Page 2 - Airline Industry

IndiGo has great opportunity to address long haul market: CEO Pieter Elbers

With internationalisation as a key focus area, IndiGo chief Pieter Elbers on Tuesday said the airline has a great opportunity to address the long haul flight services market from India. IndiGo, which has more than 400 planes in its fleet, is taking wide-body Boeing 787 aircraft on damp lease and is set to start services to Amsterdam and Manchester later this year. "International air travel in India probably for quite a long time was very much taken care of by non Indian airlines... there is a great opportunity to address that market (long haul) with our planes," Elbers said. Generally, long haul flights are those having a duration of more than nine hours. The airline expects to take delivery of long range A321 XLR planes this year and wide-body A350 aircraft in 2027. Speaking at the Skift India Forum, he also said that its order book for aircraft is an "incredible asset". The airline has more than 900 planes on order. Elbers also asserted that the airline wants to have the cost

SpiceJet MD Ajay Singh sells 0.9% stake in company for Rs 52 crore

Ajay Singh, one of the promoters and MD of SpiceJet, on Thursday divested nearly 1 per cent stake in the budget airline for Rs 52 crore through an open market transaction. According to the bulk deal data on the BSE, Ajay Singh sold over 1.15 crore shares, amounting to a 0.9 per cent stake in Gurugram-based SpiceJet. The shares were disposed of at an average price of Rs 45.34, taking the transaction value to Rs 52.31 crore. After the stake sale, Singh's holding in SpiceJet has come down to 22 per cent from 22.90 per cent. Also, the combined shareholding of promoters and promoter group of the company has declined to 28.23 per cent from 29.13 per cent. Details of the buyer(s) of SpiceJet's shares could not be ascertained on the exchange. Shares of SpiceJet on Thursday declined 6.38 per cent to close at Rs 45.48 apiece on the BSE. Earlier, the budget airline was facing a fresh round of troubles as three Ireland-based aircraft lessors and a former pilot filed insolvency pleas in NCLT

'Polythene bags, rags…': What clogged lavatories on Air India flight

AI126 from Chicago to Delhi returned to the US city on March 6. The company then stated that the flight was returned because of a technical issue

SolitAir to invest $25 mn in India's air cargo market this year: CEO

Dubai-based cargo operator SolitAir Holding is looking to invest USD 25 million in the domestic market in the first year of operations, its founder and Chief Executive Officer Hamdi Osman has said. Osman, a logistics industry veteran who served a 30-year stint with the American multinational conglomerate FedEx till 2011, also said that India is very "critical" to global trade and SolitAir places it at the top of its 50-city mission and vision that it is looking at in the long-term. The UAE's only dedicated cargo-agnostic airline operating express daily scheduled services between Dubai and high-yield key trade routes across the Global South, started operations last year with a Boeing 737 freighter plans to connect and service 50 cities within a six-hour flight radius of the UAE through its air cargo network. "Based on cost and investment coming into India, we are talking anywhere between USD 20-25-million investment in the Indian market in the first year," Osman told PTI. The compan

Delhi-bound Air India flight returns to Chicago due to technical issue

An Air India flight from Chicago to Delhi returned to the US city after being airborne for more than ten hours on Thursday, with the airline saying the return was due to a technical issue. However, a source aware of the development told PTI that the aircraft had to return as many of the lavatories were clogged. The flight was operated with a Boeing 777-337 ER aircraft and returned to Chicago's ORD airport after being airborne for over ten hours, according to information available on flight tracking website flightradar24.com. There are 10 lavatories, including two for first-class passengers, in the Boeing 777-300 ER aircraft operated by Air India and has little over 340 seats, including first, business and economy class seats, the source said. The source also said only 1 lavatory was functional. When reached out for comments, an Air India spokesperson said AI126 operating Chicago to Delhi on March 6 air-returned to Chicago due to a technical issue. "Upon landing at Chicago, all ..

FedEx cargo plane makes emergency landing after bird strike, engine fire

A FedEx cargo plane made an emergency landing at a busy New Jersey airport on Saturday after a bird strike caused an engine fire that could be seen in the morning sky. The plane landed at Newark Liberty International Airport during the emergency, said Lenis Valens, a spokesperson for the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey. There were no reported injuries, and fire on the cargo plane was contained to the engine, Valens said. The emergency landing caused air traffic to be briefly halted as a precaution, and operations resumed shortly after, Valen said. The emergency landing happened just after 8 am. A spokesperson for FedEx said the plane was headed for Indianapolis. "Our crew declared an emergency and returned safely to Newark. We are thankful for the quick actions of our crew and first responders, said the spokesperson, Austin Kemker. The emergency landing comes at a time of heightened awareness of flight problems. In the past month, there have been four major aviation ...

