Category Archives: Aviation

According to a recent notification by Air China, commission for all tickets issued on Air China Document by travel agents in India will be 0% (nil) with effect from January 1, 2019. In line with it, the airline said, “We are currently updating all systems, all tickets issued before this update for travel on or after January 1, 2019 will follow our current IATA Commision Rule.”

Mumbai International Airport Limited (MIAL) saw a 10 per cent increase in overall air traffic movement as compared to the previous reporting periodm, according to GVK MIAL’s recently-published fourth biennial Sustainability Report 2018. The report also said that there was 22 per cent increase in domestic passengers and 13 per cent increase in international passengers during the reporting period as compared to the previous reporting period. The report is based on the theme – ‘Coming Together for a Sustainable Tomorrow’, showcases performance and achievements for FY 2016–17 and FY 2017–18. Through this report, MIAL aims to keep its stakeholders informed regarding progress on vital sustainability issues such as climate change, safety & security, environment & health and others to create value in short, medium and long term. MIAL is the first and only airport operator in India to publish Sustainability Report in public domain. Through the report, MIAL has demonstrated its commitment towards meaningful participation for achieving Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). This report has been developed ‘In accordance’ – Comprehensive option of the latest Global Reporting Initiatives (GRI) Standards. Based on GRI database MIAL is the first airport operator in Asia to release the sustainability report in accordance with GRI Standards – comprehensive option. The report is externally assured by Bureau Veritas (India) in line with requirements of the AccountAbility 1000 Assurance Standard (AA1000AS) (2008) – Type 2 Moderate level.

Alliance Air, a subsidiary of Air India, is set to introduce flights between Pantnagar and Dehradun under the UDAN scheme from January 4, 2019. “Alliance Air will commence its flight on Pantnagar-Dehradun-Pantnagar route with an ATR-42 type aircraft. Flight AI-9823 will depart from Pantnagar at 13:40 hrs to land in Dehradun at 14:40 hrs,” Alliance Air said in a statement. Pantnagar is an important commercial and industrial hub in the Kumaon region of Uttarakhand. It is famous for having the first agricultural university in India known as the G B Pant University of Agriculture and Technology. The Air India subsidiary said the return flight will depart from Dehradun at 15:05 hrs to land in Pantnagar at 15:55 hrs. It added that the flight will run four days a week – Wednesday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday. The primary objective of UDAN is to connect small cities of the country at affordable fares.

The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) has issued an advisory stating that airlines may consider using local language for in-flight announcements “to extent feasible”. Moreover, in order to enhance awareness about the cultural heritage of India, pilots can make in-flight announcements about important monuments or sites enroute the flight, the advisory said. Announcements in local language would be in addition to the ones made in Hindi and English, according to the DGCA advisory. The DGCA clarified in its latest advisory that airlines may make the aforementioned additional in-flight announcements without compromising any safety requirements or core job functions of crew members. “It is made clear that the above announcements be made without compromising safety of operations at any stage,” the advisory added. In 2016, the Airports Authority of India (AAI) had issued a circular asking airports under its control to make public announcements in the local language followed by Hindi and English. There are more than 100 operational airports in India. “To enhance awareness about cultural heritage of India, pilot can make in-flight announcement about the important monument or site (such as the Taj Mahal, the Konark Temple, the Ajanta Ellora, the Statue of Unity, etc), which are enroute the flight,” the DGCA advisory stated.

SpiceJet has announced a daily direct flight on the Kolkata-Lilabari route under the regional connectivity scheme, UDAN. Reiterating its focus on regional connectivity, the airline also announced a new direct flight connecting Kolkata with Jabalpur and an additional frequency on Hyderabad-Jabalpur route. All new flights and frequencies are scheduled to commence from January 15. According to a statement released by the airline, “SpiceJet is celebrating the launch by announcing an introductory promotional fare starting at Rs 3,700 on Kolkata-Lilabari and Lilabari-Kolkata routes, Rs 3,969 on Kolkata-Jabalpur and Rs 3,949 on Jabalpur-Kolkata, routes.” The primary objective of (UDAN) scheme is to connect small cities of the country at affordable fares. Shilpa Bhatia, Chief Sales and Revenue Officer, SpiceJet, said, “Lilabari is our first destination in Assam under the UDAN scheme and we are confident that the new flight will provide impetus to the tourism potential of the state.”

