Air India gets new interim chief

NEW DELHI, April 25: Unhappy with the performance of state-run carrier Air India, the government has decided to appoint an interim chairman and managing director for the carrier in place of incumbent Raghu Menon, officials confirmed on Saturday.

A list of names has also been forwarded to the Appointments Committee of the Cabinet for a regular chief to run the National Aviation Company of India Ltd, which was formed last year after Indian Airlines was merged into Air India, they added.

In the interim, Menon, an officer of the Indian Administrative Service (IAS), is being replaced by another officer from the service, E.K. Bharat Bhushan, who currently serves as joint secretary and financial adviser in the civil aviation ministry.

Mr Bharat Bhushan, born in Calicut on January 14, 1955, did his post graduation in English from the University of Kerala. He obtained a Master's Degree in Public Administration in 1992 from the Harvard University, where he was an Edward Mason International Fellow.

He joined the Indian Administrative Service in 1979 and has since then held various positions in the State of Kerala as well as the Government of India, including that of Secretary, Industries and Commerce, Kerala; Joint Secretary, Ministry of Trade & Commerce, Government of India; Principal Secretary, Tourism, Government of Kerala.

The decision was taken after a high-power meeting here Friday chaired by Cabinet Secretary K.M. Chandrasekhar and also attended by Principal Secretary in Prime Minister's Office T.K.A. Nair and Civil Aviation Secretary M. Madhavan Nambiar.

"Mr. Menon may be considered for the new regulatory authority for the sector. He is currently on leave," a senior official in the ministry said, referring to the proposed Airports Economic Regulatory Authority.

Air India sets up global aviation hub at Frankfurt

By Deepak Arora

NEW DELHI, March 1: In a major initiative towards strengthening its global network, Air India will make its first-ever international hub operational at Frankfurt this month-end, launching scissor operations to and from North America with a brand new fleet of Boeing aircraft.

At Frankfurt, a passenger flying from Delhi to Newark will be quickly transferred to the Mumbai-Newark flight and a person travelling to Chicago from Mumbai would have to change the aircraft on the Delhi-Chicago route.

It will take about 19 hours, including the changeover time at Frankfurt, for a passenger to reach the US cities from India.

"The Frankfurt hub will become operational on 29th March, the beginning of the summer schedule, for some of Air India's flights and will offer more convenient connections to a larger originating traffic," airline's Executive Director Jitender Bhargava said in New Delhi.

AI's decision to have a global hub in Europe follows a similar hub being operated by Jet Airways at Brussels.

The tentative schedule is that the Delhi-Chicago flight would depart at 0130 hours, arrive in Frankfurt at 0600 hours (local time) and reach Chicago in the morning at 1030 hours (local time).

The changeover timing at Frankfurt would be "realistic and minimal" as most of Air India's aircraft would be parked side by side and a passenger would just have to shift from one gate to another.

Even as it is faced with the impact of the financial slowdown in the sector in terms of declining passenger load factor, the state-owned national carrier would not reduce frequencies in summer, but "restructure its West-bound operations to improve its reach by covering larger geographical areas", Bhargava said.

The airline would also introduce some new flights including Ahmedabad-Frankfurt, from where a passenger could travel either to any European destination with the help of the code share arrangement between Air India and Lufthansa, or fly to the American cities.

Besides, the national flagship would also increase frequency of its Amritsar-London-Toronto service from three to six days a week, he said.

All these international flights are also being connected domestically through hub-and-spoke operations from and to places like Kochi, Bangalore or Chennai to Mumbai and onwards or Hyderabad, Chandigarh, Jaipur or any city in the North or East to Delhi and beyond.

Air India would launch these new services with a brand new fleet, as it would get delivery of 30 aircraft from Boeing and Airbus Industries in the coming financial year.

These are three Boeing 777-200 (Long Range), four 777-300 (Extended Range), four 737-800s, four A-320s, seven A-321s and eight A-319s.

With these planes, the total orders for eight 777-200s and 18 737-800s would be delivered to Air India.

The airline had placed a total order of 111 aircraft 68 Boeing and 43 Airbus.

"However, some of these aircraft would phase out the aged planes and replace some leased ones. The incremental capacity would be used to introduce new services or additional frequencies," Bhargava said.

As of today, Air India has a total fleet strength of 151 aircraft, which would effectively go up to around 160 by March 2010.

Air India is also "working towards" joining the Star Alliance, a 21-airline consortium, which offers 16,500 daily departures to 912 destinations in 159 countries.

It would give Air India an extended global reach and the passengers would benefit from the integrated network, common terminals, access to airport lounges worldwide, code sharing and significant expansion of the frequent flyer programmes.

50 killed in US plane crash in Buffalo

CLARENCE, NEW YORK, Feb 13: A commuter plane “basically dove'' into a house while coming in for a landing, sparking a fiery explosion that killed all 49people on board and one person on the ground, an emergency official said on Friday.

It was the first fatal crash of a commercial airliner in the US in 2 1/2 years.

Witnesses heard the twin turboprop aircraft sputtering before it went down in light snow and fog around 10:20 p.m. Thursday (0320 GMT Friday). Flames silhouetted the shattered home after Continental Connection Flight 3407 plummeted into it around about five miles (eight kilometers) from Buffalo Niagara International Airport.

``The whole sky was lit up orange,'' said Bob Dworak, who lives less than a mile from the crash site. ``All the sudden, there was a big bang, and the house shook.''

The 74-seat Q400 Bombardier aircraft, operated by Colgan Air, was flying from Newark Liberty International Airport in New Jersey and preparing to land at Buffalo Niagara International Airport.

FBI spokesman Richard Kolko said there is ``no indication of any security related event'' that brought the plane down.

Six hours after the crash, the task of retrieving remains had not yet begun.

``It's still a hot scene,'' Clarence emergency control director Dave Bissonette said. ``The fuselage lies right on the footprint of the house.''

Prior to the crash, the voice of a female pilot on Continental Flight 3407 could be heard communicating with air traffic controllers, according to a recording of the Buffalo air traffic control's radio messages shortly before the crash captured by the Web site www.liveatc.net.

Neither the controller nor the pilot showed any concerns that anything is out of the ordinary as the airplane is asked to fly at 2,300 feet (700 meters.)

A minute later, the controller tries to contact the plane but hears no response. After a pause, he tries to contact the plane again. Eventually he tells an unidentified listener to contact authorities on the ground in the Clarence area.

``You need to find if anything is on the ground,'' the controller says. ``All I can tell you is the aircraft is over the marker (landing beacon), and we're not talking to them now.''

After the crash, at least two pilots are heard saying they have been picking up ice on their wings. ``We've been getting ice since 20 miles south of the airport,'' one says.

The National Transportation Safety Board said it was sending a team of crash investigators to Buffalo early on Friday. A spokeswoman for the Department of Homeland Security in Washington, said there was no indication terrorism was involved.

``All indications are that this was an air-safety event,'' said spokeswoman Amy Kudwa.

While residents of the neighborhood where the plane went down were used to planes rumbling overhead, witnesses said this one sounded louder than usual, sputtered and made some odd noises.

After hearing the crash, Dworak drove over to take a look, and ``all we were seeing was 50 to 100 foot flames and a pile of rubble on the ground. It looked like the house just got destroyed the instant it got hit.''

Witness Tony Tatro said he saw the plane flying low and knew it was in trouble. ``It was not spiraling at all. The left wing was a little low,'' he told WGRZ-TV.

One person in the home was killed, and two others inside were able to escape with minor injuries. Twelve homes were evacuated near the crash site. The tail or part of a wing was visible through flames and thick smoke that engulfed the scene.

Erie County Executive Chris Collins said the plane was carrying 5,000 pounds (2,270 kilograms) of fuel and apparently exploded on impact.

Firefighters got as close to the plane as they could, he said. ``They were shouting out to see if there were any survivors on the plane. Truly a very heroic effort, but there were no survivors.''

It was the first fatal crash of a commercial airliner in the United States since Aug. 27, 2006, when 50 people were killed after a Comair jetliner took off from a Lexington, Kentucky, runway that was too short.

About 30 relatives and others who arrived at the airport in the overnight hours were escorted into a private area and then taken by bus to a senior citizens center in the neighboring town of Cheektowaga, where counselors and representatives from Continental waited to help.

“At this time, the full resources of Colgan Air's accident response team are being mobilized and will be devoted to cooperating with all authorities responding to the accident and to contacting family members and providing assistance to them,'' the statement said.

