Page 7 - Airline Sector

542 enforcement actions in 2023 for various violations, says DGCA

The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) on Wednesday said it took 542 enforcement actions, including against airlines and personnel, last year, which was 77 per cent higher than similar actions taken in 2022. As many as 5,745 surveillance activities were carried out by the regulator last year which was also an all-time high as part of enhanced oversight efforts. "Significant enforcement actions for the year 2023 included suspension of Approved Training Organisation of Air India and financial penalties on airlines like Air India, Air Asia, IndiGo and SpiceJet for various non-compliances. "Enforcement Actions were also taken on erring pilots/cabin crew, ATCOs, non-scheduled airlines, flying training organisations and aerodrome operators," the regulator said in a release. According to the release, DGCA conducted 5,745 surveillance activities -- 4,039 planned surveillance activities, 1,706 spot checks and night surveillance -- which was an all-time high. "This marked a notabl

Lufthansa launches Hyderabad-Frankfurt direct flights five days a week

GMR Hyderabad International Airport Ltd (GHIAL) on Wednesday announced the launch of direct flights to Frankfurt, Germany in partnership with Lufthansa Airlines. With five weekly departures (Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, and Saturday), flight LH753 will depart from Hyderabad at 01:55 hours and arrive in Frankfurt at 07:05 hours. The return flight LH752 will depart from Frankfurt at 10:55 hours and arrive in Hyderabad at 23:55 hours, a release from GHIAL said. GMR Hyderabad International Airport Ltd CEO Pradeep Panicker said, "This connectivity will benefit travellers visiting Frankfurt as a transit point or for leisure trips and would open up multiple destinations in Europe, USA, Canada, and South America via Frankfurt." Lufthansa Group (South Asia) Senior Director George Ettiyil said, As we launch Hyderabad-Frankfurt service, our capacity to India has increased by 14 per cent (relative to 2019), making this country the fastest growing major market for Lufthansa.

Japanese domestic flight returns to airport due to crack on cockpit window

An All Nippon Airways domestic flight turned back to Japan's northern airport of Sapporo after a crack was found on the cockpit window, according to the airline and media reports. ANA Flight 1182 was en route to Toyama airport in central Japan on Saturday but had to return to the New Chitose airport for repairs, the airline said. There were no reports of injuries among the 65 people on board. The crack was found on one of the cockpit windows and the cause is under investigation, according to local media reports. The plane involved is a Boeing 737-800 a different model from the Boeing 737 Max 9 jet that is under investigation by the US Federal Aviation Administration. A plug covering a spot left for an emergency door tore off an Alaska Airlines plane as it flew 16,000 feet (4,800 meters) above Oregon on January 5, leaving a hole in the plane.

Premium economy class here to stay, more passengers choosing it: Vistara

As it looks to consolidate its position in the full service carrier space, merger-bound Vistara has said the premium economy class is here to stay and there has been a surge in the number of passengers opting for these seats. Vistara, a joint venture between Tatas and Singapore Airlines, was the first to introduce premium economy class in India. It operates around 320 flights daily on domestic and international routes with a fleet of 67 planes, and three more aircraft will be inducted by April this year. Currently, the airline offers premium economy class in the three aircraft models operated by it -- Airbus 320 neo, Airbus 321 and Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner. Vistara's Chief Commercial Officer Deepak Rajawat told PTI that the premium economy class is here to stay. "We have seen a surge in passengers picking up tickets on the premium economy (class). There is an uptick year-over-year," he said and added that premium economy is a differentiation that the airline has created in ...

Boeing CEO Dave Calhoun admits 'mistake' after 737 Max 9 door blowout

Alaska Air Group Inc. and United Airlines Holdings Inc. have both discovered other 737 Max 9 jets with loose bolts after the Federal Aviation Administration grounded the Max 9

Indigo second in the world's top 20 airlines in growth of passenger seats

According to OAG, an aviation analytics company, IndiGo's seats per day rose by 29.7 per cent from 47,738 seats in December 2019 to 61,913 last month

Boeing CEO's 2024 comeback plan takes another blow with Alaska Air episode

The latest, most serious, mishap occurred on the evening of Jan. 5, when a door-shaped panel ripped out as an Alaska Airlines 737 Max 9 climbed out of Portland, Oregon

Vistara airlines to monitor demand for flights amid India-Maldives row

Amid the India-Maldives row, full service carrier Vistara on Monday said it will monitor the demand for flights between the two countries as the "situation is evolving right now". Vistara operates one flight each daily from Mumbai and Delhi to Male. Airline's Chief Commercial Officer Deepak Rajawat said it has not cancelled anything as of now and will monitor the demand for flights. "The situation is very evolving right now... we will have to monitor in a week or so," he said at a briefing in response to queries about the Maldives situation. Air India, IndiGo and SpiceJet also operate flights to the Maldives. There were no comments from the three airlines on the current situation. India has conveyed its strong concerns to Maldives over remarks posted on social media against Prime Minister Narendra Modi by a number of ministers of that country. The disparaging remarks by the ministers have drawn flak in India, with many celebrities urging people on X to explore domestic tourist ..

