Indian-Aviation

By TNN | 30 Dec, 2014  Troubled low cost carrier (LCC) SpiceJetBSE -4.81 % reportedly failed to submit a cash flow plan to the aviation ministry to show that its prospective investors mean business. An unimpressed ministry had last Friday asked the LCC management and SpiceJet's former promoter Ajay Singh to submit the plan by Monday.  The government wanted to make it sure that SpiceJet's plan to get some funds has some concrete basis so that it can meet its financial requirements  - pay salaries of December to employees and dues to airports and others.   The LCC has dues of almost Rs 200 crore to the state-run Airports Authority of India (AAI). While AAI wanted to put the LCC on cash-and-carry, it was asked by the aviation ministry not to revoke SpiceJet's credit facility till the year-end.   The ministry made similar requests to oil companies regarding jet fuel supply to SpiceJet, apart from asking banks to give loans to it. But apart from AAI, no one

Jet Airways has been appointed the official 'airline partner' of the 35th National Games being held in Kerala from January 31 to February 14, 2015.  The airline has offered special fares for the Games usage and will be the preferred airline for use by various officials, VIPs and other participants of the Games.  Members of the Indian Olympic Association (IOA) and other stakeholders of the Games, including officials of various departments involved and office-bearers of sports federations travelling on Games related businesses prior to the event, will also benefit out of the affiliation.  http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/sports/more-sports/others/Jet-Airways-to-be-official-airline-for-35th-National-Games/articleshow/45666978.cms?

PTI  |  Dec 29, 2014 A Jet Airways aircraft from Mumbai with 125 passengers and six crew members on board landed under emergency conditions after it suffered a bird hit.   The plane, however, made a safe landing at the Tribhuvan International Airport, Jet Airways said.  "Jet Airways flight 9W 268 Mumbai to Kathmandu B737 experienced a bird ingestion on approach and continued the flight with an uneventful and safe landing at Kathmandu," the airline said in a statement.  The airline engineering team is inspecting the aircraft and once satisfied will release aircraft for further operations, it said. http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/Jet-Airways-plane-hit-by-bird-lands-safely-in-Kathmandu/articleshow/45675763.cms

 Profit-making private airline Indigo has expressed its interest to set up a chain of hotels in  Andhra Pradesh  as well as increase air connectivity from existing airports in the state, it was officially announced in  Hyderabad  on Thursday. In partnership with Airbus Industrie, Indigo has also expressed willingness to set up a maintenance, repair, overhaul (MRO) facility and make Andhra Pradesh an  aviation   hub. These assurances were given by Indigo Chairman Rahul Bhatia during a meeting with Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N  Chandrababu Naidu   in Hyderabad, an official release said. Read more at:  http://www.dnaindia.com/money/report-indigo-to-set-up-a-chain-of-hotels-in-andhra-pradesh-2047086

Flying is one of the safest modes of travel, provided that regulator ensures that all airlines and airport operators comply with safety standards. The report of the AF 447 accident should have opened the eyes of airlines worldwide on the importance of understanding flights in the vicinity of thunderstorms, the use of automation and aircraft systems, the experience levels of pilots and most important — training and safety standards.  Modern airliners are very safe, provided the crew is trained, its proficiency checked at regular intervals and the training includes details on dangers of adverse weather operations. Theoretical knowledge does not replace practical experience and this is something airlines should understand.  Unfortunately, in India we give lip service to these and we have complete lack of regulatory oversight. The FAA downgrade is a pointer on how the world sees India's safety standards. The authorities, airlines and airport operators claim we are among the

India is one of those few aviation markets in the world where commanders have to go through intense training for flying during turbulent weather before the onset of monsoon every year.  "India is pretty conservative when it comes to rules and is one of those few markets, where pilots need to go through training and refresher training before monsoon every year," said a senior commander, adding that this training is over and above the mandatory requirement for pilots to  fly during the rainy season.  "A pilot is allowed to fly during the monsoon weather, of course post the mandatory training, if the commander has flown at least 500 hours on that aircraft and a co-pilot has flown at least 100 hours on the same kind of aircraft," said the pilot.   The training for monsoon includes class-room drills on the impact of weather, interpreting the weather, apart from simulator training.   In India, such turbulent weather is generally seen before the monsoo

