Aviation minister holds meeting with industry executives to discuss current issues

Civil Aviation Minister Hardeep Singh Puri on Thursday held a meeting with industry executives of the sector to discuss current pressing matters such as fare environment, slot allocation and taxation on Aviation Turbine Fuel (ATF), according to an official.

"The meeting was held by the minister with airport operators, MRO (maintenance and repair and overhaul) companies as well as airlines," a senior government official said.

Airlines such as IndiGo, Vistara, SpiceJet etcetera and airport operators such as Airports Authority of India (AAI), Delhi International Airport Limited (DIAL) and others participated in the meeting.

"Issues related to slot allocation -- especially since Jet Airways is not in operation and its slots have been temporarily allocated -- were discussed. Taxation on ATF as well as the current fare environment were also taken up in the meeting," the official said.

Issues related to Jet Airways' foreign traffic rights -- which have also been allocated to other airlines just like its slots -- were also discussed at the meeting, the official said.

Jet Airways had shut down its operations on April 17 due to lack of funds. The airline is currently undergoing insolvency proceedings.

Later in the day, the minister said on Twitter,"Deliberated upon issues & exchanged ideas related to aviation sector in an interactive meeting with key stakeholders of the sector today. Considering we are already ranked 7th in the world with 345 million passengers, we hope to climb to 3rd spot by 2024."