Category Archives: Aviation

Hardeep Singh Puri, Minister of Civil Aviation, has said that domestic airlines may soon increase their capacity to 75 per cent and it may reach more than pre-COVID levels in the first quarter of 2021. “I had earlier said that pre-COVID domestic numbers will be achieved between Diwali and New Year. Now I am confident that by the first quarter next year, we will be able to surpass the pre-COVID number,” the civil aviation minister said. Currently, the capacity is around 65%.

Kapil Kaul, CEO, CAPA India, has suggested that leadership and governance will be essential in making structural changes in tourism. “Since tourism is going to be very dynamic going forward, we may require a specialised Tourism Administrative Service, which has policymakers on the lines of IAS. Since tourism covers so many aspects, unless we have policymakers who specialise in tourism, institutional foundations can’t be fed. There is also a need for a legally empowered tourism council on the lines of GST council, which can comprise of union minister of tourism, state tourism minister, secretaries and all other experts whose job should only be focused on policy and regulatory effectiveness, competitiveness, ease of doing business, financing, education and training,” he recommended.

Hemant Mediratta, Founder, One Rep Global, has said that Indian travellers are optimistic and are already booking charters for future trips. “There has been a surge in the number of queries in the past four weeks for flights to Europe and island destinations where guests are travelling with their family. Queries just short of half a million USD are in different stages of fruition. Savvy Indian travellers are also buying 30 to 50 flying hours valid for the next 12 months,” he says.

AirAsia is set to launch a new agent-friendly website which will allow ease of booking, easy payment options, self-managing booking allowing date change, instant refunds and other tools. The website is still under construction and might be launched within the next two months. This was announced at AirAsia India’s High Flyer Townhall conducted virtually, where the top-performing agent partners were recognised by the airline and were updated about AirAsia India’s latest initiatives, launches and future plans. Sunil Bhaskaran, CEO & MD, AirAsia India gave his keynote address and thanked the agents for their support. A recent survey conducted by Air Asia India has revealed that the daily industry passenger count for the airline is rising every day. So far in September, Air Asia India has witnessed 1.3 lakh passenger, which is 35 per cent of the capacity compared to same period last year. June-July was about returning home to small towns; Aug-Sept is about return back to metros. Travel sentiment among youth returning; business and leisure travel still to pick up. The AirAsia India Market Research on Festive Travel Intent indicates positive trends for flights, especially on safety.

Ministry of Civil Aviation (MoCA) has permitted airlines to decide baggage limitations for domestic passenger flights. An MoCA order said the “baggage limitation would be as per airlines’ policies. The matter has been reviewed based on feedback/inputs received from concerned stakeholders”. Currently, only 1 check-in baggage & 1 hand baggage per passenger is allowed.

Civil Aviation Minister Hardeep Singh Puri, in Parliament, said Air India’s only 21 routes, including nine domestic and twelve international, are profitable. Only these routes can cover the total cost of operating flights on 100 routes on which the airline operated between April 2019 and March 2020, he further added. Puri’s response indicated that Air India operates in 56 domestic and 44 international destinations and out of those 101 domestic and 10 international routes, it does not cover variable costs. “Air India continuously monitors market developments and the performance of its flights and conducts studies with the aim of withdrawing, introducing new routes or increasing / decreasing the frequency of existing routes. Air India has withdrawn flights that did not meet fixed / variable costs,” said Puri. He said that services on loss-making routes will be analyzed based on their strategic importance before deciding whether to withdraw or continue those routes.

During the Unlock 3.0, Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport (CSMIA) has helped in the facilitation of over 570 charter flights during August 2020. The airport handled over 67,500 passengers by connecting to 34 international destinations operated by 26 airlines during that period.  

India’s airlines could still have 250-300 surplus aircraft by March 2021, and could therefore be headed for an unprecedented consolidated loss of USD 4-4.5 billion in FY2021. Approximately 400-450 aircraft were grounded by end of Q2 2020. This figure is expected to improve slightly with 250-300 aircraft being grounded by end of Q4.

CM of Uttar Pradesh Yogi Adityanath said that international flight operations from Kushinagar airport will commence in next two months. The government had given Kushinagar, an important Buddhist pilgrimage site, the status of the international airport in June 2020. Once this airport begins operating international flights, it will become fourth international facility in the state.

Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport (CSMIA) becomes India’s first airport to introduce a QR-code based contactless check-in facility for passengers. It has added a touch-less feature to its self-check-in kiosks whereby passengers can use their phones to scan the QR code in order to remotely self-check-in, thus minimizing surface contact in the course of their journey