According to a report by Aneesh Phadnis in Business Standard, AirAsia India plans to start services from Delhi from February next year, aviation sources have said. Mittu Chandilya, CEO, AirAsia India, said the airline was evaluating plans, but was yet to take a final decision. Sources said AirAsia might park two Airbus A320 planes in Delhi and was exploring flights between Delhi and Bengaluru, and Delhi and Goa. AirAsia will follow Vistara at Delhi airport. Vistara begins its service from January 9, 2015, linking Delhi with Mumbai and Ahmedabad. AirAsia India launched service in June and has two Airbus A320 planes. It inducted its third aircraft earlier this month and another one is expected to join next week or early January. It plans to induct eight to ten planes next year. AirAsia India started its domestic operations with a Bengaluru-Goa flight and flies to Chennai, Kochi, Chadigarh, Jaipur, and Pune. The airline had initially said it will not fly to Delhi and Mumbai because of hi

Saturday, 27 December, 2014 Ashok Gajapathi Raju Pusapati, Minister for Civil Aviation (MoCA), Government of India, this week inaugurated the e-office governance in the Ministry, and Airports Authority of India’s (AAI) Single Window Clearance to Communication Masts through Standing Advisory Committee on Radio Frequency Allocation (SACFA)-NOC Application System (NOCAS) Integration. Speaking on the occasion, the Minister highlighted the importance of e-governance and elaborated on the arrangements made in MoCA under this programme, as per a PIB release. He particularly highlighted the importance of transparency and accountability through which both efficiency and effectiveness are derived. The salient features of the e-office include - single instance has been created for MoCA, BCAS, DGCA, CRS, and IGRUA with the URL ca.eoffice.gov.in; all new files will be generated electronically, for which training and hand holding on e-office has been provided to all users of MoCA, including data e

Airbus delivered its first next-generation A350-900 plane to Qatar Airways that kick-starts its bid to erode rival Boeing's dominance in the lucrative long-haul market. The Doha-based company, owned by the energy-rich Gulf state, has ordered 80 of the planes, making it not only the launch customer but also the largest single customer of the fuel-efficient A350 so far. The plane, with Trent XWB Rolls-Royce engines, can carry 315 passengers over a distance of 14,500 kilometres (9,000 miles). http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/slideshows/nation-world/airbus-delivers-its-first-gen-next-a350-xwb-plane-to-qatar-airways/slideshow/45647077.cms

By  Mihir Mishra , ET Bureau | 27 Dec, 2014,  The civil aviation ministry has asked Ajay Singh, the Spice-Jet management and prospective investors such as JPMorgan to present a detailed fundraising plan. It has linked the extension of a grace period for overdue payments by the airline to the presentation of such a plan.  Ministry officials said that the request of the airline and the prospective investors for extension of a grace period to pay airport operators can only be considered after they submit a robust plan detailing investments and cash flows.  The 15-day payment breather given to SpiceJetBSE 9.07 % by airport companies ends on December 31, 2014. The oil companies have not agreed to give SpiceJet any extra day for making payments.   Government sources inform that the airline wants breather from payment of airport and other charges beyond December 31, 2014. "The process to get funds, according to them, is going to take about eight weeks and they want

The new investors in SpiceJet are looking to bring in ₹1,500-1,600 crore, including ₹500-600 crore through External Commercial Borrowing (ECB). This was one of the proposals made to the Civil Aviation Ministry today, though neither Ajay Singh, one of the possible investors in SpiceJet, nor the airline’s Chief Operating Officer Sanjiv Kapoor gave specifics of what transpired at the 90-minute meeting with the Ministry officials. While SMS messages to Ajay Singh and Kapoor seeking details of the meeting and the proposal remained unanswered, sources close to the development told newspersons that SpiceJet is on track to finding an investor in the next four-six weeks. The airline had debt of ₹1,600 crore as on December 5, official sources had told newspersons earlier this month. Opening up the ECB route is one of the suggestions the Ministry of Civil Aviation has made to the Finance Ministry to help the airline sector. Earlier this week, a senior Civil Aviation Ministry official told n

In an alleged violation of aviation safety norms, a daughter of a senior Air India executive travelled in the bunk which is only meant for resting of flight crew members as per the DGCA norms, during one of the airline's flight to Newark recently.  K V J Rao, a union leader and former Air India cabin crew, has also alleged in his complaint, lodged with the secretary in the civil aviation ministry, V Somasundaran, that a first class passenger was forced to sit in the executive class on one of the national carrier's flight to Delhi from Frankfurt to accommodate a senior bureaucrat last month.  According to Rao, the daughter of one senior Air India pilot was first allowed to sit on the jump seat and then rest in the bunk during the 14-hour long flight to Newark from Mumbai on December 13.  A jump seat in the aircraft is meant for non-operating staff.  "For take off, rest and landing she was illegally allowed to sit in the cabin crew horizontal rest area (bu

