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Air India's A320 plane that suddenly lost 300 feet in altitude during its flight from Phuket to Delhi last week suffered multiple technical glitches and triple hydraulic failures as well as experienced turbulence, sources said on Monday. With the Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB) commencing its probe into the serious incident on August 4 that left at least 17 people injured, French agency BEA and Airbus teams will likely be arriving in the country on Tuesday to assist in the investigation, they said. On August 4, the Phuket-Delhi flight AI2379 operated with A320 aircraft VT-EXO experienced a sudden loss of altitude of approximately 300 feet during cruise, after which the aircraft stabilised and subsequently landed safely in the national capital. The incident is being probed by the Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB) as per Annexure 13 of the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO). It pertains to aircraft accident and incident investigation. The sourc
Singapore Airlines on Monday said it has appointed Aswin K as the General Manager for India from August 1. He succeeds Sy Yen Chen, who served as General Manager for India for more than five years, and will be based in Mumbai, the airline said in a statement. In his new role, Aswin will oversee SIA's operations across the country and lead the airline's growth strategy in one of its most important international markets, while strengthening relationships with travel trade partners, customers, and key industry stakeholders, SIA said. Prior to the present posting, he was serving Singapore Airlines as its General Manager for Italy, since 2024. "India is a market of strategic importance for Singapore Airlines. As demand for international travel continues to grow and the aviation landscape evolves, we remain committed to delivering our award-winning service and world-class products via our extensive global network," said Aswin. He has more than 12 years of experience with Singapore Airli
Aviation watchdog DGCA recorded 889 serious technical defects in flights compared to 692 such faults in 2024, according to official data. The number of serious defects recorded stood at 487 and 528 in 2023 and 2022, respectively. In 2021, the count was at 514. These figures were shared by Minister of State for Civil Aviation Murlidhar Mohol in the Lok Sabha, as part of a written reply on August 6. The minister was responding to queries by Congress member Shyamkumar Daulat Barve. According to Mohol, the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) has laid down Civil Aviation Requirements (CARs), safety advisories, directives and other regulatory instructions to ensure safe aircraft operations. "For monitoring compliance, DGCA has a systematic safety oversight mechanism encompassing all aircraft and airport operators. "The safety oversight process includes regulatory audits, night surveillance, ramp inspections, spot checks and special audits. DGCA publishes the Annual Surveillanc
Four-year-old Akasa Air on Friday launched its loyalty programme as the airline seeks to provide enhanced travel experience and various benefits to passengers. The airline, which started flying on August 7, 2022, on Friday completed four years, with its Founder and CEO Vinay Dube describing the journey so far as "extremely exciting". The loyalty programme called 'Akasa Elevate' will enable members to earn points on eligible flights and ancillary products and services, a release said. "As we enter our fifth year, our focus remains firmly on disciplined growth, operational excellence, employee centricity and delivering differentiated experiences for our customers," Dube said. The airline said Akasa Elevate is designed to reward customer loyalty with greater value, personalised recognition and enhanced travel benefits. In an interaction with PTI, Dube said Akasa Air thinks itself as an "Experience-Led Carrier (ELC)". "We have worked very hard to create this experience for our custom
Akasa Air will be supportive of a proposal to allow airport operators to own airlines as the government will take into account the "considerations" involved before taking a decision since India needs more competition in aviation, according to its CEO Vinay Dube. The remarks from the founder and CEO of the nearly four-year-old Akasa Air comes against the backdrop of reports that the government is looking at allowing airport operators to own airlines. In an interview to PTI on Wednesday, Dube said he was very confident that the government will take into account considerations involved when a private enterprise owns both an airport and an airline. "And I'm very confident that they (government) know about this (and) they'll take into account. Therefore I am happy and supportive of this move," he said. Dube was responding to queries regarding the proposal being considered that would allow airport operators to own airlines. While stressing that the country needs "more competition in ...