``Continental extends its deepest sympathy to the family members and loved ones of those involved in this accident,'' said Larry Kellner, chairman and CEO of Continental Airlines, in a later statement. ``Our thoughts and prayers are with all of the family members and loved ones of those involved in the flight 3407 tragedy.''

Manassas, Virginia-based Colgan Air said in a statement that airline personnel and local authorities were working to confirm the number of people on board and their identities.

Clarence is a growing eastern suburb of Buffalo, largely residential but with rural stretches. The crash site is a street of older, single-family homes which apparently back up to wooded area.

While the fire was contained, smoke still billowed over the scene about four hours later. Houses in the neighborhood are only about 20-25 feet (7-8 meters) apart.

``The fact that the damage is limited to the one residence is really amazing,'' said state police spokeswoman Rebecca Gibbons.

Delhi airport normal despite shooting report

By Deepak Arora

NEW DELHI, Dec 5: Operations appeared normal at New Delhi's international airport early on Friday, despite reports of a shootout there.

One or two persons from a Qualis car fired blindely and drove away from the airport. Nobody is reported injured.

On Thursday officials said high security alerts had been declared at three major airports, including Delhi and the IT hub Bangalore in the south. They said extra checks had been imposed on vehicles and luggage after warnings from intelligence agencies.

Armed police have been guarding entrances to Delhi’s international airport. Police cordons had also been set up outside the airport in the southern industrial city of Chennai.

The heightened security comes days after the militant attacks in Mumbai that killed 171 people.

The alert was issued after an email from Deccan Mujahideen, the same group that claimed responsibility for the Mumbai attacks.

The BBC website said earlier that reports quoting airport officials said Indian security forces had shot up to six gunmen there.

Travel agents to boycott Jet, JetLite

NEW DELHI, Dec 4: All the major travel trade associations met in Delhi, today, to address the crisis in the industry, precipitated by the Airlines to unilaterally abolish agency commission which accounts for 90 per cent of the revenue of all travel agents.

TAAI, TAFI, IAAI, ADTOI, IATO & ETAA convened an industry meeting which was attended by all segments – all the OTA’s, MNC’s and consolidators.

The participants were unanimous that the move to eliminate commissions entirely would spell the death-knell for close to 30 % of travel agents in the Country and trigger mass unemployment and aggravate frustration among the agents without a real saving for the Airlines.

The collapse of the agent network would also be the determent of the consumers- since travel agents provide a one stop point for evaluating best travel options backed by professional expertise.

Since all attempts by the associations to negotiate a fair remuneration, including the aborted Transaction Fee module have failed and since the Government seems to be utterly apathetic to the looming specter of massive unemployment, the Associations, in consultation with all segments of the industry have taken the following decisions:

- Like airlines, travel agents too, will choose what airlines they do business with. If an airline chooses to deliberately undermine and emasculate the agents community will withdraw its support to that airline.

Beginning December 4, the Travel Agents have withdrawn their suuport to Jet Airways and JetLite for all domestic and international routes, according to Rajji Rai, president TAAI.

Pawan Hans resumes daily services to Kedarnath

NEW DELHI, Sept 11: Pawan Hans Helicopters Ltd. (PHHL) has resumed daily helicopter services (post monsoon) to the Kedarnath Shrine from today. It is deploying a 5 seater Bell 407 helicopter from two places in Uttarakhand – Augustmuni & Phata. The services will be available tentatively upto 22 October, 2008.

Augustmuni is located 17 kms. beyond Rudraprayag en-route to Kedarnath. Rudraprayag is around 140 kms. from Rishikesh and is linked by good motor able roads. The service originates from the helipad located at a playground in Augustmuni. The flying time is around 45 minutes for a round trip (Augustmuni – Kedarnath – Augustmuni).

To further facilitate the pilgrims, PHHL has constructed a helipad at Phata, which is around 50 kms. from Augustmuni enroute to Kedarnath and 18 kms. short of Gaurikund. The distance from Gaurikund to Kedarnath is 14 kms. track, which is to be covered by the pilgrims on foot, Palki or by Mule. By providing the facility of helicopter services from Phata, the flying time has been reduced to 20 minutes for a round trip (Phata – Kedarnath – Phata).

Global airlines in deep crisis: IATA

MONTREAL, Sept 4: Painting a gloomy picture for the global aviation industry in 2008-09, the International Air Transport Association (IATA) forecast a collective industry loss of 5.2 billion US dollars in 2008, saying 26 carriers had gone bust so far.

The latest airline to file bankruptcy protection was the Italian national carrier Alitalia, which took the step last week, said IATA's Director-General Giovanni Bisignani.

"The situation remains bleak. The toxic combination of high oil prices and falling demand continues to poison the industry's profitability. We expect losses of 5.2 billion USD this year," he said.

Maintaining that 26 carriers had folded up worldwide due to the acute financial crunch, the IATA chief said "More airlines have gone bust in 2008 than in the aftermath of 9/11" and a massive 1,80,000 jobs lost in the civil aviation sector.

"It is a 500 billion dollar industry that suffers a debt of 190 billion. So the financial situation is much weaker than after 9/11," said the chief of IATA, which represents over 200 major airlines across the world.

Asked whether it was the right time for airlines to cut base fares and fuel surcharges now that the oil prices have come down, he said though there is some relief, "the year-to- date average is 113 USD per barrel. That is 40 dollars more than 73 dollars a barrel average in 2007."

This has pushed the industry fuel bill up by 50 billion dollars to 186 billion USD this year," he said, adding that fuel bill was expected to rise to 36 per cent of total operating cost of the industry compared with 13 per cent in 2002.

Plane Crash in Central Asia Kills 68

MOSCOW, Aug 25: A passenger jet crashed shortly after takeoff on Sunday from Bishkek, the capital of Kyrgyzstan, killing 68 people, including members of a high school sports team, Kyrgyz government officials told news agencies.

Officials said the jet, a Boeing 737, was just minutes into its flight to Tehran when its crew reported difficulties and began heading back, but the plane crashed before it reached Manas International Airport outside the city.

RIA Novosti, a Russian state news agency, quoted government officials as saying that 90 people had been on board, and Yelena Bayalinova, press secretary of Kyrgyzstan’s Ministry of Health, said that 22 had survived.

The government said that of the 17 high school athletes on board, 7 had lived.

The government news service told RIA Novosti that the flight had included 59 foreign travelers, including Iranians, Kazakhs, Canadians, a Chinese person and a Turk. A passenger list published by AKIpress, a Kyrgyz news agency, showed most of the foreigners to be Iranian.

Prime Minister Igor Chudinov of Kyrgyzstan told journalists in Bishkek that the plane had suddenly lost pressure. He also said the plane was built in 1979, which is considered relatively old for a commercial jet.

Itek Air, a Kyrgyz carrier, owns the plane. The airline was banned from operating in the European Union because of a failure to meet safety and aviation standards, according to a list published July 24 by the European Union. It was unclear whether the ban remained in effect, but it usually takes significantly longer than a month for an airline to show that safety standards have sufficiently improved.

There were contradictory reports on Sunday night about whether an Iranian airline was leasing the plane.

Mr. Chudinov said that the captain had survived, but was not yet able to speak.

“You understand what state he is in,” Mr. Chudinov said.

Kyrgyzstan is a poor central Asian country that was formerly a Soviet republic. The United States maintains an air base on the grounds of the Manas airport that supports operations in Afghanistan.

149 dead in Madrid plane crash

MADRID, Aug 20: A Spanish airliner bound for the Canary Islands crashed and broke into pieces Wednesday while trying to take off from Madrid's Barajas airport, killing 149 people on board, officials said.

There were only 26 survivors in the mid-afternoon crash, a Spanish emergency official said.

A police officer said the bodies were so hot that police could barely touch them and told El Pais newspaper the shattered wreckage bore no resemblance to a plane.

Dozens of ambulances rushed to the site as columns of smoke billowed from the wreckage. The prime minister broke off his vacation in southern Spain and rushed back to Madrid, heading straight for the airport.

``I have never seen anything like this in my life,'' ambulance driver Luis Ferreras was quoted as saying by El Pais.

A Spanish emergency rescue official said only 26 people survived the crash and the rest of those aboard were given up for dead. The official with the SAMUR municipal rescue service gave the toll after touring the site of the crash.

Spanair Flight JK5022 -- bound for Las Palmas during the height of Europe's summer vacation season -- sped off the end of the runway, crashed and broke into pieces, reports said.

Spanair spokesman Sergio Allard told a news conference the plane was carrying 175 people and the cause of the crash was not immediately known.

El Pais said the plane's takeoff had been an hour late because of technical problems. It eventually managed to get slightly off the ground but crashed near the end of the runway, El Pais said, quoting an employee of the national airport authority AENA.

