Category Archives: Aviation

Vistara has announced a significant network expansion with the addition of 62 new flights to and from Mumbai and Delhi. These new flights represent an over 50% increase in the size of the airline’s network, with 170 flights a day across 24 destinations operated by a fleet of 23 Airbus A320 and 6 Boeing 737-800NG aircraft. With the addition of 62 new flights, Vistara will now operate direct flights from Mumbai to 10 cities, adding Ahmedabad, Chandigarh, Chennai and Varanasi to the six other cities it already flies to from Mumbai, namely Amritsar, Bengaluru, Delhi, Goa, Hyderabad and Kolkata. Additionally, Vistara has increased its daily frequency on the Mumbai – Kolkata sector from 1x to 3x; Mumbai – Goa from 1x to 2x; Mumbai – Bengaluru from 5x to 6x; Mumbai – Hyderabad from 1x to 3x; Delhi – Chandigarh from 2x to 4x; Delhi – Guwahati from 1x to 2x; Delhi – Amritsar from 1x to 2x; Delhi – Kolkata from 3x to 4x; and Delhi – Bengaluru from 5x to 6x daily.

The Cochin International Airport will suspend daytime operations starting November 6, 2019 to March 28, 2020, owing to maintenance works and recarpeting. There would no flight services from 10 am till 6 pm during the five-month period at the airport. Right now, around 31 domestic services and seven international flights take off from Kochi in these hours, and the same number of flights land in Kochi during the daytime. Otherwise The runway would however would carry on operations as usual from 6pm till the next day morning. The airline companies have been asked to change the flight timings accordingly.

Malaysia Airlines Berhad (MAB) has appointed InterGlobe Air Transport (IGAT) as its General Sales Agent (GSA) for the territory of India, revealed Sunil Talreja, Vice President- International Passenger Sales, InterGlobe Air Transport. IGAT will be supporting MAB at their town office to facilitate customer flight bookings and other reservation matters. MAB operates 60 weekly flights from India with online operations from Bangalore, Delhi, Chennai, Cochin, Hyderabad and Mumbai.

The Jammu & Kashmir government has said that the Kargil Airport will be developed into a full-fledged airport for commercial flight operations. According to an official spokesperson, BVR Subrahmanyam, Chief Secretary, Jammu & Kashmir government held a meeting in New Delhi with Union Secretary, Civil Aviation and other Airport Authority of India (AAI) officials including Member Planning, AAI for development of existing Kargil Airport for full operation of commercial flights including Boeing, Airbus, etc. The MoU with AAI is expected to be signed by July, 15. The foundation stone for the extension of the runway is expected to be laid by the end of August, which will kick start commencement of other works. Governor’s Administration is keen to develop Kargil Airport into a full-fledged Commercial Airport for transforming Kargil into a tourist hub on the analogy of Leh, thereby, expanding opportunities for gainful employment of the youth of Ladakh region. It will also ensure assured air connectivity to the region during the winter months when passes to Ladakh region remain cut off from the rest of the State/country due to heavy snowfall and inclement weather. (Source: UNI)

Air France, the French flag carrier, will welcome the revamped travel cabins on board Airbus A330 on the Bengaluru – Paris route effective June 18 and effective June 28, on the Delhi–Paris route. The aircraft is equipped with 36 seats in Business, 21 seats in Premium Economy and 167 seats in the Economy cabin. Customers will be able to experience the comfort of these cabins on flights to Paris-Charles de Gaulle from Bengaluru and Delhi until end of October 2019. Speaking about this enhancement, Mr. Jean – Noel Rault, General Manager, Air France – KLM, Indian Sub-Continent said, “This latest revamped offering from Air France is a testament of our commitment to provide best in class products and services to our customers in India. The new long-haul travel cabins are refreshing and will provide our valued customers with improved amenities making their travel experience more comfortable and satisfying.”