Eighteen pilots, including a woman, tested positive in pre-flight alcohol tests till November this year.In what could be a matter of concern, almost all of them were in the rank of captain and first officer. They were denied permission to operate their flights.   The number, however, is below the 2013 score of 31 pilots and the 2012 figure of 41.The number of cases reported in 2009, 2010 and 2011 is 35, 25 and 20, respectively.  The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) in its reply to an RTI query said 170 pilots were pulled up in last five years. But the services of only eight of them were terminated under section 5 of the Civil Aviation Requirements.  The DGCA said first time offenders were slapped with a three-month suspension with total loss of pay and other allowances. Repeat offenders faced a five year suspension.  Most pilots worked for private airlines. While Air India reported 11 cases, Indian Airlines reported one case in last five years. As per rul

A Delhi court has directed the grounded Kingfisher Airlines to pay the outstanding salary of three months amounting to ₹12.91 lakh to one of its ex-pilots who had moved court over non-payment of dues. Additional District Judge Rakesh Kumar disposed of the case in favour of Captain Sanjay Sudan and declined the plea of the airline to be heard in the matter, saying having a counter-claim against the plaintiff (pilot) is “not a ground for grant of leave to defend”. “This suit is decreed. The defendant (Kingfisher airlines) shall pay a sum of ₹12,91,035 to the plaintiff (Sudan),” it said. The court noted that Kingfisher had not disputed the amount of salary and the period for which it was due, as claimed by Sudan, and said “in view of the provisions of Civil Procedure Code (CPC), the application (by Kingfisher) for leave to defend has been declined, the plaintiff is entitled to a judgement forthwith”. The court rejected the claim of the cash-strapped airline that any monthly pay

The Ministry of  Civil Aviation  (MoCA) has stated that it is not mandatory for sick  passengers  to produce a medical certificate, in order to avail of wheel chairs at airports. According to  civil aviation ministry  officials, paragraph 4.1.26 of Civil Aviation Requirement (CAR), Section 3 Air Transport, Series M, Part-I for "Carriage by air of persons with reduced mobility", passengers with  disability  or reduced mobility are required to inform airlines at the time of booking of air ticket about their requirements for assistance. However, on Tuesday, minister of state for civil aviation, Dr Mahesh Sharma told Rajya Sabha: "Separate requirement to produce medical certificate, for availing wheelchair facility by sick passengers, have not been specified in the CAR, and hence, it is not mandatory." Directorate General of Civil Aviation has issued the Air Transport Circular 01 of 2014 about facilities/courtesies to esteemed travelling public at airports. The

Kerala Government on Thursday expressed displeasure over the Union government's 'neglect' of the state's repeated requests to find a solution to the alleged exorbitant fares being charged by flight operators, including  Air India  in the Kerala-Gulf sector. Replying to a submission on the issue in the Assembly, Chief Minister  Oommen Chandy  said, "I had taken up the issue with Centre for the past 40 years. There has been no positive result for that." To the suggestion of N A Nellikunnu of IUML that all legislators from the state led by Chandy stage an agitation in Delhi over the issue, the Chief Minister said he did not think there would be a favourable approach even now. It was under these circumstances that the  Kerala Government  had decided to go ahead with the 'Air Kerala' project and sought exemption from the Centre on two conditions to start it, he said. As per the guidelines, a new  airline  should have five years experience in operati

Preksha Malu ,  Agency: dna Every week, Ammeet Agarwal soars above Mumbai, its ribbons of traffic, its rat race, its myriad laws, enjoying the niche pleasure of flying his own plane. Agarwal, president of Supreme  aviation  company, owns three planes and is accompanied by his brother, his cousins and other aircraft owners on his tours. Agarwal, 26, said: "We took a spin around the city a fortnight ago as we had maximum visibility that day. We usually fly out four times a month, and go to aerodromes around the state, maybe for a quick breakfast or lunch." The youngest flyer is 24 and the eldest is 60. They are engineers, surgeons,  real estate businessmen, among others. Prasad Bhat always wanted to fly as a child but didn't want to be a commercial pilot. By dint of owning a successful engineering company, he could realise his dreams in 2011. He joined hands with like-minded people who wanted to fly for pleasure, and they bought a plane together. A hobby plane costs

