India plans air services talks with Russia

With aviation links with Russia coming under strain, India has proposed holding of two days of bilateral air services talks with Russia from June 14.

The move comes in the backdrop of a diplomatic stand off that saw both threatening to withdraw permission to their respective airlines to operate to either country from Tuesday (May 15). The standoff ended when Russia allowed Indian carriers to over fly its airspace till June 15.

Using air space

Official sources said that the genesis of the problem was that no Indian carrier currently operates to any Russian airport, while Russian airlines are allowed to operate 46 weekly flights to various destinations including Delhi, Mumbai, Goa and Amritsar.

Air India and Jet Airways, however, regularly use Russian air space while flying to Western Europe and the UK.

Flights

"Russia was pressing for only 46 Indian flights a week to overfly their air space, arguing that this was their interpretation of the air services agreement. We have written to the Russian side that this interpretation is in contravention of several international treaties and over flight cannot be treated as a part of the air services bilateral," a senior Government official told Business Line.

Russia, however, took the plea that since it was not a signatory to some of these international agreements, it was not bound by them, a point that India disputes.

Dispute

The existing agreement with Russia is the most liberal that India has exchanged with any of the other 11 members of the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS).

It puts a cap on the number of weekly flights that can be operated to each city here.

The Russian side is said to be keen to have more flexibility in the implementation of the agreement, although no new wish list has yet been presented, officials said.

The current agreement allows Russian airlines to operate 17 weekly services to Delhi including 14 flights from Moscow alone and 11 weekly flights to Mumbai including eight from Moscow.

In addition, Russian airlines are entitled to operate a daily service from any point in Russia to Kolkata and Goa and two weekly flights to Amritsar and Ahmedabad.

During the air services meeting in Delhi, the Russian delegation also requested for permission to operate services on the Kazan/Baku/Delhi and return sector, within the entitlement for operations to and from Delhi.

The Indian delegation noted the request and agreed to revert through a separate diplomatic communication.

http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/2007/05/17/stories/2007051705921000.htm

India lifts order stopping Russian flights, aviation ministry says
16 May 2007

NEW DELHI (AP) - India has lifted an order that briefly closed Indian airspace to Russian airlines, an aviation official said Wednesday.

The order, which was only in place for a few hours, did not affect any flights, said Maushumi Chakravarty, spokeswoman for India's civil aviation ministry.

India had closed its airspace to Russian airlines on Tuesday, after Russian aviation officials notified the Indian government that Indian airlines would not be allowed to fly in Russian airspace after June 15, Chakravarty said.

India reopened its skies later Tuesday after Russia agreed to continue allowing Indian flights into its airspace, she said.

The two nations' agreement on the use of each others' airspace expires on June 15, though Chakravarty said it will remain in effect until talks are scheduled.

Russian officials "have been told that at any point in time if they decide not to let India fly over their airspace, the Russian carriers will not be allowed to operate into India," Chakravarty said.

Russian officials could not be reached for comment.

India to release aviation plan in a few months-govt

MUMBAI, May 13 (Reuters) - India was preparing a plan to make its aviation industry better able to deal with global competition by 2020 that would replace the current policy, the aviation minister said on Sunday.

The Vision 2020 statement would be sent to senior government ministers and should be ready in a couple of months, Praful Patel said at Jet Airways Ltd.'s presentation of its new Boeing 777-300 ER and Airbus 330-200 planes.

"We are coming out with a Vision 2020 statement for aviation, which we will spell out in a couple of months, and a lot of issues, and issues not resolved, will be cleared," Patel said, adding it would help Indian carriers meet competition from foreign airlines.

"It is not going to be a standard mechanical formula ... of course, there will be certain guidelines and we will be doing all these things in a few months."

Patel also said he would talk to India's oil minister and state-run oil companies about high jet fuel prices.

"We want some kind of a rationalisation (of prices). If there is no support, we will look into various ways including looking at allowing imports to carriers or allowing us to hedge," he said.

Indian carriers are allowed to hedge fuel for international flights but not for domestic operations.

Air Deccan aims for top spot in India's crowded skies

BANGALORE, India, May 21, 2007 (AFP) - Air Deccan, the discount carrier that opened air travel to millions of Indians, is counting on first-time fliers and small-town entrepreneurs to turn it into the country's biggest airline.

"We will become the country's largest people carrier in less than two years by offering the best low-cost product," Managing Director G.R. Gopinath told AFP in an interview in Bangalore. "That's inevitable."

The 55-year-old former army captain, who says his ambition is to "make every Indian fly," has built Bangalore-based Deccan into India's number two airline in less than four years, with a market share of about 22.7 percent.

Now he wants to overtake Jet Airways, which last month increased its share of the expanding aviation market to more than 32 percent from about 25 percent by acquiring Air Sahara.

Jet, which is focusing on international routes, is trying to chip away at Deccan's leadership of the budget travel market by positioning Sahara -- renamed Jetlite -- as a low-fare airline.

Meanwhile the upmarket Kingfisher Airlines, owned by liquor baron Vijay Mallya, wants to buy a stake in Air Deccan.

But Gopinath, the son of a village schoolmaster who swears by "dreaming big, thinking big and acting fast," says the airline has no merger plans.

Instead, Air Deccan plans to achieve its ambition of overtaking the competition by adding more planes to its fleet of 43, building more hangars and logistics support hubs and taking its low-cost model to untapped markets by linking small towns.

The airline, which has flown almost 11 million passengers since it took off, now operates 19 Airbus A320 planes and 24 turboprops, flies to 65 airports and makes 350 journeys a day.

But it is still trying to shake off a reputation for lateness and rude ground staff overwhelmed by the sheer volume of passengers attracted by low prices.

Air travel in the nation of 1.1 billion people has boomed since Air Deccan took to the skies with a single aircraft.

The number of airlines has risen to 10 from three in just four years, and average plane fares have fallen by two thirds.

The Centre for Asia-Pacific Civil Aviation forecasts the domestic market will more than double to 60 million passengers by 2010, as incomes rise and low fares make air travel more affordable.

But the decline in air fares has squeezed profitability, with airlines posting a collective loss estimated at 500 million dollars in the year ended March.

Air Deccan had a loss of 2.13 billion rupees in the quarter ended March.

"Gopi has shown he is capable of building a big airline in a very short time," said Kapil Kaul, head of the India office of the Centre for Asia-Pacific Civil Aviation. "To become the biggest is within the realm of possibility."

"But all airlines have very aggressive strategic intent," he said. "And it's important to strive for a balance between growth and expansion. Market share isn't everything.

"For Air Deccan and all other airlines, the immediate challenge is to look within, restructure and wipe the bloodstains off the balance sheets in the next 18 months to 24 months."

Gopinath said he was confident Air Deccan would return to two successive quarters of profitability soon.

To fund expansion, he plans to raise between 75 million and 100 million dollars by selling up to 26 percent of the airline to an institutional investor.

Air Deccan put on the aviation map destinations such as Little Tibet in the high-altitude desert of Ladakh, cut off from the outside world for seven months a year because of heavy snow.

It appealed to small-town passengers prepared to pay a fraction more than on the state-run rail network to drastically reduce their journey time.

"We want to tap the potential that exists deep in the interiors of India by taking air connectivity there," said Gopinath. "Those are the economic powerhouses of the future. We don't want to be a Delhi-Mumbai airline."

"There are a billion hungry consumers there. They are aspirational, full of hope," he said. "These people want to travel, must travel."

India's airlines have expanded aggressively in recent years, with about 480 aircraft on order for delivery through 2012. About 135 aircraft have been added in the past two years.

Enormous scope exists, with 18 million Indians every day still travelling long distances by train and 12 million taking buses, said Gopinath,

"It's a new market," he said. "There is a tectonic shift in consumer behaviour. And we are on the forefront of it."

Air Deccan makes money by offering its aircraft fuselage to advertisers. Excess baggage and the sale of sandwiches, chips, tea and soft drinks earns it a bit more.

Non-passenger revenue makes up about 7.5 percent of Air Deccan's total revenue, a share it wants to raise to 30 percent in three years.

The company is also India's largest e-commerce website, grossing as much as one-and-a-half million dollars daily from online ticket sales.

Gopinath, an artillery officer who saw action in the 1971 India-Pakistan war, was named aviation CEO of the year last week for "bringing every Indian closer to that dream of flying."

For a man who left the army in 1979 with less than 100 dollars in his pocket, got himself a dog and grew bananas and coconuts on a patch of land he named Gopi's farm, awards don't matter.

"You do it for the sheer challenge," he said.

More Indian carriers may fly abroad

More Indian carriers could soon be allowed to wing their way abroad. This would become possible if the Union Cabinet gives its nod to the Civil Aviation policy when it comes up for review this Thursday.

The policy proposes that the Ministry of Civil Aviation be allowed to decide on a case-to-case basis the airlines that should be permitted to operate abroad. While the policy is unlikely to specify any criterion for allowing an airline to fly abroad, the Government could look at diluting present norms which stipulate that five years of operations in the domestic sector is a must before they can be allowed on international routes.

The current requirement of having a minimum fleet of 20 aircraft to operate internationally is not likely to be changed, sources said.

According to sources in the Government, the proposal to review the present norms arises from the lopsided usage of bilateral air services agreement that India has with a number of countries.

"The sector is booming. There has been huge growth in both domestic and international air traffic to and from India, but this growth is heavily weighed in favour of international airlines as there are not enough Indian carriers allowed to fly abroad. The Ministry is seeking to correct the imbalance in a calibrated manner," a senior Government official said.

Industry analysts point out that there could be further depletion in the number of Indian carriers flying abroad unless the present policy is changed.

Currently, State-owned Air India and Indian and two private operators, Jet Airways and Air Sahara are allowed to ply the international skies. But, with the merger of Air India and Indian under way and the Jet Airway's buyout of Air Sahara, the number of Indian carriers flying abroad would be reduced by half. Currently, Indian carriers account for about 30 per cent of the international traffic.

The Government has been examining various options for correcting this imbalance. Earlier this month, the Civil Aviation Minister, Mr Praful Patel, hinted at a change in policy but said there may not be any blanket review of allowing airlines from India to fly abroad. "We will look at country-specific proposals," Mr Patel had said.

Any change in current policy, especially lowering the five-year criterion to three years, could immediately benefit both Air Deccan and Kingfisher Airlines.

Towards the end of this year, Kingfisher airline is to receive the first of the 15 new Airbus planes ordered by it. This aircraft, an Airbus A-340-500, has the capacity to fly non-stop between India and the US. The airline has also ordered five each of the Airbus A-330 and Airbus A-380. The airline Chairman, Mr Vijay Mallya, has all along maintained that the wide-body aircraft being acquired by his company would not sit on the ground. To overcome the Government regulation, Mr Mallya's UB Group had started work to register an airline in the US that would fly passengers from US to India and back.

In addition, Air Deccan operates the Airbus A-320 that can fly from India to countries in East Asia, South Asia and the Gulf region.

The policy, which is being referred to as `Vision 2020', would not call for any change in the Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) in the sector or allow foreign airlines to pick up a direct or indirect stake in domestic airlines.

http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/2007/05/30/stories/2007053005520100.htm

June 1, 2007

The Indian cabinet on Thursday approved construction of a new airport in Mumbai, the country's financial capital, the civil aviation minister said.

"It will be through a joint venture and will cost INR100 billion rupees (USD$2.5 billion). Tenders will be floated in 2008 and work will start in 2011," Praful Patel told reporters after a cabinet meeting.

(Reuters)

June 1, 2007

United Breweries, which runs Kingfisher Airlines, said on Thursday it will buy 26 percent of Deccan Aviation signalling further consolidation in the fast expanding but loss-ridden Indian aviation market.

The deal, struck at INR5.5 billion rupees (USD$136.5 million), values Deccan Aviation at about INR21 billion rupees.

"The synergy that could evolve with Kingfisher Airlines was tremendous," G.R. Gopinath, managing director of Deccan Aviation told reporters at a news conference. "It would make enormous financial and operational sense."

Gopinath, a former army captain and farmer, ushered in the concept of a no-frills airline in India in 2003 when he started a service between Bangalore and Hubli. Deccan now flies to 65 destinations in India.

Vijay Mallya, the flamboyant tycoon who heads the UB group, one of the largest spirits makers in the world, started Kingfisher Airlines, a full-service carrier, in 2005.

The United Breweries-Deccan deal follows the just completed merger of state-run Air India and Indian Airlines, and Jet Airways' acquisition of smaller rival Air Sahara in April.

"This is in a way a consolidation started by the Jet-Sahara merger," UB Group Chief Financial Officer Ravi Nedungadi said. "We are seeing the emergence of muscular players."

The diversified UB group had bid to buy Air Sahara in 2006 but had walked out terming it highly expensive.

The Air Deccan-Kingfisher combine will have a fleet of 71 aircraft and fly to 70 cities and towns. Gopinath said the combine will control a third of the market and will be closer to the Jet Airways-Air Sahara market share.

United Breweries will become the largest shareholder in Deccan. It will also launch an open offer for a further 20 percent, as per India's takeover regulations. Gopinath will be the executive chairman and Mallya the vice-chairman.

The acquisition price is above Deccan's initial public offer price of 148 rupees a share in June last year - a level the share has never breached since listing.

UB will pay INR1.5 billion (USD$37.2 million) upfront and the balance within four weeks, Nedungadi said, adding the two airlines will continue to be run under their respective identities for the time being.

The Indian airline industry, which has grown more than 20 percent annually in the last five years, is reeling under record losses due to overcapacity, and carriers such as Go Air and Deccan regularly give away tickets for free to lure fliers.

Deccan reported a net loss of INR2.13 billion (USD$52.9 million) in the quarter to March 2007. Airlines have resorted to equity dilution and sales and lease back of planes to stay afloat.

Deccan had been trying to raise funds for several months to expand and tide over losses.

"It was required and is very good," Surbhi Chawla, an analyst at Angel Broking said of the deal with UB. "It is definitely positive for the industry, especially at the current state of record losses."

Kingfisher stands to benefit as Deccan will bring in scores of passengers from smaller cities, she said.

The two airlines will benefit from sharing infrastructure, ground handling services and security. "With the commonalities of fleet we foresee sharing of infrastructure and resources. This will lead to enormous cost savings," Gopinath said.

(Reuters)

India in 3rd place
India`s aviation continues with strong growth
Wednesday, June 06, 2007



The Indian domestic market is showing no sign of reducing its aviation activities, with a 25% increase in the number of flights scheduled for May 2007 compared with the same month last year. According to the latest statistics from OAG this represents an additional 8,631 flights and an astonishing 1.7 million extra seats available to people travelling within India.

This ranks India in third place in the Top 10 list of countries with the highest number of additional flights in May this year compared to the same month in 2006, behind China and the USA.

A total of more than 43 thousand domestic flights are timetabled this month for India.

Within this figure of all scheduled passenger flight operations, the low cost sector shows a 62% increase of over 7,000 more flights year on year and a staggering 151% rise in the number of seats available, representing an extra 1.6 million low cost seats.

The figures are revealed in the latest OAG Quarterly Airline Traffic Statistics, a regular snapshot of airline activity around the world. Flight information and data solutions company OAG, collates data from more than 1,000 scheduled airlines, on a daily basis, which gives an overview of anticipated travel demand. These statistics are compiled using OAG’s MAX suite of data analysis tools.

Duncan Alexander, VP Business Development & Industry Relations at OAG, commented: “India’s domestic market is experiencing an unprecedented growth, attributed to the increased operations offered by several low cost carriers. As a result, nearly one in two flights within India is now operated by a low cost carrier. This is even more impressive considering that the low cost phenomenon is still in its infancy in the Indian market. It has already far outstripped the ratio in the UK and US, two of the most established low cost markets.”

OAG has also revealed the formation of a strategic partnership with the Bird Group, one of the largest diversified groups in the aviation, travel and information technology arena, to strengthen its presence throughout India and the Indian sub-continent.

Bird Group Executive Director Mr. Ankur Bhatia said: “These statistics demonstrate just a small portion of the breadth and depth of information available within OAG’s suite of market intelligence and analysis tools. We are excited at the prospect of marketing these products and believe they will bring significant value to airlines, airports and the wider Indian air transport industry in helping to secure competitive advantage on the world stage.”

Internationally, India continues to show steady year on year growth, with a 7% increase in the number of flights into and out of India (an additional 835 flights and more than 200,000 seats a month). The number of flights has virtually doubled from 6,800 in May 2001 to 13,200 in May 2007.

The chart below reveals statistics from an analysis of domestic and international activity for May 2007 vs. May 2006 at India’s five major airports:

http://www.traveldailynews.com/new.asp?newid=37723&subcategory_id=53

Air India May Buy 60 More Planes to Tap Travel Demand

July 28 (Bloomberg) -- Air India Ltd., which is already buying new planes to spruce up its fleet, plans to order another 60 aircraft to meet rising demand for air travel in the world's second-fastest growing major economy.

Air India, which ordered 68 aircraft from Boeing Co. last year, will prepare a proposal for the new purchases in two weeks, aviation minister Praful Patel said in New Delhi today. The nation's biggest overseas carrier will evaluate aircraft from both Boeing and European rival Airbus SAS, he said.

State-run Air India, set to be merged with Indian Airlines Ltd., may need more planes as economic growth and rising incomes prompt more Indians to fly. The carrier will have to face competition from Jet Airways (India) Ltd. and Lufthansa AG that are expanding in India.

``Looking at the demand and passenger growth, the number of new orders could be about 60,'' Air India's Chairman V. Thulasidas said today at an event in New Delhi to showcase the new planes bought by the two carriers. ``In the next two to three years, we should be replacing all the old aircraft with new ones.''

Mumbai-based Air India will also consider buying the Airbus A380, Patel said at the event. Delivery from Boeing for the estimated $10 billion order placed last year began in December.

``We will revisit the aircraft acquisition process of Air India within a fortnight,'' Patel said. ``After all these new aircraft are inducted and the old ones phased out, Air India will need more aircraft.''

Possible Share Sale

Air India may sell shares next year to partly fund the purchase of the new planes, Patel said on May 22. Air India and Indian Airlines were planning to go for separate initial public offerings earlier, but the plan was delayed until the merger.

Air India will raise as much as 85 percent of loans for the new planes from the Export-Import Bank of the United States, according to the company's annual report for the financial year ended March 31, 2006. These loans are guaranteed by the government of India as Air India is a state-owned company. The remainder will be raised as loans from commercial banks.

Air India had foreign currency loans of 15.02 billion rupees ($370 million) as of March 31, 2006.

Purchase of the new planes may help Air India improve its profits, which declined to 149.4 million rupees in the year ended March 31, 2006 from 963.6 million a year earlier.

U.S., Canada

Air India and Indian Airlines have more than 110 planes in all and have ordered an additional 111 from Boeing and Airbus.

Air India ordered 50 Boeing planes for itself and 18 for its low-fare unit Air India Express in January 2006 to start flights to the U.S. and Canada. Indian Airlines, the nation's third- biggest domestic carrier, ordered 43 planes from Airbus SAS to introduce more services and win market share from legacy and budget carriers in the country.

Air India will begin flights with two new Boeing 777-200 LR planes from Aug. 1. The airline will have daily flights to New York from Mumbai, which will be followed by flights from New Delhi, starting early 2008.

The combined airline will be run by National Aviation Co. As part of the merger, Alliance Air, a subsidiary of Indian Airlines, will be absorbed into Air India Express.

Air India and Indian Airlines weren't able to tap the expanding civil aviation market in the country because of aircraft shortage, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh said at the function. ``With the acquisition of these aircraft, our national carriers will be better placed to take on competition at home and abroad,'' Singh said.

Affordable Travel

Economic expansion, the start of low-fare carriers and rising disposable incomes have made air travel more affordable in India. This has helped Airbus and Boeing win orders of more than 450 planes worth about $30 billion in the past four years. Seven carriers have started flights in India in the past four years and another five have sought approval.

Air travel in India will grow by an average of 7.7 percent annually through 2025, compared with 7.2 percent growth for China and 4.8 percent globally, according to a December projection by Airbus, the world's biggest commercial-plane maker. Airlines in the country may buy another 1,110 planes valued at $105 billion by 2025, according to Airbus.

India's economy expanded 9.4 percent in the year ended March 31, the most since 1989, and may grow 8.5 percent in 2007, a pace surpassed only by China among the world's largest economies, according to the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development.

The number of passengers rose 24 percent to 73.4 million in the fiscal year ended March 31, 2006, according to India's Civil Aviation Ministry. It probably grew to 86.8 million, including 60.9 million domestic passengers, in the year ended March 31, the ministry said.

Boeing, Air India Celebrate First 777-200LR Delivery (http://www.boeing.com/news/releases/2007/q3/070726a_pr.html)

The Boeing Company [NYSE: BA] and Mumbai, India-based Air India today celebrated the delivery of the airline's first 777-200LR (Longer Range) Worldliner airplane. This is the first 777 from Air India's order of 68 Boeing jetliners. The airline will receive an additional three 777-200LR Worldliner and three 777-300ER (Extended Range) airplanes this year.

Air India's order for 68 Boeing jetliners, placed in December 2005, was the largest commercial airplane order in India's civil aviation history. The order consisted of 23 777s, including eight 777-200LR Worldliners and 15 777-300ERs, and 27 787-8 Dreamliners. Additionally, Air India Express, a wholly owned subsidiary of Air India, ordered 18 Next-Generation 737-800s.

Air India will use this 777-200LR to become the first India-based operator to offer direct, nonstop flights between the United States and India. It begins service to New York's John F. Kennedy International Airport from Mumbai, India, on Aug. 1.


http://img338.imageshack.us/img338/738/airindiaboeingkc2.jpg

ANA targets higher fliers with new Mumbai service

TOKYO, Aug 2, 2007 (AFP) - Japan's All Nippon Airways announced Thursday a new service between Tokyo and the Indian financial capital of Mumbai catering exclusively to well-heeled business travellers.

A Boeing-737 with 36 business class seats will fly six times a week to and from Tokyo Narita airport and Mumbai from September 1 -- with no room for economy class passengers in the rear.

The airline is believed to be the first in Asia to offer business class-only flights, which have already taken to the skies elsewhere.

"Mumbai is India's western gateway and centre of culture and finance. Many Japanese firms have entered Mumbai," said ANA vice president Shinichiro Ito.

"With this new flight we would like to contribute to the further development of relations between Japan and India," he said at a press conference.

The new service reflects expanding business ties between Japan and India, which is enjoying near double-digit economic growth.

It also follows the success of business class-only services criss-crossing the Atlantic between the United States and Europe.

Analysts said other airlines in Asia would carefully study the market for such services before following ANA's lead.

"The business jet is obviously a trial for ANA," said Osuke Itagaki, an aviation analyst at Credit Suisse.

"The airline will have to examine whether it can earn a profit or not. I doubt similar flights will suddenly increase in Asia in a short period of time," he said.

The cheapest fare for the new ANA business jet service between Tokyo Narita airport and Mumbai is 430,000 yen (3,622 dollars), according to ANA's website.

Passengers get a standard business-class seat with a 61-inch pitch, as well as a portable media player with music, movies and videos to keep them entertained during the nine hour-plus flight.

"Our main target is Japanese business people flying from Japan to India as there are already many Japanese companies investing in the Mumbai area," said Ryoichi Fujisaki, a spokesman for Japan's second largest airline.

But he said ANA would also promote its new flights to Indian travellers. ANA does not currently offer any flights to India.

From October 28 until next March 29 the service will make a stop in the southwestern city of Nagasaki on the outbound flight to Mumbai, also known as Bombay.

With no Concorde to whiz rushed executives across the Atlantic faster than the speed of sound, business-class only flights have grown increasingly popular between the United States and Europe in recent years.

Their success has spawned a new wave of carriers offering nothing but business class seats, such as Britain's Silverjet, US airline Eos and France's L'Avion.

Analysts said the new service could be lucrative for ANA.

"I guess potential demand for business jet flights to and from India is high in Asia, but it will probably take time for ANA to make its customers aware of the new service," said Mizuho Investors Securities analyst Takahiko Kishi.

The aviation authorities of India and Japan in December agreed to increase the total number of flights between the two countries to 42 from 18 as part of efforts to strengthen bilateral ties.

Jet Airways Orders Three Boeing 777s

SEATTLE - Jet Airways, India's largest private airline, has exercised options to buy three extended-range 777 jetliners, the companies said Wednesday.

The latest order is worth more than $790 million at list prices, the companies said, though airlines typically negotiate steep discounts. The order adds to an order Jet Airways placed two years ago for 10 777-300ERs.

Link:
http://www.forbes.com/feeds/ap/2007/08/01/ap3977589.html

Here are the first 15 busiest airports in India, per May numbers (that are projected to have at least 1 Million passenger traffic this year). Mumbai's May figure is an all time record. I am sure it must have already registered even better figures for June and July and would be comfortably on its way to break the 25 Million mark this year.. Delhi will follow suit with a figure of approx. 22 to 23 Million.

Figures in brackets are percentage increases from May 2006

1 Mumbai 2222423 (14.8)
2 Delhi 1951624 (20.8)
3 Chennai 943395 (26.7)
4 Bangalore 868316 (43.2)
5 Kolkatta 654424 (29.6)
6 Hyderabad 595789 (28.6)
7 Ahmedabad 283008 (29.0)
8 Cochin 277526 (24.7)
9 Trivandrum 187911 (26.1)
10 Goa 182187 (21.1)
11 Pune 151172 (18.1)
12 Calicut 131139 (31.1)
13 Guwahati 120938 (44.1)
14 Coimbatore 97823 (19.6)
15 Jaipur 93589 (110.0)

Govt unveils regional airlines concept to boost connectivity (http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/2007/08/10/stories/2007081052320100.htm)


Flying could soon become the preferred mode of travel for people in small towns and cities throughout the country. To give a boost to regional connectivity, the Government on Thursday unveiled the concept of regional airlines which seeks to boost air connectivity between tier-II and tier-III cities.

