Category Archives: Aviation

Oman Air has been awarded the 2024 Five-Star Major Airline rating by the Airline Passenger Experience Association (APEX) for the fourth consecutive year. The APEX Five Star and Four Star Airline Awards, formerly APEX Official Airline Ratings™, were created based on neutral, third-party passenger feedback and insights gathered through APEX’s partnership with TripIt from Concur, the world’s highest-rated travel-organising app. Nearly one million flights were rated by passengers across more than 600 airlines from around the world using a five-star scale, and are independently certified by a professional external auditing company. The award is the latest in a string of accolades Oman Air has received from APEX, including the 2022 Passenger Choice Award® for Best Seat Comfort in the Middle East, as well as the Five-Star Major Airline rankings for 2023, 2022 and 2021. The airline was also recently named ‘Best Airline Staff in the Middle East’ at the Skytrax 2023 World Airline Awards, a testament to its unwavering commitment to setting new benchmarks for guest experience, year on year.

The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) has pulled up Air India for the second time in less than 18 months for not providing adequate facilities to passengers who were denied boarding. The aviation regulator has stated that it has issued a show cause notice to Air India after their inspections revealed that the airline, yet again, did not facilitate the impacted passengers as per rules.

Rio de Janeiro/Rome, October 30th, 2023 – Today ITA Airways launched its nonstop service between Rio de Janeiro and Rome. The inaugural flight, AZ 673, connecting the two cities departed at 3.45 p.m. from Rio de Janeiro-Galeão airport and was operated with the Company’s Airbus A330neo, a benchmark in terms of technology, digitization, innovation, efficiency, design, and ultimate expression of Made in Italy. To celebrate the launch of the new intercontinental route connecting Brazil and Italy, a ribbon-cutting ceremony was held at the departure gate in Rio de Janeiro, in the presence of Emiliana Limosani, Chief Commercial Officer ITA Airways and CEO Volare, Pierfrancesco Carino, Vice President International Sales ITA Airways, Massimo Allegri, Regional Manager Americas ITA Airways, Andrea Taddei, Country Manager Brazil ITA Airways, Alexandre Monteiro, Chief Executive Officer Rio de Janeiro-Galeão Airport, Alessandro Cortese, Ambassador of Italy to Brazil, and Massimiliano Iacchini, Consul General of Italy in Rio de Janeiro. ITA Airways’ expansion on long-haul is one of the main pillars of the Company’s strategy, as it not only generates profitability but also increases short haul connections, helping to expand the capacity of the intercontinental network. “I am very happy to be here today to inaugurate our new nonstop flight from Rio De Janeiro to Rome. This is the third long haul destination we are opening in 2023, a year that marks ITA Airways’ greatest growth in the intercontinental market after the opening of Washington and San Francisco in the summer season. – said Emiliana Limosani Chief Commercial Officer of ITA Airways and CEO Volare – Our goal is to become the carrier of reference for the mobility of Italians. Our network’s development has a strong focus on those markets …

Air Astana, Kazakhstan national carrier, Kazakhstan Tourism Board & Kazin Dmc, join hands to launch a highly subsidised FAM trip to Almaty. The initiative is targeted towards agents from India who have not visited Kazakhstan in the past, providing them with tools to promote the destination to Indian clients. The fam trip is scheduled from 6-9 December 2023 and is priced at 29999/- per person, encompassing the award winning hospitality of Air Astana and the mesmerizing sights of Almaty.

The Singapore Airlines (SIA) Group, which commenced operations to Hyderabad on 29 October 2003, will celebrate the 20th anniversary of its services to the city this year. To mark this occasion, SIA is pleased to announce that starting 29 October 2023 and subject to regulatory approvals, it will increase its Hyderabad-Singapore services from seven-times weekly to 12-times weekly, as it takes over Scoot’s daily services between the cities. The new five-times weekly morning services will offer more connectivity options for passengers travelling from Hyderabad to and beyond Singapore. This service will be operated by SIA’s Boeing 737-8s, which are fitted with 154 seats – 10 in Business Class and 144 in Economy Class. The daily night services will be operated by SIA’s Airbus A350s, which are fitted with 303 seats – 40 in Business Class and 263 in Economy. As a result, Hyderabad will be entirely served by SIA’s full-service product. Sy Yen Chen, General Manager India for Singapore Airlines, said, “As we celebrate 20 years of serving the Hyderabad market, we are delighted to announce an increase in our weekly operations to the city. The strategic restructuring of our Hyderabad network is a testament to our commitment to continuously evolve and meet the changing needs of our valued customers. This milestone reaffirms our dedication to the local market, and we are excited to provide even greater connectivity and exceptional full-service travel experiences as we forge ahead into the future.” The increase in A350 operations on the Hyderabad-Singapore route also opens up a wider range of opportunities for SIA Cargo. The aircraft’s wider body will allow for uplift of large cargo consignments that need to be loaded on skids. Additionally, the …