After a minor hiccup that has delayed its launch, Tata-Singapore  Airlines  (SIA) venture Vistara is all set to launch its full service airline on January 9, with all the regulatory approvals under its belt. And the India's fledgling airline is already looking at foreign skies, albeit the 5/20 rule, which does not airlines with less than 20 aircraft and five years of experience to fly overseas, goes. "We are hoping 5/20 rule will go away, the writing is on the wall. If it goes then we want to increase our world footprint," said Phee Teik Yeoh, CEO of Vistara. The Vistara chief said the airline will offer high-end service on the Delhi, Mumbai and Ahmedabad sectors and slowly expand to destination there is demand for it. At a time, when the  aviation  sector is going through the pains of witnessing the budget carrier SpiceJet struggling to survive, how will Vistara manage to operate a full-service carrier? Yeoh said the company's various consumer surveys hav

NEW DELHI: SpiceJet is talking to a couple of US private-equity investors and is hopeful of them injecting money into the cash-strapped airline within the next month and half, a person with knowledge of the matter said. The PE firms are currently conducting a due diligence on the airline, which has raised more than Rs 150 crore to fund operations in the interim, this person said. "We have raised some money from investors to fund operations and will continue to do so if any need is felt," he said without disclosing the source of funding. On Friday, ET reported that SpiceJet would likely get Rs 1,200 crore from two blue-chip investors. The fundraising is likely to be accompanied by operational changes such as trimming of the airline's Bombardier fleet, closing down of some sectors and a possible management change. The airline management has sought some time from the civil aviation ministry and a breather from oil companies as it struggles to fund flight operati

Budget carrier GoAir has suspended its director of flight operations Puneet Shankta over alleged improprieties in the recruitment of pilots for the airline. A senior executive of the Nusli Wadia-controlled airline, who didn't want to be identified, said on Monday that Shankta had allegedly hired 15 pilots out of turn, giving them preference over others. The airline is probing the matter, he added. GoAir CEO Giorgio De Roni confirmed to ET that Shankta has been  suspended over the allegations and added that a forensic probe has been ordered. "Ernst & Young Forensic is investigating the matter. We have to submit the findings of the investigation in 45 days to our audit committee," De Roni told ET.  Read more at: http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/articleshow/45609876.cms?utm_source=contentofinterest&utm_medium=text&utm_campaign=cppst

According to a report by P R Sanjai in Mint, the Ministry of Civil Aviation (MoCA), Government of India is considering a special package for airlines in the wake of SpiceJet Ltd. grounding its fleet briefly owing to a cash crisis, according two MoCA officials. “We are preparing special relief measures for Indian airline companies, including granting infrastructure status. The said package is not restricted to SpiceJet. We are talking to the Finance Ministry to finalise the plan,” said one of the officials. He said MoCA will take up the proposals after the current Parliament session. The second official said the government will also take up the issue of high-cost jet fuel later. Jet fuel accounts for 50 per cent of expenses for Indian airlines. “Certainly, the SpiceJet crisis has triggered this proposal, but the package would not be specific to SpiceJet. There is a series of proposals that should make life of Indian airlines better,” the first official said. If MoCA is successful in ex

Vistara, the airline begun as a joint venture between Tata Group and Singapore Airlines, opened bookings from Thursday night for its first flights from January 9. The fares are substantially higher than those of its full-service carrier rivals, Jet Airways and government-owned Air India (AI). It, however, will be the first in India to offer  premium economy  seating and a value-based frequent flyer programme, where bonus points would be given not on miles flown but on what you pay. Vistara will commence services between  Delhi  and Mumbai on January 9 and will link the two cities to Ahmedabad the next day, in 148-seater Airbus A320 aircraft (16 business, 36 premium economy and 96 economy class seats). Vistara has two flights on the Delhi-Mumbai route on Friday, January 9, and one return flight to Delhi on that day. Its first flight will take off at 12.30 pm. Its minimum economy fare on offer on Delhi-Mumbai is Rs 7,502. On Friday morning, it was offering tickets at Rs 9,323

Maharashtra  Chief Minister   Devendra Fadnavis  has said the proposed  Navi Mumbai  International Airport will be operational by 2019. "As all the environmental-related permissions are cleared for the proposed Navi  Mumbai  International Airport, this project will be operational by 2019," Fadnavis posted on Twitter on Sunday. The project will be built on public-private partnership (PPP) on a land of around 1,160 hectares, out of which 592 hectares have been acquired and all clearances will be done by January 2015, he said. After the completion of first phase, 10 million people are expected to use it annually. The final phase will have a capacity to accommodate 60 million passengers annually, the Chief Minister said. http://www.dnaindia.com/mumbai/report-navi-mumbai-international-airport-to-be-operation-by-2019-devendra-fadnavis-2045885