A regional airline would only be allowed to operate flights from any airport in the four designated regions to any airport in the country. Most of them would, however, be prohibited from operating flights to a metro airport outside their region. The exception to the rule is in South India where a regional airline would be allowed to operate among the three existing metro cities of Hyderabad, Chennai and Bangalore.

In effect this would mean that a regional air pline operator would be permitted to fly from Jaipur-to-Coimbatore but would be prohibited from operating from Jaipur to Kolkata. In the South an operator would, however, be permitted to operate flights connecting Hyderabad, Bangalore and Chennai.

“The South already has three metro airports. There is not much the Ministry can do,” the Minister for Civil Aviation, Mr Praful Patel, said, while addressing a press conference.

Technically speaking, an entrepreneur would be allowed to become a regional airline with one aircraft although they would be required to have a fleet of three aircraft within a year and must scale up to five by the end of the second year of operations. The existing equity requirements for setting up an airline at present would also apply to those seeking to set up a regional airline.

“We will not encourage existing national airlines to operate under the regional airline banner. The idea is to increase air connectivity which could in the years to come become aviation hubs around the country,” the Minister said.

While there is no bar on the number of regional airlines that each region could have, the Government initially does not expect to see more than one-or-two such airlines in each geography. “We will not prevent any airline from setting up but we will closely examine the business plan. This is a heavy investment industry and we do not want sickness,” the Minister said.

The latest announcement of the Ministry of Civil Aviation does not offer any sops for operators planning to utilise the larger Boeing 737 or Airbus A-320 family of aircraft. The policy could benefit entrepreneurs planning to set up an airline using smaller aircraft seating up to 80 passengers as the Union Budget 2007-08 has a provision for providing concessional sales tax of four per cent on aviation turbine fuel for smaller aircraft, including jets. Besides, smaller aircraft are also not charged any landing and parking charges throughout the country. At present, ATF costs account for between 30 per cent and 35 per cent of the operating cost of airlines.

Here are the first 15 busiest airports in India, per May numbers (that are projected to have at least 1 Million passenger traffic this year). Mumbai's May figure is an all time record. I am sure it must have already registered even better figures for June and July and would be comfortably on its way to break the 25 Million mark this year.. Delhi will follow suit with a figure of approx. 22 to 23 Million.

Figures in brackets are percentage increases from May 2006

1 Mumbai 2222423 (14.8)
2 Delhi 1951624 (20.8)
3 Chennai 943395 (26.7)
4 Bangalore 868316 (43.2)
5 Kolkatta 654424 (29.6)
6 Hyderabad 595789 (28.6)
7 Ahmedabad 283008 (29.0)
8 Cochin 277526 (24.7)
9 Trivandrum 187911 (26.1)
10 Goa 182187 (21.1)
11 Pune 151172 (18.1)
12 Calicut 131139 (31.1)
13 Guwahati 120938 (44.1)
14 Coimbatore 97823 (19.6)
15 Jaipur 93589 (110.0)

International Passenger traffic in the Month of May 2007 (In bracket May 2006) %change
1. Mumbai -666516 (621164) 7.3
2. Delhi -528622 (468002) 13.0
3.Chennai -275341 (237111) 16.1
4.Cochin -148675 (123408) 20.5
5.Bangalore -129102 (96811) 33.4
6.Hyderabad -119837 (96355) 24.4
7.Trivandrum -118597 (100098) 18.5
8.Calicut -104505 (75496) 38.4
9.Kolkata -78619 (62196) 16.1
10.Ahmedabad -43583 (31176) 39.8
11.Amristar -36903 (28445) 29.7
12Trichurapalli -23322 (14754) 58.1
13.Jaipur-13872 (7976) 73.9
14.Lucknow-13350 (9097) 24.8

How about some updates on new airport construction? :)

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First, rendering of the interior of the Ahmedabad's proposed Ahmedabad International Airport

http://img474.imageshack.us/img474/3213/ahmedabadxg5.jpg


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New renderings of Mumbai's Chhatrapati Shivaji International Airport

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http://img99.imageshack.us/img99/9963/airportvm0.jpg


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Delhi's Indira Gandhi International Airport Commercial Masterplan, also by RMJM Architects:

http://img91.imageshack.us/img91/8893/del1fp6.jpg

http://img91.imageshack.us/img91/3297/del2zv8.jpg

http://img91.imageshack.us/img91/3598/del3zk3.jpg
The site covers 349 hectares and incorporates the development of five grouped schemes. Group A incorporates retail, entertainment and amusement park, Group B - convention centre, 10 hotels, trademart and golf course, Group C is a logistic hob and Group D consist of corporate and IT offices.

The primary design objective was to produce a dynamic and contemporary landmark business and commerce development that matches the status befitting an international airport, whilst providing a new global commercial hub. Sweeping green boulevards through the design provide long clear vistas to the airport terminal using extensive landscaping to frame the views and the entire site as been designed to adhere to sustainable models of development being followed worldwide


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Chennai's newly approved Chennai International Airport Domestic Terminal Building
http://img227.imageshack.us/img227/7439/chennai1kf0.jpg

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http://img183.imageshack.us/img183/674/chennai3kr7.jpg

http://img183.imageshack.us/img183/3408/chennai4vm6.jpg
The design for the new Domestic Terminal at Chennai Intl Airport organizes traveler and employee circulation around two lush sustainable gardens forming the basis of a uniquely efficient and innovative plan. The dramatic hovering wing-like roofs fold downward to form the garden’s walls, delivering rain water during the wet season to series of runnels and cistern pools that store water for dry season irrigation. Directly connected to the new terminal, a new parking garage with a sculpturally folding green roof welcomes travelers with as a ‘green gate’ and provides a rich and sustainable foreground to the terminal with regional native plantings.

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Kolkata's newly approved Kolkata International Airport Domestic Terminal Building, Kolkata Intl Airport, Kolkata

http://img181.imageshack.us/img181/6550/apr7vu3.jpg

http://img181.imageshack.us/img181/5805/apr8ph8.jpg

http://img181.imageshack.us/img181/9195/apr6qx2.jpg

http://img155.imageshack.us/img155/5711/apr1kj6.jpg

http://img181.imageshack.us/img181/9273/apr9cb6.jpg

http://img155.imageshack.us/img155/8822/apr3ec8.jpg

http://img155.imageshack.us/img155/5521/apr4ql2.jpg

http://img155.imageshack.us/img155/522/apr5cu2.jpg
The Airports authority of India announced that RMJM, supported by Sikka Associates, is the winner of the international design competition for the new Domestic Terminal in Kolkata. An independent jury selected the design against a notable list of competitors including Airports de Paris and HOK.

The 40,000m first phase of the new airport is designed to accommodate a peak passenger flow of 1800 per hour, while a second design phase will approximately double those figures.

RMJM worked closely from the outset of the project with the associated landscape designers at STRATA to ensure a fully integrated concept that revolves around an abstract reference to the writing of Rabindranath Tagore of Bengal. The graphic nature of his writing is visible as large scale patterns etched on to the underside of the main roof as well as landscaped across the forecourt ground. A number of mature trees are retained as a striking counterpoint to the linearity of the building's form. In developing the buildng shape and in the detail design of its skin RMJM ensured that the facility reaches the highest sustainability international standards. Natural day lighting is maximized while keeping cooling systems to a minimum. The form of the roof is also devised to harvest rainwater for landscape irrigation.

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Cheers,
Jai

Very nice proposals.

India state airlines merger cleared for take-off

NEW DELHI, Aug 24, 2007 (AFP) - India cleared on Friday the merger of state-owned international flag-carrier Air India and its domestic counterpart Indian Airlines to form a new airline to compete in a booming regional market.

The merged company will fly under the name of Air India both domestically and globally, a statement from India's corporate affairs department said.

The ministry sanctioned the application for merger and said approval had been filed with the nation's Registrar of Companies, completing the legal process.

"The merger of Air India and Indian will provide an integrated international and domestic footprint," the ministry said in a statement.

"The consumer is a clear winner in the merger, having a much improved product and superior service," it added.

Air India is the nation's biggest international carrier while Indian Airlines is the second-largest domestic airline after privately run Jet Airlines.

Analysts see the merger as a way for the two airlines to take on new competition in India's burgeoning deregulated aviation market.

Air India recently launched its inaugural daily, non-stop Mumbai-New York flight with its first Boeing 777-200 LR aircraft. The new Boeing was the first of the series to sport the merged airline's new branding.

The new airline will have a combined fleet size of more than 100 aircraft, comparable to the best airlines in the Asia region, and will rank among the top 30 airlines in the world, the statement said.

Long derided for its old planes, the airline has an ambitious fleet acquisition programme of 111 aircraft.

The new airline will induct 21 new planes this year, the statement said.

"They will have a brand new airline from a hardware perspective, the youngest fleet in the region. That's exciting they will have a fleet that is state of the art," said Kapil Kaul, chief executive of the Centre for Asia-Pacific Aviation consultancy in India.

Kaul told AFP he expected the airline to announce another big order in the next 12 months.

The government has said it is merging the two airlines in a bid to create a "world-class airline" that can compete globally and regionally. Singapore Airlines and Emirates have already expanded into the country.

"The market is growing domestically by 40 percent annually and internationally by 20 percent -- the sky is the limit for them (the new airline)," said Kaul.

But he said the airline would face big challenges such as merging of the corporate cultures of the carriers.

Air India's new chief has said that the carrier aims to tie up with an alliance of global airlines and set up a hub in Europe to take advantage of booming demand for flights to the lucrative North American market.

V. Thulasidas has been appointed chairman of the merged carrier. He headed Air India before the merger and is credited with giving the state-run airline a sharper commercial edge.

India's Jet prepares to take flight in Canada
Air Canada gave up, but the billionaire founder of Jet Airways sees promise flying Toronto to New Delhi
23 August 2007
The Globe and Mail

In his four decades in the aviation business, Naresh Goyal has learned that airlines cannot survive on friendly service and low fares alone. They also need a smart route map with connecting flights to have a fighting chance of filling planes with paying customers.

The billionaire founder of Jet Airways (India) Ltd. believes he has the right stuff to make a profit on Toronto-New Delhi flights and is undaunted by Air Canada's money-losing experience on the route.

Mr. Goyal, 58, wasn't born with a silver spoon in his mouth. He started in the aviation business in 1967, earning $40 a month as an employee in a marketing firm. In 1993, he created Mumbai-based Jet after India's government opened the airline sector to private competition.

Today, the airline flies to 44 destinations within India. That regional network gives Jet a direct feeder system that Air Canada doesn't enjoy on the subcontinent, he noted.

When Toronto joins the route map Sept. 5, the city will be Jet's ninth foreign destination.

Mr. Goyal, Jet's chairman, said his airline knows the Indian market more intimately than Air Canada in everything from food to Bollywood films.

In May, Air Canada cancelled its Toronto-New Delhi service, through Zurich, much to the chagrin of the Canada-India Business Council.

“Air Canada has the network in Canada, but we have the flights domestically in India,” he said in an interview yesterday in his hotel suite in Toronto. “We are better known in India, and we have lower costs.”

His wife, Neeta, who is Jet's executive vice-president of sales and marketing, has joined him in Canada this week. Tonight in Toronto, the Goyals will play host to a dinner for 450 people in the stately Liberty Grand ballroom to launch the new service.

The Goyals hope to persuade travel agents, entrepreneurs, leisure passengers and other invited guests that Jet is the best way to fly between Canada and India.

Air Canada tended to rely more on northern India for its traffic, missing out on an important segment of consumers in southern India, where Jet has numerous destinations, Ms. Goyal said.

Mr. Goyal said that besides building a strong route network and offering competitive fares, smiling flight attendants are key ingredients in Jet's business model. “Our service cannot be in any way inferior to Cathay Pacific's and Singapore Airlines' service. That is our philosophy,” he said.

He forecasts that 60 per cent of Jet's business on the new route will originate in Canada and 40 per cent in India.

Jet will offer flights five times a week from Toronto to New Delhi aboard an Airbus A330-200, with a stopover in Brussels. Daily service is planned for December.

There will be 30 seats in business class and 190 in economy on the Airbus, and passengers will be able to switch planes in Brussels if they want to go to Mumbai.

Cargojet Income Fund president Ajay Virmani, a Toronto-based businessman who flies several times a year to India, said Jet will have a challenging time in its quest to make money on the new route.

Mr. Virmani said Jet faces competition against carriers that also offer service to India – such as Air India, British Airways, Air France and Air Canada's Star Alliance partners Swiss International and Lufthansa – and there's the possibility of new flights from Kingfisher Airlines of Bangalore, India.

On the Toronto-New Delhi route in economy class, Jet has introductory round-trip fares as low as $1,074, plus taxes and other charges.

Mr. Virmani cautioned that while Jet is promoting its superior service more than the introductory low fares, consumers will be watching ticket prices closely.

“A family of five saving $20 each on a ticket is a big deal in the Indian travel market,” he said, adding that it's easy to attract traffic in December, January and the summer, but it will be a tough grind for Jet to fill planes in non-peak times.

Jet is in talks with Air Canada to become strategic partners, initially on Jet's London-Mumbai route. Jet and Air Canada are in the final stages of finalizing a so-called “code-sharing” agreement, clearing the way for the two carriers to sell more tickets on each other's flights. There could also be a new pact that may eventually provide Aeroplan miles to consumers who travel some Jet routes.

Pierre Jeanniot, who served as Air Canada's chief executive officer from 1984 to 1990, sits on Jet's board of directors.

Continental Airlines begins direct flight to Mumbai (http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/2007/10/04/stories/2007100450260700.htm)


Buoyant on Mumbai-US sector, Continental Airlines has received 25 per cent to 30 per cent more bookings and expects the trend to continue on its newly launched flights between Mumbai and New York as compared to its existing Delhi to New York service.

Senior Country Director-India of Continental Airlines, Mr Laurent Recoura, told newspersons on sidelines of a press conference, “Given the sheer expanse of this sector and demand in Mumbai, the bookings have been 25 per cent to 30 per cent more from Delhi-New York.” The airline launched its Delhi flight in 2005.

Air India already operates a daily non-stop flight to New York from Mumbai and Jet Airways is flying daily to Newark via Brussels.

The inaugural flight of Continental from Mumbai that commenced from October 2 will be a non-stop service and would initially operate four times a week, on Monday, Tuesday, Saturday and Sunday.

any news on the planned european air india hub in Munich?

Did they already make a decision?

Boeing Delivers Air India's First 777-300ER (http://www.boeing.com/news/releases/2007/q4/071010e_pr.html)


The Boeing Company [NYSE: BA] and Mumbai-based Air India today celebrated the delivery of the airline's first 777-300ER (Extended Range) airplane. This is the first 777-300ER from Air India's order of 68 Boeing jetliners placed in December 2005. Air India's 777-300ER has a three-class configuration, including four first-class, 35 executive class and 303 economy seats. In July 2007, Boeing and Air India celebrated the delivery of the airline's first 777, a 777-200LR (Longer Range) Worldliner airplane. To date, Air India has received 14 airplanes from its December 2005 order, including three 777-200LRs (Longer Range) and one 777-300ER, and 10 737-800s for Air India Express.

Image copyright http://boeingmedia.com
http://img181.imageshack.us/img181/6433/airindiaboeingjj3.jpg

I need some information about DEL and BOM.

When will the moderisation project be completed?
How many terminals will each of them have when it's completed?
Total passenger capacity for each?

Thanks.

Try the Indian aviation thread in the India forums.

Boeing Delivers Air India's First 777-300ER (http://www.boeing.com/news/releases/2007/q4/071010e_pr.html)

what about A380 airbus lol :lol: :cheers:

India has jumped at least 5 places in this list in the past 18 months or so...

USA 6724
China 1131
UK 928
Germany 724
Japan 608
Canada 541
France 496
Spain 460
India 368
Italy 367
Australia 328
Brazil 312
Mexico 269
Netherlands 257
Turkey 225
Korea 206
Russia 201
UAE 190
Taiwan 185
Indonesia 181
Hong Kong 180
Saudi Arabia 177
Singapore 168
Malaysia 159
Thailand 146

India's aviation boom gives cabin crew new wings

NEW DELHI, Nov 5 (Reuters) - Never mind the long hauls and the demanding passengers -- thousands of young Indians are enrolling at flight attendant schools for a sky-high career that promises generous pay and a glamorous lifestyle.

Most of the students -- from small towns and low-to-middle income families -- have never been inside an airplane or travelled outside India.

But they've been inspired by the breathtaking growth of India's aviation industry which has fuelled strong demand for staff, on the ground and in the sky.

"We heard this is a good career to get into. Our child will have a good future," said Lal Gurg, a grocery store owner who borrowed from friends and relatives to get his 21-year-old daughter, Anju, into a flight attendant training institute.

"She would be on her own, independent. She can even support us if the need be."

India's economy is booming as is the aviation industry, which officials estimate will attract investments worth $150 billion in the next 10 years. The travel market is also forecast to expand at more than 20 percent annually till 2010.

All of this has helped turn "cabin crew" into a desirable profession when 10 years ago, parents hoped their children would become doctors, engineers or civil servants.

FLYING HIGH

Air hostessing is also still seen as a glamorous job, where you can bump into celebrities, jet-set to exotic locations and attend fancy parties -- a lifestyle most wannabe attendants from modest backgrounds can only dream of.

Samire Walia of Frankfinn Institute of Air Hostess Training says the modest academic qualifications required for the job, and its generous pay, has added to its appeal, especially among women who feel it empowers them in a male-dominated society.

"The reason why quite a few of the youngsters are coming in from the smaller cities and the smaller towns and even rural areas is because the basic minimum qualification required is low," Walia said. "The packages offered are very attractive."

With annual per capita income in India around $800 dollars, airline salaries offer young people from small rural towns a rare chance to join the middle class.

A flight attendant with no university degree pockets about 25,000 rupees ($640) a month, while a majority of graduates -- except those from top engineering and business schools -- would earn between 7,000 and 12,000 rupees.

But it's not all smooth flying for the thousands of hopefuls who join training institutes such as Frankfinn. Walia said many students lacked language and communication skills and had to be taught basics like etiquette and grooming.

But those who do make it through the programme, and get jobs, become instant stars among their peers.

"When you enter into the cabin with your trolley, everybody starts looking at you and you feel so nice," said Ranbir, a stewardess with a private airline who only gave her first name.

"So that way it is very glamorous. And when you are not on the job you can go to parties -- every day there are parties and you are going to meet so many famous people."

The Boeing Company [NYSE: BA] and New Delhi-based SpiceJet today celebrated the delivery of the airline's first Next-Generation 737-900ER (Extended Range) airplane. With this delivery, SpiceJet becomes the first India-based airline to operate the 737-900ER. SpiceJet originally announced its decision to purchase five 737-900ERs and five 737-800s at the 2006 Asian Aerospace Air Show in Singapore.


http://img219.imageshack.us/img219/1963/spicejet737900tz5.jpg

http://www.boeing.com/news/releases/2007/q4/071107b_pr.html

http://www.flysas.com/en/Promotions-and-prices/Copenhagen-New-Delhi-and-San-Francisco/
SAS to launch direct routes to New Delhi and San Francisco

Next year, SAS will expand its fleet of aircrafts with an additional Airbus A340, thereby making it possible to launch two new intercontinental routes. In autumn 2008, New Delhi in India and San Francisco in the US will be introduced to the traffic program. India is a market experiencing strong growth and demand for flight connections is increasing. SAS will initially offer four non-stop flights per week between Copenhagen and New Delhi from November 2008.

“We are continuing to focus on satisfying our customers’ needs for new destinations by offering time-efficient non-stop connections from Scandinavia. Both India and the US are countries that are attractive destinations for both business and leisure travelers. We will offer an attractive product with three classes onboard and a high level of flexibility,” says Lars Lindgren, Chief Executive Officer of Scandinavian Airlines International. San Francisco will also become a new SAS destination from autumn 2008 when the traffic program is expanded, initially with three non-stop connections per week between Copenhagen and San Francisco.

“SAS currently has a relatively large traffic program in the US, with direct flights from Copenhagen to New York, Chicago, Washington and Seattle. From Stockholm, we fly to New York and Chicago. Based on our partnership with United Airlines, we have been able to offer a wide range of additional destinations in the US. Due to considerable demand we are now experiencing for travel to California, it feels appropriate that we add our own route to San Francisco,” Lars Sandahl, Chief Commercial Officer at Scandinavian Airlines International.

The Airbus 340 to be used on the New Delhi and San Francisco flights has approximately 245 seats in three classes: Business Class, with Business Sleepers (chairs that recline to a bed), Economy Extra – an upgraded economy class with extra legroom and extra in-flight service, and Economy Class. “The launch of these two routes is part of Scandinavian Airlines International’s new expansion strategy, which this year has resulted in the launch of three new routes: from Stockholm to Bangkok and Beijing and from Copenhagen to Dubai,” says Lars Sandahl, Chief Commercial Officer at Scandinavian Airlines International.

Nok Air To Stop Flying To India's Bangalore From Nov 23 -CEO
14 November 2007

BANGKOK (Dow Jones)--Thai low-cost carrier Nok Air will suspend flights to the southern Indian city of Bangalore from Nov. 23 as high jet fuel costs are making the route unprofitable despite its high traffic, chief executive Patee Sarasin said Wednesday.

"We currently have great load factor at around 80%-90% (on the Bangkok-Bangalore route). However, the exceptionally high fuel cost makes it impossible for us to make profit by flying a small plane such a long distance," he told Dow Jones Newswires.

The airline is using Boeing 737-400 aircraft with 150 seats capacity to serve the route.

The budget carrier has no plan to return to the Indian market for at least a year.

Nok Air started flights to Bangalore, its first international route, in June.

SpiceJet to break even by March 2008-official

NEW DELHI, Nov 14 (Reuters) - Budget carrier SpiceJet Ltd (SPJT.BO: Quote, Profile, Research) hopes to break-even by March 2008, and eyes a fleet of 31 planes by 2011, senior executives said on Wednesday.

SpiceJet swung to a net profit in April-June quarter, but posted a net loss in the July-Sept quarter on account of the lean monsoon season. Executive Chairman Siddhant Sharma said the third quarter would be profitable, helped by festivals and holidays.

"We are on track to break even, but higher oil prices continue to be a cause of concern," Sharma told reporters after inducting a new plane into the firm's fleet.

Yields would rise by 200 to 300 rupees per seat at Spice in the October-December quarter, he said.

Sharma forecast airline fares rising by 5 to 7 percent across the industry, including Spice.

"If we have to serve passengers on a long-term basis, we should have a healthy airline industry. We cannot be making losses and still try to deliver best services," he said.

Spice plans to have 24 planes by April 2008, and targets 31 planes by 2011.

On Wednesday, it took its fleet to 18 planes, by adding a Boeing 737-900 extended range plane, which can seat 26 additional passengers and can be used on longer routes.

By September 2008, Spice will have 4 more of such planes. One will be added in December and another in February.

"We expect this will reduce operating costs by 5 to 7.5 percent," Ajay Singh, a senior company official, said.

Singh said long haul planes could be used to fly the Middle East and Far East routes, when Spice gets permission to fly abroad.

India permits airlines to fly overseas routes only after they have been operational for five years. Spice has been flying for more than two years now.

Jet Airways To Buy 10 Boeing Planes In Few Months - Source
16 November 2007

NEW DELHI (Dow Jones)-- Jet Airways (India) Ltd. (532617.BY), the country's largest domestic carrier by market share, plans to convert an option to buy 10 Boeing Co. (BA) 737 model aircraft into a firm order in the next few months, a senior airline executive said Friday.

"I cannot specify a month, but it will be soon, in the next few months," the executive, who didn't wish to be named, told Dow Jones Newswires.

Jet Airways received the 10-plane option in October, when it placed an order for 20 Boeing 737-800 planes worth about $1.5 billion at list prices. They are scheduled for delivery between 2012 and 2014.

"The planes, which are under option, should be delivered by 2015," the executive said, adding that it is too early to decide on how the purchase will be funded.

A Jet Airways official earlier said in October that the airline needs new aircraft after 2012 to replace old planes.

Jet Airways, which has ordered 74 Boeing aircraft so far, also placed an order for 10 Airbus (5730.FR) A330-200 planes in April with an option to buy 10 more aircraft.

Indian government steps in after flight delays ground hundreds

NEW DELHI, Nov 19, 2007 (AFP) - India's aviation ministry said Tuesday it would investigate delays in flights operated by state-run Air India after staffers were injured in a fight with angry passengers at the weekend.

Several hundred people were delayed at New Delhi's international airport as six Air India flights were delayed and paramilitary troops called in to control angry passengers, airline spokesman Jitendra Bhargava said.

Responding to the incidents, India's aviation ministry said it was "concerned" about the delays and would investigate.

"The minister has taken a serious view of it. The ministry is contemplating strong action and will fix responsibility," civil aviation ministry spokeswoman Maushumi Chakraborty said.

Air India blamed the passengers for the delay.

"Passengers of one delayed flight delayed others by preventing them access to check-in counters," Bhargava said, adding the airline would probe the delays.

The carrier has long been criticised for inefficiency and its ageing fleet.

Last year, Air India signed an agreement to buy 68 Boeing jets for around 11 billion dollars, marking the biggest deal in Indian aviation history.

Indian firms ready fleets for logistics takeoff

NEW DELHI, Nov 21 (Reuters) - Indian logistics companies are acquiring cargo planes, and foreign players are trooping afield, as strong growth in Asia's third largest economy spurs demand for speedy movement of goods.

Transporters and couriers are trying to keep up with the robust pace of organised retail, growing at 25 percent annually, and manufacturing, which grew 9.7 percent in April-Sept from a year ago.

"India ... promises to rival the largest markets in the world before long," said Oliver Evans, chief cargo officer at Swiss International Air Lines, in a statement earlier this month.

From next week the airlines is going to add 18 tonnes to its 22 tonnes daily cargo capacity to-and-from India.