Beginning January 6, 2019, SpiceJet will operate direct flights on Bhopal-Jaipur, Bhopal-Ahmedabad, Bhopal-Hyderabad, and Bhopal-Shirdi routes. The airline will also start direct flight services on the routes of Shirdi-Bengaluru, Shirdi-Jaipur, Shirdi-Bhopal and Shirdi-Ahmedabad and will also add additional frequency on the Shirdi-Hyderabad route.

AirAsia India has said it will commence flight operations to Mumbai from January 2019. Sunil Bhaskaran, MD and CEO, AirAsia India, said, “We are pleased to make the much-awaited announcement of adding Mumbai to our network. This is a great way to end 2018, and is in line with our ultimate vision to focus on revolutionising air travel in the markets that we operate in. We’re also happy to welcome our 20th Airbus A320 aircraft to our fleet.” Source: IANS

IndiGo and Turkish Airlines have signed codeshare and mutual cooperation agreement enabling both carriers to provide more flexibility of choice to their respective customers to fly on sectors between India and Istanbul, and beyond. As part of its international expansion strategy, this is the first codeshare agreement for IndiGo. Through this cooperation, Turkish Airlines will be offering new destinations in India as Marketing Carrier on IndiGo operated flights, while IndiGo customers will be able to reach many European destinations through Turkish Airlines’ extensive network. This reciprocal arrangement will allow TK and 6E to provide seamless connections to their customers, besides enabling them to use through check-in and many other facilities. IndiGo will place its code “6E” on 20 points beyond Istanbul operated by Turkish Airlines. Similarly, Turkish Airlines will use its code “TK” on IndiGo-operated flights within India. Rahul Bhatia, Director and Interim Chief Executive Officer, IndiGo, said, “We are excited to be launching our first codeshare with Turkish Airlines. Apart from supporting our upcoming direct services to Istanbul, this strategic partnership will expand the choices available to our customers for journeys beyond Istanbul, using Turkish Airlines’ extensive network. It will become possible for our customers to book itineraries into many cities in Europe on IndiGo, using Turkish Airlines and experiencing their renowned inflight service.” Bilal Ekşi, CEO and Deputy Chairman of the Board, Turkish Airlines, said, “We are happy to host new operators in our main hub Istanbul, and IndiGo will be the first Indian carrier starting flights to Turkey. We believe that it would be a great opportunity to improve our cooperation with our new codeshare partner IndiGo, which will provide new services and destinations for our passengers …

Domestic air traffic has grown by 19.21 per cent from January-November YOY, according to a latest report by Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA). Passengers carried by domestic airlines during January-November 2018 were 1262.83 lakhs as against 1059.34 lakhs during the corresponding period of previous year. The passenger load factor in the month of November 2018 is almost equal compared to previous month primarily due to the ongoing tourist season.

Women in Aviation International, India Chapter and Lockheed Martin India, in association with Airports Authority of India (AAI), celebrated ‘Girls in Aviation Day’ on the ocassion of International Civil Aviation Day. With the vision to encourage girls to take up STEM subjects and explore career opportunities in related industries, Girls in Aviation Day is aimed at showcasing opportunities in the aviation and aerospace sectors. This initiative also aligns with the Government of India’s ‘Skill India’ initiative. As part of the programme, Women in Aviation International (India Chapter) invited 90 students from various schools for an informative session in New Delhi. Visiting students were given an opportunity to hear industry experts speak on the ‘Future of STEM in India’. The session stressed upon the importance of Science, Technology, Engineering & Mathematics and how these subjects can lead to fulfilling careers in aviation. Additionally, Women in Aviation gave out 10 IATA-sponsored course kits to underprivileged girls to empower them to kick start a career in aviation. Speaking on the occasion, Radha Bhatia, President, Women in Aviation International, India Chapter, shared,” This is the third year that the WAI India Chapter is celebrating ‘Girls in Aviation Day’ and we are delighted to host the same in the capital. This day is celebrated for the young girls to encourage them to choose aviation as a viable career opportunity. World over, India has the maximum number of female pilots, but there are many other avenues that are still unknown. With this celebration, our aim is to see girls from New Delhi explore exciting careers available to them as engineers, air traffic controllers and dozens of other jobs within the aviation.” Speaking about Lockheed Martin’s commitment …