Helicopters and fire trucks dumped water on the plane, which ended up in a wooded area at the end of the runway at Terminal 4.

A makeshift morgue was set up at the city's main convention center, officials said.

The plane was an Boeing MD-82 on a codeshare flight with Lufthansa's LH255, Spanair said. Departures from Madrid's airport were suspended for several hours but later resumed.

Boeing spokesman Jim Proulx said the company would send at least one person to assist in the investigation of the crash as soon as it receives an invitation from Spanish authorities.

``We stand ready to provide technical assistance,'' he said, reading from a prepared statement.

CAE wins contracts for five full-flight simulators valued at more than C$ 56 million

By Deepak Arora

NEW DELHI, May 30: CAE has been awarded contracts to design and manufacture five full-flight simulators (FFSs) valued at more than C$56 million at list prices.

The contracts are with Aeroflot Russian Airlines, Ansett Aviation Training, Skymark Airlines of Japan, and CAE’s new training centre in Bangalore, India, which is a joint venture owned 50 percent by CAE. The company has now announced a total of 10 FFS sales year to date in fiscal year 2009.

"We have had a strong start to our fiscal year and we expect continued success by offering the industry’s most comprehensive portfolio of simulation products ideally suited for pilot training programs," said Marc Parent, CAE’s Group President, Simulation Products and Military Training & Services.

"We’re particularly pleased to welcome first-time customer Skymark to our long list of simulation equipment customers."

Aeroflot Russian Airlines has ordered a CAE 5000 Series Airbus A320 FFS, which will be delivered later this year to its training centre in Moscow.

"Aeroflot has been operating a CAE-built A320 simulator for the past four years and we have been very satisfied with the high quality of the equipment and CAE\pard plain ’s excellent customer support," said Prikhodchenko, Director of Aeroflot’s Training Centre.

"When we decided to add another A320 device to our facility, we evaluated CAE’s new 5000 Series full-flight simulator and once again came to the decision that CAE should be our supplier."

Skymark Airlines of Japan has ordered a CAE 7000 Series Boeing 737-800 FFS, which will be delivered in 2009. It is the first simulator CAE has sold to Skymark, a low-fare carrier based in Tokyo, Japan.

CAE will provide a CAE 7000 Series Airbus A320 FFS to Ansett Aviation Training, an independent training facility located in Melbourne, Australia. This is the second A320 simulator CAE has sold to Ansett and it will be delivered later this year.

"Ansett Aviation Training continues to expand with our new training facility close to completion where we will provide a first-class training experience across a range of aircraft types," said David Gilmour, Director of Ansett Aviation Training.

"We are pleased to work again with CAE in providing an enhanced training opportunity for A320 operators and their crews."

CAE signed a contract with the joint venture company that will own and operate the new CAE Bangalore training centre in India. CAE owns 50 percent of the joint venture company.

CAE will provide two CAE 7000 Series full-flight simulators: one A320 FFS and one Boeing 737NG FFS. In addition, CAE will provide a CAE Simfinity™ Airbus Pilot Transition (APT) trainer. The simulators are scheduled to be delivered this summer.

CAE is a world leader in providing simulation and modelling technologies and integrated training solutions for the civil aviation industry and defence forces around the globe.

With annual revenues exceeding C$1 billion, CAE employs more than 6,000 people at more than 75 sites and training locations in 20 countries. We have the largest installed base of civil and military full-flight simulators and training devices. Through our global network of 27 civil aviation and military training centres, we train more than 75,000 crewmembers yearly.

We also offer modelling and simulation software to various market segments and through CAE’s professional services division, we assist customers with a wide range of simulation-based needs.

Airliner with 46 people crashes in Venezuela

A Venezuelan airliner that went missing with 46 people on board has apparently crashed in Venezuela, a regional civil defence official told a news agency, citing witnesses in the area.

Nelson Marquez, head of the Civil Defence for Merida, 500 kilometres southwest of Caracas, said local people in the Andean region of Coyado del Condor reported seeing the aircraft go down on Thursday.

A television channel earlier said that air rescue services reported that a Santa Barbara Airlines flight had gone missing after departing from Merida at 0415 IST, headed for Caracas' Simon Bolivar airport.

"A telephone call was received from some of the local people. Right now rescue teams are going to the area to confirm the information," Marquez said.

He added that the plane was reported to have crashed at a point some 4,750 metres above sea level.

He said the plane, a French-Italian-made ATR42 twin-engine turbo-prop, contained 43 passengers and three crew members.

The television report earlier had put the total figure at 40.

Uttarakhand to Expand Air Services

By Deepak Arora

NEW DELHI, Feb 3: Though Uttarakhand received 2.20 crore domestic and international tourists, it wants to expand aviation services in the State to attract the high-end tourists.

“The expansion works at the Jollygrant airport in the State Capital, Dehradun, and Pantnagar airport is almost complete. We hope the air services to these two airports will commence from March or April this year,” according to Prakash Pant, Uttarakhand Tourism Minister.

The State also wants to give Incredible Tourism experience to tourists, especially high-end tourists by launching Heli tourism in a big way.

“We have 64 helipads in the State. As many as 25 belong to the State government, 20 are with the Indo Tibetian Border Police Force (ITBP) and the Army and 19 are under construction,” said Pant.

The Minister said the 70 to 75 per cent of the land mass of the State constitutes the hilly region. People living in these far-flung areas have no access to any means of transport.

In order to remove this anomaly, he said the State Government has started construction of helipads in all the district headquarters in the first phase. In addition to this, the State has also developed a heliport in Dehradun with all infrastructures to begin commercial helicopter services.

Pant said the State Government has also developed three air strips namely Naini Saini in Pithorgarh, Gochar in Chamoli and Chinyalisaur in Uttarkashi in the hilly regions of the State.

“These are ready for operations and are presently uncontrolled airstrips. Out of these, Pithoragarh airstrip is proposed for expansion to accommodate ATR 72 aircraft. This airport is strategically very important for expansion as it’s close to the international boundary and to the virgin beauty of the Himalayas.”

These airstrips can also be used as heliports. Naini-Saini to Gunji or Pantnagar-Naini-Saini-Gunji is another important route where helicopter services can be started.

“Jagson has shown its eagerness to launch this route for the Kailash Mansarover Yatra,” he added.

Presently, public-sector Pawan Hans and Prabhatam Aviation are undertaking heli operations to Kedarnath, Ghangria and Badrinath shrines with the possible cooperation of the State government.

Pant said “we want to extend the helicopter facility to the Char Dhams of Uttarakhand, i.e. Gangotri, Yamnotri, Kedarnath and Badrinath. We would also like to extend it to Hemkunth Sahib, the renowned religious pilgrimage site of the Sikhs.”

He said the State Government has also offered the operators to provide air connectivity within the State by extending soft loans and subsidy. “The process for finalizing the airlines/ operators to award incentives is in progress.”

Pant said “we are also planning to create air cargo facilities at Pantnagar to transport perishable products from the Kumaon region.”
In the first phase, he said the runway at the Pantnagar airport has been expanded from 3,700 ft to 4,500 ft. With this expansion, the airport can now receive ATR 72 type of aircraft. “In the second phase, we plan to expand the runway to 7,000 ft along with the associated infrastructure.

The Minister said several airlines in the race to commence operations to the Jollygrant airport, where the runway has been extended to 7,000 ft, from Delhi. The interested airlines include Indian Airlines, Kingfisher, Deccan and Jackson Airlines.

To give a boost to air services to the State, Pant said the Government would provide free-of-cost water, electricity, security services as well as fire-fighting systems at the Jollygrant and Pantnagar airports and heliports.

In order to utilise these airports to its optimum potential, the Minister said a “Control Zone” need to be defined. Without which, he said even after expansion only flights under VFR conditions can be undertaken.

He also called for the upgradation of navigation and communication infrastructure at the airports for commercial operations of the airlines.

Due to the exponential growth of the aviation sector in the country, he admitted that there was an acute shortage of professionals that is affecting its growth. “In order to reduce this gap, the State Government has prepared a plan to establish an aviation academy where in all disciplines of aviation subjects will be covered under one roof.”

He said the State Government was finalising a land for a dedicated aviation academy close to Haridwar.

Admitting that security of airports and heliports are of paramount importance to ensure safe air travel, Pant said the State has provided adequate police personnel at the airports.

“In order to effectively coordinate with the security requirements, the State department of civil aviation has planned to establish a dedicated security wing that will ensure all the security measures are in place as per the guidelines of the Bureau of Civil Aviation Security,” he added.