TAKING TO AIR

The country could have three dedicated cargo airlines by mid-2008, a study published by the Centre for Asia Pacific Aviation (CAPA) and industry body FICCI earlier this year, said.

Anticipating opportunities, companies are queueing up for the action.

Gati Ltd will lease five planes by March 2008 and is considering launching a cargo airline. Blue Dart Express Ltd has plans to invest 10 billion rupees by 2015 to expand its air and ground infrastructure and has said it could add planes.

Hyderabad-based Flyington Freighters ordered for six Airbus A330-200F planes in January and six more in June. The delivery is expected in 2009.

First Flight Couriers Ltd is in talks to lease two Boeing 737-300 cargo planes for its operations, deputy managing director Rajkumar Saboo said over the telephone.

"When there is growth, you want things to move faster and that is going to drive air freight services," Gati's Chief Executive Mahendra Agarwal, told Reuters earlier this month.

"Companies climb up the logistics value chain if they get planes themselves," Kapil Kaul, CAPA chief executive for the Indian subcontinent and Middle East.

Jet Airways Ltd , India's biggest private-sector airlines, plans to start a cargo carrier, and state-run Air India plans to convert six more of its passenger planes into freighters by mid-2008, adding to its current fleet of four.

" Air India plans to become a key player in domestic market by expanding operations to all the secondary cities of the country," said Chairman and Managing Director Vasudevan Thulasidas last week.

FOREIGN INTEREST

Singapore state investor Temasek Holdings [TEM.UL] holds a 27 percent stake in First Flight Courier Ltd. Last year, foreign firms like FedEx spent $30 million to buy Prakash Air Freight Pvt Ltd, and DHL Express, an arm of Deutsche Post AG , bought 81 percent in Blue Dart.

And there are yet no signs of their interest waning.

"We're looking for opportunities," Rajesh Subramaniam, FedEx's senior vice president for international marketing, said in October, when asked if he was looking for more deals.

But India needed to beef up its infrastructure if the sector had to grow at its full potential, cautioned CAPA's Kaul.

"For any economy to do well, cargo and logistics is the crucial sector ... once we develop our infrastructure, we will see 20 percent plus growth."

China directly, at doorstep
- Thrice-a-week, non-stop flights from October 29
SANJAY MANDAL

Calcutta will have its first direct flight to China later this month.

China Eastern Airlines will launch its non-stop service between Calcutta and Kunming, capital of Yunan province, in the southwestern part of China, on October 29, airline sources said on Tuesday. The airline now operates three weekly flights from Delhi on the Delhi-Shanghai-Canton route.

Sources said the airline will operate three flights between Calcutta and Kunming every week. The flight will arrive in Calcutta on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays, and take off from here on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays.

The first flight from Kunming is scheduled to touch down at Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose International Airport on October 29, at 11.40pm. It will leave Calcutta the next day at 12.30am, reaching Kunming at 5.10am (local time).

A return ticket on the route will cost around Rs 9,500, inclusive of taxes.

It takes about three hours’ non-stop flying from Calcutta to reach Kunming, from where China Eastern Airlines has connecting flights to Beijing, Shanghai, Canton and other major Chinese cities.

“The Calcutta-Kunming service opens an opportunity for the people of Calcutta and the Northeast to travel to various parts of China,” said an airline official.

“Once the direct flight is introduced, the number of travellers to China from this part of India will increase sharply. On an average, 300 passengers from Calcutta now visit various Chinese cities every week,” said Anil Punjabi, the chairman (east) of the Travel Agents Federation of India.

The travellers now have two options: either catch a China-bound flight from Delhi, or go to Singapore or Bangkok and board a connecting flight to China from there.

Source: telegraphindia.com

Jet may expand wings in Europe
(http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/News/News_By_Industry/Transportation/Airlines__Aviation/Jet_may_expand_wings_in_Europe/articleshow/2583053.cms)


Jet Airways may expand its wings in Europe. The government has permitted the airline to fly to Barcelona, Paris, Manchester and Vienna under a code-share agreement with Brussels Airlines.

“We have granted permission to Jet Airways to code-share with Brussels Airlines on various routes such as Barcelona and Manchester with immediate effect. Their request to code-share with American Airlines is, currently, being looked at,” an official in the ministry of civil aviation told ET. According to experts, the move would usher in tough competition between public sector Air India and Jet Airways in the sector.

With Air India joining Star Alliance next month for getting wider global connectivity, the war between the national carrier and Jet Airways is likely to hot up in Europe.

Jet Airways had recently been designated traffic rights for Birmingham, Madrid and Geneva. While Air India operates to Birmingham and Paris, other routes are still untapped. The public sector carrier flies on these routes on its own, unlike Jet Airways which operates on code-share basis.

“As we would be inducted into Star Alliance next month, we would be serving almost all the points across the world, particularly Europe. But in the meantime we are planning to connect Vienna shortly,” an Air India official said.

The move to join Star Alliance would help Air India reduce operating cost by partnering with member airlines on various fronts such as marketing and spare parts sourcing. This would also offer more options to passengers in terms of choosing the connecting flight and fares. The members of Star Alliance include Lufthansa, US Airways, Singapore Airlines, Air New Zealand and Air Canada among others. The members of the alliance together fly to 855 destinations in 155 countries.

While Jet Airways has shifted its focus on international routes, Air India is also on expansion mode. The airline plans to add more international destinations with the introduction of more and more aircraft. The company has ordered 68 aircraft valued at $11 billion delivery of which has already started.

In a move to strengthen its international operation, Jet Airways has set up its hub in Brussels. The company is operating flights to New York, Toronto and London via its European hub.

Maverick British tycoon who beat BA, with his low-fare Virgin Atlantic, Sir Richard Branson, chairman, Virgin Group today said that his airline would love the right to enter India''''s domestic aviation market, "but the market is currently protected".

Virgin operates a single daily flight to London from India, but if the market was opened up, "you will find Virgin competing alongside local carriers," he said.

Sir Richard, currently in New Delhi to mark the first anniversary of Virgin Radio''''s tie-up with HT Media Ltd for a radio channel, also told the media that he had found an Indian telecom partner, but tantalisingly withheld disclosing its identity, saying, "I will reveal all in two months'''' time."

Branson, who made his early fortune through a music retailing venture, Virgin Records, and then took on British Airways'''' monopoly with Virgin Atlantic, said he has been waiting for India to relax its aviation policy that currently restricted foreign airlines from investing in the domestic air transport sector.

Kapil Kaul, chief executive, Centre for Asia Pacific Aviation, said, India''''s middle class population of 300 million made the country a huge market for domestic airlines and that. foreign airlines had been looking to enter India for the past 10 years.":banana:

Indian passengers may now have an unprecedented choice of flights at all price levels, but this growth in traffic has only put them at a greater risk than ever before. Airports, built decades ago, designed to handle a lower traffic of flights daily are now witnessing movement of a much larger number of aircraft and support vehicles of airlines. A space crunch, coupled with ill-trained drivers and people working in apron area, has led to a sharp rise in tarmac-side mishaps.

This problem could get much worse in coming foggy days at airports of north India, due to poor visibility on the airside. "The basic issue is that there are far too many vehicles and people on airside. Essentially, tarmac management has two aspects — movement of vehicles, and aircraft in operational areas. Indian airports don't have dedicated aircraft and vehicle movement areas, and thanks to the overlap, there are frequent mishaps involving the two," said a national airline official.

Only some airlines, like the state-owned ones, have trained drivers as permanent employees who spend a lifetime driving in airports. On the other hand, most other carriers have such a high turnover of drivers that retaining trained ones is very difficult.
As a result, high speed driving — when speed limit is 15 kmph — by poorly trained drivers in vehicles, yet to be equipped with speed governors, has become a big problem. Last year, a speeding Sahara bus hit an Indian Airlines bus carrying Kingfisher passengers and eight people were injured. This problem takes a grave turn whenever speeding vehicles kill people, as has happened recently in Delhi twice.

Apart from vehicles, the presence of a large number of people associated with different agencies like airlines, security and airport has aggravated the problem of congestion in airside. "Last month, my aircraft was taxiing for take off when I saw one or two persons running across the taxiway. I had to screech to a halt and reported the matter to the airport. This problem is very common in Delhi and little less in Mumbai. It is mandatory, but not everyone working on airside wears a fluorescent jacket," said a pilot with a private airline.

Design flaws in old airports are now becoming glaring. For instance, the 1A terminal used by Kingfisher and Indian Airlines (now Air India) is very close to the operational area. Aircraft heading from domestic airport side to main runway from Jumbo Point side have to be very careful in piloting this course.

"Earlier, with less traffic, the 'dhaba on highway' kind of runway-terminal design was okay. Now handling more aircraft and simultaneous movement of more vehicles in such a limited space is becoming a recipe for disaster," said an airline official.

The space crunch and overall indiscipline in airside is proving to be dangerous for anyone required to be there, like passengers, and an expensive affair for airlines. "Each time that baggage trolleys break free from tractors, or step ladders or vehicles hit planes, they have to be grounded for varying periods and necessitate repairs costing crores," said an official.

For instance, the Air Deccan ATR that was hit by a Jet vehicle at Chennai on Monday will not fly for at least six months, said Deccan spokeswoman Vijaya Menon. While new airports will get ready only in coming years, authorities have to ensure a safe airside till that happens.

Speaking about new rules at IGI that also apply to other crowded airports, aviation minister Praful Patel told Parliament on Thursday: "All vehicles on airside have to be equipped with speed limitation devices. The number of vehicles there has to be a bare minimum. Two wheelers and pedestrian movement on airside is banned. People working there must wear safety jackets.":banana:

Trials at Bangalore’s new airport to start next month
29 November 2007
The Economic Times

BANGALORE: With the construction of the Bangalore International Airport in its last leg, the airport's management team announced that trials and tests of the various systems would begin by the end of this year.

"As most of the work is scheduled for completion by the end of the year, we expect to begin with basic trials in December. More advanced and integrated trials follow in January," said Marcel Hungerbuehler, chief operating officer, Bangalore International Airport (BIAL).

The new airport, according to him, is geared to handle 30 movements (take-offs & landings included) per hour. An estimated 10.5 million passengers would use this airport in the first year of operation.

Talking about the mode of connectivity to the new airport, Mr Hun-gerbuehler said the Bangalore Metropolitan Transport Corporation (BMTC) plans to run about 40 Volvo buses from the city to the airport and people could board these buses from six different points in the city.

Also, a bus from BIAL would depart for the city at 10-minute in-tervals. According to him, BIAL would make separate arrangements to ferry employees to the airport.

On the possibility of setting up a remote baggage check-in facility within the city, he said, such a system will have to be integrated with a mass rapid transit system (MRTS). "My personal opinion is that for the long-term, Bangalore needs a dedicated MRTS between the city-centre and the airport site," he said. BIAL also announced a tie-up with SITA for the introduction of an automated baggage reconciliation system for the new airport.

Meanwhile, the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) is to go ahead with its plans to upgrade the existing three-lane highway (NH7) to a four-lane highway. BIAL maintains the addition of a lane to the existing setup would not disturb construction work on the upcoming trumpet interchange.

BIAL, in a statement, mentioned that the design of the Trumpet Interchange has been finalised in co-ordination with the NHAI to accommodate the future expansion of NH7 into an eight-lane highway.

Airports Authority of India to spend Rs 100 cr on mobile command posts

NEW DELHI: Airports Authority of India (AAI) will establish Mobile Command Post (MCP), a hightech safety service at its 66 big airports to combat and co-ordinate all kind of aviation emergencies, with an investment of around Rs 100 crore.

MCP will be ultra-modern heavy duty trucks that will be mounted with satellite-enabled and wirelessbased communication systems to control post-mishaps situations in coordination with civil authorities. It will serve as the single point of disaster management at these airports.

It is part of AAI's safety upgradation programme to meet the higher safety standards at all international and major domestic airports, which have seen massive jump in air-traffic in recent years.

Each of the truck will have a GPSbased satellite navigation, satellite phones and wireless sets, faxes, TV cameras and monitors to aid safety measures. Initially, MCP will be installed at the key airports-Kolkata , Amritsar, Trivandrum and Chennaiand will later be standardised at all the 66 airports, all of which are equipped with AAI's fire safety services.

"With the rise in the number of fire incidents in the aviation sector and rapid expansion of air-services , we have decided to standardise fire services at all our airports. As the skies are increasingly getting congested , we have laid out elaborate plans to upgrade our aeronautical safety services and over Rs 500 crore have been earmarked in the next five years. These equipment most of which will be imported will also help us to meet global safety parameters laid out by the International Civil Aviation Organisation," said a senior official of AAI.

The new service is likely to be incorporated at the airports by mid-2008 and AAI is in the process of finalising tenders quotations for MCP. These equipment are also expected to come up at the Delhi and Mumbai airports, which are being modernised by private consortiums, where AAI is also a major stake holder.:banana:

Report: Indian court rules airlines must compensate passengers for delays, cancelations
27 November 2007

NEW DELHI (AP) - An Indian consumer court has ruled that airlines must compensate passengers for flight delays and sudden cancelations that cause mental agony and harassment, a news report said Tuesday.

Justice J. D. Kapoor ordered private airline, Go Air, to pay 15,000 rupees ($380) each as compensation to the passengers who had booked tickets on a New Delhi-Mumbai flight last February, the Hindustan Times reported.

The flight was canceled at the last minute without any explanation, according to complainant Yogesh Kumar, a New Delhi resident, the news report said.

Kapoor, who heads the New Delhi State Consumer Disputes Redress Commission, said only delays beyond the airlines' control like bad weather were exempted, the daily reported.

Kapoor could not be immediately reached for comment.

Private airlines are growing in India to meet the demand of a skyrocketing aviation sector with rising incomes putting air travel within the reach of millions of new customers.

However, passenger complaints over flight delays and cancellations have been mounting, leading to protest demonstrations at various airports, including inside the aircraft.

As many as 10 state-run Air India flights to New York, London and Toronto were delayed last week because of technical snags and because pilots were not available.

India will likely need more than 900 new passenger jets over the next 20 years to meet the growing demand for air travel, making it one of the world's largest markets for new jets, Boeing Co. said in its latest market outlook for India.

Nirmal John
Saturday, December 01, 2007 09:36 IST

MUMBAI: Airlines will increase their fuel surcharge by Rs 300 to Rs1,650 from Monday. While Jet, Kingfisher and Spice Jet have confirmed this move, Go Air and IndiGo say they are still assessing the impact and no decision had yet been taken.

Air India was not available for comment at the time of going to press. The hike is consequent to Indian Oil and its counterparts, HPCL and BPCL, raising jet fuel prices for the ninth time this year.

It is up by Rs6264.39 a kilolitre in Mumbai from Rs42,796.74 to Rs.49,061.13, according to the Indian Oil Company (IOC) website.

The aviation industry says it is high time the government steps into the picture. CEO, Jet Airways, Wolfgang Prock-Schauer told DNA Money, “Indian aviation is running the risk of becoming uncompetitive with fuel accounting for 40% of our expenditure. Nowhere in the world are prices this high and if this continues, it will affect the aviation sector.”

Executive vice-president and CFO, Kingfisher Airlines, A Raghunathan said, “Without any relief on the ATF front, it will be very difficult for the industry to survive.”

An executive in a leading airline told DNA Money, “If the cost of the raw material goes up, it is but natural that the prices of the end product will be impacted.”

ATF prices are revised every month on the basis of international crude prices. It is also heavily taxed and local prices show a premium of close to nearly 80% compared to international levels.

Analysts say that with the constant surcharge, hikes will soon start hurting load factors by driving away sections of the passengers, especially leisure travelers back to railways. While full service carriers, which primarily cater to business traffic, will not be affected as much, the same cannot be said of low cost carriers.:banana:

Non-stop Delhi-Vancouver flights announced

NEW DELHI, INDIA - Premier Gordon Campbell announced today that Kingfisher Airlines has committed to operate the first non-stop Delhi-Vancouver flights as soon as possible.

It's expected that the non-stop service will reduce travel time between Delhi and Vancouver from about 25 hours to 15 hours.

"Building better transportation links between B.C. and India will build on the already-close social, cultural and business relationships that exist between our two jurisdictions," said Campbell, after meeting with Dr. Vijay Mallya, Kingfisher Airlines' chairman and CEO, in Delhi.

"The convenience of direct, non-stop flights between Vancouver and Delhi will create a major benefit for our whole community."

Added Campbell, "It helps establish our gateway status for the world's two fastest-growing economies, China and India, while creating a vital link for our Indo-Canadian community, business,

investors from B.C. and our tourism industry."

Mallya said thousands of people traveling between B.C. and India every month will benefit from the direct service.

Tony Gugliotta, the Vancouver Airport Authority's senior vice-president of marketing and commercial development, said the service is integral to the Vancouver Gateway Strategy, as Delhi represents the largest market not served non-stop from Vancouver.

"We see the market as having enormous potential, not only through our cultural ties, but through increased business and tourism linkages," he said. "Non-stop service will greatly enhance the convenience and ease for travel between Delhi and Vancouver."

India was the second-highest source for immigrants settling in British Columbia in 2006. About 28 per cent of all Indian tourists to Canada arrived through Vancouver in 2006.

Earlier in Premier Campbell's mission to Asia, Cathy Pacific and China Southern Airlines announced increased air service between China and Vancouver.

Campbell is currently on his fourth mission to Asia.

http://www.canada.com/vancouversun/n...31a1dbf&k=6689

Campbell is on a row. So far during his Asian visit, he has gotten 3 carriers to boost services / bring service to Vancouver. How many political leaders can get all that in one try?

India's Jet Airways to launch flights to Dhaka

NEW DELHI, Dec 7, 2007 (AFP) - India's largest domestic airline Jet Airways said on Friday it will launch non-stop flights to the Bangladeshi capital Dhaka as it continues to spread its international wings.

Jet will operate daily non-stop flights from the eastern Indian city of Kolkata and four flights a week from the Indian capital New Delhi, beginning December 16, a company spokeswoman said.

"There has been a surge in business and leisure travel, especially those visiting friends and family, between the two countries," the company's chief executive officer Wolfgang Prock-Schauer said in a statement.

Dhaka is the latest international destination for the airline, which launched flights this year to New York, Toronto, Brussels and Bangkok as it moves to expand its operations.

Jet already flies to Colombo, Kathmandu, Kuala Lumpur, Singapore, and London. It began flying in 1993, and plies 44 domestic routes.

The airline plans to launch flights to other cities in North America, Europe, Africa and Asia.

Just flew Jet from Delhi to Brussels...Wonderful! Air India completely sucks...
-

ha ha, they've been doing that for a while now. The irony is that they will be inducted into the Star Alliance soon!

Its a government run organization, and in India, government run, for the most part, means bureaucracy, incompetence, corruption, and unaccountability. Unfortunately, Air India will not be able to get rid of their mentality simply by buying billions worth of planes using the taxpayers money.

What I would like to see is that their Star Alliance membership should come with strict benchmarks that the airline should be forced to follow.

Air India joins Star Alliance to raise profile
(http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/News/News_By_Industry/Transportation/Airlines__Aviation/Air_India_joins_Star_Alliance_to_raise_profile/articleshow/2620195.cms)


State-run national carrier Air India said on Thursday it would join the Star Alliance global network of 19 airlines to help it take on growing competition at home and abroad. Star Alliance, which includes Lufthansa and UAL Corp's United Airlines , allows airlines to widen their reach and boost revenues and customer loyalty as air miles can be transferred between group members. "India has long been on the radar," Glenn Tilton, United Airlines' chief executive, who chaired the Star Alliance annual board meeting in Beijing, said in a statement.

He said the agreement would enable the grouping's customers to receive additional benefits when travelling to, from and within India. The decision to accept Air India's application was taken at the meeting. In August, the Indian government approved the merger of state-run international carrier Air India and predominantly domestic flier Indian Airlines. The merged airline, which now flies under the Air India brand, has a fleet of 112 aircraft and has on order another 111 Boeing and Airbus <EAD.PA> planes. The airline faces rising competition from top private carrier Jet Airways Ltd and a host of foreign airlines flying into India, where a booming economy has boosted business and leisure travel.

Jet announces direct flights to Kuwait, Bahrain (http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/News_by_Industry/Jet_announces_direct_flights_to_Kuwait_Bahrain/articleshow/2620453.cms)


Jet Airways, the country's first private airliner to fly to Gulf, on Thursday announced launching of direct flights to Kuwait and Bahrain from January 5 next year.

Jet Airways will initially launch two daily direct flights on the Kochi-Kuwait-Kochi and Kochi-Bahrain-Kochi sectors. The airline will also operate daily direct flights on the Mumbai-Bahrain-Mumbai and Delhi-Kuwait-Delhi sectors, effective January 5, 2008.

"Jet Airways is proud to be the first Indian private sector carrier to fly to the Gulf. With a large number of Indians living and working in the Gulf, flights to these sectors consistently register high load factors," Chief Executive Officer of JET Wolfgang Prock-Schauer said.

Jet Airways flight 9W 574 (Kochi-Kuwait) will depart from Kochi at 1940 hours and arrive at Kuwait International Airport at 2220 hours. The return flight will depart Kuwait at 1230 hours and arrive at Kochi at 2020 hours.

Jet Airways flight 9W 594 (Kochi-Bahrain) will depart Kochi at 1750 hours and arrive at Bahrain at 2000 hours while its return flight will depart Bahrain at 0845 hours and arrive at Kochi at 1610 hours.

The Delhi-Kuwait flight will leave IGI Airport at 0900 hours and arrive at Kuwait at 1100 hours and would return at 2350 hours and arrive at Delhi at 0630 hours.

Jet Airways flight 9W 592 (Mumbai-Bahrain) will depart from Mumbais Airport at 0605 hours and arrive at Bahrain at 0715 hours. On the return leg, flight 9W 591 (Bahrain-Mumbai) will depart Bahrain International Airport at 2130 hours and arrive at Mumbai Chhatrapati Shivaji International Airport at 0350 hours.

India's aviation boom gives cabin crew new wings

NEW DELHI, Nov 5 (Reuters) - Never mind the long hauls and the demanding passengers -- thousands of young Indians are enrolling at flight attendant schools for a sky-high career that promises generous pay and a glamorous lifestyle.

Most of the students -- from small towns and low-to-middle income families -- have never been inside an airplane or travelled outside India.

But they've been inspired by the breathtaking growth of India's aviation industry which has fuelled strong demand for staff, on the ground and in the sky.

"We heard this is a good career to get into. Our child will have a good future," said Lal Gurg, a grocery store owner who borrowed from friends and relatives to get his 21-year-old daughter, Anju, into a flight attendant training institute.

"She would be on her own, independent. She can even support us if the need be."

India's economy is booming as is the aviation industry, which officials estimate will attract investments worth $150 billion in the next 10 years. The travel market is also forecast to expand at more than 20 percent annually till 2010.

All of this has helped turn "cabin crew" into a desirable profession when 10 years ago, parents hoped their children would become doctors, engineers or civil servants.

FLYING HIGH

Air hostessing is also still seen as a glamorous job, where you can bump into celebrities, jet-set to exotic locations and attend fancy parties -- a lifestyle most wannabe attendants from modest backgrounds can only dream of.

Samire Walia of Frankfinn Institute of Air Hostess Training says the modest academic qualifications required for the job, and its generous pay, has added to its appeal, especially among women who feel it empowers them in a male-dominated society.

"The reason why quite a few of the youngsters are coming in from the smaller cities and the smaller towns and even rural areas is because the basic minimum qualification required is low," Walia said. "The packages offered are very attractive."

With annual per capita income in India around $800 dollars, airline salaries offer young people from small rural towns a rare chance to join the middle class.

A flight attendant with no university degree pockets about 25,000 rupees ($640) a month, while a majority of graduates -- except those from top engineering and business schools -- would earn between 7,000 and 12,000 rupees.

But it's not all smooth flying for the thousands of hopefuls who join training institutes such as Frankfinn. Walia said many students lacked language and communication skills and had to be taught basics like etiquette and grooming.

But those who do make it through the programme, and get jobs, become instant stars among their peers.

"When you enter into the cabin with your trolley, everybody starts looking at you and you feel so nice," said Ranbir, a stewardess with a private airline who only gave her first name.

"So that way it is very glamorous. And when you are not on the job you can go to parties -- every day there are parties and you are going to meet so many famous people."

Jet Airways is not only hiring in India but also overseas.

Thai flight attendant on Jet Airways in Singapore click for bigger photo

http://lh6.google.com/rudykore/R2FBXUNztoI/AAAAAAAAAtg/-ctSqLWqJk0/s800/MyAviationNetPhotoID01232913.jpg (http://myaviation.net/?pid=01232913)

http://lh5.google.com/rudykore/R2FBYENztpI/AAAAAAAAAto/hD57P7YcbCE/s800/MyAviationNetPhotoID01189148.jpg (http://myaviation.net/?pid=01189148)

Jet Airways is not only hiring in India but also overseas.

Thai flight attendant on Jet Airways in Singapore click for bigger photo

http://lh6.google.com/rudykore/R2FBXUNztoI/AAAAAAAAAtg/-ctSqLWqJk0/s800/MyAviationNetPhotoID01232913.jpg (http://myaviation.net/?pid=01232913)

http://lh5.google.com/rudykore/R2FBYENztpI/AAAAAAAAAto/hD57P7YcbCE/s800/MyAviationNetPhotoID01189148.jpg (http://myaviation.net/?pid=01189148)

What makes you think she is not an Indian?? I am perplexed

What makes you think she is not an Indian?? I am perplexed

Below is the news article.