With an aim to provide world-class facilities to the passengers keeping in mind their needs, MIAL has launched an additional relax and dining facility – Oasis Lounge at its domestic terminal, T1-B, Departures. Managed and operated by Lite Bite Foods (LBF), the lounge is specially designed for stopover fliers waiting for their connecting or delayed flights, and is available for passengers travelling throughout the day. The airport reaches out to 52 domestic destinations in India, thus, realizing the needs of the passengers, the decision to launch the lounge was after an internal study conducted by the airport officials after witnessing a CAGR 7.1% domestic passenger growth in the 2018-19. Understanding that travel can be overwhelming for many, the lounge provides a perfect getaway for passengers looking to relax, unwind and yet experience luxurious dining at a reasonable price. In alignment with the detailing at the international airport, the lounge at Terminal 1-B is designed in a beautifully soft, yet rich multihued interior, with spacious couches, and intricate design. The lounge has a capacity to accommodate 45 patrons at one given point, but it is also efficient to accommodate 200 travellers during peak hours.

IndiGo will introduce 12 ATR flights on the Buddhist circuit, which would include daily non-stop ATR flights between Kolkata, Gaya and Varanasi. Starting August 8, 2019, IndiGo will commence flight operations on Kolkata – Gaya, Kolkata – Patna, Kolkata – Varanasi and Gaya – Varanasi routes along with additional frequency on Kolkata – Varanasi route. Bookings are already open for these routes, with fares starting at INR 1499. William Boulter, Chief Commercial Officer, IndiGo said, “As a part of our endeavour to enhance domestic connectivity, our ATR fleet helps us serve regional operations efficiently. We are delighted to have launched these flights on the Buddhist circuit, which not only provide more travel options to customers, but also enable people to come closer to Indian history and spirituality. These flights will also help attract new tourist arrivals from around South East Asia, where IndiGo is adding a number of new routes into Kolkata over the next few months, including services from Vietnam, Hong Kong and China. With the introduction of these flights, we will continue to provide flexibility of choice to our customers with a consistent on-time, affordable, courteous and hassle-free flying experience.”

The Airports Authority of India (AAI) who manages 125 airports in the country, has made 35 of its airports single-use plastic free while 20 more will soon follow the suit. The state-run airport operator has declared Indore, Bhopal, Ahmedabad, Bhubaneswar, Tirupati, Trichy, Kolkata, Varanasi, Chennai, Patna, Coimbatore, Ranchi, Trivandrum, Goa, Lucknow, Vijayawada, Dehradun, Chandigarh, Vadodara, Madurai, Raipur, Vizag, Pune, Udaipur, Srinagar, Imphal, Jammu, Mangalore, Amritsar, Port Blair, Guwahati, Bagdogra, Agartala, Calicut and Jaipur, single-use plastic-free terminals. “On the basis of a third-party assessment carried out by Quality Council of India, 35 airport terminals have been declared as single-use plastic-free,” an AAI official said. Under the second phase, a total of 20 airports have been identified, namely Gaya, Rajkot, Jodhpur, Gorakhpur, Leh, Surat, Aurangabad, Rajamundhry, Dibrugarh, Jorhat, Dimapur, Silchar, Belgaum, Jabalpur, Tuticorin, Bhuj, Kangra, Jamnagar, Allahabad, among others. A third party assessment will be conducted by Quality Council of India to ensure compliance. Souce: CNBC-TV18

About 39 per cent of Indians do most of their travel planning during weekends, which is higher than the regional average of 32 per cent, according to Amadeus’ Journey of Me Insights report. This is followed by other options like 24 per cent during holidays, 17 per cent after work on weekdays and 13 per cent while at work . Only 7 per cent of respondents plan their travel while commuting from one place to another, the report said.

IndiGo is set to enter the China market by launching new flight between Delhi and Chengdu, which will become the airline’s  19th international destination. This will be the first non-stop service between Chengdu to India, and will be effective from September 15, 2019. The aircraft on the route would be an Airbus 320, with a capacity of 180 seats. William Boulter, Chief Commercial Officer, IndiGo said, “This is truly a milestone moment for all of us at IndiGo. “India is witnessing a much higher growth rate with respect to aviation and currently the India-China route is underserved by Indian carriers. With our plan to operate non-stop daily flights to this Chengdu we are providing the much needed connectivity between the two destinations. China is a market with immense potential and holds prominent trade, cultural and tourism values. We hope to further strengthen this relation by announcing our entry into China.”