A380, first commercial Jet powered on alternative fuel

TOULOUSE, Feb 2: The superjumbo aircraft Airbus A380, the world's largest passenger jet, became the first commercial plane to be powered by alternative fuel on a test flight on Friday.

The superjumbo took off from Filton, England on a three-hour test flight to Airbus' headquarters in Toulouse, France, powered on a blend of regular fuel and liquid fuel processed from gas.

The airline industry is coming under pressure to find ways to reduce its carbon emissions and tackle fuel costs.

Airbus' test comes as rival plane maker Boeing Co and Virgin Atlantic prepare to test a 747 with bio fuel during a demonstration flight from London to Amsterdam, Netherlands, next month.

Airbus head of alternative fuels research, Sebastien Remy, said he hopes that around 25 percent of fuel will come from alternative sources by 2025.

The company is testing gas to liquid, or GTL, for benefits in terms of air quality and fuel burn compared with existing jet fuels. GTL is virtually sulphur free.

It also sets the groundwork for the development of other alternative fuels, such as liquid fuel from biomass – organic material made from plants such as algae, he said.

The tests are part of an agreement with Qatar Airways, Rolls Royce, whose Trent 900 engines power the A380, and Shell International Petroleum, which provides the GTL jet fuel.

Stephen Vella, a management adviser at Qatar Airways, said his airline hopes to start making modest use of GTL next year.

Jet’s incredible ‘Fly free international’ scheme

By Deepak Arora

NEW DELHI, Feb 1: India’s private airline, Jet Airways has announced the introduction of its incredible ‘Fly Free International’ scheme, offering the airline’s JetPrivilege Members traveling on select domestic routes free international travel.

Jet Airways’ JetPrivilege Members need to take 20 Domestic one-way flights on the sectors outlined below between February 1 and April 30 this year to win free return tickets to any of the airline’s nine international destinations on offer: Singapore, Kuala Lumpur, Dhaka, Doha, Kuwait, Bahrain, Muscat, Bangkok or Colombo.

Jet Airways’ JetPrivilege Members may avail of free return tickets to any of these international destinations from Jet Airways’ gateways in Mumbai, Delhi, Chennai, Kolkata, Kochi and Kozhikode; with the exception of Bangkok where the free ticket will be issued to/from Kolkata only.

Jet links Kolkata with Ahmedabad

NEW DELHI, Dec 10: The private carrier, Jet Airways, has announced the introduction of a new Kolkata-Ahmedabad service with the operation of three flights a week and an additional frequency on the Kolkata – Guwahati sector, effective December 17.

These flights will operate with a Boeing 737-800 aircraft with 24 seats in Premiere Class and 120 seats in Economy Class.

Jet Airways’ flights 9W 631 (Kolkata –Ahmedabad) will depart on Mondays, Wednesdays and Thursdays from Kolkata at 1820 hrs and arrive at Ahmedabad at 2050 hrs. On the return leg, flight 9W 632 (Ahmedabad-Kolkata) will depart Ahmedabad at 2125 hrs and arrive at Kolkata at 2355 hrs.

Jet Airways has also announced the enhancement of its frequency on Kolkata - Guwahati sector by introducing additional frequencies three times a week.

Jet Airways flight 9W 627 (Kolkata-Guwahati) will depart on Tuesdays, Fridays and Saturdays from Kolkata at 1820 hrs and arrive at Guwahati at 1930 hrs. On the return leg, flight 9W 628 (Guwahati-Kolkata) will depart Guwahati at 2005 hrs and arrive at Kolkata at 2115 hrs.

Commenting on the introduction of these new services, Jet Airways’ Chief Executive Officer Wolfgang Prock-Schauer said, “As Jet Airways’ hub in Eastern India, Kolkata is very important. To cater to mainly business and religious traffic between Kolkata and Ahmedabad, Jet Airways has introduced a new flight on this sector. On the Kolkata-Guwahati sector, Jet Airways already handles primarily business, as also medical and student traffic with its two morning flights. The airline has thus introduced a new evening flight on the Kolkata-Guwahati sector with a Boeing 737-800 aircraft, especially scheduled to allow Jet Airways’ passengers travelling on this sector a convenient same-day return option.”

Jet connects Delhi, Kolkata with Dhaka

NEW DELHI, Dec 7: Effective December 16, Jet Airways will have daily direct flight from Kolkata to Dhaka and four flights a week from Delhi to Dhaka.

With the induction of these new flights, Jet Airways’ Dhaka passengers will get a convenient connection when flying to and from London via Delhi.

Announcing the launch of these new flights, Jet Airways’ Chief Executive Officer Wolfgang Prock-Schauer said, “With the launch of its Bangladesh operations, Jet Airways is proud to connect Dhaka to the rest of India and onwards, through its vast domestic and international network.”

He said "as ties between India and Bangladesh have strengthened over the years, there has been a surge in business and leisure travel, especially those visiting friends and family, between the two countries. It is our belief that with the superior quality of its services, Jet Airways will offer its passengers exceptional value on these routes.”

Turkey plane crash kills all 57 on board

YESILYURT, Turkey, Dec 1: An Atlasjet plane crashed on a rocky mountain shortly before it was due to land in southwest Turkey on Friday, killing all 57 people on board, including a 6-week-old baby going to see her grandparents for the first time.

The McDonnell Douglas MD-83, carrying 50 passengers and seven crew members, took off from Istanbul around 1 a.m. for the one-hour flight to Isparta province, but it went off the radar just before landing at the airport.

A rescue helicopter reached the plane's wreckage near the village of Yesilyurt at about 7 a.m., and reported no survivors, said Tuncay Doganer, the airline's chief executive.

The plane crashed on a mountain around 5,000 feet high, and rescuers initially had difficulty reaching the wreckage because of the rugged terrain, Atlasjet said. The crash site was seven miles from the airport.

"The pilot saw the airport and informed the tower that it was inbound. The plane then disappeared," Doganer said.

He said the cause of the crash was unknown, but ruled out technical failure and said the weather and visibility were good.

There were no indications that terrorism or sabotage was the cause, said Ali Ariduru, head of Turkey's civil aviation authority. The area where the plane crashed is not a traditional stronghold of a Kurdish rebel group fighting for autonomy from Turkey.

Pieces of wreckage and personal belongings, including suitcases, clothing and magazines, were strewn across the hillside. Rescue workers in bright yellow jackets entered the plane's fuselage, which lay amid boulders and pine trees.

"The seats were detached and all over the place. Some of the seat belts were still around the bodies," said medic Mustafa Dagci, one of the first people to reach the site. "Some bodies were intact, others were in pieces."

Investigators found the flight data and cockpit voice recorders, the civil aviation authority said.

Weeping relatives approached the crash site, but were turned away by soldiers and other officials who sought to comfort them. Many bodies were not identifiable, firefighter Osman Emir said.

Ali Ceylan said he lost his 6-week-old granddaughter, who was born in Istanbul and returning home to Isparta. His 22-year-old daughter-in-law and her mother also died. His son, a police officer, was in shock and being treated with tranquilizers

"We were going to see our grandchild for the first time," Ceylan said. "It's very hard for us. It's enough to make us go mad."

The dead also included a group of academics who planned to take part in a physics conference at an Isparta university. Among them was Engin Arik, a prominent female nuclear physics professor from Istanbul's Bosporus University.

Cengiz Dincer said two friends were on the plane after a day trip to Istanbul.

"I keep thinking they'll appear from the site, it is difficult to accept that they are gone," he said. "Of course, it is God's will."

Gulperi Ayan said a friend was on the plane because he was going to attend his grandmother's funeral in Isparta. "Now we have two funerals to hold," she said.

Isparta Gov. Semsettin Uzunnor said the crash site was not on the plane's regular flight route. "It is impossible to understand how the plane" ended up there, said the governor, who viewed the scene from a helicopter.

Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan expressed condolences. "As a nation, our pain is great because of this regrettable accident," he said.

Dogan news agency released a transcript of the conversation between the Atlasjet pilot and the Isparta control tower, but the exchange did not indicate any problem.

At 1:36 a.m., the pilot was quoted as saying, "Isparta tower, we are inbound." The tower responded, "Understood, Atlasjet. Continue to approach."

The civil aviation authority said communication with the plane was interrupted on its final approach to Suleyman Demirel airport in Isparta at 1:45 a.m.

Atlasjet, a private airline established in 2001, operates regular flights inside Turkey and chartered flights to Europe and other foreign destinations.

In 2005, one of its planes ran off the runway in winter conditions, but the company had not been involved in any fatal accidents. In August, one of its planes was hijacked by two men who held several passengers hostage for four hours before surrendering.