Alaska Airlines again grounds all Boeing 737 Max 9 planes for maintenance

Alaska Airlines again grounded all of its Boeing 737 Max 9 jetliners on Sunday after federal officials indicated further maintenance might be required to assure that another inflight blowout like the one that damaged one of its planes doesn't happen again. The airline had returned 18 of its 65 737 Max 9 aircraft to service on Saturday following inspections that came less than 24 hours after a portion of one plane's fuselage blew out three miles above (4.8 kilometers) above Oregon on Friday night. The depressurized plane, which was carrying 171 passengers and six crew members, returned safely to Portland International Airport with no serious injuries. The airline said in a statement that the decision was made after receiving a notice from the Federal Aviation Administration that additional work might be needed. Other versions of the 737 are not affected. These aircraft have now also been pulled from service until details about possible additional maintenance work are confirmed with t

Air India to fly wide-body A350 jet from Jan 22 on domestic routes

Aircraft that has three-class cabin configuration will later be used for 'destinations across continents'

Pilot unions express concern as Air India 'threats of appropriate measures'

Pilot unions at Air India on Sunday expressed "concern" over the Tata Group-owned airline's alleged threat to the cockpit staff with "appropriate measures" if pilots report sick for duty. In a communication to Air India senior vice president for flight operations Manish Uppal on Sunday, Indian Pilots Guild (IPG) and Indian Commercial Pilots Association (ICPA) said that reporting illnesses without the "fear of reprisal" is in the interest of flight safety. IPG is the wide-body aircraft pilots' body at Air India while ICPA represents pilots who fly narrow-body Airbus 320 family aircraft of the full-service carrier. The copies of the letter have also been marked to Air India Chairman N Chandrasekaran, DGCA Vikram Dev Dutt, Air India Managing Director and CEO Campbell Wilson, among others. "We are writing to express our concern and objection regarding recent communications implying threats of appropriate measures for sick reporting," the pilot bodies said in the communication. Stating

Connecting India, connecting with India

IndiGo also understands the Indian psyche very well, and has shown how the Indian mentality of wanting the moon for six pence can be tackled

Establishment of aviation ombudsman needs deliberations: Aviation secretary

Airlines free to charge fees for preferential seats during web check-in: Aviation secretary

Centre boosts CISF personnel headcount to avoid congestion at airports

Steps up efforts to ensure smooth passenger flow during Christmas and New Year

Boeing delivers 56 new planes in Nov, tries to fix manufacturing issues

Boeing said Tuesday that it delivered 56 commercial planes in November, an increase as the company tries to fix manufacturing problems that have disrupted production of its best-selling aircraft. Most of the planes were 737 Max jets to airlines and lessors, including eight to United Airlines, seven to Southwest Airlines and five to Ireland's Ryanair. With one month left, Boeing is close to achieving its goal of delivering at least 375 737s this year it has 351 so far. November deliveries nearly matched the total for September and October, when manufacturing issues hindered shipments. Deliveries are an important source of cash for Boeing, since buyers typically pay a large portion of the purchase price at delivery. Boeing reported orders for 104 after cancellations. The company previously announced an Emirates order for 90 Boeing 777s at the Dubai Air Show.

Airlines advised to self-regulate on airfares: Scindia on price concerns

The Civil Aviation Ministry has discussions with airlines over the airfares and these were advised to self-regulate and keep passengers' interest in mind while fixing the fares, Aviation Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia said on Thursday, asserting that the airfare is neither established nor regulated by the government. Scindia made the statement in response to a written question in the Lok Sabha about surge in airfares and steps taken by the government to address the issue. "As per prevailing regulations, airfare is neither established nor regulated by the government. The airline fare system runs in multiple levels (buckets or RBDs) which are in line with practice being followed globally. "The fares are fixed by airlines keeping in mind the market, demand, seasonality and other market forces. The airfare increases with increase in demand of seats as the lower fare buckets get sold out faster and move to higher fare buckets," he said. Scindia informed that the Ministry had consultation

Indian carriers' on-time performance plummets in November, shows data

AIX Connect's OTP dropped from 83.33 per cent in October to 73.63 per cent

Flights cancelled, airfares jump 52-171% as rainfall batters Chennai

Domestic carriers have offered a fee waiver on flight cancellations or rescheduling of the impacted flights to their passengers

Average daily international passenger traffic soared 8.36% in November

The average daily domestic traffic also rose by 3.94 per cent M-o-M to 423,883 in November due to Diwali and other festivals

CEO Wilson explains why competition doesn't faze Air India in new avatar

As the airline prepares for takeoff in a new avatar, Campbell gives Nivedita Mookerji & Deepak Patel a view from the cockpit