Jet Airways announces daily nonstop flights between India and Thailand (http://www.thaindian.com/news-snippet/jet-airways-announces-daily-nonstop-flights-between-india-and-thailand-effective-january-23-2007.html) effective January 23, 2007

Jet Airways, India’s premier airline, is pleased to announce the launch of direct daily flights from Delhi and Kolkata to Bangkok, the 50th destination on the airline’s network, effective January 23, 2007. Consequent to the induction into its fleet of a brand new Boeing 737-800 aircraft with winglets, Jet Airways, which has been designated by the Government of India to Jet Airwaysoperate air services on the India-Thailand route, will introduce two daily direct flights effective January 23, 2007 to Asia’s favourite destination, Bangkok. Jet Airways will operate these flights with a brand new Boeing 737-800 aircraft with winglets, which will be inducted into the airline fleet next month, taking the fleet size to 59. This is the first time that the Airline will operate inaugural flights between two metro cities in India and an international destination on the same day.

Speaking about the launch of these new flights, Jet Airways Chief Executive Officer Mr. Wolfgang Prock-Schauer said, “Bangkok will be the 50th destination on our network and the third destination we operate to in the ASEAN Region. With the strengthening of economic ties between India and Thailand, there has been a marked increase in business and tourist traffic between the two countries, which requires enhanced connectivity. Jet Airways will be fulfilling this need with 14 direct flights per week to Bangkok, seven each from Delhi and Kolkata.”

Mr. Prock-Schauer added “Our Delhi – Bangkok flight will not only link the two capital cities but also offer convenient early morning connections to Bangkok and onwards to other cities in the ASEAN Region. Kolkata will serve as the gateway to the Buddhist destinations in the Eastern Region of India. The early morning arrival into Kolkata from Bangkok would also provide convenient connections to other cities in India that are served by Jet Airways.”

9W 064 will depart Delhi at 0045 hrs and arrive Bangkok at 0635 hrs (Local Time). On the return sector, 9W 063 will depart Bangkok at 1805 hrs (Local Time) and arrive Delhi at 2105 hrs.

The flight from Kolkata 9W 066 will depart at 1155 hrs and reach Bangkok at 1615 hrs (Local Time) while on the return sector, 9W 065 will depart Bangkok at 0920 hrs (Local Time) and reach Kolkata at 1020 hrs.

As part of its inaugural offer, Jet Airways has introduced a special return air fare of Rs 6,500 on the Kolkata-Bangkok-Kolkata sector for a two month period while Economy class fares start at Rs 13,500 on the Delhi-Bangkok-Delhi sector. The return airfare for Club Premiere for the Delhi-Bangkok sector ranges from Rs 28,500 to Rs 38,000 while on the Kolkata-Bangkok sector it is between Rs 18,500 and Rs 26,000. These fares are exclusive of taxes.

Jet Airways has also announced a companion free offer for Club Premiere passengers on the Delhi-Singapore-Delhi sector and Delhi-Bangkok-Delhi sector until March 31, 2007. Additionally, there is a special fare for a family of four travelling together in Economy Class on this sector.

The new Boeing 737-800 aircraft, which will bring the Jet Airways fleet size to 59 aircraft next monthThe Boeing 737-800 aircraft that will be used to operate the flights to Bangkok from Delhi and Kolkata, will seat 24 in Club Premiere and 126 in the Economy section. It is also equipped with a state of the art In-flight Entertainment System, which offers iXplor TM, the in-flight tracking system.

In addition to the world class product, service and amenities that Jet Airways is known for in its domestic and international operations, the airline will offer added value on these new routes. Authentic Thai cuisine served by in-flight crew of Thai nationality and especially selected Thai audio/video in-flight entertainment will be some of the key additional features.

It is also equipped with a state-of -the-art Inflight Entertainment System, which offers iXplor TM, the inflight tracking system.

In addition, the Boeing 737-800, with state-of-the-art Panasonic eFX system, has nine inch video monitors mounted with touch screens in Club Premiere and seven inch touch screen monitors at the back of every seat in economy class. These individual LCD screens are currently the biggest in the Indian skies and equipped for over 100 hours of audio/video programming from Hollywood and Bollywood.

About Jet Airways:
Jet Airways currently operates a fleet of 58 aircraft with 46 classic and next generation Boeing 737-400/700/800/900 aircraft, 3 Airbus A340-300E aircraft, 1 Airbus A330-200 aircraft and 8 modern ATR 72-500 turboprop aircraft. With an average fleet age of 5.3 years, the airline has one of the youngest aircraft fleet in the world. Jet Airways’ operates over 330 daily flights to 49 destinations that span the length and breadth of India and beyond including London Heathrow in U.K., Singapore, Kuala Lumpur in Malaysia, Colombo in Sri Lanka, and Kathmandu in Nepal. The airline plans to extend its international operations to North America, Europe, Africa and Asia in the coming years with the induction of wide-body aircraft into its fleet in 2007.

Source: Jet airways press release dated 12th December 2006

When i took the photo, she had turned else it would have been very clear. I had to catch a flight, couldn't take any more photo's.Hope its clear now.

:cheers:

'No English, no licence for pilots'
13 December 2007
The Times of India

NEW DELHI: Facing a desperate shortage of trained local commanders, Indian carriers' hunt for them abroad is now taking them to places where people may know how to fly but not speak English. The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) last week shot down the request of two foreign pilots for getting their commercial pilot licences validated in India. The reason - A Brazilian pilot being eyed by Jet Airways was not proficient in English and the other hired by a general aviation company did not have his papers in order.

"A Brazilian pilot was to serve an Indian carrier on getting the local validation. But his English was not up to the mark and his request was turned down. We are very strict on this count, and in the past also, have rejected foreign pilots on this ground," said DGCA chief Kanu Gohain. Earlier this year, as many as 25 foreign flyers were turned down for this reason. The second pilot, an American, did not have all his papers and was rejected.

On its part, Jet Airways - which has the highest number of foreign pilots among Indian carriers - says it uses the service of an expat only after being cleared by DGCA. "When the required clearance is not given, we don't hire such a foreign pilot," said an airline spokesperson.

Indian carriers currently have a total of 804 foreign pilots, with Jet leading the pack with 271, followed by Deccan-Kingfisher combined at 244 fliers. All of Jet's 58 Cat-III compliant pilots are foreigners, according to the aviation ministry.

Interestingly, Jet's Indian pilots are seeing red over the alleged difference in treatment between them and the expats. The Society of Welfare of Indian Pilots, a body formed by Jet's 630-odd Indian pilots, recently carried a poll among flyers on this issue and a number of them are learnt to have admitted to this difference.

With the dollar weakening, more and more Indian carriers are looking to hire foreign pilots. Moreover, with its high pay package and a retirement age of 65 (as opposed to 60 in the West), India is also emerging as a natural destination for such fliers. On its part, the DGCA says its language check objective is to ensure that foreign pilots clearly understand English and have no problem in interacting with air traffic controllers when they fly here. The biggest language constraints are faced by pilots hailing from eastern Europe, CIS countries and Indonesia.

is AI actually planning to connect Rome?
:cheers:

India, Hong Kong agree to liberalise air services (http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/News/News_By_Industry/Transportation/Airlines__Aviation/India_Hong_Kong_agree_to_liberalise_air_services/articleshow/2635336.cms)


India and Hong Kong have agreed to liberalise air services by increasing the number of flights and allowing carriers to fly onward to other countries, India's civil aviation ministry said on Wednesday.

The new agreement allows 27 new services per week for each on the India-Hong Kong route, it said in a statement.

India can operate the new services from any point in India, while Hong Kong has been allowed 10 services to Delhi, six to Mumbai and 11 in all to Bangalore, Chennai and Kolkata. Currently, India's state-run Air India operates 12 flights to Hong Kong, and Cathy Pacific has eight flights to India from Hong Kong every week.

Under the earlier agreement, these carriers were not allowed to fly onward to a third country.

Cathy Pacific... :hilarious

Jan- Oct 2007 % increase Jan - Oct 2006
Mumbai 20525159 (17.95% ) 17401437
Delhi 19089585 (21.83% ) 15668403
Chennai 8579351 (24.58% ) 6886417
Bangalore 8146746 (37.23% ) 5936640
Kolkatta 5865345 (28.62% ) 4560310
Hyderabad 5576910 (28.82% ) 4329206
Cochin 2542324 (30.71% ) 1944986
Ahmedabad 2433771 (25.53% ) 1938843
Goa 2000114 (25.48% ) 1593971
Trivandrum 1687498 (25.81% ) 1341356
Pune 1429323 (24.27%) 1150198
Guwahatti 1099734 (42.74% ) 770432
Calicut 1053050 (15.87% ) 908817
Jaipur 992142 (116.61%) 458038
Coimbatore 827472 (29.16% ) 640658

Kingfisher Airlines is the airline to watch.

'No English, no licence for pilots'
13 December 2007
The Times of India
A co-worker of mine knows another guy who went to India for a job flying regional jets. Pay is supposedly excellent. :hug:

Govt expects Rs 2-lakh cr investment in aviation in 10 yrs (http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/News/News_By_Industry/Transportation/Airlines__Aviation/Govt_expects_Rs_2-lakh_cr_investment_in_aviation_in_10_yrs/articleshow/2675786.cms)


The government is expecting to draw investment to the tune of Rs 2,00,000 crore in the aviation sector during next ten years, which will generate employment for 30 lakh people, Civil Aviation Minister Praful Patel said on Friday.

"We expect that the civil aviation sector will attract an investment of Rs 2 lakh crore during next ten years," he said at a function for laying the foundation stone for the new integrated terminal building of Chandigarh airport here.

Kingfisher gets OK to fly abroad in 2008: Govt (http://www.financialexpress.com/news/Kingfisher-gets-OK-to-fly-abroad-in-2008-Govt/259549/)

Kingfisher Airlines would be permitted to fly abroad this year as it would enjoy the rights of low-cost carrier Air Deccan, which it has taken over.

“All three airlines -- Air India, Jet Airways and Kingfisher -- are going to fly abroad this year,” Civil Aviation Minister Praful Patel said when asked about the fate of a request by the airline owned by liquor-baron Vijay Mallya to operate on international sectors.

When asked if there would be a change in the prevailing norms to permit Indian carriers to become eligible for international operations, he said, “they (Kingfisher and Air Deccan) are one company now”.

Air Deccan completes five years of domestic operations this August, thereby meeting the eligibility criteria required by the government to permit them to operate abroad. The low-cost carrier also satisfies the other criteria of having a 20 aircraft fleet.

The Minister’s reply indicates the current norms are unlikely to be changed and that Kingfisher would be allowed to fly abroad only because it has acquired Air Deccan, and therefore its rights.

The Kingfisher-Air Deccan combine has been a front-runner for being permitted to fly abroad as the low-cost carrier will be completing five years of domestic operations this August.

Jet Airways is the only private airline that has so far been allowed to go global as it matched both the eligibility criteria. State-run Air India also flies on international routes.

A Group of Ministers, which is studying the proposed Civil Aviation Policy, including these norms as well, is likely to meet soon to take a final call on the matter. It is understood that the continuation of the prevailing norms enjoys the majority view.



Great, now India will have three carriers flying around the world.

India's aviation min to seek duty cuts on jet fuels

NEW DELHI, Jan 11 (Reuters) - Indian Civil Aviation Minister Praful Patel said on Friday that his ministry would seek a duty cut on jet fuels in the end-February federal budget.

"I am meeting the finance minister next week and I will request for a cut in customs and excise duties on aviation fuels," Patel told reporters.

He added that an initial public offering of shares in national carrier Air India was likely in the second half of 2008.

Air Arabia sets up low-cost carrier in Nepal to target India (http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/News/News_By_Industry/Transportation/Air_Arabia_sets_up_low-cost_carrier_in_Nepal_to_target_India/articleshow/2698594.cms)


Aiming to tap markets across Indian subcontinent, South and Central Asia, UAE-based Air Arabia has announced to set up Nepal's first international low-cost carrier in Kathmandu.

This will provide Air Arabia with a platform from which to serve markets stretching across Indian subcontinent, South and Central Asia, the Far East, and Middle East.

The new carrier is expected to begin operations with inaugural flight taking off to Sharjah before the end of January, followed by operations to destinations in India, Doha and Kuala Lumpur.

This announcement follows the signing of a joint venture agreement between Air Arabia and Yeti Airlines and approval from Nepal Government's Department of Industries (DOI).

Under the agreement, Air Arabia and Yeti Airlines will jointly establish a new low-cost carrier, based in Kathmandu that will provide affordable service to a broad range of international destinations, a company statement said here.

"This is an enormously significant agreement for Air Arabia, and an extremely timely one," said Sheikh Abdullah Bin Mohammad Al Thani, Chairman of Air Arabia.

India's Kingfisher to buy five more A380s: report

NEW DELHI, Jan 14, 2008 (AFP) - India's Kingfisher Airlines will buy five more superjumbo A380s in addition to the five it has already ordered as it seeks to start international operations this year, a report said Monday.

"Now that I have secured all the necessary clearances, I am planning to convert the options to confirmed orders," Vijay Mallya, the chief executive officer of Kingfisher, was quoted as saying by the Mint business daily.

The Indian government said this month Kingfisher would be permitted to fly overseas later this year.

"We will be operating all non-stop flights to international destinations," Mallya told the newspaper.

Kingfisher, the only Indian customer for the A380, could not immediately be reached for comment.

Under India's civil aviation rules, only airlines which have flown for at least five years can fly international routes. Kingfisher will complete five years in 2010.

But the airline can start flying foreign routes after its parent UB Group acquired a controlling stake in another carrier Deccan, which completes five years in the air in August 2008.

The two carriers have announced plans for a merger this year.

Kingfisher expects deliveries of the five A380s it had previously ordered to start in 2011-12.

Foreign airlines look to step up operations here (http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/News/News_By_Industry/Transportation/Airlines__Aviation/Foreign_airlines_look_to_step_up_operations_here/articleshow/2726292.cms)


Buoyed by the impressive growth in passenger traffic in India, foreign airlines are on expansion spree here. While Star Alliance member Lufthansa plans to launch operation on Pune-Germany sector besides increasing its frequency on the existing routes, Cathay Pacific would start flying on the Hong Kong-Chennai sector. Another Hong Kong-based carrier, Dragonair, is in the process of flying to Bangalore.

According to a data compiled by the Airports Authority of India (AAI), 16.21 million people flew on international routes to and from India during April-October 2007-08. This was a growth of 17.1% over the same period last fiscal. “There is strong demand on India-Hong Kong sector and we have seen a load factor of nearly 90% for quite some time.

With India and Hong Kong increasing the seat entitlements for each other, we are planning to expand our operation in India significantly,” Cathay Pacific general manager (India, Middle East, Africa and Pakistan), Tom Wright said.
Cathay Pacific plans to launch 23 new flights a week connecting Indian cities such as Mumbai, Delhi and Chennai with Hong Kong by early June.

Another Asian carrier Air China is also looking at adding more destinations like Bangalore and Kolkata on its Indian network, besides increasing its frequency on Delhi-Beijing route from the existing three flights a week. Gulf-based carriers such as Emirates, Gulf Air and Qatar Airways are also aggressively looking at tapping the traffic growth in non-metro cities such as Calicut, Amritsar and Lucknow.

“There is enough scope for all the airlines to operate in India as nearly 40% bilateral seat entitlements are still unutalised. Also, we are improving airport infrastructure in the country to provide air-connectivity to more points,” an official in the ministry of civil aviation said.

India, Saudi agree on more airline seats (http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/2008/01/25/stories/2008012550010700.htm)


India and Saudi Arabia have agreed to increase the number of seats that the designated airlines can offer between the two countries to 20,000 seats a week in each direction, up from 8,000 seats a week allowed previously.

After the conclusion of air services bilateral talks between India and Saudi Arabia on Thursday, the two sides also agreed to increase the number of airlines that would be allowed to operate between the two countries.

The new agreement allows the Saudi Airlines to operate to three new cities including Kozhikode, Lucknow and Bangalore. At the moment, Saudi Arabian airlines are allowed to operate to five cities including Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai, Kochi and Hyderabad.

The two countries also decided to free all limitations on cargo services. An official statement issued on Thursday states that there will now be restrictions in terms of frequency and point of call for operating all cargo services.

Air India, Jupiter, France Airbus to set up MRO facility (http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/News/News_By_Industry/Transportation/Air_India_Jupiter_France_Airbus_to_set_up_MRO_facility/articleshow/2732886.cms)


Air India is joining hands with Airbus of France and Rajiv Chandrasekar’s Jupiter Aviation to set up a maintenance, repair, overhaul (MRO) facility in India to service all types of Airbus aircraft. A memorandum of understanding to this effect was signed here on Thursday.

The national carrier would now prepare a business plan for the MRO and submit it to its board. The plan would be ready in two months.

The proposed business plan would outline the broad contours of the proposed MRO joint venture. Equity stake for the partners, location of the proposed MRO, investment details and other plans would be part of the business plan.

“We have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with a Airbus subsidiary. As per the MoU, we would make a business plan within two months,” an Air India spokesperson said. It is understood that the MoU was inked by the national carrier’s chief V Thulasidas in the presence of the visiting French delegation headed by president Nicolas Sarkozy.

It is understood that Air India will set up the JV in partnership with a subsidiary of Airbus, which is an EADS company. Jupiter and EADS have already set up a special purpose vehicle for this purpose, it is learnt.

The national carrier is planning to set up another MRO centre with the US-based aircraft manufacturer Boeing in Nagpur, the proposed cargo hub in the country. The proposed three-way JV between Air India, Airbus and Jupiter would cater to all type of Airbus aircraft.

The proposed MRO would not only provide services to Air India fleet which includes A310, A319, A320 and A321 but also to other airlines having fleet of Airbus aircraft. Among other airlines which has Airbus aircraft in India are Kingfisher, Air Deccan, IndiGo and GoAir.

Thiruvananthapuram to get Air India operational base (http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/2008/01/31/stories/2008013151243100.htm)


Air India, the brand under which the National Aviation Company of India Ltd (NACIL) flies, will set up an operational base in Thiruvananthapuram.

This means that Air India flights out of Kerala can originate from the city and crew will be stationed here as well, said Mr V. Thulasidas the Chairman and Managing Director of NACIL which was formed by the merger of Air India and Indian.

The operational base will be in addition to Air India’s planned maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO) facility in the city, he added.

In fact, part of the space meant for the MRO will be used for the operational base.

The airline decided to set up an MRO facility in Thiruvananthapuram only because the State Government offered it free land, he explained.

The airline is ready to start work on setting up the MRO facility as soon as the site is handed over to it, he added.

According to Mr Thulasidas, once work on the MRO facility starts, it will take about 12 months to complete.

The proposed MRO facility will be operated in association with Boeing and will service Boeing 737-800 aircraft.

Air services agreement signed with Oman (http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/2008/02/01/stories/2008020151070700.htm)


Air India and Jet Airways will soon be permitted to fly passengers from India to Oman and Bahrain via Abu Dhabi, Dubai or Sharjah. The move was the outcome of the air services agreement between India and Oman which concluded here on Wednesday.

The agreement with Oman also allows Indian carriers to operate flights to Europe and North America through Oman, Bahrain, Dubai, Sharjah or Abu Dhabi. The agreement has increased the weekly seats that airlines of Bahrain can operate to 11,500 but has put a cap of 14 weekly flights offering 2,156 weekly seats to Mumbai.

In addition, the agreement allows airlines to operate a daily flight to Delhi, Thiruvananthapuram and Kochi offering 1,078 seats a week to each city. The airlines can also operate six times a week to Bangalore. Addressing a press conference, the President and Chief Executive, Gulf Air, Mr Bjorn Naf, said that with the successful conclusion of the bilateral talks, the airline would soon start operating a daily flight between Bahrain and Hyderabad. The airline also planned to increase operation to a daily flight to Kochi and Kolkata. Currently, the airline operates five-times-a-week to Kochi and twice-a-week to Kolkata.

Airlines from Pak allowed to fly to Chennai

India and Pakistan have agreed to more than double the weekly flights operated between them to 28. The Air Services Agreement signed on Friday after official talks between the civil aviation authorities of the two countries also permits airlines from Pakistan to operate flights to Chennai.

The airlines from India have been permitted to fly to Islamabad, which was not allowed till now. The agreement also allows three airlines from each side to operate between India and Pakistan. At the moment, Pakistan International Airlines and Air India are the only designated airlines allowed to operate on the route

http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/2008/02/16/stories/2008021651971000.htm

No duty-free shops at Mumbai international Airport yet (http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/News/News_By_Industry/Transportation/Airlines__Aviation/No_duty-free_shops_at_Mumbai_international_Airport_yet/articleshow/2796849.cms)
20 Feb, 2008, 0323 hrs IST,Nirbhay Kumar, TNN

NEW DELHI: The busiest airport in the country — Mumbai international Airport — is functioning without duty-free outlets for more than a year now. The swanky duty-free shopping experience promised after corporatisation of the airport is yet to materialise. As a result, passengers are denied of the facility of purchasing duty-free goods at prices that could be more competitive than airports in Europe and the US.

GVK Group-led consortium that is upgrading the Mumbai airport had awarded a mega contract for duty-free outlets to a joint venture between ITDC and Aldeasa of Spain which failed to take off. Then the contract was offered to DFS which is yet to launch its outlets. When contacted, Mumbai International Airport (MIAL) spokesperson said that new duty-free shops are expected in a week. “DFS would complete its first phase of work for duty-free shops at the airport in the next week. By May-end, the entire project should be up and running,” he said. MIAL is a consortium led by GVK Airports with Airports Authority of India (AAI) holding 26% stake.

The airport operator had in November last year terminated the contract of ITDC-Aldeasa joint venture. With ITDC and Aldeasa failing to decide the equity structure for the proposed JV, duty-free shops at Mumbai airport remained a distant dream for travellers for almost half an year. MIAL awarded the contract to DFS which had emerged as the second highest bidder.

When DFS won the contract in November, it was estimated that new outlets would be opened by January. However, not even a single outlet has materialised so far. DFS has become the second part to face the Mumbai duty-free jinx. It won the contract by committing a minimum guarantee of Rs 260 crore to MIAL, about 60% lower than the original bidders, the ITDC-Aldeasa consortium.

Duty-free Shop construction in Oct.

http://lh5.google.com/rudykore/R7ixg_y9jHI/AAAAAAAABIc/ttqQLPCnwYk/s400/MyAviationNetPhotoID01286954.jpg (http://myaviation.net/?pid=01286954)

http://lh3.google.com/rudykore/R7NyOvy9i5I/AAAAAAAABFk/5SF-l4LEPo4/s400/MyAviationNetPhotoID01281223.jpg (http://myaviation.net/?pid=01281223)

http://lh4.google.com/rudykore/R6OWTTPDUsI/AAAAAAAABAw/YyYjV9erSis/s400/MyAviationNetPhotoID01121225.jpg (http://myaviation.net/?pid=01121225)

Pakistan and India double flights, link capitals: statement

ISLAMABAD, Feb 15, 2008 (AFP) - Pakistan and India agreed Friday to more than double the number of weekly flights between the two nations and start flights linking their capitals as part of a peace process, officials said.

The nuclear-armed neighbours agreed to operate 28 flights a week instead of the current 12, and add Islamabad, New Delhi and the Indian city of Chennai to the list of destinations, a statement said after two days of talks.

Currently flights only operate between Karachi and Lahore in Pakistan and New Delhi and Mumbai in India.

They also agreed to let three airlines from each country operate services on the agreed routes, the statement said. Only one airline from each side is currently allowed to fly between Pakistan and India.

Delegations from both sides signed a memorandum of understanding over the changes at the Pakistani Ministry of Defence in the garrison city of Rawalpindi, the statement said.

"Both sides expressed satisfaction that the new arrangement would further the objective of facilitating people to people contacts, business and trade activities between the two countries," it said.

The meeting was part of a slow-moving peace process launched by the nuclear-armed rivals in January 2004 to improve bilateral relations after decades of hostility.

The two countries have fought three wars since independence from Britain in 1947, two of them over the Himalayan territory of Kashmir, which is divided between the two but claimed in full by both.

UAE's Air Arabia adds tenth destination in India

DUBAI, Feb 20 (Reuters) - Air Arabia , the Middle East's biggest low-cost airline, said it will this month add its tenth destination in India -- the southern city of Kozhikode.

The Sharjah, United Arab Emirates-based carrier plans to add between four and five destinations this year in India and the Middle East, Chief Executive Officer Adel Ali told Reuters on Feb. 13.

It will initially fly three times a week to Kozhikode starting Feb. 26, before rising to six times a week, it said in a statement on Wednesday.

Air Arabia, the first airline in the Middle East to go public and which listed in Dubai in July, flies to 37 destinations in the Middle East, South and Central Asia, and North Africa, using leased Airbus A320 aircraft.

Indira Gandhi International Airport, New Delhi - 2010

http://img184.imageshack.us/img184/3883/dial1nh3.jpg

Indira Gandhi International Airport, New Delhi - 2026

http://img263.imageshack.us/img263/2214/dial2nu7.jpg

Airport expansion plans take off


The Airports Authority of India (AAI) has proposed an outlay of Rs12,434 crore for the development of infrastructure at various airports around the country during the Eleventh Plan period. The Government has already stated that the main objective of the Plan, which gets over in 2011-12, would be to provide world-class infrastructure facilities, apart from ensuring safe, reliable and affordable air services so as to encourage growth in passenger and cargo traffic.

Apart from other States in the country, the AAI plans to take up work at airports in Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Port Blair, Agatti, Pondicherry and Kerala.

In Chennai, the AAI is to take up the development of the Kamaraj Airport’s domestic terminal Phase II, along with the expansion of the existing Anna International Terminal and giving a face-lift to the other terminals.

Similarly, in Madurai, the Authority plans to construct a new integrated terminal building complex which will be capable of handling 500 passengers by February next year.

While, in Tuticorin, the AAI is all set to strengthen and extend the runway so that the airport will be able to receive the 50-seater ATR-72 aircraft.

In the case of Coimbatore, the Authority plans to construct a new integrated terminal complex that can accommodate 500 passengers and cars, and a new apron for parking four Airbus A-321 and two Boeing 777-200 aircraft. The expansion and modification of the existing terminal building will also be undertaken.