The MD-83 is a variation of the MD-80, which was a modernization of the DC-9.

On Jan. 31, 2000, an MD-83 belonging to Alaska Airlines plunged into the Pacific Ocean on route from Mexico to San Fransisco and Seattle, killing 88 people.

The National Transportation Safety Board found the airline at fault for insufficient lubrication of the jackscrew assembly, which is used to move the horizontal stabilizer, a wing-like structure on the tail that is used to direct the nose up or down.

A spokesman for Boeing, the parent company of McDonnell Douglas, said he could not comment on the accident history of the MD-83 because it could be construed as a comment on the investigation. He said Boeing would provide technical assistance in the probe if Turkish authorities request it.

Pay Rs 15,000 to each passenger: Court to GoAir

New Delhi, Nov 27: The aviation sector has more than doubled in the last four years. With a dozen airlines fighting for flyers, there's more choice and cheaper tickets. However, infrastructure and skilled manpower have not kept up therefore leading to delays and overall consumer dissatisfaction.

"My flight got delayed by four hours and I had to deal with all the hassle. I will be there by around 9,” said a passenger.

In what could set a precedent, the Delhi State Consumer Court has asked GoAir to pay Rs 15,000 to each passenger booked on its flight which was cancelled.

The commission said there wasn't sufficient evidence of a snag and passengers were not informed of the cancellation.

Acting on a consumer complaint the court held – “Oftly-taken excuse of technical snag for inordinately long delay or cancellation of flight is not only a lame excuse but projects poor management".

The airline has been ordered to pay up as compensation – “The mental agony, harassment, emotional suffering and physical discomfort caused by the cancellation”.

The Commission has ordered GoAir to send the cheques to all the passengers within a month, and give details of the payments.

Jet Airways to partner American Airlines

NEW DELHI, Nov 21: In a bid to tap growing passenger traffic between India and the US, Jet Airways has formed a code-share partnership with American Airlines to offer seamless travel between the two countries.

Code sharing refers to a practice where a flight operated by an airline is jointly marketed as a flight for one or more other airlines.

Jet said that the partnership, subject to regulatory approvals, would be effective from January 16, 2008.

Jet Airlines will place it 9W designator code on certain American Airlines' domestic flights out of New York's John F. Kennedy Airport. In turn, American Airlines will place its AA designator code on Jet Airways flights to some cities in India.

At present, Jet Airways operates daily flights between India and New York via its Brussels hub, while American Airlines flies non-stop services between its Chicago hub and New Delhi.

In addition, American and Jet Airways will code share and cooperate on traffic between the United States and India that connects at Brussels airport as well as hope to expand their code share cooperation on other routes in the months ahead.

Jet Airways’ Chief Executive Officer Wolfgang Prock-Schauer said “the partnership between American Airlines and Jet Airways will combine excellent service with world-class operations thus supporting our strategy of international growth. The cooperation between Jet Airways and American Airlines will result in more options for our customers traveling between the U.S. and India.”

"This mutually rewarding partnership will extend our reach into the US and deliver several benefits to our customers, such as a wider choice of destinations with excellent connections, frequent flyer benefits on 'codeshare' flights, seamless transfers and interline e-ticketing," said Prock-Schauer.

Both airlines operate out of American’s new $1.3 billion state-of-the-art terminal at JFK.

India’s tourism, business and educational ties with America are fast expanding, and through this partnership both partners, Jet Airways and American Airlines, will be able to leverage their strengths and position to tap the growing passenger traffic between the two countries.

Air India, Gati launch dedicated freighter service

By Deepak Arora

NEW DELHI: November 13 has become yet another red letter day in the aviation history of India when the country’s national flag carrier, Air India, became the first schedule airline to launch a dedicated cargo service.
Air India launched the dedicated freighter service in collaboration with Gati, a leader and pioneer in express distribution and supply chain solutions.

The first Public-Private Partnership is expected to revolutionise the Indian air cargo segment and redefine Indian business operations through the hub and spoke model. It will also allow Air India to take cargo in India in a big way and be a part of this fast growing market.

The day was also memorable for Civil Aviation Minister Praful Patel as his dream of India’s own cargo service came true.

Flagging off the freighter service, Praful Patel said “the partnership between Air India and Gati will set newer heights in the Indian cargo segment. It would be in the benefit of the Indian cargo sector that Air India should also explore the option of inducting newer fleet for dedicated cargo freighter than just converting its older planes for cargo services."

Patel said India would see 15 per cent growth in the freighter service in the next few years and not 6 per cent as is being predicted.

The Minister said when the foreign freight carriers like Fedex, DHL and UPS can have 700 to 800 freight aircraft each, why can’t India have 500 such aircraft. He said soon the Tier II and Tier III cities would also come up on the cargo map of Indian carriers.

Announcing the inauguration of the first freighter of this tie-up, Air India Chairman and Managing Director V. Thulasidas said "Air India once again has made a pioneering effort in the history of Indian aviation by being the first scheduled passenger airline to enter the freighter market, which is growing at a rapid pace of 7100 crores annually.”

Thulasidas said “Air India intends to be a loyal and dependable airline partner to GATI and hopes that together this partnership will propel the cargo industry growth by 6.1 per cent per year.”

Air India CMD said the first of the five freighters will operate on the Delhi-Mumbai-Bangalore-Delhi sector. He said four more aircraft will join the fleet in the next few months.

He said Air India’s has dedicated its one freighter exclusively for the Department of Posts and Telegraph to service the North-East region of the country.

Thulasidas informed that airline’s second aircraft has been launched in a joint venture with Gati for the domestic market. He said both Air India and Gati would connect the six major metros by March 2008 via Nagpur hub.

He informed Air India’s two Airbus A310s were currently serving Indian cities to Dama (Saudi Arabia), Frankfurt and Paris. He said Air India plans to connect more Indian and foreign cargo destinations.

Thulasidas also said that Air India plans to acquire more aircraft on lease and buy new cargo aircraft in the next few years.

Gati Managing Director and CEO Mahendra Agarwal said “the networks of the two players will allow for enhanced connectivity and the freighters will criss-cross the length and breadth of the country and later operate with Nagpur as a hub.”

He said this tie-up will revolutionize the express cargo segment in India and will help in providing end to end connectivity.

Agarwal said the business model has been created to cater to the rapidly developing global cargo hub in Nagpur. “It will serve as the one stop integration point where all freighters will arrive for sorting, exchanging and disseminating of cargo from all parts of the country.”

He said the freighters will fly in from all major metros, exchange cargo and fly out with cargo meant for the respective destinations. All feeder routes of Air India will be connected from the respective destinations.

Gati Chairman K L Chugh; Air India Joint Managing Director V Trivedi; and Air India Director (Cargo and Ground Handling) Anita Khurana were also present at the launch function.

Mahendra Agarwal said "We are proud to partner with Air India, once again on this revolutionary venture. The launch of the dedicated freighter service is aimed at enhancing our connectivity across the entire country.”

He said the alliance is expected to take Gati's business from the present Rs 4,610 million (US$ 115 million) to over Rs 10,000 million (US$ 250 million) within two years.

Agarwal said Gati has plans to invest US$100 million in the next three years (June 2009) in setting up Express Distribution Centres (EDC) and in re-engineering of technology and network.

“We also plan to add another one million sq. ft of EDC Space in the next 2 years resulting in a total of two million sq ft space in all major locations in India," he added.

In light of the rapidly growing economy of India, Gati and Air India propose to make the best of this public-private partnership and take the alliance to new heights.

Limited Open Sky for winter

NEW DELHI, Nov 15: To meet the winter rush and ease air traffic congestion, the Government has decided to have a "limited open sky" policy beginning December 1.

The decision would be applicable to all airliners till January 31 next year, according to an official spokesperson said.

Under the policy, airliners would be allowed to operate bigger aircraft in the slots allocated to them. In other words, there would be no increase of slots for any airliners.

"All airlines will be allowed to upgrade their aircraft to any capacity level in their existing frequencies at all airports in India," said the spokesperson.

Paper-free Air Freight Era Begins

By Deepak Arora

NEW DELHI, Nov 12: The International Air Transport Association (IATA) has introduced paper-free air freight on some of the key trade routes in conjunction with key cargo airlines, freight forwarders and ground handling agents.

Cargo now will be processed electronically on key trade routes connecting Canada, Hong Kong, the Netherlands, Singapore, Sweden and the UK.

