Category Archives: Aviation

Qatar Airways has become the first global airline in the world to achieve the prestigious 5-Star COVID-19 Airline Safety Rating by international air transport rating organisation, Skytrax. The announcement follows a detailed audit, carried out by the Skytrax team in December 2020, which assessed how effectively and consistently the airline’s stringent COVID-19 hygiene and safety standards and procedures are adhered to, from flight check-in to on-board aircraft. This included a full review of procedural efficiency checks, visual observation of hygiene and safety levels at all stages of the passenger journey, and on-board Adenosine Triphosphate (ATP) sampling tests to measure the potential level of contamination of contact surfaces. The achievement of the Skytrax 5-Star COVID-19 Airline Safety Rating is in addition to Qatar Airways’ home and hub, Hamad International Airport (HIA), recently being named as the first airport in the Middle East and Asia to be awarded a Skytrax 5-Star COVID-19 Airport Safety Rating in December 2020. Qatar Airways Group Chief Executive, His Excellency Mr. Akbar Al Baker, said: “As an industry leader and the ‘World’s Best Airline’, as named by Skytrax, we are well-used to setting the standard for others to follow. We are delighted that our commitment to providing the most rigorous and comprehensive COVID-19 safety programme in existence within the global aviation community has been recognised with the Skytrax 5-Star COVID-19 Airline Safety Rating. “This achievement highlights the fastidious measures and procedures Qatar Airways have employed to safeguard the health and wellbeing of our passengers throughout the global pandemic to date, and follows HIA’s recent success as the first airport in the Middle East and Asia to be awarded a Skytrax 5-Star COVID-19 Airport Safety Rating. “It also …

The International Air Transport Association and Etihad Airways have announced a partnership to launch the IATA Travel Pass for the airline’s guests. The IATA Travel Pass is a mobile app to help passengers manage their travel in line with government requirements for COVID-19 tests or vaccines. IATA Travel Pass will initially be offered to Etihad’s guests on selected flights from Abu Dhabi in Q1 of 2021.

According to global data provider OAG, most of the large domestic markets have stabilised at between 25-30% of last year’s levels. As per its Jan 2021 data, India’s domestic capacity is increasing from -30% down last month to -23% this month in terms of domestic market seats, making it the third-largest market after China and the US.

IndiGo has announced daily non-stop flights from Agra to Bengaluru, Bhopal an Lucknow respectively. The new flights will be effective from @8th March, 2021. The news was welcomed by the travel trade in Agra.

First flight to the newly constructed Hisar airport in Haryana from Chandigarh was flagged off today under the Regional Connectivity Scheme – UdeDeshKaAamNagrik (RCS-UDAN)  The flight was flagged off by Manohar Lal Khattar, Chief Minister, Haryana. The flagging off marks the operationalization of 54th airport under the UDAN scheme.  

Turkish Airlines is launching a 40 percent discount campaign for its guests who wish to discover the world again in the coming good days. Passengers taking advantage of the exclusive prices will be able to discover the most beautiful cities around the globe with the flexible ticket options at advantageous prices of Turkish Airlines. Passengers who wish to take part of the campaign which is valid with all ticket types of the flag carrier’s international flights*, will be able to fly at a 40 percent discount for flights between April 1 – December 31, 2021 as long as they purchase their tickets between January 13 – 15. Turkish Airlines passengers will also be able to change the dates of their campaign tickets free of charge while refunds and cancellations will be subject to the rules of the fare classes. Flights to/from Ercan Airport and Chinese Mainland (Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou and Xi’an) are not included in this campaign.

In order to further strengthen domestic connectivity, IndiGo plans to initiate flights from seven new stations subject to regulatory approvals and slot allocation. Ronojoy Dutta, CEO, IndiGo, says, “We plan to open Leh and Darbhanga in February, followed by Kurnool and Agra in March, Bareilly and Durgapur in April, and Rajkot in May 2021.”

Vistara has announced special, non-stop flights between Delhi and Frankfurt, starting 18th February 2020. The twice a week flight will be on Thursdays and Saturdays, as part of the ‘transport bubble’ formed between India and Germany and the aircraft will be Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner.

SpiceJet has announced the launch of 21 new domestic and international flights including the introduction of two weekly flights from Mumbai to Ras Al-Khaimah from 15th January. It will also increase frequency on the Delhi- Ras Al-Khaimah sector to 4 flights a week. SpiceJet will be the first airline to connect Jharsuguda with direct flights to Mumbai & Bengaluru.  

Prasanna Ranatunga, Minister of Tourism, Sri Lanka, has said that he expects the country’s international airports to officially reopen by January 21. “We are currently preparing for this after identifying some basic issues,” he added. The airports will open after 10 long months with health protocols in place.