In neighbouring Kerala, the Authority plans to strengthen the runway facilities for the Boeing 777-200 and Boeing 747-400 class of aircraft at Kozhikode airport by April this year. In Agatti, it plans to strengthen and expand the existing runway for airlines to operate the ATR-72 aircraft, apart from the construction of a bridge between the two islands for extension of runway and associated facilities.

At Port Blair, the AAI plans to strengthen and extend the apron and associated taxi-way for the parking of two A-310 and four A-321 aircraft, besides constructing an integrated international terminal block for 500 passengers and allotting space for 300 cars to park.

In Karnataka, airport development work is to take place in Hassan, Mangalore, Hubli, Mysore and Belgaum. While in Hubli it is proposed to construct a new terminal building complex for 400 passengers, in Mangalore the plan is to have a new terminal building which will be able to accommodate 500 passengers besides the construction of space to park six Airbus A-321 aircraft.

In Andhra Pradesh, work will be taken up in the five cities of Cudappah, Rajahmundry, Tirupati, Visakhapatnam and Vijayawada. While in Cudappah the plan is to make the airport operational for ATR 72 aircraft, in Rajahmundry the AAI plans to construct a new terminal building for 150 passengers.

In other parts of the country, the state-owned airport developer will construct a new domestic arrival block for 800 passengers, a new international terminal complex for 1,500 passengers with three boarding bridges and a new cargo complex for 20,000 tonnes of cargo at Ahmedabad.

In Rajasthan, the AAI is to take up projects in five cities including Jaipur where it is proposed to construct a new international complex building which during the first phase would be able to accommodate 500 passengers. Similarly, the existing airport will be developed at Mount Abu.

Maharashtra will see the development of airports in eight cities, including Baramati, which is being developed to accommodate ATR-72s, while in Pune the proposal is to construct an integrated international terminal building that can accommodate 500 passengers.

Link..... (http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/2008/03/03/stories/2008030350140600.htm)

Emirates has announced plans to add another 9 weekly flights to India, taking its weekly flights to India from Dubai to 108

A few months back, Srilankan became the first foreign airline to touch the 100 weekly flights mark in India

http://www.gulfnews.com/business/Aviation/10200640.html

Lufthansa plans direct daily flight between Mumbai-Munich (http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/News/News_By_Industry/Transportation/Lufthansa_plans_direct_daily_flight_between_Mumbai-Munich/articleshow/3012790.cms)

German air-carrier, Lufthansa, plans to launch a direct daily flight between Mumbai and Munich from the coming winter, a top official said here on Monday.

"We will run a direct daily flight between Mumbai and Munich from October this year," Lufthansa South Asia Director, Werner Heesen, told reporters at a press conference here today.

The airlines currently run a daily non-stop flight between Mumbai and Frankfurt, in addition to a thrice-weekly Mumbai-Munich flight.

Heesen said that the recently launched Mumbai-Munich flight would be made into a direct daily flight from October.

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Finnair to expand operations to India from June (http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/News/News_By_Industry/Transportation/Finnair_to_expand_operations_to_India_from_June/articleshow/3009361.cms)

With flights to India driving its growth, Nordic carrier Finnair is adding one more flight to India in June, even as it awaits permission from the government to add more destinations in addition to Mumbai and Delhi.

"Currently we have 12 flights a week between India and Helsinki. By June, we will fly daily from New Delhi and six times a week from Mumbai," Taina Tornstrom, the director for Indian subcontinent for the airline, told reporters.

"We are eager to add more destinations. But currently the bilateral arrangement between the two countries permits flights only to Delhi and Mumbai," Tornstrom said, adding that Asian passenger traffic grew over 24 percent last year, thanks to operations to India.

-----------------------------------

Jet launches daily direct Mumbai-Bangkok flights


Mumbai, May 07: Private air-carrier Jet Airways has launched daily direct flights between Mumbai and Bangkok with effect from on Wednesday.

This will be its third service to Bangkok from the country, a press release issued here stated.

The air-carrier already operates daily services to Bangkok from Delhi and Kolkata respectively.

Its Mumbai-Bangkok flight (9w 62) will depart Mumbai at 0110 hrs and arrive at Bangkok's Suvarnabhumi airport at 0650 hrs.

On the return leg, its flight (9w 61) will depart Bangkok at 0840 hrs and arrive in Mumbai at 1145 hrs, the release said.

Jet Airways' CEO, Wolfgang Prock-Schauer, said, "Jet Airways' services to Bangkok from Delhi and Kolkata have proved extremely popular with passengers. This, combined with strong passenger demand for a daily service connecting Thailand's capital city with the financial heart of India, lead us to believe that Jet Airways' Mumbai-Bangkok flight will prove equally popular."

The air-carrier is offering economy class return airfares beginning Rs 15,320, exclusive of taxes and premier fares from Rs 35,115, exclusive of taxes, the release added.

this is definitely worth a share -

The Kolkata Airport

http://img261.imageshack.us/img261/6571/1110649174f4338d3f18ozl5.jpg

http://img166.imageshack.us/img166/8678/apr5cu2tm5.jpg

http://img227.imageshack.us/img227/7113/apr1kj6de4.jpg

http://i171.photobucket.com/albums/u284/dave302de/kolkatairportplanip4.jpg

http://img266.imageshack.us/img266/2493/airportnewyn0.jpg

http://img233.imageshack.us/img233/599/kolkataairportrmjm03040vs9.jpg

Lufthansa plans direct daily flight between Mumbai-Munich (http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/News/News_By_Industry/Transportation/Lufthansa_plans_direct_daily_flight_between_Mumbai-Munich/articleshow/3012790.cms)



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Finnair to expand operations to India from June (http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/News/News_By_Industry/Transportation/Finnair_to_expand_operations_to_India_from_June/articleshow/3009361.cms)



-----------------------------------

Jet launches daily direct Mumbai-Bangkok flights

I'm kind of surprised that places like Munich, where I doubt there's many Indians are getting daily direct flights to India. I bet it's all catering to Indian-American customers.

I think there's a lot of potential for India-U.S. direct flights. I'd like to see direct flights from Detroit to New Delhi in the next 5 years.

I'm kind of surprised that places like Munich, where I doubt there's many Indians are getting daily direct flights to India. I bet it's all catering to Indian-American customers.

I think there's a lot of potential for India-U.S. direct flights. I'd like to see direct flights from Detroit to New Delhi in the next 5 years.

You're right Paddington. The India-North America route is the most lucrative international route from India. Everyone's on it. Even with the many direct India -US flights, I am positive the indirect flights will still be as full. Whats good to see is that soon India will have three international carriers on most of these routes, once Kingfisher gets the permission.

meanwhile, some more renderings of the new international terminal at the Kolkata airport

http://i171.photobucket.com/albums/u284/dave302de/kolkata_airport_rmjm030408_1.jpg

http://img300.imageshack.us/img300/5783/k1mw4.jpg

http://img526.imageshack.us/img526/6840/k2xz7.jpg

http://img408.imageshack.us/img408/8942/k4nx4.jpg

thanks to all the Indian forumers for their efforts in posting these first.

Indian airline losses may clip aircraft orders: Airbus (http://business-standard.com/common/news_article.php?tab=r&autono=324441&subLeft=1&leftnm=1)

Airbus, however, continues to see India as a key market in terms of sales, research.

Airbus Industrie, Europe's leading aircraft manufacturer, said it is expecting Indian airline companies to cancel or reschedule orders on account of their losses.

"No airline is making money in India because they are selling below cost. The country is seeing a 25 per cent annual growth rate in air passenger traffic but some slowdown is also expected. These are some of the pains when markets open up," said John Leahy, chief operating officer (customers), Airbus.

Leahy, however, declined to offer details.

Airbus has orders for five A380 aircraft from the Vijay Mallya-owned Kingfisher Airlines, which plans to start international flights shortly. It also has orders for eight A330 200 aircraft from Jet Airways, India's biggest private airline.

On Tuesday, Naresh Goyal, chairman of Jet Airways, said Indian aviation companies are expected to incur a loss of $2 billion in the current year owing to low pricing and pressure from rising aviation turbine fuel prices.

Airbus, however, continues to see India as a key market, both in terms of sales and research.

"India is one of our prime strategic partners. You can't be global without being in India with its large number of highly skilled, motivated and knowledgeable people," said Airbus President and Chief Executive Officer Tom Enders.

"We are capitalising on the incredible energy and entrepreneurial spirit in this country and have initiated research and technology cooperation projects with some respected Indian universities," he added.

Last year, Airbus opened its first Indian Airbus Engineering Centre in Bangalore, where Indian engineers are responsible for advanced modelling and simulation for the A380 and the A350.

"We started with 25 engineers and will now quickly grow to 300 Indian employees. Together with suppliers, we have more than 1,000 employees in India already. I believe there is more to come," Enders said.

Master layout plan of Kolkata Intl Airport

http://img156.imageshack.us/img156/9831/15zzmasterplanbigbj0.jpg

http://img156.imageshack.us/img156/1462/15zzexpansionbigsp3.jpg

India to play a key role in Qatar Airways’ growth strategy (http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/2008/06/18/stories/2008061850020700.htm)


Qatar Airways has spelt out plans to expand its presence across India as part of a long-term commitment to one of the fastest growing economies in the world.

Announcing the launch of daily flights from the airline’s Doha hub to the southern city of Kozhikode, the Chief Executive Officer, Mr Akbar Al Baker, said the airline currently operates 58 flights a week to India, including daily scheduled services to Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai, Ahmedabad, Kochi, Thiruvananthapuram, Hyderabad and Kozhikode, along with a twice-weekly operation to Nagpur.

Special ties

Addressing a press conference at Kozhikode, Mr Al Baker said that the growth of Qatar Airways was the result of close cooperation between the Governments of Qatar and India and it had ensured that air travel between the two countries remained robust.

“Our countries have enjoyed a special relationship for many years — a relationship that has come to fruition with air access gradually being stepped up between the two countries. This has enabled Qatar Airways to fly to more destinations across India and I am delighted that we are able to spread our award-winning Five-Star services to yet another city on the global map,” he said.

Huge potential

Stressing the importance of India in the airline’s growth strategy, he pointed out that India today is by far the largest single market for Qatar Airways with a network of nine cities which represents more than 10 per cent of the airline’s global network of 83 international routes. It is eyeing more opportunities in this huge market and was looking forward to opening up further routes to give the travelling public to and from India more choice.

For passengers from Europe, West Asia, Africa and North America, Qatar Airways offers a wide choice of convenient connections to India. The airline currently operates a fleet of 62 Airbus and Boeing aircraft to 83 destinations worldwide, including the Far East and the Indian subcontinent.

any news about Air India's future connections to Italy? :cheers:

Texas has the 2nd largest Indian community after California but still has no flight to India by an Indian carrier. Emirates airlines has a huge market share of Indian passengers from Houston and Qatar Airways is going to start in November.

From Dallas Fort Worth and Austin, American's "One World" offers connections to India.

Air France-KLM and Lufthansa also offer good connections but at higher prices.

Air India and the private Indian carriers are yet to enter the Texas aviation market. No idea if they have any plans. They r still fighting in NY area and Bay area. Air India is known to fly to only the traditional cities (like NY in North America, London Heathrow and Frankfurt in Europe and Dubai in Middle East) and lose out to competetion there. I don't know when they will have the sense to tap into the other unconventional but high in demand metros of the world.

Texas has the 2nd largest Indian community after California but still has no flight to India by an Indian carrier. Emirates airlines has a huge market share of Indian passengers from Houston and Qatar Airways is going to start in November.

From Dallas Fort Worth and Austin, American's "One World" offers connections to India.

Air France-KLM and Lufthansa also offer good connections but at higher prices.

Air India and the private Indian carriers are yet to enter the Texas aviation market. No idea if they have any plans. They r still fighting in NY area and Bay area. Air India is known to fly to only the traditional cities (like NY in North America, London Heathrow and Frankfurt in Europe and Dubai in Middle East) and lose out to competetion there. I don't know when they will have the sense to tap into the other unconventional but high in demand metros of the world.

I don't think so.

http://www.littleindia.com/news/132/ARTICLE/1389/2006-11-12.html

New York and New Jersey are well ahead of Texas. The New York City area will always be king, when it comes to Asian Indian population.

Houston has a comparable number of Indians to Detroit, Philadelphia, and Atlanta. None of these cities have direct flights to India. I would expect places like Los Angeles, San Fransisco, and Washington to get flights to India before any of these cities.

Even the New York to New Delhi or Chicago to New Delhi routes are really pushing it in terms of distance. It's not that flights beyond that are impossible, they're just unlikely when alternatives are available. I think American Airlines will prefer to fly people to Chicago and Continental would prefer to fly them to Newark to connect to India. The extra 1,000 or so miles to Texas is pretty far when you consider these U.S. to India flights are already pushing it in terms of distance.

^^You are right about the metro area population.

I was talking about the whole state of Texas. If u r from India, u will understand that the state area is bigger than the whole of south India (5 south Indian states inc Goa and union territories together and has 3rd and 5th largest metro areas and 5 cities in the top 15 most populated in US)

Based on the American Community survey done by the US Census bureau in 2006 Texas has the 2nd largest population of Asian Indians after California (that includes the whole Indian Subcontinent)....Now combine this with neighboring states of New Mexico, Oklahoma and Louisiana.

Now if NY, NJ, PA, CT had been one state, the number would have been significantly higher, even higher than California.

My point is this market has not at all been tapped into by the Indian Airline companies while the Middle east and European ones were sensible enough to do that though there is not a significant middle eastern or european population in this area (leaving aside the hub-spoke concept)

On the same note, the maximum number of passengers (more than 50%) who flew Emirates airlines from Houston were passengers from South India thanks to their strong connections to the region. And now Qatar Airways is going to start in November 2008.

^^You are right about the metro area population.

I was talking about the whole state of Texas. If u r from India, u will understand that the state area is bigger than the whole of south India (5 south Indian states inc Goa and union territories together and has 3rd and 5th largest metro areas and 5 cities in the top 15 most populated in US)

Based on the American Community survey done by the US Census bureau in 2006 Texas has the 2nd largest population of Asian Indians after California (that includes the whole Indian Subcontinent)....Now combine this with neighboring states of New Mexico, Oklahoma and Louisiana.

Now if NY, NJ, PA, CT had been one state, the number would have been significantly higher, even higher than California.

My point is this market has not at all been tapped into by the Indian Airline companies while the Middle east and European ones were sensible enough to do that though there is not a significant middle eastern or european population in this area (leaving aside the hub-spoke concept)

LOL. That's 100% bullshit. Texas does not have the second largest Indian population, not according to any census survey out there. I even included a link to the American Community Survey. :laugh:

California


449,722


43%

New York


336,423


34%

New Jersey


228,250


35%

Texas


175,608


36%

Illinois


157,126


26%

Arey sala, tum undha ho kya?

Apparently you can't read because I highlighted a number of other reasons why there aren't flights from India to Texas, like distance, and the presence of numerous direct flights to India in cities that would be flown over on the great circle (New York, Chicago) by airlines that have hubs in both places (Continental, AA).

I tht THIS IS an AVIATION THREAD....!!!!!???

Paddington.....
I am not blind...maybe u r a fan of North east and california like most desis in US and Indian airline companies.......(apparently the whole of India thinks that US is just California and NY, thanks to IT and Bollywood)

I repeat what I said, Indian airline companies are losing out on the huge revenue they can make in the Mid-west part of US. If I use your analogy, emirates airlines should not be flying to Houston. How many Emaratis are there in Houston? What i said was that Emirates airlines mints money on the Indian sector thanks to the lack of foresight of Indian airline companies that still think (like you) that NY and san Francisco are the places to be.....(and try to find out if Air India is doing good on JFK sector, they flew a plane empty once) and Qatar Airways in also going to start in November realizing the potential (maybe Houston has 50-100 Qatari residents)....

Texas has the 2nd largest Indian community based on the ACS of the US census bureau because for them Indians, Pakistanis, Bangladeshis and Nepalis are all the same aka Asian Indians.......Dallas Fort Worth metropolitan area has the largest Nepali community in US from what the Nepalis there tell me.
Most of these Nepalis used to fly to Kathmandu via Delhi till few years ago. Now they use the Middle east destinations as their transit point.

The US based and Indian run aviation companies not having long haul aircraft is a dumb excuse...they need to get them if they want to stay in competition.
I hear Continental is getting Boeing 777-200LR and they hope to start long distance flights from IAH soon.

http://www.fly2houston.com/0/25609/0/1906D1934/
The above news article shows how forward thinking and diligent Air India is

In the meantime people like me from Texas will fly Qatar Airways to India (i booked my tkt for Feb 2009) as they offer 1 stop connection between Houston and 9 cities in India while Air India can crib about the losses they make.......

Paddington.....
I am not blind...maybe u r a fan of North east and california like most desis in US and Indian airline companies.......(apparently the whole of India thinks that US is just California and NY, thanks to IT and Bollywood)

I repeat what I said, Indian airline companies are losing out on the huge revenue they can make in the Mid-west part of US. If I use your analogy, emirates airlines should not be flying to Houston. How many Emaratis are there in Houston? What i said was that Emirates airlines mints money on the Indian sector thanks to the lack of foresight of Indian airline companies that still think (like you) that NY and san Francisco are the places to be.....(and try to find out if Air India is doing good on JFK sector, they flew a plane empty once) and Qatar Airways in also going to start in November realizing the potential (maybe Houston has 50-100 Qatari residents)....

Texas has the 2nd largest Indian community based on the ACS of the US census bureau because for them Indians, Pakistanis, Bangladeshis and Nepalis are all the same aka Asian Indians.......Dallas Fort Worth metropolitan area has the largest Nepali community in US from what the Nepalis there tell me.
Most of these Nepalis used to fly to Kathmandu via Delhi till few years ago. Now they use the Middle east destinations as their transit point.

The US based and Indian run aviation companies not having long haul aircraft is a dumb excuse...they need to get them if they want to stay in competition.
I hear Continental is getting Boeing 777-200LR and they hope to start long distance flights from IAH soon.

http://www.fly2houston.com/0/25609/0/1906D1934/
The above news article shows how forward thinking and diligent Air India is

In the meantime people like me from Texas will fly Qatar Airways to India (i booked my tkt for Feb 2009) as they offer 1 stop connection between Houston and 9 cities in India while Air India can crib about the losses they make.......

What, you mean this U.S. department American Community Survey (http://www.littleindia.com/news/132/ARTICLE/1389/2006-11-12.html) about Asian Indian population in the states contradicting you for the third time?

Arey sala tum gadha ho ki kya? Ub thisra bar hum post kiya hain is ko. Ungreji nahin sumajh mein aata hai, or lagta hai ki Hindi bhi nahin aata hai tum ko. Agar phir bakwas bologe to hum tum ko khub marenge. :nuts: :laugh:

The main reason they have direct flights from Houston to the Middle East is because they have so many oil interests there. Is that not obvious? Halliburton's CEOs were going there so frequently they have a dual HQ now in the Middle East as well where half their management lives.

What, you mean this U.S. department American Community Survey (http://www.littleindia.com/news/132/ARTICLE/1389/2006-11-12.html) about Asian Indian population in the states contradicting you for the third time?

Arey sala tum gadha ho ki kya? Ub thisra bar hum post kiya hain is ko. Ungreji nahin sumajh mein aata hai, or lagta hai ki Hindi bhi nahin aata hai tum ko. Agar phir bakwas bologe to hum tum ko khub marenge. :nuts: :laugh:

The main reason they have direct flights from Houston to the Middle East is because they have so many oil interests there. Is that not obvious? Halliburton's CEOs were going there so frequently they have a dual HQ now in the Middle East as well where half their management lives.

Mind ur language man.....Mujhe Hindi bhi aata hai aur angrezi bhi aate hai....

I am a transportation planner who knows the aviation industry in and out.......
If only ppl with oil interests were flying these airlines, then there should have been more flights to Riyadh from Houston than Dubai......Do u know how many people from Halliburton moved to Dubai from Houston? Maybe 10 and u tell me Emirates started a daily flight on a Boeing 777-200 LR for these 10 people.....

And dont argue with me about UAE, I have spend most of my life there and know the place in and out....

Do u know anything about the hub-spoke concept......Do u know that Lufthansa has more flights to Indian cities that all of the indian airlines combined to germany.....y becos Germans love India???

Ask a financial analyst at continental airlines here in Houston....they will tell u how Emirates has taken over the significant Indian business they had from Texas....

BTW, refer to the post above on how Qatar airways wants to focus on Indian market.......

My point is if India based airlines don't start flying to Texas (as no other airline till date offers direct flights) with a huge south asian community, they will lose out......

If u don't have the common sense to understand this basic issue and keep arguing about the census numbers and calling me names, then I can't help u man!!!
and if u have some sort of decency, please refrain from using abusive language!!!!!

since u know English, read this article, if u can't understand, I'll explain it to you
http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/2008/06/11/stories/2008061152021000.htm

Now read this
http://www.bizjournals.com/dallas/stories/2004/02/09/newscolumn6.html
DFW airport has been trying for Air India flights since 2004.....
Do u know how many telecom companies and Outsourcing firms with significant presence in India have base in DFW metro area!!!? that will require a forum by itself

u can call me donkey again, like u did in your last post but that will not change the fact that there is demand for Indian flights in Texas and that the market is under supplied!!

?

Arey sala tum gadha ho ki kya? Ub thisra bar hum post kiya hain is ko. Ungreji nahin sumajh mein aata hai, or lagta hai ki Hindi bhi nahin aata hai tum ko. Agar phir bakwas bologe to hum tum ko khub marenge. :nuts: :laugh:


man your hindi is quite bad!

this is not mainstream hindi. Its kind of bihari

this is not mainstream hindi. Its kind of bihari

that too a very poor version.



Foreign airlines flock to India, ignore global downturn

Mumbai: They are cutting flights to several destinations in the wake of a worldwide slump in business, but international airlines are doing just the opposite in India because they believe the country’s international air traffic will only grow in the coming years.

Interestingly, this comes even as the domestic aviation business is going through a downturn.

Large carriers already operating here such as British Airways and Emirates are either increasing the number of flights to Indian cities they already fly to, or beginning to fly to new cities, while smaller players such RAK Airways and Garuda Indonesia are starting to fly into the country.
India is seen as a growing market for international airline traffic and the current market size is nearly $5 billion (Rs21,000 crore) a year, said a senior official with a foreign airline.

“India, with its huge middle-class population of over 250 million, is like an untapped gold mine,” said K. Ravindran, chief operating officer, RAK Airways, which started operations in India from April, flying between Kozhikode and Ras al-Khaimah in the United Arab Emirates. “With its present international travel market not even covering 2% of the population, the country offers large opportunities for airlines. India is an important geographic area in all our future network plans.”

INTEGRATED TERMINAL 2

http://img137.imageshack.us/img137/176/csia1ns9te5.jpg (http://imageshack.us)

http://img521.imageshack.us/img521/3217/csia2dx0wk2.jpg (http://imageshack.us)

http://img355.imageshack.us/img355/7930/csia3sn5lc4.jpg (http://imageshack.us)

WL Ross to invest $100 mn in Spicejet

Quote:
Low cost carrier Spicejet on Monday said US-based private equity company WL Ross & Co LLC will invest 100 million dollar (over Rs 420 crore) in the company for business requirements.

Shareholders of Spicejet including Royal Holding Services Ltd, Istithmar and Ajay Singh and Goldman Sachs, in capacity as a bondholder of the company, today entered into definitive agreements with WL Ross & Co to this effect, Spicejet said in a filing to the Bombay Stock Exchange.

Besides, Goldman Sachs has also agreed to subscribe to equity warrants of the company under the preferential issue guidelines of SEBI, subject to receipt of requisite approvals, Spicejet added.

Shares of Spicejet reacted sharply to this news and surged as much as 9.59 per cent from last close to touch an intra-day high of Rs 31.40. The shares of the company were trading at Rs 30.35, a jump of 5.93 per cent from its previous closing price and over 18.10 lakh shares exchanged hands on the BSE in the morning trade.

Earlier, on July 15, SpiceJet had said a private equity firm led by billionaire Wilbur Ross would invest 80 million dollar (Rs345 crore) in the low cost airline.

"WL Ross is one of the largest and the most experienced investor in the world. With this investment, we have no doubt that SpiceJet will fulfil its promise of emerging as India's leading airline," SpiceJet board member Bhulo Kansagra had said.

This would be WL Ross' second investment in India. Last year, WL Ross had acquired apparel maker OCM India for about 37 million dollar.

Source - Economic Times

Trial run at Delhi airport's new runway from Aug 21


Trial run at Delhi airport's new runway from Aug 21

Delhi airport's third airstrip - Asia's longest at 4,430 metres - will undergo a trial run from Aug 21, a top airport official said Monday.




New Delhi, Delhi, India, 2008-08-11 20:45:02





Delhi airport's third airstrip - Asia's longest at 4,430 metres - will undergo a trial run from Aug 21, a top airport official said Monday.

The decision was taken after a surprise visit to the Indira Gandhi International (IGI) airport here by Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) chief Kanu Gohain and his countrpart at the Airports Authority of India (AAI) K. Ramalingam Aug 9.

'They were satisfied with the progress of work at the airport,' said I. Prabhakar Rao, the chief development officer at Delhi International Airport Ltd (DIAL), the company developing the IGI airport here.

Civil Aviation Minister Praful Patel is expected to be present during the trial run of the third runway, named 11-29.

'An Air India aircraft will land on the new runway without passengers. Other carriers too are expected to follow. We expect commercial operations from the third runway soon after the trial run finishes,' said Rao.

Maintaining that the runway construction was almost complete, he said: 'The navigation equipment has been installed by the AAI. The runway lighting systems are one of the most advanced in the world.'

DIAL has completed procedural checks by the DGCA, the aviation regulator, and the Central Industrial Security Force will de deployed during the trial run, Rao said.