For the six e-freight pilot projects, IATA is working with seven key cargo airlines—Air Canada, British Airways, Cathay Pacific, KLM, Martinair, SAS and Singapore Airlines; freight forwarders (DHL Global Forwarding, Panalpina, Kuehne+Nagel, Schenker, TMI Group-Roadair, Jetspeed) and ground handling agents.

Trade lanes on which selected e-freight shipments will be flown include: From Canada to Hong-Kong, the Netherlands, the UK; From Hong-Kong to Canada, the Netherlands, Singapore, Sweden and the UK; From the Netherlands to Canada, Hong-Kong and Singapore; From Singapore to Hong-Kong, the Netherlands, and the UK; From Sweden to Hong-Kong; and From the U.K. to Canada, Hong-Kong, and Singapore.

“The paper-free era for air freight begins today,” said Giovanni Bisignani, Director General & CEO of IATA. “This first wave of pilots will pave the way for a global rollout of e-freight that will eliminate the paper that costs this industry $1.2 billion every year. Combined, these documents could fill 39 B747 cargo freighters each year making e-freight—a win for the business and for the environment.”

Bisignani said “E-freight is a revolution for an industry that is absolutely critical to modern life. For airlines it is a US$55 billion business that generates 12 per cent of their revenues. More broadly air cargo transports 35 per cent of the total value of goods traded across borders. The potential impact of greater efficiency in air cargo has very broad implications across the global economy.”

E-freight pilots will systematically test for the first time common standards, processes, procedures and systems designed to replace paper documents that typically accompany air freight with electronic information.

During the initial phase, selected shipments will travel without a number of key documents that make up the majority of the paperwork, including the house and master air waybills. Results from the pilots will be used to expand e-freight to other territories.

IATA e-freight requires that business, technical and legal frameworks are in place to allow airlines, freight forwarders, customs administrations and governments to seamlessly exchange electronic information and e-documents. The six pilot locations were selected based on their ability to meet these criteria along with offering network connectivity and sufficient cargo volumes.

At each location cargo experts from participating airlines, freight forwarders, ground handling agents, local customs administrations and airport authorities worked together closely over the past 10 months to prepare the pilots.

“High oil prices and cumbersome processing requirements are handicapping air transport’s competitiveness with sea shipping,” said Bisignani.

“Sea shipping is expected to grow at 6 per cent annually over the next five years, compared to 4.8 per cent for air cargo. E-freight makes a four-decade leap, bringing strengthened competitiveness by cutting costs and improving transparency and consistency throughout the supply chain. This good news for the customer will help shore-up air transport’s competitiveness with sea shipping and other modes of transport.”

E-freight is one of five Simplifying the Business projects being led by IATA to improve service and cut costs. The industry has set a deadline of the end of 2010 for the implementation of e-freight wherever feasible.

IATA has over 240 members that comprise 94 per cent of international traffic.

Other Simplifying the Business projects include 100 per cent electronic ticketing by end 2007, the use of bar coded boarding passes, common use self service check-in and RFID for baggage management.

One of the key pillars of the IATA e-freight programme is Cargo 2000 – the air cargo industry’s quality champion.

High-level Indian presence at Dubai Air Show

By Deepak Arora

DUBAI, Nov 11: Union Aviation Minister Praful Patel and Minister of State for Defence M M Pallam Raju are attending the Dubai Air Show that opened in Dubai from Sunday.

With India planning to organise a regular air show, the high-level delegation will meet the various facilitiers and see the arrangements at the Dubai event.

India has a high-level presence at the five-day air show, where both a high-level civil aviation and defence delegation are taking part, Indian consul-general Venu Rajamony said.

Thirteen Indian companies, including HAL will put up stalls at the show.

The defence delegation will consists of vice chief of air staff.

"The scale of growth over the last two years - which amounts to 40 percent in booked floor space - reflects the massive growth the Middle East's aviation industry is experiencing across all segments," Sheikh Ahmed Bin Saeed Al Maktoum, president of the Dubai Civil Aviation Authority and chairman of Dubai Airports, said in a statement.

"This year, we have 130 newcomers from 24 countries - which accounts for over 10 percent of the overall exhibitor profile, with 11 national pavilions, 91 chalets and 15 outdoor pavilions - up from five in 2005 - it truly is a full-house scenario," said Alison Weller, aerospace director of Fairs & Exhibitions (F&E), the event organiser.

F&E chairman Virginia Kerr said "Orders worth USD 21.3 billion were placed last year. We expect this year's figures to exceed that."

With 850 exhibitors from 50 countries and over 140 aircraft on display, the airshow, which is on till November 15 , is the world's third largest global aerospace event after Le Bourget in Paris and Farnborough in the UK.

The aerospace exhibition at Airport Expo Dubai features up to 900 exhibitors from 48 countries - an increase in participants of 40 per cent on 2005's Dubai Airshow, making it the largest to date.

More than 40,000 trade visitors and up to 150 civil and military delegations, from 50 countries are expected to attend the show. The show is organized by Fairs & Exhibitions (F&E) in conjunction with the Dubai Department of Civil Aviation and the UAE Ministry of Defense.

A key element of this year's show is the high propensity of new-to-market exhibitors - 130 to date from 24 countries - accounting for more than one tenth of the show's entire exhibitor profile.

Dubai Aerospace Enterprise, the global aerospace manufacturing and services corporation headquartered in Dubai, is to also make its debut as the event's first-ever host-sponsor. A host of new countries will also be represented for the first time at this year's show.

The Dubai Airshow 2007 static display will host over 130 aircraft including the Airbus A380, Boeing's BBJ family, the SR22 - the world's fastest-selling, single-engine four-seater aircraft, a Lockheed Martin F-16 and a host of Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) and business jets.

The Russian MIG 29 multi-role fighter aircraft will take to the skies during the show's daily flying display which will also feature performances by three of the world's top aerobatics display team - Britain's Red Arrows, the Patrouille de France, and Spain's Patrulla Aguila which is making its Arabian Gulf debut.

This year's Dubai Airshow will be the last at Airport Expo Dubai, with future growth being accommodated by a move in 2009 to a purpose-built site at Dubai Exhibition World, which is being built at Dubai World Central, the huge urban aviation complex currently underway at Jebel Ali, 30 kilometers outside Dubai city. The 2005 show witnessed $21.3 business deals, the highest since the event's start in 1989.

Jet connects Delhi-NY; Announces Shanghai-San Francisco flight

By Deepak Arora

NEW DELHI, Oct 27: India's largest private sector airline, Jet Airways, will operate flights from Mumbai to San Francisco via Shanghai from February next year, according to Naresh Goyal, airline’s Chairman.

"We are designated by the Indian government to fly from Mumbai to Shanghai and then to San Francisco. As India has very liberal bilateral civil aviation agreement with China we have been given the fifth freedom rights to fly onwards to San Francisco in the US. The flight would be operated from February next year," said Goyal.

This would make Jet the only carrier other than the Chinese and the US carriers to operate on the route, he added.

Goyal also announced that the airline will commence direct flights to New York's John F. Kennedy Airport from Delhi beginning October 28 via its European hub in Brussels.

Currently, Jet operates direct flights from Mumbai to Newark in New Jersey in the US. In September, the airline started its service to Toronto via Brussels.

The Chairman said that the airline was keen to operate more flights to the US and planned to connect Washington D.C and Chicago among other cities.

He said “with the help of the Brussels hub, passengers can now enjoy seamless connectivity from Brussels to key cities in Europe."

Beginning next year, the airline also plans to start flights to the Gulf region, which would make it the first private Indian carrier to fly to the Gulf. It has applied for rights to fly to Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Bahrain, Dubai and Abu Dhabi.

Goyal said the company’s $400 million rights issue would come up in January or February next year. The airline's board approved the raising of the capital in June, with the funds to be used for expansion and an overhaul of Air Sahara, which it bought in April and has since renamed JetLite.

"There is no problem. We are going in January or February. There is no change. We are on track."

At the launch ceremony for the flight to JFK, US Ambassador David Mulford stressed on the need for people to people contacts. He said the US embassy has brought down the waiting period for visas from 14 months to 12 days and some cities to three to four days.

Head of the Delegation of the European Union Ambassador D Smajda said India and the European Union could sign an agreement on November 30 that would pave the way for an eventual open skies agreement between the two countries.

Ms Smajda said the finalisation of an agreement during the India-EU annual Summit meeting would provide the legal framework to work towards an open skies agreement between India and the EU.

She said discussions were still going on the finalisation of the agreement that would be signed on November 30.

The finalisation of the agreement would not lead to replacement of the bilateral air services agreement that India has with the EU members, but would provide an entry door for more cooperation in various fields, said Smajda.