American Airlines flight to Delhi grounded in Rome for 15 hrs after threat

The aircraft was just two hours from its destination when it made an abrupt U-turn over the Central Asian country of Turkmenistan due to a "possible security issue"

Premji Invest, Ranjan Pai family office seek nod for stakes in Akasa Air

Tech tycoon Azim Premji's global investment arm, Manipal Group Chief Ranjan Pai's family office and 360 ONE Asset have sought approval from fair trade regulator CCI to acquire stakes in domestic carrier Akasa Air's parent company SNV Aviation. "The proposed transaction involves the acquisition of certain shareholding by each of PIOF, Claypond and 360 Fund (through its various schemes and affiliates) in Akasa Air," said a notice filed with the Competition Commission of India (CCI) on Wednesday. PIOF is a Sebi-registered alternative investment fund owned and controlled by Premji Invest, while Claypond is an arm of the Pai family group. The 360 fund is a Sebi-registered AIF. The fund is managed by leading asset management firm 360 ONE Asset. SNV Aviation Pvt Ltd, which operates Akasa Air, is engaged in domestic, international scheduled air passenger transport services and air cargo transport services. In its submission to the CCI for the assessment of the proposed transaction, PIOF,

Air India, Lufthansa expand codeshare, add 60 routes across India, Europe

Private carrier Air India on Thursday announced the expansion of its codeshare partnership with Lufthansa Group to offer 60 additional routes across 12 cities in India and 26 in Europe. Air India, in a statement, said that as part of this expansion, it has entered into a new codeshare agreement with Austrian Airlines and expanded its existing codeshare agreements with Lufthansa, and Swiss International Air Lines (SWISS). The Tata Group-owned Air India said it will now offer its customers a total of 26 destinations across Europe and three destinations in the Americas beyond its gateways in Europe (Frankfurt, Vienna, and Zurich), with the 'AI' designator code placed on certain services operated by airlines in the Lufthansa Group, including Austrian Airlines for the first time. Air India and the three Lufthansa Group carriers are members of Star Alliance. The expanded agreements increase the total number of codeshare routes between Air India, Lufthansa, and SWISS from 55 to nearly 100

Private airlines report 268 snag instances in 13 months till Jan 2025

As many as 268 instances of aircraft malfunctioning were reported by private airlines in the 13 months ended January this year, according to official data. Data presented to the Lok Sabha as part of a written reply by the civil aviation ministry on Thursday showed that in 2023, the number of such instances stood at 384. During the period, including 2024 and till January 2025, there were 268 instances of aircraft malfunctioning. The total number of flights operated by private carriers in the given period was 10,42,593. The ministry said the percentage of faults per flights was 0.025 compared to 0.033 in 2023. IndiGo reported 118 aircraft technical faults while Air India had 66 such faults. The data also showed that SpiceJet planes had 23 technical faults and that of Air India Express stood at 26 during the given period. While Akasa Air had 5 aircraft snags, that of FlyBig and Blue Dart Aviation were at 3 and 1, respectively. The snags reported by erstwhile Vistara and AirAsia sto

Rising airfares, strong consumer demand boost profit outlook for airlines

The rising fares have bolstered the outlook for carriers on both sides of the Atlantic. Major US airlines including Delta , Alaska and United have forecast bumper profits this year

Akasa Air well-capitalised, set to expand with new destinations: CEO

Akasa Air, India's youngest airline, is well-capitalized and plans to add 5-10 new destinations, including international routes, next year as it aims to maintain its position as the country's fastest-growing airline, CEO Vinay Dube said. Dube, in an interaction with PTI, also projected an "incredibly bright" outlook for the next 30 years and said the delay in the delivery of one or two aircraft does not change the fundamentals of the airline's business or growth trajectory as it has built an extremely "strong and stable" platform. The nearly two-and-a-half-year-old Rakesh Jhunjhunwala family-backed Akasa Air currently has a fleet of 27 Boeing 737 Max planes and commanded a 4.6 per cent market share in CY2024. "It is no secret that Boeing has been delayed in its delivery stream. No secret about that, either from us or Boeing or any other airline whether one or two aircraft were late or not, is not something that changes the fundamentals of our business. It does not change the growth