The new runway will also have advanced instrument landing system, which allows aircraft to land in visibility as low as 50 metres. DIAL upgraded several new aircraft parking stands to meet this standard.

The runway construction involved 2.3 million metric cubes of earthwork and embankment filling. 'That is enough to form a 210 km long freight train. The runway is more than two metre thick, comprising seven layers of filling, concrete-treated base and asphalt concrete,' said Rao.

Over 650,000 tonnes of asphalt concrete has been used, which, according to the DIAL official, could have built 75 km of six-lane expressway.

'We have adopted eco-friendly methods during the construction of the runway and the taxiways. We have extensively used fly-ash in concrete and other cement-based material,' he said.

The new runway is expected to nearly double the airport's peak hour capacity from 35-40 aircraft movements currently to about 75. Currently, the two existing parallel runways handle nearly 700 flights a day.

Yet, the hovering time, which has come down with measures such as adding rapid exit taxiways that allow aircraft to move away from the runway faster, and reducing time between two flight take-offs, is still about 20 minutes.

'We are conducting a study for upgrading the main runway (28-10) and another runway adjoining the new runway,' Rao said.

DIAL is yet to decide whether the new runway will be used just for international flights or domestic or both.

The real benefit, according to it, will be visible in 2010 when most airlines move to the new terminal building that is being built along the third runway.

By end-2010 or early the next year, four international carriers - Emirates, British Airways, Lufthansa and Air France - may start their A380 service to New Delhi from Dubai, London, Frankfurt and Paris.

Kingfisher Airlines of India, founded by industrialist Vijay Mallya, would soon be making its first landing in the UAE, in line with launching its international operations in September this year.

The Bangaluru-based airline would begin its global services with the United Kingdom and San Francisco launches next month.

Plans are afoot to begin services to the UAE, Qatar, Kuwait, Thailand, Malaysia, Singapore, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Pakistan and the Maldives, over the next three months, according to a report in Flight International. Kingfisher is expected to launch up to 15 overseas routes over the next three months, the report said.

At the UK's Farnborough International Airshow last month, Mallya had said Kingfisher would start the launch of its international services on September 3, 2008, with an India-UK direct service.

"Gulf is definitely one of the destinations we are looking at but it is too early to reveal details. We should have something to announce soon," Kingfisher Airlines' spokesman, Prakash Mirpuri, told Emirates Business.

With this, Kingfisher would become the second Indian carrier, after Jet Airways, to launch operations in the UAE this year. Privately held Jet Airways is set to launch its flights to Dubai starting August 23, four months after it started Abu Dhabi flights. Jet Airways would be launching two daily flights from Dubai, one each to Mumbai and Delhi.

Industry observers, on the other hand, are sceptical about Kingfisher Airlines launching its Gulf operations this year. "It is highly improbable that Kingfisher would launch Gulf flights this year. Gulf is not on its immediate radar. So it is possible that it would launch Gulf routes sometime mid-next year," said an industry observer, adding that Kingfisher is currently focused on launching its services to London and San Francisco.

Kingfisher Airlines' move follows its merger with budget carrier, Air Deccan, which completes five years of service on August 26, 2008, enabling Kingfisher to embark on international routes. Under Indian aviation rules, carriers must operate for five years in the domestic market before they can start global services. Kingfisher's own operations are only three years old. According to the Flight International report, Kingfisher Airlines is planning to redeploy several of its 51 Airbus A320s, all of which are in two-class configuration, from domestic to short-haul international flights.

The report added that Kingfisher has taken delivery of its first batch of wide-bodies and plans to begin serving its first international destination, London Heathrow, at the end of August or beginning of September. Mallya had unveiled Kingfisher's first Airbus A330-200 and new long-haul in-flight product at the Farnborough air show last month.

The carrier will also take deliveries by October of five A330s and five A340-500s, both in two-class configuration. Kingfisher also has firm orders for five Airbus A380 superjumbos with an option for an additional five.

Source - Business today

I'm kind of surprised that places like Munich, where I doubt there's many Indians are getting daily direct flights to India. I bet it's all catering to Indian-American customers.

I think there's a lot of potential for India-U.S. direct flights. I'd like to see direct flights from Detroit to New Delhi in the next 5 years.

Its probably catering to Germans working in India. Probably high percentage of business travel.

http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/blnus/09141620.htm

http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/blnus/09141620.htm

UAE airline to operate direct flights from Jaipur, Kolkata

CHENNAI: The United Arab Emirates national airline Etihad airways would start operating direct flights to Abu Dhabi from Jaipur and Kolkata, from next year. The Indian government had given permission for the airlines to operate flights from these destina tions, its CEO James Hogan told a press conference here on Thursday. “After working out the logistics we will announce the exact dates of the launch,” he said.

The airlines had also sought the permission of the Centre to operate flights from Ahmedabad, Amritsar, Bangalore and Hyderabad to Abu Dhabi as part of its expansion plan, he said. Once connected to Kolkata and Jaipur, Etihad would have doubled its Indian destinations to eight, ever since it commenced services to Thiruvananthapuram and Kochi last year, before adding New Delhi and the commercial capital of Mumbai.

“We have started operating flights from Chennai and Kozhikode from August 1 this year and the inbound passenger load factor was about 80 to 85 per cent”, Hogan said.

On India's contribution to its total revenue, Mr Hogan parried the question and said “it's an important and significant contribution. We are not big players in India. Once we establish our presence, we will able to put some numbers, perhaps after 24 mon ths''. - PTI

Finnair looking to expand Asia operations; names new director
New Delhi, Aug 17: Nordic carrier Finnair, which has been rapidly expanding network in the East, particularly India, has named a new director to anchor growth in the Indian sub-continent where the airline operates 13 flights a week.

Kari Stolbow, who started Finnair's services in Beijing and Latvia, was responsible for the airline's Global Tour Operation sales prior to his India assignment.

The airline operates a daily flight between Helsinki-New Delhi and is expected to make Helsinki-Mumbai service daily by the next summer, by when it would look at expanding to more Indian cities, sources in the airline said, pointing to the upcoming review of bilateral air services agreement between India and Finland by the next month.

Any increase in capacity will complement trade between the two countries that grew by 31.54 percent in 2007, to euro 645.09 million. Nearly 100 Finnish companies have presence in India, including big names like Nokia, Kone Elevators, Elcoteq Wartsila Diesel and Ahlstrom.

Finnair traffic, measured in passenger kilometers, increased by 6.5 percent in July, while the airline's Asian traffic grew by 12 percent compared with the same period of the previous year. Number of passengers carried on Finnair's Asian flights in July was 125,666, which is 12.5 percent more than a year-ago.

Increase in Asian cargo traffic was 19.7 percent in July, while volume in European traffic decreased by 10 percent, the airline said in a statement.


......

http://img237.imageshack.us/img237/5267/airportmetroby9.jpg

Delhi airport runway is Asia’s longest
Friday , August 22 , 2008
The Telegraph

http://www.telegraphindia.com/1080822/images/22zzsizebig.jpg

New Delhi, Aug. 21: Asia’s longest runway is now at the Indira Gandhi International Airport here.

Built at a cost of Rs 1,000 crore and inaugurated today, the runway will double the airport’s capacity (peak hour) to 70 landings and take-offs. The airport is expected to handle about 1400-1500 flights a day once this runway becomes operational later this month.

Completed more than six months ahead of schedule, the 75-metre-wide facility is capable of handling new generation large aircraft such as the Airbus A380. Carriers such as Emirates, British Airways and Air France are expected to ply the A380 here ahead of the Commonwealth Games in 2010.

“The runway and a planned terminal will form India’s new gateway to the world when it welcomes participants and guests for the Commonwealth Games,” Kiran Kumar Grandhi, business chairman — airports, GMR Group said. GMR is the head of a consortium that runs the airport.

A survey by the Airports Authority of India said that an estimated 30 to 35 million passengers a year would use the airport by 2010 up from 23 million passengers in 2007.

Problems such as low visibility in winter because of foggy conditions, which have dogged airlines for decades, may also get solved airport officials said.

“The runway like the one next to it is equipped with CAT IIIB Instrument Landing System at both ends allowing aircraft fitted with compatible instrument to land even when the visibility is as low as 50 metres,” said Arun Arora, vice-president with the airport operator.

Besides, an advanced surface movement guidance system has been deployed to track the movement of the aircraft along the runway, said Arora.

Inaugurating the runway, civil aviation minister Praful Patel said construction activities to modernise and expand the Calcutta and Chennai airports by the Airports Authority of India would begin by the end of next month.

“Physical construction (at these two airports) should begin by the end of September,” he said.

Next wave of Airbus orders from India in 2011-2012 (http://www.cargonewsasia.com/secured/article.aspx?id=15&article=16937)

European aircraft manufacturer, Airbus, expects the next wave of aircraft orders from India around 2011-2012, Business Line reported.

As the international freighter market grows, Airbus is looking to capture a greater segment of it.

Airbus believes that as Air India, Jet Airways and Kingfisher Airlines compete in the international arena they will require larger fleets.

Both Boeing and Airbus had predicted that India would require about 1,000 additional aircraft over the next 20 years.

---------------------------------------------------

India to be key R&D centre for Airbus A350 XWB (http://www.business-standard.com/india/storypage.php?autono=333435)

Designing work for the A350 is the next project for the Airbus Engineering Centre India (AECI), the company’s high-tech aircraft component manufacturing facility in Bangalore, which started functioning in April last year.

“The A350 is the next big project for us. The engineers at the facility are currently working on the development of tools to design the aircraft,” said Kiran Rao, president, Airbus India.

“We will soon get the software for analysing the stress and strain on aeroplanes. We are working on the structural analysis of the aircraft among other things,” he added.

Rao said Airbus was recruiting engineers for the work every month. The Centre has 35 engineers and the number is supposed to grow to 300 in the next four years.

The A350 XWB (Xtra Wide Body), the new and improved version of the A350, has been built to take on the Boeing 777 family and some of the models of the Boeing 787.

The aircraft has a wider fuselage, which makes it possible for it to accommodate nine people in every row.

“We have already sold (which means received orders) 480 A350s, out of which 15 to 20 are being bought by Kingfisher,” said Rao. The aircraft will be put into service from 2013.

Airbus has been looking at various ways to use India for both component manufacture as well as leverage its research and development potential. The first manufacturing agreement was with Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd (HAL) in 1998 to make doors for the A320.

“More than half the doors for the Airbus 320 are produced in Bangalore. And as we increase the production of A320s to 40 aircraft a month, which is the largest number of civil aircraft ever produced per month in the aviation industry history, more than 20 sets of doors will be produced in Bangalore every month,” said Rao.

Earlier, Airbus had outsourced its engineering projects to other Indian companies like Infosys, which participated in the designing of the A380s, HCL and other companies like CADES, Satyam and Quest.

Airbus rival Boeing has also been striking deals in India. These include a 10-year agreement with HAL to get $1 billion worth of business in the aviation space, a contract to the Tatas to make floor beams.

cross posting from the Indian thread. You can see the new runway and T3 under construction.

about 2 month old pics.

http://img73.imageshack.us/img73/4048/dial6oz0.jpg

http://img112.imageshack.us/img112/6236/dial7wb6.jpg

http://img57.imageshack.us/img57/5823/dial5qp0.jpg

Copyright: vm2827

two more pictures, thanks to vm2827.

Terminal T3 of the IGI Airport, New Delhi

http://img294.imageshack.us/img294/340/dial2go2.jpg

http://img508.imageshack.us/img508/277/dial1at7.jpg

Flight delayed? AI to bring out the bubbly, food platter
11 September 2008
The Times of India

MUMBAI: If you are on an Air India flight and there is a delay, count on the cabin crew to soothe your frayed nerves. If you are in India, the cabin crew will serve you food and if you are in a foreign station, except of course the Middle East, then you can now ask for a peg of your favourite tipple, even when your aircraft is on ground.

"Even during a delay, most of the times, food and liquor service begin only after the aircraft has reached its cruising altitude and the seat belt sign has been switched off. The move is bound to be received well by passengers and it will be good for us too as hungry stomachs get aggressive," said a senior cabin crew member, adding that it makes economic sense for the airline too to serve food during a delay.

"Caterers don't take back loaded food crates and if the delay stretches to 4-5 hours, food can go bad, especially during summer months. So it makes sense to serve passengers on board though the aircraft is not flying," he adds.

When the aircraft is on ground the auxiliary power unit (APU) provides electricity to run the air-conditioners etc. APUs are not as powerful and with the doors of the aircraft open too, the temperature inside the cabin is higher than what it is when in air and food turns bad fast on the tarmac. What would also be needed though is an extra load of say, sandwiches, pastries, depending on whether the flight duration exceeds "stomach time".

"Stomach time is five hours. It means passengers don't feel hungry for up to five hours after a proper meal. So on a short Mumbai-Dubai flight, extra food would not be needed but on a 10-hour Mumbai-London flight it would be necessary," he adds.

The practice, till now, was that if the delay was prolonged, the passengers were fed food in the terminal building. The proposal to serve food inside the aircraft was mooted in August 2007, but it was signed and formalised only last week as one of the clauses in a wage cum productivity agreement signed between the Air India Cabin Crew Association and the airline management.

"As per the agreement, a service allowance of Rs 500 per month will be paid to cabin crew for serving food/liquor to passengers on ground during flight delays," said an airline source. However, alcohol (due to customs regulations on imported items) will not be served on Indian soil and in airports in the Middle East (due to religious restrictions). But if the delayed flight is in, say New York or London, Frankfurt, Tokyo etc passengers can expect that flute of bubbly.

An Air India spokesperson confirmed the move. "We have decided to serve food/liquor on ground in keeping with standard industry practices," the spokesperson said.

http://epaper.sakshi.com/epaperimages/992008/992008-sh-hyd-7/D29650084.JPG
:cheers::applause:

In short

* travel time of 25 minutes to Shamshabad
* DLF submitted intial survey or report
* INCAP currently reading the report
* work will start once reading is done
* budget of 5000 crores
* track total length of 42.352 KM
* 6.2 Km underground
* 22 KM elevated
* 4 KM along existing "indian railways" track. railways has accepted the proposal
* underground proposed to by-pass land acquisition problems




cross posting from Hyderabad projects thread. Essentially, they are building a rail and road link to the new Airport, which will cut the travel time o and from the airport to less than 25 minutes. This is apart from the Expressway which is already close to completion. The project being implemented under ppp model.

First Class cabin of a Kingfisher Flight


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Credits to Photographers

Pretty sure the second pic is from Vijay's own jet :) But the first one looks great, I heard their A340-500 has TWO bars inside.

Pretty sure the second pic is from Vijay's own jet :) .

Yes it is:)

Credits to RK Ramesh for the Kingfisher Pics and IU for the AI pic. , cross posting from India Sub forum.


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Pics of Mumbai's Domestic Airport
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Pics of Mumbai's Domestic Airport
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Pics of Mumbai's Domestic Airport
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Pics of Mumbai's(Bombay) Domestic Airport
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Pics of Mumbai's(Bombay) Domestic Airport. A view of the parking lot.
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India's Jet Airways eyes executive pay cuts: report


NEW DELHI (AFP) — India's largest private carrier Jet Airways is planning to slash the pay of its top 200 executives by 25-30 percent as it battles soaring costs and an economic slowdown, a report said Tuesday.

The salary cuts would affect staff earning more than a million rupees (20,800 dollars) a month, The Economic Times reported, citing an unnamed senior Jet Airways executive.

The report comes a week after Jet announced it was sacking 1,900 staff, only to rescind the decision because the company chairman said television images of fired employees had caused him sleepless nights.

India's airline sector -- a potent symbol of the country's economic progress -- is currently going through its "worst ever" crisis, India's Civil Aviation Minister Praful Patel said last week.

The sector posted a combined loss of 938 million dollars in the fiscal year to March 2008 and analysts expect a two-billion dollar loss this year.

Jet posted a full-year loss to March of 52 million dollars and has defaulted on payment of fuel bills to the state-run Indian Oil Corp.

No retrenchment in Air India: Praful Patel


CHENNAI: Civil Minister Praful Patel on Monday ruled out retrenchment among employees in public sector Air India and blamed rising fuel prices as the
reason behind the present crisis in the aviation sector.

"I have categorically denied that there will be any retrenchment in Air India," he told reporters here after the inauguration of the Rs 1808-crore Chennai airport expansion and modernisation project. He, however, declined to comment on the issue in the private sector.

Jet Airways had last week decided to lay off about 1900 of its employees but withdrew the move promptly. The Kingfisher Airlines has announced a salary cut of its trainee pilots as part of cost-cutting measures.

Patel said prices of Aviation Turbine Fuel (ATF) have gone out of control and called for "rationalisation" of the same to manage the present crisis.

The rising prices have put an extra burden of Rs.7,000 to Rs 8,000 crore on the airlines operators who have in turn passed on the burden to passengers, he said and stressed the need for states to reduce the sales tax levied on ATF.

"Most states levy a sales tax of 29 per cent on a commodity whose value has gone up, which also adds up to the overall cost," he said.

He also demanded a cut in other taxes, including customs and excise. "States should understand that better rational pricing brings more flights into their cities, helping in increased revenue..I hope all understand," he said.

He also said that unless a permanent solution was found, fears of retrenchment "will hang in the air."

Students, aviation institutes still dare to fly



Jet Airways might have taken back its retrenched employees but the move has undoubtedly left scars on the aviation industry. Aviation schools across the country are now pursuing a damage-control exercise. They are going all out to assure students that the worst is over.

Take the case of Electrotherm-promoted Ahmedabad Aviation & Aeronautics Ltd (AAA). The Director General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) approved institute offers courses in pilot’s training, aviation management, cabin crew and aircraft maintenance engineering. AAA offers flying training at its hanger at S V Patel International Airport in Ahmedabad and Mehsana airfield.

“It is too short a time to react to such issues. Not just aviation but the entire economy is going through a turmoil. But what needs to be seen is that this downturn is just a phase and cyclical. It would rather be wise to wait and watch and not take any hasty decisions. The gloom in the aviation industry is a temporary thing and will get corrected on its own within a year,” opines Shailesh Bhandari, chairman and managing director of the institute.

Dhiraj Agarwal, centre head of Avalon Aviation Academy, corroborates: “The recent move by some airlines was definitely a cause of concern for us. But we believe the worst has passed, and in just six months’ time the turmoil will give way for the industry to pick up. There are international airlines Emirates and Qatar Airways which are doing well even in these times and have shown interest in hiring our students. Even the Indian government would take some steps as it cannot afford to let such a huge industry reel under a bad phase for long. So, unless some huge recession happens, our industry looks like it will grow by some 5-6 per cent in a year’s time and the future of those pursuing a career in aviation is going to be bright again.”

Students, too, remain sanguine. With fees per student ranging between Rs 45,000 and Rs 1,00,000 for a course duration of an average six months to a year, the students are finding themselves in a fix after borrowing money from banks to pursue the vocation. But the depressing scenario has not deterred the students from pursuing the course. Instead they believe there are countless opportunities available in the field.

Ronak Sharma, who is pursuing a diploma in ground staff service, was initially “shocked” but is still hopeful about the future of the industry. “I have already procured an internship with the Mumbai airport next month, when my course gets over. My initial reaction to the news of airways retrenching people was of total disbelief. But after the 1,900 employees of Jet Airways were taken back, I believe that this is just a passing phase. We are hopeful of getting good domestic or international placement once our course comes to an end this November as the academy has promised 100 per cent placement guarantee or 50 per cent money back,” says Sharma.

And if the situation seems bad for the students pursuing various courses in the field of aviation, it should seem worse for those who have already completed their course. Instead, freshers in the industry are still upbeat and feel the scenario will get better in the near future.

“It is not as big a setback for the students as most people think it is. It is an enormous industry which will survive, thanks to the many opportunities in parallel fields like travel, tourism and hospitality. Moreover, we believe the scenario in the aviation industry itself will change for better sooner or later,” says a student who has just finished her course in BTEC (HNC) in aviation, hospitality and travel management from Frankfinn Institute of Air Hostess Training, Mumbai.

Jet chief seeks lower sales tax on aviation fuel


New Delhi, Oct. 20

The Chairman of Jet Airways, Mr Naresh Goyal, on Monday met with the Finance Minister, Mr P. Chidambaram, to seek Central assistance in convincing State Governments on the need to lower sales taxes on aviation turbine fuel (ATF).

Currently, State taxes on ATF varies from 4 per cent to more than 30 per cent, and is being cited as one of the main reasons for the losses being incurred by the industry.

Jet Airways, like most other domestic airlines, has been badly affected by the rising price of ATF, which accounts for between 45 and 50 per cent of the operating cost of most domestic airlines. Although global crude prices have declined in the recent past, the cumulative impact of the rise in fuel prices previously could see the domestic airline industry report a loss of more than Rs 4,000 crore.

Sources indicated apart from the need of rationalising taxes on ATF, other fiscal measures to help the airline industry were also touched on at the meeting.

The industry has often complained about the high domestic price of aviation fuel.

At a meeting with the Prime Minister, Dr Manmohan Singh, in June industry leaders pointed out that while the Government provides 77 per cent subsidy on kerosene, 47 per cent subsidy on diesel and 29 per cent on petrol, the ATF rates for domestic operations were 60-70 per cent higher than international benchmarks.

To cut costs, Jet Airways had recently entered into an alliance with Kingfisher Airlines, the scope of which includes code-sharing on both international and domestic flights apart from looking at joint network rationalisation. It will also look at a joint fuel management strategy to reduce expenses, apart from working on cross-selling flight inventory.

Kingfisher ‘job cuts’


Meanwhile, the Chairman, Kingfisher Airlines, Mr Vijay Mallya, indicated that if the slump in the market continues, more job cuts and lay-offs may take place.

In recent times, several airlines have had to lay off staff due to low passenger carriage and rising costs. In the domestic aviation industry, wages bill is the second most important head after fuel.

Regional carriers, biz jet firms look to hire

Hyderabad / New Delhi: Large airlines may be cutting jobs to contain losses, but the hiring outlook at regional airlines, firms running business jets and low-fare carriers remains strong as these firms gear up to recruit at least a 1,000 people in the next 15 months.

Fractional aircraft ownership companies such as Business Jets India Pvt. Ltd-run Bjets and Mumbai-based Invision Air Services Pvt. Ltd, business jets operator VistaJet Luftfahrtunternehmen GmbH-run VistaJets and regional carriers such as Chennai-based Star Aviation Pvt. Ltd are in the process of employing people to staff their new businesses.

Though the number of people needed to run a business jet is lean—consulting firm KPMG’s aviation analyst Mark Martin expects a staffing ratio of some 18 for such a plane—the number of people needed to run the new planes coming into the market could be significant given that another 100-150 planes are expected to join the Indian fleet of around 900 aircraft (commercial to private jets) by 2009.

However, a slowing economy, Martin insisted, could pull down the number of passengers travelling by air and impact expansion plans of the newcomers and, in turn, the plan for new hires.
In such a scenario, “travel would be the last thing on people’s mind,” he said.
Over the past few months India’s airlines have cut several hundred jobs leading to a surplus pool in the market.

This is likely to impact existing employees by way of reduced salaries and also make it difficult for fresh entrants to get jobs in aviation.
The hiring needed for an operation such as a regional airline could be bigger. Even a five-aircraft operation in the first year for an entrant such as Star Aviation may need about 500-700 people including engineers, pilots, crew and ground staff, says company executives.

“Intially Indian Airlines, Air India were the first airlines in the country, so when Jet started a lot of employees were ex-AI (or) IA. Now considering what’s happening, these people will be looking for alternative jobs,” said Ira Trivedi, VistaJet representative in India, who is hiring a dozen people to set up offices here, adding to the company’s list of nine other cities. “I have seen there is a need for trained qualified people with the right kind of attitude. We would need the whole gamut,” she said.

The Swiss privately held VistaJet offers business jets on rent for various time periods and plans to start by offering services to several Indian software firms who have a need for such aircraft for roadshows in West Asia and other markets.

A Bjets pilot, who wished to remain annynomous, said the salaries at charter companies are comparable to airlines given that business jets come with a high cost, even though wages can be low during training.
VistaJet’s Learjet 60 XR, for example, can cost $7,300 or at least Rs350,500 for a 25-hour service.

Brazilian aircraft manufacturer Empresa Brasileira de Aeronautica SA, which is training several people from India in its Singapore training centre, expects several jobs to be generated from the planes it will be supplying to Indian buyers soon.

Besides five Embraer jets to Star Aviation starting March, the manufacturer will supply 20 jets booked by Invision Air next year.
“The pilot market has been overheated over the last three-four years. India is a good example. Pilots have been brought over for a very high price which meant general people started to see it as a good career option. What we see now is a slowdown,” said Orlando J.F. Neto, Embraer’s managing director for Asia Pacific. “I would think the excess people (from the airlines) would get absorbed in other areas,” he said.

The first delivery to Star Aviation is slated for March.
Commercial airlines, too, see their hiring freeze easing in some months. SpiceJet Ltd, for example, expects to have openings for at least 20 co-pilots by early half of next year, according to J.S. Dhillon, low-cost carrier SpiceJet’s executive vice-president of flight operations.

Similarly, IndiGo, a service run by Interglobe Aviation Pvt. Ltd, plans to hire around 300 people including cockpit crew, pilots and customer care executives for the seven planes it inducts between now and next year.
“The growth and requirement by and large will remain the same, other than areas where we can get advantages of scale,” IndiGo’s president Aditya Ghosh said. “Even today we are running interviews across the country (for customer care executives).”

India's Aviation Sector Slumps


NEW DELHI -- In the latest sign of woes for India's aviation industry, several airlines have defaulted on fuel bills while two of the largest carriers are grappling with how to trim staff.

Against that backdrop, Jet Airways Ltd. and Kingfisher Airlines Ltd., India's two biggest airlines, last week announced a code-sharing alliance -- an arrangement some industry analysts say could be the first step toward a broader consolidation in the country's aviation business.