At Brussels, Jet has opened a luxury lounge for its first class and premiere class passengers. Goyal said “it is arguably one of the finest in the world. No effort has been spared to give our passengers facilities and comfort in a luxurious setting. It is a stunning example of contemporary design.”

The lounge would have room for 18 first class and 59 premiere passengers. A reception hall would divide the open lounge into two large sections one for the first class passengers and a larger section for premier travellers.

The lounge would have internet connectivity, television, reading rooms and business area.

With the induction of this new daily Delhi- Brussels-New York (JFK) service, Jet Airways will further complement and enhance the airlines’ services offering its passengers a second flight to New York city.

At Brussels, flights will be synchronized in order to provide passengers a seamless transfer between Delhi, Mumbai and Chennai to cities in North America - New York (JFK), Toronto and New York (Newark).

For the Delhi - New York (JFK) flight, Jet Airways will use a brand new Boeing 777-300 ER aircraft, which has been especially configured in a three-class configuration for international operations with eight Suites in First Class, 30 seats in Premiere Class and 274 seats in the Economy Class which will offer unprecedented levels of luxury, privacy and comfort in the air.

At JFK, the airline will operate into American Airlines’ brand new terminal and passengers will be able to connect to the American Airlines network.

Jet Airways, as part of its inaugural offer, has introduced special Economy return fare of Rs 36,000 plus taxes. Premiere class return fares start from Rs 1,53,000 plus taxes and First Class return fares from Rs 3,45,000 plus taxes.

Naresh Goyal is 'Travel Entrepreneur of the Year'

By Sushma Arora

NEW DELHI, Oct 26: Jet Airways has bagged two prestigious awards at the recent 18h annual TTG (Travel Trade Gazette) ceremony in Bangkok.

While Jet Airways won the “Best Domestic Airline” award for the fourth consecutive year and the fifth time in the past six years, the evening also saw the “Travel Entrepreneur of the Year” award conferred on Naresh Goyal.

Naresh Goyal was awarded the “Travel Entrepreneur of the Year” on the basis of his being recognized by TTG Asia Travel Group’s editorial team as an outstanding individual who has developed a successful business, which in turn has positively contributed to the welfare of the entire industry. He is also considered an excellent role-model for being a visionary, risk taker and leader.

Commenting on winning these awards, Chairman Goyal said “It is indeed an honour and a privilege to have been chosen as the “Travel Entrepreneur of the Year”. Jet Airways also winning the “Best Domestic Airline” award for the fifth time in six years is a recognition of the pioneering role the airline has played in revolutionalising air travel in India. As a travel industry professional, I realise the value of the customer and the importance of service and have always attempted to work closely with our customers to provide them the very best service that we can offer”.

The annual TTG Travel Awards, based on a survey amongst the readers of TTG Asia and voting by peers in the travel & tourism industry, honour Asia-Pacific’s most outstanding organizations and individuals in the travel industry for their achievements and contribution in shaping the region’s travel and tourism.

SriLankan Records Milestone with Century in India

By Deepak Arora

NEW DELHI, Oct 19: SriLankan Airlines, the largest foreign carrier flying into India, would achieve the magic figure of 100 flights into the country from the winter schedule beginning October 29, says a proud Sharuka Wickrama-Adittiya, Manager, Northern India, Nepal and Bangladesh.

Wickrama said the SriLankan would be launching air services to Coimbatore from the end of this month, making it the 11th destination to India.

“Four flights to Coimbatore on Airbus A320 and an additional flight to Trichy would help us achieve the magic figure of 100 flights to India,” he said with a beaming face.

Wickrama said SriLankan has also launched holiday’s promotion with the unveiling of “Exciting Sri Lanka” campaign until November 30. The package includes three-night and four days to Colombo, Negombo, Kandy or Bentota. Its cost ranges from Rs 20,599 to 24,999 depending on the destination and the hotel.

He said the package includes return airfare on SriLankan Airlines, fuel surcharge and applicable country taxes, twin share accommodation on bed and breakfast basis, return airport transfers and all current government taxes.

It may be mentioned that Kandy was the last capital of the Sri Lankan kings and is a World Heritage Site. The name "Kandy" conjures visions of splendour and magnificence. Many of the legends, traditions and folklore have still lovingly kept alive.

While in Kandy one can drive around the lake built by the last Sinhala King Sri Wickrama Rajasinghe in 1798 and visit the town and bazaar, the arts and crafts centre, a gem museum and a lapidary. One can also visit the Temple of the Tooth Relic in Kandy and thereafter witness a cultural show.

Colombo is also famous for shopping and one must remember that one Indian rupee equals three Sri Lanka rupee. With one’s money trebling one can shop at famous shopping places like House of Fashions, Odel and Noritake Ceramic Showroom.

Colombo like many capital cities in developing countries is fast changing its face. Almost overnight, skyscrapers arise from where old buildings once stood. Yet in some parts, the old world charm is retained. For example, there is a 100-year-old clock tower and several British built colonial buildings.

Other places of interest are the Pettah bazaar - where one can shop for bargain, a Hindu and a Buddhist temple and residential areas where you find the stately homes of the affluent.

Sri Lankan Airlines carried a staggering 1.1 million passengers to and from India in the 12 months from April 2006 to March 2007, which constituted 32 per cent of the airlines global traffic.

CEO of SriLankan Peter Hill said “SriLankan Airlines has positioned Colombo as the gateway to India, and we are continuously increasing our services there.”

Hill said “this includes the addition of more and more cities across India to our route network and we are proud to add Coimbatore in this list,” said Hill.

Manoj Gunawardena, Head of Worldwide Passenger Sales, said “our new service to Coimbatore will provide convenient access to and from all regions in our international network, we are confident that the new service would be useful to many segments particularly business traveller, leisure traveller, those traveling to visit relations and friends and for employment.”

Wickrama said from Colombo, the airline has rapid connections to its global network of 54 destinations in 28 countries.

He said the airline provides convenient connections at competitive price to Doha (Qatar), Dubai and Abu Dhabi (UAE), Saudi Arabia, Muscat (Oman) and Bahrain in the Middle East; London, Frankfurt and Paris in Europe; Malaysia, Singapore, Hong Kong, Bankok, Beijing and Tokyo in the Far East; and the US and Canada.

He said Colombo’s Bandaranaike International Airport has earned a reputation as the finest in the South Asian region following its recent expansion, with its modern terminal and aerobridges, comfortable lounges, and well-stocked duty free shopping complex.

"Sri Lankan airline is very familiar with the travel requirements of the Indian passengers and we take great care in providing the best facilities to them," said Wickrama.

He said Sri Lanka is a popular destination among Indian tourists, for its excellent value-for-money shopping, diverse climates and landscapes, and ancient cultural sites.

It is also a favourite among business travellers, especially with companies that prefer Colombo for meetings, incentives, conventions, and exhibitions (MICE tourism).

Wickrama-Adittiya said SriLankan has won many awards for its operations to India, including the Galileo Indian Express Award for Best East bound International Airline.

Its global and regional accolades include “World’s Best Airline” in a survey of Economy Class passengers; “World’s Friendliest Cabin Staff”; first runner-up for “World’s Best Cabin Staff”; “Best Overall Inflight Entertainment (small fleet)”; Best Airline in Central Asia four consecutive years; and Best Airline in South Asia three times.

GoAir Slows Down Expansion, Looks for Investors

By Deepak Arora

NEW DELHI, Oct 6: The churning continues in the aviation sector. Recent months saw merger of Indian and Air India and creation of new Air India, Jet buying out Air Sahara and Kingfisher taking controlling stake in Air Deccan.

Looking at the infrastructural and other difficulties, now GoAir has decided to scale down its expansion plans by reducing the number of aircraft which it plans to buy as well as lease and is also planning to sell its stake to private financial investors.

While announcing the delivery of the first A320 aircraft, GoAir Managing Director Jeh Wadia said the airline will now receive 18 aircraft instead of 30 Airbus A320 by 2009 and 34 instead of 50 by 2011.

“We find it much more prudent to be conservative while the infrastructure in the country develops and new friendly polices take shape. We want to grow slowly and not become aggressive. We believe in running a marathon and not a 100-meter dash. We will focus on improving our yields rather than getting an aircraft every month,” he said.

The airline is expected to receive the delivery of the second aircraft in November. These two deliveries are part of the US$ 1.2 billion order that GoAir had placed with Airbus for 20 new aircraft. The last delivery of the 20 aircraft order is expected to be completed in the next 18 months.

Further explaining the reasons behind the slow down, Wadia said “the infrastructure has not developed at the rate at which the industry has grown. We looked at things such as the number of landing and parking spaces we would get and on the basis of that, we decided to scale down the order.”