ITA Airways launched the 2023-2024 winter season at the TTG Travel Experience International Tourism Fair in Rimini during a press conference presented by Andrea Benassi, General Manager ITA Airways, and Emiliana Limosani, Chief Commercial Officer ITA Airways and CEO Volare “This is my first time at TTG Travel Experience, and I’m honored to be here today at this annual event where tourism operators gather to build the upcoming seasons – said Andrea Benassi, ITA Airways General Manager – ITA Airways wants to be the reference national carrier for the mobility of Italians by ensuring quality connectivity at both domestic and international level, with a particular focus on the intercontinental segment. Since the start of our operations, our goal is to be an efficient, innovative carrier, representing Italy worldwide, – added the General Manager – our passengers should immediately feel at home and experience Italy even before landing”. Emiliana Limosani presented the major news for the 2023-2024 winter season, which will offer 52 destinations, including 17 domestic, 23 international, and 12 intercontinental. Two new intercontinental routes, Rio de Janeiro and Malè (Maldives), will be added to the flights already operated to New York, Boston, Miami, Los Angeles, Sao Paulo, Buenos Aires, Tokyo, and New Delhi. We are very proud of the excellent commercial results achieved this year, which surpassed our forecasts. These were achieved thanks to the constant work carried out and the support of the trade segment, which were crucial elements for us since the start of our operations – said Emiliana Limosani, Chief Commercial Officer ITA Airways and CEO Volare. From January 2023 to date, we have carried 11 million passengers, 55 percent more versus the same period in 2022, with an average load factor of 80 percent, namely 7.5 percentage points higher versus the same time frame in 2022, with an increase …

We are delighted to announce the appointment of Shivani Singh Deo as Country Manager – India. Shivani has represented Virgin Atlantic for the past 8 years in the role of Marketing and Communications Manager. Prior to Virgin Atlantic, Shivani’s career included international market exposure across industries including retail, media, and lifestyle. Shivani has grown Virgin Atlantic’s brand presence in India considerably and has led high profile launches such as Mumbai, our second daily Delhi service and our IndiGo codeshare partnership, generating significant PR and media exposure. Shivani’s promotion recognises her strong performance in this role and demonstrates our desire to recognise talent from within the team. Shivani will lead our commercial strategy in India at an exciting time, as we grow our India network further in 2024 with the launch of a daily London Heathrow to Bengaluru service from 31st March 2024. Commenting on her appointment, Shivani said, “I am excited to be taking on this new role at Virgin Atlantic and lead the dynamic team in India. We will continue to champion the needs of the customer and tap the incredible growth opportunities in the Indian market.”

Sumeet Gosain, Vice President, Head -International Sales at TATA Air India said, “Unfortunately, both the Boeing and Airbus both are struggling with the deliveries of the aircraft. Having said that, we will get our first A350 before the end of the year. The more aircraft which will be coming in we will be expanding, and we are already looking at newer destinations. So, depending on the delivery of these aircraft we will build it up from there.”

Aeroflot to resume direct regular flights to Indian state Goa from Moscow and Ekaterinburg. The services will be operated to international airport Dabolim (IATA: GOI). Tickets are available.  In line with bilateral agreement between India and Russia from September 30 three weekly flights from Sheremetyevo airport will be operated on wide-body Airbus A330 on Tuesdays, Fridays and   Saturdays. From October 3 three weekly flights from Ekaterinburg will be operated on Boeing 737- 800 on Tuesdays, Fridays and Saturdays.   In addition to Goa, Aeroflot operates direct flights from Moscow to Delhi all year round. Traditionally the south of India is a favorite place for beach holidays of Russians in fall and winter. The flights are expected to be in high demand. Tourists will be able to get to the Indian Ocean coast in comfort and without transfers. The up-to-date schedule is available on Aeroflot’s website. “Goa flights to Moscow will boast tourism from Russia as well as India, as Russia has simplified the process for visa issuance for Indians, now Indians can apply for Russian visas online, except this cargo sector from western India will be in demand as trade between countries is increasing from last few months” said Dr. Naveen Rao Director of Delmos Aviation Pvt. Ltd.   

The Oman government has resumed operations of Oman Air between Lucknow and Muscat by replacing its low-cost airline, Salam Air, that had been operating since the pandemic between the two cities. It flies Boeing 737 aircraft with capacity of 162 pax non-stop between Lucknow and Muscat and will also have business class seats.