Category Archives: Aviation

The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs, chaired by Narendra Modi has given its approval for extension of time and scope for revival and development of un-served and under-served air strips of State Governments, Airports Authority of India (AAI), Civil enclaves, CPSUs, helipads and water aerodromes at the total cost of Rs.4500 crore with the budgetary support of Government of India. As an outcome, small cities/towns shall be connected on commencement of operation of flights to under-served/un-served airports and it will further boost the economic development in these as well as surrounding areas in terms of job creation and related infrastructure development.

On the occasion of International Women’s Day, Air India is all set to ply 40 of its domestic and 12 international flights with an all-women crew. “Air India is set to fly 12 all-women crew flights on its medium and long-haul international routes and over 40 return domestic and short-haul flights all over India to celebrate the International Women’s Day on March 8 this year,” Air India said in a statement. Air India will deploy its B787 Dreamliners and B777s aircraft to operate the aforementioned 12 international flights. Women pilots and cabin crew will be operating Airbus family aircraft as well as dreamliners to over 40 domestic destinations and back to commemorate the occasion,” the airline added. On the ocassion, Ashwini Lohani, Chairman and Managing Director, Air India said, “I would like to congratulate our women crew for operating so many flights on various international and domestic routes fuelled by their indomitable ”nari shakti” (women power).” (With inputs from PTI)

According to The International Air Transport Association, air transport makes a significant economic contribution to India. In 2010, 79 million people travelled to/from/or within India. By 2017 that doubled to 158 million. That number is expected to treble to 520 million by 2037. Aviation in India supports 7.5 million jobs: 390,000 directly, 570,000 in the value chain, and 6.2 million in tourism. Aviation contributes some US$30 billion annually to India’s GDP.

The focus on LCC model is expected to only get sharper in the coming years, according to a report on Indian aviation commissioned by FICCI and Deloitte. It is expected that few airlines would even try out the newer Ultra-Low Cost Carrier (ULCC) model that has seen some traction in USA, the biggest domestic market of the world. They could offer absolute stripped-down travel, itemising ticket prices to the services included. Industry experts are even talking about Hybrid and Low-Cost Long-Haul (LCLH) business models. With lower cost of operations due to the waiving off of most airport charges on RCS (Regional Connectivity Scheme) routes, the ULCC model may be the newest paradigm for the industry in India. This would indeed help make air travel more affordable to the country’s millions.

The Airports Authority of India (AAI) has signed an MoU with the Uttar Pradesh government for taking over the development and operation of Kushinagar Airport. The MoU was signed by Surya Pal Gangwar, Special Secretary, Civil Aviation, Government of Uttar Pradesh and GD Gupta, ED (Planning), AAI in New Delhi in the presence of Guruprasad Mohapatra, Chairman, AAI and senior officials of AAI. Kushinagar Airport is located at a distance of 50 Kms from Gorakhpur in Uttar Pradesh. It is an important destination on the Buddhist Circuit for devotees visiting from all over the world. AAI has agreed to take over the existing non-operational airport at Kushinagar spread over an area of 589 acres along with existing infrastructure like the runway, apron etc. for its development and operationalisation to enhance air connectivity in the region. Bids have been received for the operation of flights to Lucknow and Gaya from Kushinagar under UDAN-3.

The Indian civil aviation industry is set to attract an additional $250 billion by 2040, according to a latest report by CAPA India. The industry has attracted cumulative investments of $48 billion during the last 15 years. Over 90 per cent of incremental investments are expected on aircraft acquisition and airport development. By FY2040, India is expected to see its fleet increase by around 2500 aircraft and the construction of more than 50 new airports. Combined with investment in ancillary services such as ground handling, MRO and training, Indian aviation will require up over USD250 billion of capital expenditure over this period.

