ranchi by starting two more flights from here, he added.

 Sinha further said that works were being done on war footage to promote intra-state connectivity in all states, including Jharkhand.

No fresh plane order till clarity on privatisation: Air India

Guwahati: National carrier Air India today said it will not place any order for new aircraft till there is clarity on its future course, including possible privatisation.

The airline, however, said all the existing orders will be respected and new aircraft are being added to the fleet.

"Whatever has been ordered in the past, that is there," Air India Chairman and Managing Director Ashwani Lohani told reporters here, adding that no fresh orders will be placed right now.
Ordering of new planes is a long-term process by Air India and it usually takes 6-9 months, he added.

Asked how long the company would go without placing fresh orders, Lohani said: "We do not know. We have to keep on running the airline. There is no decision on that."
He, however, denied reports that some old orders have been cancelled.
To Read the News in Full 10/06/17 PTI/Economic Times

Civil Aviation Ministry launches DigiYatra for air passengers

The Ministry of Civil Aviation is adding digital experience for air travellers through its DigiYatra platform, a new initiative to ease the security and boarding procedure which will use Aadhaar card or passport number and a digital mode to verify passengers.

The ?DigiYatra? is an industry-led initiative co-ordinated by the ministry in line with the Prime Minister Narendra Modi?s Digital India?s vision to transform the nation into a digitally empowered society.

This follows Air Sewa which brings together all the stakeholders on a common platform for handling customer grievances and disseminating real-time data.

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.

Vellore airport plan to take off soon

Vellore: With Hosur, Salem and Neyveli covered in the first phase of the Central government’s scheme — UDAN (Ude Desh ka Aam Naagrik) — that promotes regional air connectivity, residents of Vellore are waiting for their turn to get an airport. However, there is good news as sources say that an airport will definitely be established at Abdullapuram and initial works have taken off.

An airport has been a long-felt need for Vellore residents. Home to Christian Medical College (CMC), VIT University, Golden Temple and numerous leather industries, the district has frequent fliers, who have been going all the way to the airports in Chennai and Bengaluru to catch flights.

Strict action for not refunding taxes, levies on cancelled flight tickets: Aviation minister Gajapathi Raju

Mumbai: Aviation minister Ashok Gajapathi Raju today warned airlines and travel portals of "strict action" if they did not refund taxes and levies to passengers for the cancelled tickets.

Civil Aviation minister Ashok Gajapathi Raju, in a series of tweets, said the practice of not refunding taxes and levies to passengers for a cancelled ticket was "against" the existing DGCA regulations and that he had received several complaints in this regard.

Special SpiceJet flight from Bagdogra for stranded tourists

New Delhi: Low-cost carrier SpiceJet will operate a special flight from Bagdogra to Kolkata tomorrow for tourists stranded in Darjeeling after violent protest erupted in the hills yesterday.

The airline will deploy its Q400 aircraft for this special flight which can accommodate 78 passengers.

The special flight SG9371 will fly from Kolkata at 4.55 pm on June 10 and will arrive at Bagdogra at 6.15 pm. The return flight would depart Bagdogra at 18.35 hrs and arrive in Kolkata at 19.55 hrs, SpiceJet said in a statement.
The distance between Bagdogra and Darjeeling is nearly 60 kms.

This special flight will be in addition to a direct flight operated daily on this route by SpiceJet.
To Read the News in Full 09/06/17 PTI/New Indian Express

Air India making profits in N-E; plans Guwahati-Bangkok flight

Guwahati: Air India's operations in north- east are profitable with a market share of 17 per cent and it is now looking to expand presence in the region, including a direct Guwahati-Bangkok flight, a top official said today.

"Some of our routes are not very profitable in north-east and has less occupancy. But we get a viability gap funding from the NEC. So, overall our operations are profitable in NE," Air India Chairman and MD Ashwani Lohani told reporters here.