Since the aviation sector was liberalized in 2003, a slew of start-up Indian airlines have competed intensively, cutting fares and absorbing losses quarter after quarter in a fight for market share. But this year, high fuel prices and unsustainable losses have forced carriers to abandon that strategy.

Now, even local low-cost airlines such as IndiGo Airlines, a unit of InterGlobe Enterprises Ltd., SpiceJet Ltd. and Go Air Pvt. Ltd. are pumping up fares and cutting expenses to the bone in an effort to survive. Burdened with too many planes and staff as well as decreased traffic, the airlines are trying to cut capacity fast. "Cutting capacity is the only thing these carriers can do," says Binit Somaia, India director for the Sydney-based Centre for Asia Pacific Aviation. "The concept that everyone could fly for 500 rupees ($10) was a bit of an illusion."

Jet has announced a 15% reduction in flights. It and Kingfisher each plan to return seven leased planes. Bangalore-based Kingfisher has also asked Airbus to defer delivery of 32 planes due to be delivered this year and in 2009.

The most immediate problem for some carriers is paying Indian state-owned retailers for overdue fuel charges. Nearly one-half of airlines' operating budgets can go for buying fuel, which costs 65% more in India than in places like Dubai and Singapore, thanks to high excise and state sales taxes. The airlines have been pushing for a $1 billion bailout package from India's federal government to allay their losses, but industry analysts say it is unlikely to materialize as the nation faces parliamentary elections next year.

India's oil ministry has asked the country's top three airlines to pay a total of at least $185 million in outstanding fuel charges as soon as possible, according to Indian media reports. A portion of the overdue charges is in default as it wasn't paid within the acceptable grace period, Petroleum Secretary R.S. Pandey told reporters Thursday.

Jet Airways is behind on $53.2 million in fuel payments to Indian oil companies while Kingfisher owes $12.4 million, Mr. Pandey said.

A Jet spokeswoman said she couldn't comment on the unpaid fuel charges. Kingfisher didn't respond to a request to comment.

On Thursday, Jet announced 1,900 job cuts, but reversed its decision Friday under political pressure from the government. "I apologize for the trauma caused to all the people," Jet Chairman Naresh Goyal told a news conference. "I don't want to go by economics."

On Friday, Kingfisher said it will cut salaries for its trainee pilots significantly and, in some cases, by 90%. Meanwhile, state-owned Air India, has proposed a program to put as many as 15,000 employees on voluntary leave without pay for three to five years.

The overdue fuel bills and employment reductions hit an industry already rocked by high fuel costs. Last year, airlines in India posted collective net losses of $938 million. This year, industrywide losses could reach as high as $2 billion, analysts say.

On Oct. 13, Kingfisher and Jet announced a joint-operating alliance to share flights. It could be a way to test the waters for a merger, analysts say. Given the strains they are under, a deal is "something that's definitely on the cards," a person familiar with the situation said.

The Jet spokeswoman said there haven't been any talks on a possible merger.

—Jackie Range and Santanu Choudhury contributed to this article.

Jet, Kingfisher may reduce number of flights


NEW DELHI: Private air carriers Kingfisher Airlines and Jet Airways, which have entered into an operational alliance recently, may reduce flights as
they tighten belts to overcome financial crunch.

"We are not going to unnecessarily deploy capacity which we cannot fill...if in non-peak hours Jet flight is not full and Kingfisher flight is not full, it makes sense for us to co-operate and fly one aircraft instead of two. (With this) the economics of airlines will improve substantially," Kingfisher Chairman and CEO Vijay Mallya told reporters here.

He also said the two private carriers would co-operate on international routes, even as Kingfisher's plans to start non-stop flights to San-Francisco has been put on hold.

"The world is big enough. We have enough routes to operate without clashing with anyone unnecessarily," he said.

Jet and Kingfisher had last week announced an alliance to co-operate in seven areas, including joint fuel management, common ground handling and cross-selling of flight inventories.

The two biggest private carriers have been facing financial burden, which even prompted them to retrench employees.

Emerging from a meeting of Federation of Indian Airlines with Petroleum Minister Murli Deora, Civil Aviation Minister Praful Patel, Mallya said he has dropped plans to import aviation turbine fuel after government promised support to airlines.

"Its not required, when the oil companies have agreed to help us, support us, why should he change the whole system," he said.

Blaming imposition of sales tax on ATF for the poor financial health of the carriers, Mallya said, "We need reduction in tax...if the sales tax is brought down to four per cent across the board, all airlines would go to black ink from red ink".

Air India CMD censured by govt for leave-without-pay plan


NEW DELHI: State-owned carrier Air India Head Raghu Menon was censured on Wednesday by the government for his proposal to offer leave without pay to
15,000 employees.

Highly placed sources said Oil Minister Murli Deora took exception to Menon's proposals during a meeting of the Federation of Indian Airlines and Civil Aviation Minister Praful Patel to resolve the crisis arising out of mounting fuel bill arrears.

Deora cut Menon short when he today again talked of the need to "rationalise" the workforce to trim losses arising out of negative growth and high fuel cost. "There should not be any layoffs. Why are you raising it now," sources quoted Deora as telling Menon.

The oil minister than widened his message on 'no-job' cuts to the other participants-Kingfisher Chairman Vijay Mallya and Jet Airways Executive Director Saroj Dutta- present at the meeting.

Patel taking a cue then interjected to say the airlines should ensure that jobs are protected. "The industry should not take such steps and expect government support," sources quoted him as saying at the meeting.

Later talking to reporters, the civil aviation minister said the airlines should protect jobs. "We have spoken to the airlines, they will have to be sympathetic to employees. We have told them we will try and help them further."

Last week, Menon had announced that Air India was planning to offer three to five years leave without pay to 15,000 of its employees in an attempt to cut costs. The employees would have the option to return to service at the last drawn pay and seniority, if they so wished after the end of the period.

Jet Airways, which had sacked 1,900 employees, had to reinstate them after it came in for strong criticism, particularly from Deora.

GoAir to sign $40 mn maintenance contract with Air France


MUMBAI: Wadia group-promoted no-frills airline, GoAir, is in the process of signing a USD 40-million contract with Air France for maintenance of its
aircraft, a top company official said.

"We have already signed the Letter of Intent (LoI) with Air France. The formal agreement will be sealed very soon," GoAir's Chief Executive Officer, Edgardo Badiali, told reporters here today.

The contract would be for the maintenance of 20 aircraft for a period of six years, he said. "It is a purely a customer-supplier arrangement and not any kind of joint venture," Badiali said.

GoAir would have a total fleet of 20 aircraft by 2012, Badiali said, adding that, "we will be replacing four more aircraft with new ones in the next five months."

In all, the airline plans to induct ten new aircraft over the next one year, he said.

It presently has seven A-320 aircraft in its fleet including two new ones which it received recently. However, one of the aircraft will be returned to the lessor, he said.

Welcoming the Jet Airways-Kingfisher alliance, Badiali said that "the alliance would certainly result in a reduction in capacity, which is welcome."

Asked when GoAir would break-even, Badiali said that that would depend on the stability of oil prices. "If fuel prices remain stable at a decent level...(break-even) could be in the next financial year," he said.

India is fastest growing market for Bell Helicopter


HYDERABAD: After taking 52 years to sell its first 100 choppers in India, Bell Helicopter expects to sell its next 100 in less than five years as the
country has emerged as an important market for the US company, a top official said.

"India is our fastest growing market in the whole world," said Bell's director of communications Greg Hubbard, who was here for the civil aviation show last week.

"When we started our India office in 1995 we had only four percent of the market share; today we enjoy 52 percent market share," Hubbard told IANS.

Bell sold its first helicopter in India in 1956 and delivered its 100th commercial aircraft to leading Indian infrastructure company Abir Infrastructure during the air show here.

"We have sold 17 helicopters in India this year, we expect to sell 22 next year and we expect to sell our next 100th one within five years," Hubbard said.

"In India our growth rate is 15-17 percent while it is less than five percent in the US or Europe. Russia and Brazil are also growing fast, but the growth rate is lower than that in India," he said.

According to the Bell executive, the global downturn has not affected its India operations; nor does the company expect it to do so in the future. "Unlike fixed wing aircraft, helicopters are utility vehicles and demand will always be there."

Bell Helicopter, which is a subsidiary of Texas-based $13.2 billion multi-industry company Textron Inc, is also excited about supplying military helicopters to India.

"We will bid for the Indian Army's 197 reconnaissance and surveillance helicopter programme by end of December and we are hopeful of bagging a large contract."

Giving details of the Bell429 model that it unveiled at the air show, Hubbard said the company had adopted a unique approach while developing the model.

"We formed a panel of customers and asked them what features they wanted and during the designing process they participated in working out the trade-offs between various features," he said.

"As a result, we ended up developing a very flexible model that can be easily customized. For example, it has a completely flat floor that helps in customizing to meet specific needs of customers," he said.

The helicopter has a glass cockpit and digital controls designed to meet the latest safety requirements and is very quiet, he said.

Talking about training institutes and maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO) centres that Bell is planning to set up in India, Hubbard said: "We hope to select our Indian partners by early next year."

Aircraft maintenance has $1-bn business potential in India


SINGAPORE: Indian aviation industry may be going through turbulent weather, yet experts see a growing potential for the maintenance, repair and over
haul (MRO) segment of the industry, with projected revenue of $1.07 billion by 2013.

Many companies, including Boeing in a tie-up with the state-run Air India, have announced joint ventures in MRO business and others are waiting in the wings for the government to address some tax issues to jump into the market, the experts added.

Speaking during an MRO Asia symposium here, C.S. Tomar, vice president of engineering and maintenance for Kingfisher Airlines, said the MRO market in the country was currently valued at $405 million with a potential for $1.6 billion by 2018.

"It makes economical sense for us to set up an MRO facility," Sitham Nadarajah, vice president for technical development with Jet Airways, told IANS. "With volumes increasing, we will be looking at D-checks for narrow bodied aircraft like Boeing-737s."

The D-checks are done on aircraft every four-five years, during which the aircraft is completely stripped, checked and then restored.

With India's current fleet of 907 including helicopters, business jets and 395 commercial aircraft, it makes a business case for the MRO industry, the experts said, adding some issues remained to make it a more viable proposition.

"To many, India is still a black hole and yet to be understood," said Bharat Malkani, chief executive of MaxAerospace, a leading private sector MRO provider since 1994, providing support to all the major commercial airlines and aircraft operators in India and the Middle East.

With aviation infrastructure in the process of being ramped up, MRO providers said the high cost of entry into the Indian market, especially on account of high taxes, was proving to be the main barrier.

They said if repairs, for example, were undertaken outside the country, it was not subject to service tax or value-added tax. Since India is still in the development phase of offering a good MRO base, most Indian airlines go abroad to get their aircraft maintained, they added.

"We are being penalized for being Indian as we are charged taxes; companies abroad are not," said Malkani, whose engineering facility is located in Mumbai, supporting a variety of aircraft and components.

Recently, Lufthansa Technik, one of the world's largest MROs that had tied up with the Hyderabad International Airport, pulled out, saying high taxes were making it too expensive for it to operate in India.

"Taxation is a finance ministry matter," said R.K Maheshwary, deputy director general at industry watchdog in India, the Directorate General of Civil Aviation.

Yet, things are moving in the domain.

Recently, the National Aviation Company of India, the company that owns Air India, and the European Aeronautic Defence and Space Company, or EADS that owns Airbus, signed a joint venture agreement in the area.

They have proposed that their 50:50 aircraft MRO centre at the Indira Gandhi International Airport in India's national capital with an investment of $40 million will start its operations from early 2009.

Qatar Airways says India remains hot market


NEW DELHI: Leading Gulf carrier Qatar Airways Wednesday said India remained an important market not just for its civil aviation operations but also
as the principal source for manpower, including crew and other trained staff.

The airline also said it hoped to put an Airbus-380 aircraft - out of five expected to be delivered beginning 2010 - on the India route, since it was among the most promising countries for expansion.

"Forty percent of our team is from India. Since we cater to a wide variety of countries, our crew should be able to speak multiple languages," said Naveen Chawla, the regional manager for India with the Qatari carrier.

"We will continue to keep adding people, as the current global turmoil has not affected our operations. Our passenger load factor remains very healthy," Chawla told reporters here, outlining the carrier's expansion plans for the US.

"Qatar Airways has one of the most successful operations in India."

The executive said his airline was a "network carrier" where the focus was on wooing transit passengers through their hub in Doha, rather than point-to-point operations. "This is the main reason our operations have not been affected."

He said Kozhikode in Kerala was recently added as the ninth destination in India to result in as many as 58 flights a week from the country with early morning arrivals in Doha for convenient onward connections to the US.

Chawla said while excellent connectivity was already being offered to New York and Washington, March next year will see the addition of Houston in Texas, also called the energy capital of the US.

Egypt Air to add weekly flight from Mumbai


MUMBAI: When the times are not so good for aviation industry globally and specially for India, Egypt Air has planned to increase its India operations
with the addition of a new flight from Mumbai from October 28.

With this, Egypt Air will operate four weekly services between India and Egypt, a press release issued here stated today.

The airline's India & Sri Lanka's Regional Manager Ahmed Wasfy said that "the introduction of this new service is a sign of our confidence in the tremendous potential of India as an emerging source market.

"The flight enhancement from Mumbai for the current winter schedule is planned keeping in perspective the increasing passenger traffic movement from Mumbai to Cairo and also for stopover passengers on their onward connection to major cities in Europe, the US, Middle-East and Africa".

The enhanced service MS 969 will operate every Wednesday between Mumbai and Cairo while the return flight from Cairo will operate every Tuesday.

The airline will be operating Airbus 330 on this sector with a seat capacity of 268 out of which business class will constitute 24 seats and economy class 244 seats, the release said.

Egypt Air will now fly every Sunday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday from Mumbai offering an overall total seat capacity of 1,072, which will include a total of 96 business seats and 976 economy seats per week.

Condé Nast Traveler Readers Vote Jet Airways As One Of The World's Top Three Airlines

The FINANCIAL -- At a ceremony at New York’s Public Library recently, Condé Nast Traveler one of the world’s leading high end travel magazine, announced that Jet Airways has been selected as one of the top three airlines in the world in its 2008 Readers Choice Awards survey.

Jet Airways, India’s leading international airline, launched North American service last summer from Mumbai/Delhi to New York’s JFK and Newark airports – adding Toronto Pearson International and San Francisco International airports within the past year.



Upon hearing of the Condé Nast Traveler selection, Naresh Goyal – Chairman and Founder of Jet Airways – expressed his delight, saying: “When we started transatlantic service, one of my goals was to be recognized as one of the world’s top airlines within 5 years. Within 18 months, readers of Condé Nast Traveler – one of the world’s most prestigious magazines -- have reached that conclusion. It is extremely gratifying that our dedication to quality and excellence has been recognized so quickly in the North American market. We will continue to devote all our energies to exceeding expectations and ensuring the best travel experience for all passengers.”

http://finchannel.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=22442&Itemid=4

Qatar Airways to launch flights to NY from 9 Indian cities

(MENAFN - Bahrain Tribune) Qatar Airways will launch flights to New York this month, offering one-stop service to passengers from nine destinations in India, a senior airline official announced yesterday.

The daily Doha-New York non-stop flight will be launched on October 26, the airline's regional manager in India Naveen Chawla said here.

"Operating via Doha, the new flights to New York JFK Airport will offer passengers one of the quickest and most convenient journeys to America's financial capital," he said.

The daily flights to New York will replace the existing six-flights-a-week to Newark Liberty International Airport via Geneva. The airlines will operate Boeing 777-300 on the new route featuring 335 seats in a two-class configuration of 42 seats in business and 293 in economy.

The airline also plans to launch flights to Houston, Texas from March 30, 2009. "This will connect America's energy capital Houston with Doha, which is the energy capital of the Middle East," he said.

This will be Qatar Airways' third destination in the US. It already operates daily non-stop flights to Washington.

The airlines currently operate 58 flights a week from nine cities in India with early morning arrivals in Doha and onward connection to the US.

Qatar Airways operates daily services from Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai, Ahmedabad, Kochi, Thiruvananthapuram, Hyderabad and Kozhikoda and twice-a-week service from Nagpur. The average load factor from these destinations is over 75 per cent, Chawla said.

With 63 aircraft in its fleet, Qatar Airways operates services to 83 destinations worldwide.

http://www.menafn.com/qn_news_story_s.asp?StoryId=1093217464

Air India, Saudi Airlines to fly Haj pilgrims from Oct 30


New Delhi 27 October 2008 : More than 120,000 Haj pilgrims from India will travel to Jeddah on two airliners - India's flagship carrier, Air India, and Saudi Airlines, a Gulf air carrier, - from 17 Indian cities from Oct 30, an airline official said Friday.

While Air India will fly 63,511 pilgrims, Saudi Airlines will carry 59,700 pilgrims.

Executive director and spokesperson of Air India Jitender Bhargava told IANS Friday that Air India would ferry the pilgrims on 400 flights.

The airlines will have an equal number of flights back from Jeddah to India after the Haj. The entire process is expected to end by Jan 12 next year.

The government has allowed 123,211 Haj pilgrimage this year. While Haj pilgrims were flown to Jeddah from 15 cities last year, two more destinations have been added this year. These include Aurangabad and Indore.

The Haj pilgrimage is the major annual event where millions of Muslim pilgrims from all over the world arrive in Jeddah on their way to Makkah. Haj is one of the five tenets of Islam and is every Muslim's desire to perform Haj at least once in his lifetime.

Does India need the Maharaja?


The two largest private players in Indian aviation, Jet Airways and Kingfisher, have become unlikely bedfellows in a bid to stem haemorrhaging cash flows. The Federation of Indian Airlines has now approached the government for a $1 billion bailout package.

The turmoil in the private sector should not make us forget the mess the state-run airline finds itself in. The flag carrier Air India has also approached the government for a substantial lifeline. Reports indicate the carrier is looking for one-third of a billion dollars in fresh capital and an equal amount in working capital loans. However, attempts by Raghu Menon, the chairman and managing director of the National Aviation Co. of India, to shed 15,000 employees through an unpaid leave scheme seems to have been scuttled by the government.

While minister for civil aviation Praful Patel seems intent on setting things right with the state airline, a pertinent question has been overlooked: Does India need a state-run airline in the first place?
State enterprises are expected to justify their existence by helping do a few things: meet social obligation, protect national security, prevent market inefficiencies and even, on the rare occasion, turn a profit.

It is doubtful if the Air India-Indian combine currently performs any of those functions. Whenever thrown into competition with private players, the state-run airline has consistently lost business—Jet Airways took just 10 years to overtake 40-year-old Indian Airlines in domestic market share. And its service performance has been nothing to write home about either. Everyone from stand-up comedian Russell Peters to that remarkably astute vehicle of social commentary, The Simpsons television show, has generated laughs at the expense of our state airline.

With private players struggling to make money, it is reasonable to assume that neither will Air India. Perhaps Patel would do well to re-evaluate the need for a state enterprise in a business that is only meant for those with deep pockets. If an outright phasing out of Air India sounds too drastic, perhaps re-jigging the whole business along the lines of the more efficient low-cost Air India Express model might be a more popular compromise.
Does India really need a state-run airline anymore? Tell us, at views@livemint.com

Flights to Mumbai on schedule despite deadly attacks

Dubai: Flights continued to Mumbai on Thursday, despite the deadly attacks that killed 101 people.

Airlines are monitoring the situation and will assess the situation if it worsens, they said.

Indian Airlines and Etihad Airways from the UAE will be operating their flights to Mumbai on schedule and their have been no cancellations.

Anand Kumar Pandey, Country manager, Indian Airlines said: "Two flights left for Mumbai on Wednesday and two will fly on time Thursday.

Thomas Clarke, Public Relations Etihad Airways, said: "There are no flights cancelled, but for the next four days we will reduce the on-ground time of our flights at the Mumbai Airport. For this the departure of our flights to Mumbai will be delayed for five hours from Abu Dhabi. We have been keeping our passengers informed of the timings and changes. In addition to this on Friday and Saturday we will be operating the A3-30 Airbus instead of A3-20. Because A3-30 will accommodate 200 plus passengers.”

Jet Airways' operations, both domestic and international, into and out of Mumbai have remained largely unaffected and on schedule.

In view of the recent turmoil in the city, Jet Airways advises passengers availing of its domestic and international services out of Mumbai airport, to carry valid photo-identification and report at the airport well before the scheduled departure of their respective flights, in compliance with enhanced security requirements.

The airline has also announced the waiver of cancellation and re-issue charges on its domestic and international services into and out of Mumbai, on Thursday, 27 November and Friday, 28 November, 2008 on account of the current situation.

Passengers may contact the airline call centre on 39893333 or the toll free number 1800-22-55-22 for further information or visit www.jetairways.com

One Lufthansa flight on its way to Mumbai on Wednesday was diverted to New Delhi. Two other flights on Thursday were cancelled, a spokesman for the airline said.

KLM Royal Dutch Airlines, the Dutch arm of Air France KLM, cancelled a flight to Mumbai, the website of Amsterdam's Schiphol Airport showed.

British Airways said all flights will continue normally.

http://www.gulfnews.com/nation/General/10262995.html

In the last few days, Indian Air Ports have been put on alert for the umpteenth time, albeit for a few days again. Each time there is a threat, there is a knee jerk reaction which fizzles down in a few days. What do you all feel about the security at Indian airports, particularly at the small airports. I feel that we must look at electronic surveillance in a big way rather than increasing the CISF manpower momentarily and subsequently revert to the same level.

X-Posting from "Hyderabad International Airport Thread" (http://www.skyscrapercity.com/showthread.php?t=516810&page=142), Orginally posted by "srik89"
********************************************************************
In a welcome boost to its international traffic profile, Rajiv Gandhi International Airport, Hyderabad yesterday(7/12/08) hosted the first flight from the UK’s largest scheduled airline, British Airways.

The new route provides a direct flight from Hyderabad to London Heathrow Terminal 5 in the UK and offers connections to 22 destinations in North America. British Airways will operate five weekly non-stop flights between Hyderabad and London – the only airline to offer direct flights between the two cities.

http://www.moodiereport.com/images2/SAI_3541_600.jpg
The first British Airways jet to land at Rajiv Gandhi International receives a traditional water cannon salute

British Airways Area Commercial Manager for South Asia Amanda Amos said: “We are very excited about the launch of our Hyderabad service. India is an incredibly important market for the airline and the start of this service demonstrates our commitment to this market.”

The inaugural British Airways flight, which landed at Rajiv Gandhi International Airport at 4:40a.m. on 7 December, received a traditional water cannon salute from the fire-fighting ‘Panthers’ at the rapid exit way.

The passengers and crew were welcomed by GMR Hyderabad International Airport Limited (GHIAL) Chief Operating Officer, Peter Noyce, Director Prasanna C and Chief Commercial Officer Viswanath Attaluri.

“Despite the economic meltdown, Rajiv Gandhi International Airport (RGIA) has registered a reasonable growth in the international passenger traffic. The excellent facilities available at RGIA have opened up exciting opportunities for world-class carriers like British Airways to add Hyderabad as a preferred destination,” Viswanath said.

He added: “Rajiv Gandhi International Airport is poised to make Hyderabad a truly global air travel hub in India.”

http://www.moodiereport.com/images2/SAI_3688_600.jpg

The British Airways crew received a warm welcome from GMR Hyderabad International Airport Limited management

Orginally Posted by bobbie501

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3162/3071568806_e15b2e2923_b.jpg
jortpossel.com's photostream (http://www.flickr.com/photos/jortposseldotcom/3071568806/)

One of the Mc Donalds outlet & Yashoda Trauma Care Center

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3108/3085468997_b7b551922d_b.jpg
jkhenderson's photostream (http://www.flickr.com/photos/jkhenderson/3085468997/in/set-72157610786640434/)

Orginally Posted by our fellow forumers @ "Bangalore International Airport (BIAL)" (http://www.skyscrapercity.com/showthread.php?t=644756&page=13) photo thread.

by jnsrihari
http://img88.imageshack.us/img88/429/img5275xi4.jpg

http://img88.imageshack.us/img88/4516/img5274ct6.jpg

by sudheeshnairs
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by niknak
http://img442.imageshack.us/img442/418/p1100178nh6.jpg

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orginally Posted by kg4129 @ Indian Airport Thread

Air Asia's First flight to India Landed @ Thiruchirappali (Trichy)

http://img242.imageshack.us/img242/4041/airasiapz6.jpg

News:
AirAsia Celebrates First Flight To India.
Kuala Lumpur - Trichy route sets record load factor (http://www.airasia.com/site/in/en/pressRelease.jsp?id=1ef95d00-7f000010-6270b000-1c04fd7b) :cheers:

Cross posting from Indian thread. Thanks to Ankur(todmill). :cheers:

hello everyone, i feel bad for not getting involved in the "preponed" debate:nuts:,

i have decided to "advance" the video (got the approval):banana:

here is the video

uploaded by me

zTLIp1Q4Xk4&eurl

copyright airport authority of india
:cheers:

if you have any questions or suggestions do let me know, i can always put it forward to aai guys.

i am also trying realy hard to get the latest pics for delhi and mumbai airports, will post as soon as i get them.

will keep you guys posted about the airport development in india
:banana::cheers:

Kingfisher launches daily Mumbai-London flight (http://www.hindu.com/thehindu/holnus/006200901051713.htm)

Mumbai (PTI): Vijay Mallya-owned Kingfisher Airlines on Monday launched its first daily non-stop Mumbai-London flight with a new Airbus 330-200 aircraft, configured in two classes.

"The flight had almost full occupancy with 28 passengers in Kingfisher First and 169 in Kingfisher Class," company spokesperson told PTI.

The flight 'IT 007' left the Chhatrapati Shivaji International Airport (CSIA) at 1350 hrs and was carrying 10 chief executive officers of top travel agencies from Delhi and Mumbai, the spokerperson said.