The GVK-led Mumbai International Airport Limited (MIAL) has been awarded the Best Airport by size and region in over 40 million passenger category by the Airport Council International (ACI) World. The accolade was in recognition of excellence in customer experience in the Asia-Pacific region. The award ceremony will be held at the second ASQ Forum & ACI Customer Experience Global Summit that will take place from September 2 – 5 in Bali, Indonesia. Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport (CSMIA)has been a pioneer in introducing technological advancements for passengers by launching fully-automated check-in process, generating boarding pass and baggage tag through ‘Common Use Self Service (CUSS)’ kiosks. It also introduced the Surface Awareness and Guidance at Airport (SAGA) and implemented paperless boarding for all domestic airlines operating via T2 amongst many other firsts, making it a smart-digital airport for the convenience of its air travellers. CSMIA is also the first of the airports in the country to release the sustainability report on activities undertaken by the airport.

SpiceJet has partnered with Amadeus to sell services and fares on its extensive global travel agency network. This is the first time that SpiceJet is working with a distribution partner. By connecting to travellers through the world’s largest community of travel sellers and buyers, the airline will be able to showcase its products on a global scale, access new markets and partners, and grow its customer base. This partnership offers travellers the opportunity to choose how, where and when to buy travel, which is a basic travel need today and such a distribution deal allows them to compare value instead of just price in the shopping process. Ajay Singh, Chairman and Managing Director, SpiceJet, said, “I am delighted to announce our new partnership with Amadeus which will help SpiceJet reach new customers both within and outside India. SpiceJet is in the midst of its most exciting growth phase and I am sure that this new distribution network will enable a large number of customers to connect with our huge domestic and growing international network.” Cyril Tetaz, Executive Vice President, Airlines, Amadeus, Asia Pacific said, “With our partnership including distribution and IT solutions, we are very proud to support SpiceJet in its growth in India and beyond. SpiceJet will be able to differentiate its offers and empower travelers with the transparency and customization they need through our global travel network.”

SpiceJet has announced that it will be connecting Hyderabad with Colombo along with the launch of 11 other new direct flights on domestic routes from March 31 onwards. The Hyderabad-Colombo route, the first by any domestic carrier, will commence from April 15 and operate on all days except Tuesdays and Wednesdays, said the budget carrier in a statement. “Our new flight to Colombo reinforces our commitment to strengthening the network between India and Sri Lanka. We see tremendous potential in this sector for both leisure and business travelers,” said Shilpa Bhatia, Chief Sales and Revenue Officer, SpiceJet. Expanding its footprint on the UDAN routes, SpiceJet will launch services on six new flights on the Kishangarh-Ahmedabad, Lakhimpur-Guwahati and Jaipur-Amritsar routes. With this announcement, the budget carrier became the first operate to fly between Hyderabad and Colombo and between Chennai and Patna. With the launch of its services between Hyderabad and Colombo, SpiceJet will connect the Sri Lankan capital with three direct flights from India, the release said. It currently connects the city with single daily frequencies from Chennai and Madurai each.

Ratnagiri Airport, a defence airport as on date, is all set to start civil air operations soon. An MoU is being signed between Airport Authority of India and Maharashtra Industrial Development Corporation (MIDC) on March 5, 2019, which will facilitate in activating Ratnagiri Airport for Regional Connectivity Scheme operations under UDAN scheme of Ministry of Civil Aviation. The MoU stipulates AAI to provide all support for activation of the airport including CNS/ATM services, and MIDC to provide infrastructure for handling of aircrafts and passengers such as building passenger terminal, apron and taxiway for commencing RCS operations. Union Civil Aviation Minister Suresh Prabhu has been speaking with all stakeholders such as the Ministry of Defence, the Maharashtra State Government and the Airport Authority of India to make Ratnagiri airport a civilian airport. Speaking on the MoU, the Minister said: “We are fully committed to start air operations from Ratnagiri at the earliest. Bids under UDAN 3.1 have already been invited for operations for Ratnagiri-Mumbai-Ratnagiri sector. In order to speed up the work of construction of civil terminal and establishing navigation facilities, AAI is ready to work with MIDC and an MoU is being signed between AAI and MIDC in this regard on 5th March, 2019. We fully support and are committed to early operationalization of both Sindhudurg and Ratnagiri airports to boost tourism and economy of the Konkan Region”.