The company received a funding of Rs 35 crore from the North Eastern Council (NEC) during 2016-17 to operate flights to loss making routes in the region, he added. Lohani said the state-run carrier operates 24 flights daily to and fro north-east and is currently enjoying a market share of 17 per cent in the region against the pan-India share of 13-14 per cent.

Aadhaar, PAN or passport must for booking flight tickets soon

New Delhi: Soon, you will need to provide an identity card while buying an air ticket. The Civil Aviation Ministry will frame regulations which would make it mandatory for a passenger to provide his identity card number while booking a flight.

Air travellers are already required to carry a copy of their identity card while entering an airport. Now, a digital unique identification such as Aadhaar, PAN (Permanent Account Number), Passport Number is being proposed for air passengers, Minister of State for Civil Aviation Jayant Sinha said. This is part of the initiatives that the ministry is undertaking to use technology in order to make airport check-in seamless and formation of a no-fly list.

Pune airport gets nightlife

The Pune international airport is expanding its operations by increasing the number of flights and developing its infrastructure. For the first time in the last four years, the Airports Authority of India (AAI), along with the airlines, has introduced seven new flights scheduled between 10.30 pm and 6 am. All of this has taken place in the last one month.
Seeing the changing trends of people travelling from Pune as per a recent survey by the AAI, which showed that most passengers prefer to travel during the night, all of these will be direct flights to various destinations which include Kolkata, Kochi, Bangalore, Delhi and Hyderabad.

To accommodate the increasing number of passengers, AAI is also building 12 new checkin counters inside the main terminus. Also, security arrangements will be enhanced considering the increasing in number of passengers during the night.

Mangaluru airport may be shifted to improve facilities

Bengaluru: Mangaluru airport may be shifted from the existing hilltop. The state government is planning a feasibility study for an alternative site between Udupi and Mangaluru for the development of a new airport. Large and Medium Scale Industries Minister R V Deshpande informed this in the council in reply to a query raised by Ganesh Karnik of BJP.

He said that they are also examining the possibility of extension of runway with an extent of 33 acres of land for the critical mandatory requirement for safe landing at the existing airport.

Kovai, Tiruchy and Madurai airports to be upgraded

Chennai: Regional airports in the State are to be expanded by acquiring lands to cater to wide-bodied aircraft, according to Airports Authority of India Chairman Guruprasad Mohapatra.

He said plans are on to acquire 300 acres for Coimbatore, 450 acres for Tiruchy airport and 400 to 600 acres for Madurai airport for the expansion plans.

The main plan to acquire more land is to ensure wide-bodied aircraft can land in these airports. “We are planning to operate Boeing B-747 and B-777, Airbus A-330 and other wide-bodied aircraft under Code E in these airports,” Mohapatra said.

Tiruchi airport to tap solar power

Tiruchi: The Airports Authority of India (AAI) has decided go green by tapping solar energy for power requirements at the fast growing Tiruchi international airport to the extent possible to cut down mounting power bills in the long run. The plan is to establish a Roof Top Grid Connected 140 kWp Solar Photo Voltaic Power Plant at an estimated cost of ₹97.08 lakh at the Tiruchi airport which has been witness to rising passenger and freight traffic over the years.

The AAI has already set the process in motion by floating tender for the design, supply, installation, testing and commissioning of solar power plant at the airport which has direct connectivity to select destinations in South and South East Asia and West Asia.

SpiceJet launches direct flights on four new routes

New Delhi:  Low-cost carrier SpiceJet on Thursday announced the launch of direct flights on four routes, including the first, by any airline, linking Jaipur and Guwahati.
From July 1, the airline will operate a direct flight on three routes - Hyderabad-Jaipur-Hyderabad; Jaipur-Guwahati- Jaipur; and Hyderabad-Chandigarh-Hyderabad.
A direct flight on Delhi-Patna-Delhi route will also commence from July 10. The airline will operate its Boeing 737-800 aircraft on all these routes.
SpiceJet said in a statement that it is the first airline to start a direct flight between Jaipur and Guwahati.
To Read the News in Full 08/06/17 PTI/Times of India