The return flight from London 'IT 008' would leave at 2030 hrs and arrive at the Mumbai airport on the next day at 1100 hrs.

Mumbai-London is the private carrier's second overseas flight after the one on Bangalore-London route that was launched in September last year.

Kingfisher also plans to launch Mumbai-Hong Kong operations from January 12 and Mumbai-Singapore flight from January 16.

In addition, its flights from Bangalore and Chennai to Sri Lanka capital, Colombo, will start from January 19.

Indian airline sacks overweight stewardesses: report
5 January 2009
Agence France Presse

India's state-run carrier Air India has dismissed 10 women flight attendents who were grounded last year for being overweight, a report said Monday.

The sackings came after the cabin crew were warned about meeting minimum physical fitness standards and given sufficient time to lose weight, the Press Trust of India news agency reported quoting airline sources.

The flight attendents were also offered alternative ground assignments which they refused, the report said.

Delhi High Court last year upheld Air India's right to reassign overweight attendants, citing clauses in their contracts that barred them from flight duties if they put on too much weight.

The court had noted that the state-run airline needed fit attendants to compete with private rivals in India's fiercely competitive aviation market.

Meanwhile, a lawyer for the sacked cabin crew Monday said the dismissals were against the law as the case was being heard by India's Supreme Court.

"The action is illegal and against the natural justice. I will soon file an application in the Supreme Court against the (sacking) order," lawyer Arvind Sharma told the news agency.

^^I'm hearing this type of news all the time
I really have no opinion

Jet Airways group remains India's largest airline (http://www.hindu.com/thehindu/holnus/006200901131733.htm)

Private carrier Jet Airways, together with its low-cost airline JetLite, was India's largest domestic air services operator in 2008, ferrying some 12.01 million passengers for a market share of 29.5 percent, latest data showed on Tuesday.

Kingfisher Airlines, along with its budget carrier Kingfisher Red, was next, flying 11.26 million passengers to capture a 27.6 percent market share, as per data released by the civil aviation ministry.

Air India's domestic operations continued to lose market share and flew just 6.63 million passengers for a market share of 16.3 percent. It had a 19-percent market share in 2007.

Overall, Indian domestic carriers ferried 40.7 million passengers in 2008, a marginal drop of 5 percent over the previous year. Indian carriers carried 42.8 million passengers in 2007.

Jet to sell and lease back aircraft to meet expenses


Full-service carriers may need cash cover till 2010 as overall fiscal environment remains uncertain, analyst says

Mumbai: Hit by a credit crunch and a third-quarter loss of Rs214 crore, Jet Airways (India) Ltd plans to sell and lease back at least one of the 11 wide-body A330 aircraft in its fleet in addition to raising a bank loan to meet immediate operational costs, a company executive said on Monday.
The airline expects a “comfortable cash position for this fiscal” after borrowing Rs750 crore, said K.G. Vishwanath, senior general manager for management information systems and investor relations at the airline, India’s largest carrier by passengers flown.
The airline is in talks with domestic lenders for the loan, Vishwanath told an analysts’ conference. The airline would raise the funds from two nationalized banks, The Economic Times reported on Monday, citing chief executive officer Wolfgang Prock-Schauuer.

The amount will be raised as a term loan and used to fund the airline’s working capital requirements, said a senior Jet Airways executive who did not want to be identified. Another person close to the development, who also didn’t want to be named, said the carrier is in talks with State Bank of India.
“We have plans to do a sale-and-leaseback of A330 during this quarter. The details of sale-and-leaseback are yet to be finalized,” Vishwanath said at the conference. Jet Airways had raised $22 million (Rs106.9 crore) by selling one Airbus SAS-made A330 earlier that it leased back.

The airline raised Rs1,250 crore from Punjab National Bank, or PNB, and Indian Overseas Bank last month to meet operational cash requirements. In the case of the PNB loan, Jet Airways pledged its international ticket sales, whereby ticket revenue would go into a special bank account from which the lender would first withdraw its share and the balance would go to the airline.
Loss-making Indian carriers, including Jet Airways, Kingfisher Airlines Ltd and state-run Air India, are seeking cash to fund operations amid a slowdown that’s causing passenger traffic to decline. The airline industry’s losses this fiscal are estimated to mount to a collective $2 billion. “Pressure will continue on full-service carriers over the coming months,” wrote Kapil Kaul, chief executive officer (Indian subcontinent and West Asia) of the Centre for Asia Pacific Aviation, or Capa, an international aviation consulting firm, in a 12 January report.

Jet Airways, Kingfisher and Air India “may need cash cover till 2010 and the amount raised might not be enough”, Kaul wrote. “The near break-even situation in December 2009 has given the airlines a temporary breathing space but the overall fiscal environment continues to be uncertain.”
The report also indicated that National Aviation Co. of India Ltd, or Nacil, that runs Air India, would likely receive a capital infusion of more that $600 million from the government in the next 30 days. “Kingfisher appears to be closer to securing funds but is yet to finalize” (an agreement), the report added. A senior Nacil executive, who didn't want to be named because he is not authorized to speak to the media, said the airline is in talks with banks to raise working capital even as it awaits financial help from the government.
Nacil had in December sought at least Rs4,000 crore from the Union government in equity and debt, given continuing losses and the costs of merging Air India and the erstwhile Indian Airlines.
Last week, civil aviation minister Praful Patel said the expansion of the equity base in Nacil is expected to come up for cabinet approval in February when Parliament reconvenes.

Kingfisher Airlines, the country’s second largest private carrier by number of passengers flown, is also in the process of raising at least Rs1,500 crore to meet working capital requirements. Last year, Kingfisher merged with Deccan Aviation Ltd, which operated the erstwhile Air Deccan, the country’s largest low-fare carrier. “The airline is in talks with various Indian banks and overseas financial institutions to raise funds,” said another person close to the development, who did not want to be named. The carrier recently raised Rs1,000 crore from ICICI Bank Ltd to meet its working needs.
Even low-cost carriers are struggling with a shortage of funds. The Capa report said Delhi-based SpiceJet Ltd will need a capital infusion because its current cash resources may run out in a few months. New York-based private equity fund WL Ross and Co. Llc., had in August agreed to invest $80 million in SpiceJet.

As the aviation industry struggles, the Indian government is also considering allowing foreign airlines to buy up to a 25% stake in local carriers, Patel said last week. However, a Mumbai-based analyst at an international brokerage, who didn’t want to be named, said the proposal may not be implemented any time soon as the general election is due in May.
SpiceJet’s chief executive officer Sanjay Aggarwal said foreign investment would be welcomed by the industry. “It will allow funds and expertise to come into India and allow the aviation industry to mature and be more competitive,” Aggarwal said. However, he maintained that SpiceJet is “not in a situation where we need any financial investment. If other airlines are in pursuit of funds it will certainly be a good move for them”.
Aditya Ghosh, president of IndiGo, a Delhi-based low-fare airline operated by InterGlobe Aviation Pvt. Ltd, also denied a cash crunch, saying, “We have no need to raise any funds.”

Airlines’ ability to raise funds by diluting promoters’ equity has been dented by the global economic and financial crisis. Jet Airways and Kingfisher Airlines have both postponed such plans. Private equity players are also shy of investing in Indian carriers, given continuing losses.
Prock-Schauer, the CEO of Jet Airways, said the airline has no intention of selling a stake to any foreign airline. “Globally, foreign airlines are not financially healthy to make investments in other airlines,” he said.

Air India reschedules Bahrain-Kerala flights


DUBAI: National carrier Air India has announced a new schedule for its flights between Bahrain and Kerala beginning January 23.


Under this, Air India is set to increase the frequency of its flights from Bahrain to Thiruvananthapuram from one to thrice a week.

Simultaneously it will reduce its flight frequency between Bahrain and Kozhikode from six to four a week.

The airline used to fly only once every Tuesday between Bahrain and Thiruvanthapuram but beginning January 23, it will operate two more flights, on Fridays as well as on Saturdays.

Since Indian Airlines is already operating daily from Bahrain to Kochi and Kozhikode, this change will accommodate the airline's plan to spread out its network, following the merger of Air India with Indian Airlines.

As per the new schedule, on Tuesday the flight will depart Bahrain at 12.55am and reach Thiruvananthapuram at 7.50am. On Friday and Saturday, the flight will take off from Bahrain at 11.20pm and reach Thiruvananthapuram at 7.30am the next day.

Turkish Airlines starts daily flights from Delhi to Istanbul


New Delhi (PTI): The Turkish Airlines on Monday launched daily flights from Delhi and Mumbai to Istanbul and wants to connect Hyderabad and Chennai in the next phase of expansion in India.

"We are studying other routes in India. The destinations include Hyderabad and Chennai. We may start these flights from 2010 but not this year," the airline's CEO Temel Kotil said here.

With seven flights from Mumbai and Delhi, he said the airline has exhausted its existing rights of 14 services a week, but expressed hope that these would be increased in the next bilateral air traffic talks between India and Turkey. The Turkish carrier so far had four flights a week from Delhi and three from Mumbai.

Responding to questions, Kotil said the main attraction for Indian travellers to fly on Turkish Airlines would be its connectivity to Europe (including Russia), Middle East and Africa.

"More than half the passengers transit through Istanbul for Europe and Russia. It is almost like the ancient Silk Route which used to pass from Asia to the Europe via Turkey," he said, adding Indian passengers could get convenient connections to 93 destinations including those in Germany, France, the UK and Russia.

He said the airline connected even cities like Lyons in France, which would help a passenger to fly to such cities directly, instead of changing flights again.

With the launch of daily flights from Mumbai and Delhi today, the airline would be increasing the number of seats by 20 per cent, Kotil said. Turkish Airlines has 127 aircraft now and has placed orders for 105 more planes worth USD 6 billion over the next eight years.

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The above pics are from the new Integrated Terminal at Srinagar , cross posting from the India subforum . Will cross post more later.

Copyright @ AAI and pics originally posted by Todmill.

^^Very nice Airport.:cheers:

Air France to withdraw its services to city from March-end


CHENNAI: Though international passenger traffic is reviving after a slump caused by the impact of the ongoing economic slowdown, foreign airlines
have now started to cut services to Chennai. Air France has intimated the Airports Authority of India (AAI) that it would be withdrawing its thrice a week service out of Chennai from March-end. Singapore Airlines and Malaysian Airlines have already cut their day services from Chennai.

Air France's decision would be a blow to passengers, especially French nationals from Puducherry, as the airline offers direct flights to Paris. "The airline is mostly preferred by French nationals who have links with Puducherry. The airline did not have many bookings as the travel to Puducherry is seasonal," said an airport official.

"The move will affect people who travel to Paris from Chennai. They will now have to travel to Dubai, Frankfurt, London, Abu Dhabi or Colombo and take a flight to Paris. Not many people are travelling international these days when compared to previous years. Earlier, it was difficult to get a seat on any of the flights to Europe but now seats are full only during weekends," said D Sudhakara Reddy, president, Air Passengers Association of India.

"Apart from those travelling directly to Paris, the airline did not get many transit passengers as Paris is not a popular transit point for Indians flying to the West. The city is expensive and language is a problem. So, people prefer Frankfurt, Dubai and London as transit points when they fly to the US," said Basheer Ahmed, chairman, Travel Agents Federation of India.

"Air France did not have daily services. But Lufthansa, British Airways and Emirates have daily services from Chennai with changeovers from their home countries," he added.

According to Sudhakara Reddy it is a bad time for international travel. "Singapore Airlines and Malaysian Airlines withdrew their morning service from January," he said.

However, statistics compiled by AAI shows that international passenger traffic has been going up since the last two months.

International passenger traffic was approximately 3.31 lakh in August but it came down to 2.93 lakh in September and 2.85 lakh in October following the slowdown. But, the traffic started picking up in November and December. In December, it touched 3.28 lakh, edging closer to August figures.

The sudden dip in passenger traffic forced many airlines to review their schedules, said an AAI official. "The reduction in services comes in the wake of passenger numbers going down. Airlines have started to prioritise their schedules depending on the load factor," he added.

Indian president's chopper in collision scare with domestic flight


New Delhi - A major accident was averted at the Mumbai airport Monday when a helicopter of Indian President Pratibha Patil landed on the runway just as a passenger jet was about to take off, media reports said.

An Indian Airlines aircraft bound for New Delhi with 148 passengers aboard aborted the take-off after the pilot spotted the chopper on the runway, the NDTV network reported.

The plane had already run for a kilometre and gained momentum when the pilot noticed that the helicopter was dangerously close and applied emergency brakes, the IANS news agency reported.

The helicopter that missed the runway collision was part of Patil's entourage but the Indian leader was not on board, an official statement said. Patil is currently on a visit to the region.

Mumbai's Air Traffic Control had given clearance to the flight and the helicopter at the same time and the domestic aviation authorities have ordered an inquiry into the incident, the reports said.

'The tyre of the aircraft got damaged in the incident and the aircraft was then taken to a bay. Passengers have been flown to the national capital by another aircraft,' an Indian Airlines spokesman told the IANS.

Emirates Airlines positive about growth of Indian market


Despite the global recession, UAE-based Emirates Airlines is successful in moving up its growth chart. When most of the international carriers are either withdrawing or reducing flights from Indian cities, Emirates Airlines recently added nine more flights to Dubai from Indian cities. The airline seems to be positive about the Indian growth this year, despite the global slowdown. Talking about the growth prospects of the Indian market, Orhan Abbas, Vice President – India & Nepal, Emirates Airlines said, “We are currently recording a passenger load of about 75 per cent on most of our flights on Indian routes. We see hardly any impact of global downturn on the Indian market and are sure that India will be showing outstanding growth rates this year. It is because of the growth and demand that we decided to add nine more flights from India to Dubai.”

According to Abbas, India is one of the strongest markets for the airline on its worldwide network. The airline is looking at strengthening its brand awareness in the Indian market along with further enhancing passenger experience. It offers stopovers at Dubai along with chauffeur services to first class passengers. It is soon going to launch the luxury lounge for Business and First Class passengers at Mumbai International Airport Limited (MIAL).

The airline has added nine additional services from Mumbai, Chennai and Bangalore starting February 1, 2009. Of the total nine, seven are from Mumbai and one each from Chennai and Bangalore. Now, the total number of daily service from Mumbai is 35 from 28 flights a week, while Bangalore have 20 flights a week and Chennai stands at 19 flights a week. Apart from these three cities, it also operates out of Delhi, Kolkata, Hyderabad, Kochi, Kozhikode, Ahmedabad and Thiruvananthapuram. Thus, the airline operates a total of 168 flights a week (from 154 flights) from India to Dubai, becoming the single largest international airline operating from India.

the Indian govt. is going crazy with new airports both built and just approved. Here are some cross posts from the Indian aviation sub forum

goa
http://www.picamatic.com/show/2009/02/18/12/40/2240926_bigthumb.jpg (http://www.picamatic.com/view/2240926_Goa_Airport_New/)

click to enlarge the image

bopal

http://www.picamatic.com/show/2009/02/18/12/47/2241156_bigthumb.jpg (http://www.picamatic.com/view/2241156_BHOPAL_Airport_New/)



indore


http://www.picamatic.com/show/2009/02/18/12/47/2241187_bigthumb.jpg (http://www.picamatic.com/view/2241187_Indore_Airport_New/)
vizag


http://www.picamatic.com/show/2009/02/18/12/47/2241204_780x540.jpg


http://www.picamatic.com/show/2009/02/18/12/47/2241207_780x540.jpg

trichy



http://www.picamatic.com/show/2009/02/18/12/49/2241201_bigthumb.jpg (http://www.picamatic.com/view/2241201_Trichy_Airport_New/)

jaipur


http://www.picamatic.com/show/2009/02/18/12/49/2241191_bigthumb.jpg (http://www.picamatic.com/view/2241191_jaipur/)

raipur


http://www.picamatic.com/show/2009/02/18/12/55/2241612_bigthumb.jpg (http://www.picamatic.com/view/2241612_Raipur_Airport_New/)
ranchi

http://www.picamatic.com/show/2009/02/18/12/55/2241566_bigthumb.jpg (http://www.picamatic.com/view/2241566_Ranchi_Airport_New/)
dehradunn

http://img37.picoodle.com/img/img37/3/2/18/f_Dehradunm_254700c.jpg


all the pics or designs posted copyright AAi

amritsar


http://img37.picoodle.com/img/img37/3/2/18/f_amritsarm_6bc1378.jpg

ah, the smell of elections is in the air.

Sonia Gandhi and her minnows are in the project approval express lane.

Jet Airways to Milan


23 SEP, 2010, 07.50PM IST,IANS

MUMBAI: Private carrier Jet Airways will connect New Delhi with Milan, the fashion and design capital of Italy, with daily direct flights from Dec 5, the airline announced here on Thursday.

Milan will be Jet's 24th international destination. The flight would be operated using a state-of-the-art Airbus A-330-200 aircraft.

With Milan located strategically at the heart of central Europe, the service would offer travellers a choice of connectivity to several other Italian cities like Rome, Florence, Venice and Pisa, besides easy access to other European destinations in conjunction with the airline's partners, said Jet Airways Chief Executive Nikos Kardassis.

Similarly, passengers travelling from Milan to India would have access to Jet's destinations like Sri Lanka, Thailand, Singapore, Hong Kong, Nepal and Bangladesh, and 42 domestic destinations.

The inaugural flight will depart New Delhi's Terminal 3 at 12.55 p.m., arriving Milan at 6 p.m. the same day. The return flight would depart Milan at 9.25 p.m., arriving in New Delhi at 9.55 a.m the following day.

Source: http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/news-by-industry/transportation/airlines-/-aviation/Jet-Airways-to-start-direct-Delhi-Milan-flight-Dec-5/articleshow/6614670.cms

Air India's New Schedule


Air India to start hub-and-spoke flights to connect global destinations [/B]

Our Bureau

Chennai, Sept. 27


Air India is all set to introduce a daily hub-and-spoke flight from Chennai, Bangalore, Hyderabad and Kochi to Delhi effective October 31, to connect its non-stop flights to New York, Chicago, Toronto and Tokyo.

Passengers originating their international travel from Chennai to New York, Chicago and Toronto, can travel daily by Air India Flight AI 643, leaving Chennai from Anna International Departure Terminal at 2010 hrs and reaching Delhi at 2305 hrs.

Similarly from Bangalore, AI 623 will depart at 2010 hrs to reach Delhi at 2245 hrs, from Hyderabad AI 127 will depart at 2135 hrs to reach Delhi at 2340 hrs and from Kochi AI 693 to depart at 1935 hrs and reach Delhi 2245 hrs.

The onward Flights AI 101 to New York will leave Delhi at 0040 hrs to arrive New York at 0645 hrs (local time), Flight AI 127 to Chicago will leave Delhi at 0105 hrs to arrive Chicago at 0700 hrs (local time) and Flight AI 187 to Toronto will leave from Delhi at 0125 hrs to arrive at 0745 hrs (local time) in Toronto.

Air India's daily code-share flights to Zurich and Vienna and thrice-weekly flights to Moscow, will also be connected to this hub-and-spoke flight with three and half hours transit time at Delhi.

On the return direction, its flights from New York and Chicago will connect Chennai with a transit time of three and half hours at Delhi. The Flight AI 642 will leave Delhi at 2015 hrs and arrive Chennai at 2245 hrs.

Similarly, Flights AI 622 will leave Delhi at 2010 hrs to reach Bangalore at 2305 hrs, AI 126 to leave Delhi at 1830 hrs to arrive Hyderabad at 2035 hrs and AI 692 to leave Delhi at 1945 hrs to arrive Kochi at 2255 hrs, says a release from the company.

Jet Airways connecting Delhi and Mumbai to Colombo

Jet Airways to Introduce Daily Flights to Colombo, Sri Lanka from Delhi and Mumbai[/B]

New York – September, 2010: Jet Airways, India’s premier international airline, today announced that it will introduce daily direct flights to Colombo, Sri Lanka from Mumbai and Delhi, effective November 5, 2010.


The introduction of the two new flights serving Sri Lanka and India, are in addition to the existing daily Chennai-Colombo service, with which the airline launched its international operations in 2004. The airline will thus be able to offer its guests seamless connectivity through Mumbai and New Delhi onto several destinations across North America, Europe, as well as destinations across the Gulf, Middle East and Far East on the Jet Airways network.

According to Nikos Kardassis, CEO, Jet Airways, “Sri Lanka is fast emerging as a highly rated global tourism destination and we are happy to offer our guests seamless connections to several destinations across our network, through our important gateways, Mumbai and Delhi.”

The airline will deploy a state-of-the-art Boeing 737-800 aircraft on the new daily flights, offering 8 Premiere and 162 economy class seats.

For more information, please visit: www.jetairways.com.

About Jet Airways

Jet Airways currently operates a fleet of 90 aircraft, which includes 10 Boeing 777-300 ER aircraft, 12 Airbus A330-200 aircraft, 54 next generation Boeing 737-700/800/900 aircraft and 14 modern ATR 72-500 turboprop aircraft. With an average fleet age of 4.99 years, the airline has one of the youngest aircraft fleets in the world. Flights to 65 destinations span the length and breadth of India and beyond, including New York (both JFK and Newark), Toronto, Brussels, London (Heathrow), Johannesburg, Hong Kong, Singapore, Kuala Lumpur, Colombo, Bangkok, Kathmandu, Dhaka, Kuwait, Bahrain, Muscat, Doha, Abu Dhabi, Dubai, Jeddah, Sharjah, Riyadh and Dammam

New Etihad Flights to Bangalore


Etihad Airways, the national airline of the United Arab Emirates, will launch flights to its eighth destination in India and 66th destination worldwide, the city of Bangalore (also referred to as Bengaluru).
On January 1, 2011, Etihad will commence a four flight per week service to Bangalore, the capital of the Indian state of Karnataka and the country's third most populous city. Etihad will begin daily flights to Bangalore at the commencement of the summer scheduling season effective March 27, 2011.

James Hogan, Chief Executive Officer of Etihad Airways, said: "We are delighted to launch our new service to Bangalore and to serve our customers in Karnataka.

"Etihad is committed to serving the Indian market and people, whether it is Indian nationals who are residing in India or in countries across the world. Abu Dhabi and Bangalore are both growing cities, emerging as major economic hubs and the new service will further enable commercial ties to develop between India and the UAE."

Commenting on the launch of the new service, Marcel Hungerbuehler, President of Bengaluru International Airport (BIAL), said: "Our focus has always been on ensuring that we provide our passengers with better connectivity between Bangalore and the rest of the world.

"We are thrilled with the introduction of Etihad's service and congratulate the entire team for introducing the service to Bangalore. The new services will take us a step closer to achieving our vision of becoming the international gateway to the South of India, as well as enabling us to offer passengers more travel options and cabin classes to choose from."

Etihad will operate a two class Airbus A320 on the new Bangalore route configured to carry 136 passengers with 16 in Business class and 120 in Economy class.

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From January 1, Etihad's flight EY286 to Bangalore will depart Abu Dhabi on Mondays, Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays at 10.15pm and arrive at Bengaluru International Airport at 3.25am the following day. The return flight, EY287, will depart Bangalore on Tuesdays, Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays at 4.20am and arrive in Abu Dhabi at 7.00am the same day.

From March 27, Etihad's flight EY286 will depart Abu Dhabi daily at 10.15pm and arrive in Bangalore at 3.45am the following day. The return service, EY287, will depart Bangalore daily at 4.45am and arrive in Abu Dhabi at 7.00am the same day.

With the addition of Bangalore, Etihad flies to eight Indian destinations including the cities of New Delhi, Chennai, Mumbai, Kozhikode, Thiruvananthapuram, Hyderabad and Kochi. Once the service to Bangalore begins, the airline will operate 49 flights to India per week, and following the commencement of the daily services, it will offer 52 services per week.

For more information, please contact:
Taryam Hasan Qayed Al Subaihi
Corporate Communications Advisor - Corporate Affairs
Etihad Airways
Tel: 009712 511 1057
Mob: 0097150 446 7320

Source: http://www.zawya.com/story.cfm/sidZAWYA20100929065633/Etihad%20launches%20services%20to%20Bangalore%20-%20India

Winter Schedule

Domestic airlines to have 24,326 movements per week in winter schedule

http://netindian.in/news/2010/09/24/0008021/domestic-airlines-have-24326-movemets-week-winter-schedule

Dreamliner 787 lands in New Delhi

New Delhi: Boeing's answer to the Airbus A 380, the brand new Dreamliner 787 landed at the Indira Gandhi International Airport in New Delhi on Wednesday morning. The Dreamliner is touted as a super fuel-efficient airplane that can carry upto 290 passengers and fly 15,750 kilometers at a stretch.

Air India (AI) will receive its first Dreamliner in October and already plans are afoot to operate it on the Delhi-Mumbai-Melbourne route. AI, had ordered 27 of them, has now sought compensation from the US manufacturer for their delayed deliveries.

James Albaugh, Executive Vice President, Boeing, said, "While we apologize for being late, we hope when you fly this airplane and see its capabilities, you'll forgive us."

Apart from AI, Jet airways has also placed orders for the B 787-8 version of the Dreamliner, which would enable them to mount direct non-stop flights to North America or Australia.

AI placed the order in 2005, will get its first aircraft in in October this year, followed by two in November and one more in December.

© CNN IBN (http://ibnlive.in.com/news/dreamliner-787-to-land-in-delhi-today/167045-3.html)

AAI's - Airports

photos copyright AAI

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Lashwadeep Airport

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Aurangabad Airport New Terminal

Aurangabad Airport New Terminal !

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copyright - KTK

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Mangalore (IXE) International Airport

Nmma beautiful airport lashed with heavy rains
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Pics of Mysore (MYQ) Airport

Mysore Vimana Nildana
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cc aai



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cross posting SSC I

PNQ | Pune International Airport

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Copyrights Akash F Patil
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More new airports

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Business Class
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First Class
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Economy
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