Category Archives: Breaking News (All Categories)

At the CAPA India Aviation Summit 2024, Arun Bansal, CEO, Adani Airport Holding, said, “We are preparing NMIA to meet travellers aspirations from day one. The Navi Mumbai airport will be the most digitised airport from day one. We are actively working with airlines for slot allocation between CSMIA and NMIA for fair play.”

Campbell Wilson, CEO, Air India said they have finalised the start of their retrofit program for new aircraft. “More than 100 aircraft will be refitted with new interiors, including more than 40 wide-body aircraft. We have purchased more than 25,000 seats to support this refit program which will be installed in the coming months,” he added.

Mauritius Tourism invites the Indian outbound travel trade to attend an exclusive webinar on the destination and get valuable insights and updates for your clients on June 13 at 11:30 am. Join the webinar and stand a chance to win a fam trip! For more information, write to jaspreet.kaur@ddppl.com or 9650196532.

SalamAir, Oman’s fastest-growing value-for-money airline, has announced the launch of its latest destination in India – Delhi . Starting July 2, 2024, SalamAir will operate two weekly flights on Tuesdays and Thursdays to the Indian capital. The introduction of flights to Delhi marks a significant milestone for SalamAir as the airline continues to expand its network to meet the growing demand for affordable and convenient travel options to the Sultanate. This new route is expected to enhance connections between Oman and India, providing more travel options for the expat community, leisure travelers, and business professionals, as well as supporting cultural exchange and fostering economic collaboration. We are thrilled to announce the launch of our new direct flights from Delhi to Muscat,” said Mr. Mazin Al Salmani, Director of Sales at SalamAir. “This new route underscores our commitment to expanding our network and offering our passengers more convenient and affordable travel options. We look forward to welcoming travelers aboard and providing them with our exceptional service and hospitality.” Mr. Abhishek Goyal, Executive Director of Aeroprime Group GSA, SalamAir, said, ‘’We are proud to support SalamAir in launching their upcoming new route to New Delhi. This expansion strengthens the bond between Oman and India and enhances travel options for travelers. We are committed to ensuring that passengers enjoy seamless and affordable travel experiences with SalamAir.’’ For more info on flight schedules and bookings, visit SalamAir at www.salamair.com or contact our reservations team at 0114323 2222 or res.del@salamair.com

Making up for the lost time, Taiwan Tourism Administration has enthusiastically started developing the India market. To what started with OTM earlier this year followed by B2B trade networking events in Delhi and Mumbai, the tourism board has now recently concluded its multi-city road show with the final leg concluding in India’s very own Silicon Valley, Bengaluru, on April 19, 2024. The roadshow in Bengaluru followed another well-attended roadshow in another IT hub, Hyderabad, the previous day. The roadshows were particularly aimed at showcasing Taiwan’s MICE attractiveness and were well attended in all the cities amidst renewed interest and enthusiasm from travel fraternities as well as corporates and event organisers. Speaking of the event, Joseph Cheng, Director of Taiwan Tourism Administration – Singapore Office, said, “Taiwan is a small country yet packs a huge punch as a destination for every segment of travellers, and particularly the MICE groups. An advanced economy and a developed Asian country, it’s an immensely powerful destination when it comes to mixing business with leisure and pleasure. Not only there are some great urban landmarks to host your events to the best of your satisfaction, but Taiwan also boasts great outdoor activities amidst its lush green mountain ranges, coastline and beaches, mountain lakes, exciting wellness offerings, it’s cultural treasures and heritage, and so much more.” “Furthermore, it’s a very welcoming and competitive destination and adds great value to corporate events, conferences and conventions, and incentives tours,” he further added The roadshow in Hyderabad, organized at the landmark Radisson Hotel in Banjara Hills on April 18, was attended by around 80 leading MICE and leisure companies. The Bangalore road show, the next day, was also attended by …

Satyaki Raghunath, Chief Operating Officer, Bengaluru Airport said, “Bengaluru airport has been successful in attracting long-haul traffic in the last five to seven years and connected seven and eight important long-haul markets in last 5 years.” He suggested that airlines should try to connect more long-haul and ultra-long-haul points from the Bengaluru airport.

Mckinsey report revealed, home-sharing continues to position itself as better than traditional hotels, segment has grown from 10-14% of booking value between 2017 and 2023. Home-sharing companies have also become a key distribution channel for smaller hotels, as they can offer more control over inventory and lower fees than other channels.

Vumlunmang Vualnam, Secretary of Civil Aviation, Government of India said, “While we have 157 airstrips already, which are functional, which we are proud of, we have already started looking at the 453 full list of airstrips that exist in our country. We are considering to develop these as brownfield projects. We also look at the defense airfields to expand joint user concept.”

Focusing on benefits of attending PATA Travel Mart 2024, Noor Ahmad, CEO, PATA, revealed that the event is expected to witness 57% participation from the leisure segment buyers and 31% from buyers with M!CE & leisure (both), while 8% from MICE segment. The PATA Travel Mart 2024 is scheduled from August 27-29, in Bangkok, Thailand.

The International Air Transport Association announced that Pieter Elbers, CEO of IndiGo, has assumed his duties as Chair of the IATA Board of Governors . His one-year term began at the conclusion of the 80th IATA Annual General Meeting in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, on 3 June. Elbers is the 82nd Chair of the IATA Board of Governors . He served earlier on the Board of Governors between 2016 and 2022 as KLM’s President and CEO and was reappointed to the Board in 2022 shortly after he became IndiGo’s CEO. He succeeds RwandAir CEO Yvonne Manzi Makolo who will continue to serve on the Board of Governors. “It is indeed an honor to assume this role at a time when India is emerging as one of the world’s largest and fastest growing civil aviation markets and evolving into a formidable force in the airline industry. Adhering to IATA’s legacy of aviation as a force for good, we will continue in our focus of highlighting the benefits of aviation in building connections, augmenting trade, tourism and mobility—benefits also so visible in India. At the same time, it is imperative that we persist in our commitment towards a more diverse, equitable and inclusive and also more sustainable aviation industry, creating positive change for generations to come. IATA plays a pivotal role in establishing global standards; I am eager to continue collaborating with global industry leaders, regulators, and stakeholders towards our collective goals,” said Elbers. Elbers has over 30 years of broad experience in the aviation industry. He has been CEO of IndiGo since September 2022 and has taken IndiGo on a journey of expansion and internationalization since. Prior to joining IndiGo, he …