The government aims to have a total of 44 airports, including 4 hub airports, to provide seamless international air connectivity, a senior government official said on Tuesday. Air India on Tuesday launched flights under the Hub and Spoke model from Amritsar, the second airport after Varanasi from where such fights have been started. Presently, there is one hub airport -- Delhi -- and two spoke airports -- Varanasi and Amritsar. The next spoke airport will be Ahmedabad. The model, that seeks to make India a global aviation hub, will enable seamless connectivity between Tier-II and Tier-III airports with international destinations through hub airports. Passengers arriving from smaller cities will be routed through major hub airports such as Delhi for onward international connections. At a function at the Amritsar airport to mark the launch of Hub and Spoke model flights, Civil Aviation Secretary Samir Kumar Sinha said 4 hubs and 40 airports would be developed. From Amritsar, Air In
Air India Group expects to get 50-60 new aircraft in the next 18 months and the transformation programme is on track even as the airlines' industry has been impacted by multiple black swan events, according to a senior executive. Loss-making Air India was acquired by Tata Group in January 2022 and the airline is in the middle of an ambitious transformation plan. Nipun Aggarwal, Chief Commercial Officer of Air India and Chairman of Air India Express, said there have been "tonnes of learning" in the last few years and that it was a complex as well as challenging" project. "I think this industry itself has gone through several challenges. And we have been hit by multiple black swan events, which I don't think anybody could have forecasted when we started this transformation journey. "The supply chain issues, the airspace issues, the oil price volatility, and the geopolitical issues," he said. Aggarwal, who spoke after a panel discussion in Abu Dhabi on July 15, said the group was dea
Air India has revamped its mobile application with new features that will help with quicker responses to travellers as well as allow deployment of India-specific innovations in the payment system. The main enhancements in the app pertain to assistance during flight disruptions, payment system updates and in-house internet booking engine, according to Air India. The enhanced mobile app would provide greater ease of booking and allow the airline to respond more quickly to the needs of the customers, the airline's Chief Digital and Technology Officer Satya Ramaswamy told PTI. In a release on Thursday, Air India said the app has been downloaded nearly 17 million times and serves over 1,00,000 users daily. In case of flight disruptions, support would be provided to the passengers with the hotel accommodation and transportation assistance contextually from the home screen, the airline said. The in-house internet booking engine will offer a faster and responsive user interface. "Payment
The Supreme Court on Monday asked the Centre to place before it within two weeks the rules framed under the Bharatiya Vayuyan Adhiniyam, 2024, which is aimed at modernising India's aviation sector. A bench of Justices Vikram Nath and Sandeep Mehta said the rules be placed before it in a sealed cover, irrespective of whether they have been placed before Parliament. The apex court passed the order while hearing a plea filed by social activist S Laxminarayanan, who has sought a robust and independent regulator that ensures transparency and passenger protection across the civil aviation sector, and regulatory guidelines to control the "unpredictable fluctuations" in airfare and ancillary charges imposed by private airlines in India. The counsel appearing for the Centre informed the bench that the draft rules are ready and they are in the process of translation. He said the rules have to be placed before Parliament. "We grant two weeks' time to the respondents to place before this cour
French company Simaero, which has set up its simulator training facility in India, plans to tap the country's local engineering talent in the specialised areas of simulator engineering and technology services. In a recent interview with PTI, Simaero's CEO Nicolas Moute said the company's long-term vision was to build a centre of excellence for aviation training that serves not only India but the wider South Asian region. "We are very optimistic about India. Every market has its challenges, but we see far more opportunities than obstacles," he said, adding that the company does not see any barriers that would prevent it from expanding its presence in the country. At the training facility in Gurugram, Haryana, the company recently launched its first Airbus A320 neo simulator and expects to add one or two more simulators in the near term, based on customer demand. "We could possibly expect to add a Boeing or regional ATR aircraft simulator. However, it would depend on our client's ...
Saudi Arabia-based Riyadh Air on Monday announced its entry into India with the launch of daily direct flight between Riyadh and Mumbai, starting August 4. The premium carrier, backed by Saudi Arabia's sovereign wealth fund, the Public Investment Fund (PIF), announced that bookings for the daily flight will open from July 6. The new daily air service between Mumbai and Riyadh will be operated by a Boeing B787-9 aircraft, offering a four-class configuration business elite, business, premium economy and economy. The latest route is a key addition to Riyadh Air's growing network, which now spans nine destinations with more set to be announced in the coming days and weeks, the airline said, adding that it also strengthens its mission to connect the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia with major global and regional hubs. "With India emerging as one of the fastest-growing aviation markets globally, we are delighted to offer travellers a new premium choice and enhanced global connectivity from Mumba
Akasa Air plans to come out with its initial share sale in the next two to four years, depending on achieving various milestones, its Chief Financial Officer Ankur Goel said on Tuesday as he stressed that the airline's IPO is "not a question of if but a question of when". After taking to the skies in August 2022, the airline is slowly expanding its presence and currently flies to 34 destinations, including 7 international cities. The nearly four-year-old carrier, now, has a fleet of 39 planes and aims to have 226 aircraft by 2032. Responding to queries about the Initial Public Offering (IPO) at a briefing in the national capital, Goel said the time frame is going to be 2-4 years, depending on achieving various milestones such as being EBITDA positive, cash flow and profitability. "IPO will happen for us, it is not a question of if, it is a question of when, we are not creating an airline to do an IPO, we are creating an airline that really creates value...," he said, and also ...
Akasa Air aims at 30 per cent capacity growth in the current financial year and the long term plans have not gone through any rethink amid the geopolitical uncertainties, the airline's Chief Financial Officer Ankur Goel said on Tuesday. The airline, which has been flying for nearly four years, currently has a fleet of 39 Boeing 737 MAX planes and around 25 per cent of its capacity is deployed in international routes. In the 2025-26 fiscal, the airline's operating revenue increased 37 per cent and capacity measured through Available Seat Kilometres (ASKs) rose 30 per cent. At a briefing in the national capital, Goel said the focus is to remain well capitalised and the airline has enough cushion to tide through the current situation. The West Asia conflict and higher fuel prices have pushed the operational costs for airlines and some of them have temporarily cut flights. According to Goel, Akasa Air aims to increase capacity by 30 per cent in this financial year and the capacity gro
Star Air on Tuesday announced the launch of scheduled commercial services to Mundra in Gujarat, marking the airline's 32nd destination on its expanding domestic network. Its operations are set to commence from June 23, further strengthening Star Air's commitment to connecting underserved regions of India with major economic and cultural centres. According to Star Air, Mundra, home to India's largest private commercial and container port and a rapidly growing industrial ecosystem, will now benefit from enhanced air connectivity. "Star Air's new flight services will link Mundra with Mumbai, Hindon, Goa, Surat, Belagavi, Bengaluru, Kolhapur and Nanded, offering greater convenience and reduced travel times for business travellers, professionals, industrial stakeholders, and tourists," the airline said in a statement. The airline said it will operate five weekly direct flights between Mumbai and Mundra, with departures on Tuesdays, Thursdays, Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays, ensuring ..