Star Air to venture into aircraft MRO business with joint venture

Regional carrier Star Air on Monday said it is looking to enter into the aircraft MRO business in a joint venture for line and major maintenance to cater to the regional and business jets fleet. The Bangalore-based airline, which this month completed six years of its operations, also said it is aiming to have 14 aircraft in its fleet by March this year besides expanding the network to over 100 flights. Founded in 2019 by the Kolhapur-headquartered diversified group Sanjay Ghodawat Group with business interest in sectors such as energy, aviation, consumer products, retail, real estate and textiles, among others, Star Air has a fleet of nine Embraer aircraft, operating 44 flights per day to 23 domestic destinations. The proposed MRO facility, the land for which is being identified, will run under a subsidiary engineering company, Star Air said, adding it will support line and major maintenance dedicated to regional aircraft and business jets. The company, however, did not share speci

South Korea orders air safety probe after country's worst crash kills 179

Top priority for now is identifying the victims, supporting their families and treating the two survivors, Choi told a disaster management meeting in Seoul

IndiGo share takes off 3% as Elara Capital upgrades to 'Buy', lifts target

The rally in IndiGo's share price followed a rating upgrade from domestic brokerage Elara Capital. The brokerage upgraded the stock to 'Buy' from 'Sell' and raised the target price to Rs 5,309

Delhi-bound Air India intl flight's passengers fight over armrest space

Two passengers on board a Delhi-bound Air India flight from Copenhagen (Denmark) came to blows over armrest space just when the aircraft was about to land at the Indira Gandhi International Airport on Sunday, a source said. The flight landed at around 7.35 am. An Air India official said that the passengers had an argument over some issue at its Copenhagen-Delhi flight of Saturday which was later sorted out "amicably". According to the source, "The two passengers started an argument over the armrest space in economy class when the cabin crew was serving food and beverages, which turned into a heated exchange. The cabin crew pacified them by giving one of the passengers another seat. "However, when the aircraft was about to land in Delhi, the passenger came to collect his baggage from the seat he was sitting earlier, they again started the fight and came to blows." The number of passengers on board the Boeing 787-8 aircraft, operating AI 158 (Copenhagen-Delhi) could not be known. T

Airlines seek more time for implementation of revised flight duty norms

IndiGo, Air India, SpiceJet and Air India Express have sought more time for the phased implementation of the revised flight duty norms as they flagged increased crew requirements and emphasised the need to put in place fatigue risk management system to monitor fatigue among the pilots. Sources said the airlines have informed the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) that the norms can be operationalised in a phased manner starting from June 2025 at the earliest. However, with the implementation horizon still not clear for the norms, which were initially to come into effect from June this year, three pilots' bodies have told aviation watchdog DGCA to ensure that the new regulations be fully implemented from February 15 at the earliest, the sources said. By mid-February, fog season, which generally causes flight disruptions due to low visibility conditions, will be ending. The sources also said that pilots' associations are of the view that the CAR under which norms have been

Global airline industry to record net profit of $36.6 bn in 2025: IATA

The global airline industry is projected to report a net profit of USD 36.6 billion in 2025, slightly higher than expected this year, helped by lower oil prices and cost control, IATA said on Tuesday. Passenger numbers are expected to rise 6.7 per cent to 5.2 billion next year compared to 2024. In 2025, the International Air Transport Association (IATA) expects the industry's revenue to cross the USD 1 trillion mark for the first time to USD 1.007 trillion, which will be an increase of 4.4 per cent compared to 2024. While the operating profit is estimated at USD 67.5 billion, expenses are anticipated to reach USD 940 billion next year. At a briefing here, IATA Director General Willie Walsh said India is witnessing significant growth and that there is a clear recognition that growth is also dependent on air connectivity. China and India are among the fastest-growing domestic aviation markets, he added. "Net profit is expected to be USD 36.6 billion in 2025 for a 3.6 per cent net pr

Boeing likely to restart 737 MAX production a month after strike ended

Getting the 737 MAX production line moving again is essential to the heavily debt-burdened planemaker's recovery, and Boeing has about 4,200 orders for the jetliner from airlines

Expressing regret, IndiGo refunds ticket to passenger who fell on ramp

IndiGo on Thursday expressed deep regret to a passenger who complained that he was hurt after falling on the ramp while getting down from an aircraft at the Delhi airport in August. Full refund of the ticket has also been given to the passenger. The passenger, in a series of posts on X, said on August 14, half way down the ramp, his right foot suddenly slipped on a moist patch and he fell down. Later, he was taken to hospital. Post the incident, the passenger, who came to Delhi from Chennai, said, "I have been unable to walk since mid Aug, with potential full recovery at least a year away." IndiGo said the airline deeply regrets the inconvenience experienced by the passenger during his travel last August. "Our ground staff offered immediate support and helped the customer with medical attention. Both the airport and the IndiGo teams checked right away the equipment and found the ramp dry and in perfect working condition, being used by numerous other passengers without any issue ..