After weeks of bad news, the skies seem to have cleared up a little for Indian aviation—although in a more narrow sense, onset of fog has been delaying some flights into and out of Delhi.  It's back to business as usual at SpiceJet, which has resumed normal--albeit reduced—services, cooling off fares that had shot up due to wholesale cancellations by the carrier in the past few days. Meanwhile, those seeking wider choice in full-service carriers can look forward to the January 9 start of services by Vistara, joint venture between Tata Sons and Singapore Airlines, which began selling tickets on Thursday.  The carrier has already told travel agents that it will start giving them incentives and offer discounts on routes on which it has cut flights. Vistara is offering a threeclass configuration on its Airbus A320s with 148 seats per flight. Delhi-Mumbai economy class tickets are priced at Rs 9,233 for the launch day, the highest among all carriers, the lowest being Rs 5,4

The Wadia Group-promoted budget carrier GoAir  on Sunday said it has put 1.7 million seats up for sale, offering fares as low as Rs 1,469 for travel next year with a five-day booking period starting from Sunday, to stimulate demand during the lean period.   The special offer is available on flights across the GoAir network for a travel period between January 1 and March 31, the airline said.  The bookings under the offer can be made between December 21 and December 25, it said.  "The January-March quarter is traditionally a lean quarter ... The purpose of introducing these fares is to make air travel affordable during the period," GoAir chief executive Giorgio De Roni told PTI here.  The Mumbai-based airline operates across 22 destinations in the country with a fleet of 19 Airbus A320s. http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/business/india-business/GoAir-offers-discount-on-fares-lowest-at-Rs-1469/articleshow/45595052.cms

FORT WORTH, TEXAS: An American Airlines jet encountered severe air turbulence shortly after taking off from Seoul, South Korea, prompting an unscheduled landing at Narita International Airport in Tokyo after 14 people asked for medical attention.  The airline says four passengers and a crew member needed hospital treatment, but none of those injuries are life-threatening.  A statement issued by the Fort Worth, Texas-based carrier says American Flight 280 was headed for Dallas-Fort Worth on Tuesday when the Boeing 777-200 met with turbulence.  After the landing, passengers and crew members were evaluated and treated in Japan. American says there were 240 passengers on board and 15 crew members.  Officials say the remaining passengers won't continue their travel to Dallas-Fort Worth until Wednesday and have been taken to hotels to spend the night. http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/us/American-plane-hit-by-turbulence-several-hurt/articleshow/45545117.c

SpiceJet's fall from grace has led the cash registers ringing for other Indian carriers. Troubles at Kalanithi Maran-owned low cost carrier (LCC) started from mid-November when leasers started repossessing aircraft, leading to reduction of flights. As SpiceJet's slashed its schedule, passengers of its cancelled flights made a beeline for other carriers — mainly  IndiGo  and Jet. According to D irectorate General of Civil Aviation  (  DGCA ) data, market shares of IndiGo and Jet shot up from October (when SpiceJet  was flying its entire fleet) to November (see graph). Wadia Group's GoAir also gained and carried more flyers. State-owned Air India, which is being kept alive by pumping in thousands of crores of tax-payers' money, could not capitalize on the situation. It actually saw its market share drop by two percentage points from October to November. AI (domestic) even pipped SpiceJet in terms of numbers of passengers being affected by flight cancellations.

The troubled low-cost airline SpiceJet will find the going tough as risk-averse banks are unlikely to provide loans. Though the Government has urged banks to rescue the Chennai-based airline with ₹600 crore working capital loans, banks have so far not shown willingness to provide any loans. State Bank of India, which currently doesn’t have any exposure to SpiceJet, flatly refused to give loans. “We are not there (as a lender) and will not be a part of it,” said Arundhati Bhattacharya, Chairman and Managing Director, SBI. SBI has no outstanding loan with the airline. An official of a private bank with exposure to SpiceJet said, “No fresh proposal has come our way… We cannot have a struggling airline as a business opportunity as it would be a risk.” The official added that the bank has sufficient collateral including shares and some current assets, which is multiple times the loan and hence is not worried. Existing lenders to SpiceJet include Allahabad Bank, City Union Bank