Security Hold Area at Tiruchi airport to be modified

Tiruchi: Airports Authority of India (AAI) has proposed modification of the Security Hold Area in Tiruchi international airport to avoid congestion and increase passenger seating capacity.

Space constraint in the terminal building, especially in the Security Hold Area because of more passenger movements, had prompted the AAI to address the issue, Airport Director B.C.H. Negi said. Once modified, the Security Hold Area would accommodate around 350 passengers, instead of its existing capacity to hold 200 passengers.

Two held, 40 tolas of gold and Rs. 2.50 lakh recovered

Hyderabad:  Forty tolas of gold ornaments and Rs.2.50 lakh in cash were recovered from two persons who were arrested by the Chaderghat police for their alleged involvement in a burglar reported at a businessman’s house in Kaladera in August.

According to the police, Syed Omer (23) and Syed Tariq Mohidduin (21) of Santoshnagar were arrested on January 16 for allegedly planning and taking away one kilogram of gold and other articles from the house of Md Abdul Raheem Khan.

Woman held for gold smuggling at Ahmedabad airport

Ahmedabad:The Air Intelligence Unit of Customs department on held a 38-year old woman for smuggling gold worth Rs 46 lakh at Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel International airport. The Vadodara based woman was caught with 1.6 kg of gold bars and jewellery concealed in her garments and purse.

According to sources, the woman is a first time carrier and chose to enter through Ahmedabad in a bid to escape Customs.

Cloud clears? SpiceJet to get Rs 1,500 cr by 30 April; regulatory approvals could be a breeze

Beleaguered sudget carrier Spicejet will get the equity infusion of Rs 1500 crore by April in 4 tranches, a report in The Economic Times said today citing the revival plan submitted by its saviour Ajay Singh.

The four tranches are as follows: Rs 100 crore on 25 January, Rs 400 crore on 15 February and Rs 500 crore each on 20 March and 30 April. The revival plan has been approved by the civil aviation ministry.

SpiceJet set to run 40% more flights this summer

Crisis-ridden budget carrier SpiceJet, hopeful of fund infusion from investors led by its former director and co-founder Ajay Singh, is likely to increase its flights by 40 per cent to a total of 280 in the coming summer schedule.

The airline had last week announced resumption of bookings for the summer schedule that starts from March 29 and runs till October 24.

Air Asia flight returns after 10 minutes in air

Bengaluru: An Air Asia flight from Bengaluru to Pune took off but had to return after remaining in the air for 10 minutes because of technical issues on Sunday afternoon, triggering panic aboard the aircraft.

Sources in Kempegowda International Airport (KIA) confirmed the incident but claimed that the aircraft was attended to and it left sometime later. CISF sources said there were no security issues and only a technical problem.

Jet Airways, Etihad Airways to celebrate Republic Day with attractive offers

Jet Airways, India's premier international airline, today announced a special offer on its domestic and international networks to mark India’s Republic Day. Etihad Airways, the strategic partner of Jet Airways, will also join the celebrations by extending the offer to guests flying on its network from India to the Middle East, Europe and the United States. The three day special fare offers up to 25 percent discount on prevailing lowest published fare and will be available for sale from January 24, 2015 to January 26, 2015.

Chopper surveillance called off as US objects

Ghaziabad: The Uttar Pradesh government has junked the plan to carry out an aerial surveillance of Ghaziabad and Noida around Republic Day, after permissions were denied in view of the heightened security for US President Barack Obama.

"The plan to use a Pawan Hans helicopter for aerial surveillance of Ghaziabad and Noida has been stalled after US security agencies denied permission," said assistant superintendent of police Vipin Tada.

Etihad alters flight schedule to better connect India and America

Etihad Airways has announced a number of schedule changes to the airline’s flights between its Abu Dhabi hub and Chicago, New York, and Toronto, which will start on Sunday, March 29, 2015.

The airline said move was to provide “convenient schedule options for UAE passengers travelling to North America, enhance overall connectivity for flights to and from the Indian Subcontinent, and establish new connections to key markets such as Dhaka, Kathmandu, and Kolkata”.

Right this way, please

Nepal can look forward to a further boost in tourist arrivals from India following the Indian government’s decision to provide “leave travel concession” to government employees to visit Nepal and other Saarc countries.

Nepal’s tourism industry is naturally agog with anticipation as there are around 2 million government employees down south, and that’s a lot of potential tourists. India is already the largest source market for the country.

Scrap 5/20 rule, reduce taxation to make airlines turnaround

What is 5/20 in Indian civil aviation? Air Corporation Act of 1953 was repealed in 1994 which abolished the monopoly of Indian Airlines and Air India and allowed private airlines to operate in India.

However, Air India maintained its monopoly over international flights as no other airline was allowed to fly abroad. Slowly, domestic airlines led by Jet started demanding that they should also be allowed to go abroad.

Ready to fly, but grounded

Bangalore: Imagine booking air tickets online and preparing to travel home, only to realise a few days before your journey that someone else has cancelled your ticket and used your hard-earned money to book a ticket for himself! This is exactly what happened to techie Rajeev Kumar Singh. He booked tickets online in August by paying Rs 21,000 for a round trip to Ranchi from Bengaluru for February 28 with wife and child. But when he tried to check the status of the flight last Monday, he was shocked to know that his ticket was cancelled by a stranger and another ticket was booked in the name of Shambhu Sinha from Delhi to Patna with his money.

Maharashtra farmer who dreamed of flying starts a school for wannabe gliders

When he was a child, Govind Yewale would watch with wonder as paragliders took off from the Panchgani hills in Satara district of Maharashtra and land in their fields. 

He always wanted to experience for himself what it would be to fly like the birds. 

However, when an European tourist agreed to give him a joyride, Yewale’s flight of fancy took wings and paved the way for him to pursue a career in aviation adventure sports. 

Monkeys enter Chennai airport through roof

Chennai: On Sunday afternoon, passengers at Chennai airport were surprised to see two big monkeys in the departure hall of the domestic terminal.

The monkeys entered the terminal around 3 p.m., through one of the openings in the roof, sources said.

Man Held with Live Bullet

Bhubaneswar: A fruit seller from Cuttack was arrested by the Commissionerate Police for possessing a live bullet here on Sunday.
The accused was identified as Pravat Kumar Debata (30), a resident of Balubazar in Cuttack.