On the mergers and acquisitions in the industry in the past few months, he said “this is a good sign for low-cost airlines.” The acquisitions would help low-cost airlines to cut down operational costs and ground handling costs, he added.

On the sale of GoAir’s stake, he said “the airline is in negotiations with some short listed investors and expects to close the deal in a few months.” The extent of divestment will depend on the quality of the offers, he said.

He stated that the offers on the table are difficult to ignore and the airline will look for partners who bring in more than just cash. The family may sell ``potentially up to 26 percent. It depends on many terms and many conditions.''

In the same breath, Wadia also said “once as shareholders we have created value for us first, then only will we take it to public shareholders and other private shareholders. We want to demonstrate we have created value.''

He gave a hint that the airline also plans to enter the capital markets with an initial public offering by March 2009.

He said GoAir's aim was not to become an international airline but to achieve its target of carrying 15 million passengers. “Being an international airline is not on our radar. Our aim is to carry 15 million passengers. Then we can go international. Even if we go international, it would only be in Asia and the Middle East.”

GoAir’s operational focus with the addition of the two new aircraft in October and November will be to consolidate its current network of destinations. The key objective will be to service the existing destinations by enhancing current flight frequencies.

Expressing her happiness and being part of the GoAir success story, Miranda Mills, Airbus Vice President (Sales) India, the A320 aircraft has proven reliability and extended servicing periods and has the lowest operating costs of any aircraft in the same category.

“The latest models feature additional advanced aerodynamics helping reduce fuel burn even further, making the A320 Family the most environmentally friendly single-aisle aircraft in operation,” said Mills.

She said the A320 Family has the widest cabin of any single aisle aircraft and this leads to operational advantages such as faster boarding and deplaning times. In addition, the all new cabin design saves on weight and offers the passenger a quieter and roomier experience as well as significantly larger overhead stowage compartments.

GoAir has been recording highest load factors of almost 84 per cent. Given the escalation in passenger volumes, the airline is now enhancing current frequency levels by inducting additional flights in key growth areas.

Commenting on the business strategy following the induction of the two new aircraft, Wadia said “Considering the consistent escalation in passenger volumes recorded by GoAir over the last one year reflects the faith our passengers have in the airline as a smart choice of travel.
As a result of the growth in passenger traffic, we have decided to induct additional flights in key growth sectors and provide more connectivity to our passengers through morning and evening flights in these sectors. Our key objective is to first ensure customer comfort and convenience rather then to add new destinations.”

Wadia also averred that, “The frequency enhancement strategy is being implemented in a phased manner. The first phase of frequency enhancement strategy will be rolled out in the sectors of Mumbai, Delhi, Goa, Hyderabad and Bangalore with the rest of the sectors in which GoAir operates to follow in the second phase.”

Following the induction of additional flights, GoAir plans to increase its weekly departures by 18 per cent. The total number of weekly flights would increase to 305.

“Following the addition of the two new aircraft, we will consolidate our position in the destinations we currently operate in. The primary objective is to reiterate our consumer commitment in the sectors that we fly,” he said.

The Wadia Group, based at Mumbai, fully owns Go Airlines. The group was set up in 1879 by Nowrojee Nusserwanjee Wadia, who started a cotton yarn dying business in the city. The business grew to become the Bombay Dyeing and Manufacturing Co., which now makes textiles and reported sales of 3.8 billion rupees ($96.3 million) in the year ended March 31.

The group, headed by Nusli Neville Wadia, owns businesses ranging from the airline, GoAir, to chemicals, National Peroxide Ltd., to plantations, the Bombay Burmah Trading Corp., to cookie maker Britannia Industries Ltd.

Sustainable Growth A Challenge For Aviation Industry

By Deepak Arora

NEW DELHI, Sept 22: Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of SriLankan Airlines Peter Hill has said the biggest challenge for the aviation industry was how to sustain profits. Issues like terrorism, epidemics, natural disasters and inadequate infrastructure and fuel prices affect profitability of airlines. Other issues like infrastructure, over capacity and internal airline issues also had an impact on the profitability, he said.

Despite all these constraints, he said SriLankan Airlines had been continuously making profits for the past five years and continued to win international awards. He regretted that aviation was one of the most highly taxed industries in the world.

Peter Hill said SriLankan Airlines was committed to India where there is phenomenal potential. “Our commitment to India is long term and growing stronger as we extend our reach and investment. We operate 95 flights to 10 cities in India, offering the tourist a choice of board points.”

While SriLankan operates to the Indian metros, he said the airline also operate to smaller airports giving them scheduled international operations. “We were the first foreign scheduled operator to fly to Trivandrum, Trichy and Calicut. We were the first in Goa too.”

The CEO said SriLankan has also showcased India with global advertising campaigns. “We work closely with India Tourism offices worldwide and the State Tourism Authorities.”

He warned that the overcapacity would see a “shake out” in the Indian aviation industry. He advised airlines to exit markets where there is no potential, switch to e-ticketing to save costs, nurture staff and build up long-term relationship with the travel and tourism partners.

Peter said sustainable growth is key to aviation continuing to be an integral partner of tourism. Its importance has never been more critical to the industry. Managing growth in the aviation industry must necessarily be with a view to achieving sustainable growth. That is the inescapable reality.

“There is nothing coincidental about the correlation in performance of aviation and tourism. Well being of one is virtually a prerequisite to the very existence of the other. But the question arises is that growth at what cost.”

Quoting from the IATA’s Director General Address at the 63rd annual general meeting in Vancouver in June 2007, he said “airlines are a 470 billion dollar industry. A profit of $ 5 billion is peanuts. We need $ 40 billion just to cover the cost of capital! The industry is moving in the right direction, but with $ 200 billion of debt, the financial hole is deep. The challenge is to turn it into sustainable profits.”

He said these are undoubtedly staggering figures but also a sobering thought. Some of these challenges are non-industry related and the aviation and tourism has no control over it. For example, acts of terrorism, epidemics, natural disasters, cost inefficiencies, inadequate infrastructure, fuel prices, over capacity and reckless pursuit of market share have contributed towards a dangerous hemorrhage on profitability and yields of airlines.

Where do we have control over our destiny? Over some of the industry related challenges including infrastructure, over capacity and high taxation. He said by taking appropriate steps to address these challenges, we would build a more resilient aviation industry.

High Taxation is also a major concern in our industry. Aviation industry remains one of the most heavily taxed in the world, despite magnitude of its contribution to advancement of national economies.
Need to be united in focusing the attention of Governments and opposing extra taxes that will penalize travellers.

Giving a piece of advice to the industry from his own SriLankan experience to face the challenges head on, Peter Hill said the airlines must recognize that value proposition is changing and there was need to meet the expectation of cheaper travel.

He asked them to retain the value of the network system – adopting, where appropriate, the practices of LCCs. The industry must also respond to the impact of overcapacity in the home markets. He also called them to return value to the shareholders, not always in terms of financial benefits and remain resilient and adaptable to meet crises.

He advised the industry not to focus too much on the market share. “Exit markets where there is no potential and try to match capacity to demand and achieve a healthy mix of traffic.”

Peter Hill asked the industry to simplify the business through E-ticketing. “By 2010 India is expected to have 100 million internet users, with the majority of them aged between 25 and 39.”

UN Environment Award for Air India

By Deepak Arora

NEW DELHI, Sept 19: National carrier Air India, one of the largest developing country airlines and a forerunner in the cause of environmental protection, has been awarded the prestigious Montreal Protocol Public Awareness Award on the occasion of the 20th anniversary of the Montreal Protocol.

The award, presented by the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), is in recognition of Air India’s efforts in protection of the ozone layer.

Dr Vishwapati Trivedi, Joint Managing Director, National Aviation Company of India Limited, received the award in Montreal in the presence of Nobel Prize winners who postulated the depletion of the ozone layer and other high level dignitaries.

Air India’s association with the UNEP began in 2005 with a number of collaborative activities that were launched with Ozone Action Programme of Division of Technology Industry and Economics in Paris.

Based on the strategic approach that Air India finalized with UNEP, Air India undertook several awareness raising activities related to the issue of Ozone layer protection and other environmental issues such as conservation of Energy, Forests, and other natural resources, through in-flight magazines and videos.

Later Air India undertook the activities to Global Reporting Initiative and also discussed climate change related activities.

The Airline Industry is not a significant contributor to the two most important global environmental issues: ozone layer protection and climate change. However, Air India would like to be in the forefront to utilize its infrastructure to spread awareness on these issues, as well as to take action within its business operations to improve energy and efficiency.

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