Page 17 - Airlines

AI Express cabin crew calls off strike; airline assures to look into issues

A section of Air India Express cabin crew has decided to withdraw strike and join back for duty after the airline assured to look into all the issues raised by the cabin crew, sources said on Thursday. Besides, the airline has agreed to withdraw the termination letters issued to 25 cabin crew and the management will review the cases as per service regulations, they added. The Tata Group-owned airline has cancelled more than 170 flights since Tuesday night after the cabin crew started reporting sick to protest against the alleged mismanagement at the airline. The decisions on withdrawing the strike and the termination letters were agreed upon during the conciliation meeting between the cabin crew representatives and the airline representatives at the Office of the Chief Labour Commissioner (Central) in the national capital on Thursday.

Air India Express: 85 flights cancelled; Air India to support on 20 routes

If a passenger's flight is cancelled or delayed more than 3 hours, they have the option to either receive a full refund on the flight or reschedule it for a later date without any additional fees

Spirit Airlines forecasts weak Q2 revenue on slow growth in domestic demand

The carrier estimates it will average about 25 grounded aircraft throughout 2024, while competitors expand their capacity in Spirit Airlines' core markets such as Florida

Go First planes need parts; lessors to take longer to fly them out of India

Lessors are likely to take a longer time to fly the Go First's deregistered 54 planes out of the country as the majority of the planes require engine and spare parts, according to industry experts. Out of the 54 planes, around 24 that were in a flying condition when the airline stopped operations last May have not undergone continued maintenance while 30 are without engines and spare parts. The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) has deregistered all the 54 remaining aircraft of Go First after a Delhi High Court ruling on April 26 that allowed lessors to take back the leased planes. While the insolvency resolution process is on, sources said the airline's revival looks an uphill task, considering that there are not many assets left after the deregistration of the planes. Regarding these aircraft, one of the sources said lessors are likely to take more time to ferry the 54 planes out of the country as at least 30 of them will require replacement of engines. Besides, the pl

Section of A-I Express staff flag concerns, allege mismanagement at airline

A grouping of Air India Express cabin crew has alleged that the airline is being mismanaged and there is a lack of equality in the treatment of the staff. The airline is part of the Tata Group and is in the process of merging AIX Connect (formerly AirAsia India with itself). Air India Express Employees Union (AIXEU), which represents a section of the airline's cabin crew members, on April 26 wrote a letter addressed to Tata Group and Air India Chairman N Chandrasekaran. Copies have been marked to Air India Express CEO Aloke Singh and others. The registered union, which claims to represent around 300 cabin crew members, mostly seniors, has alleged that mismanagement of the affairs has affected the morale of the employees. It has also claimed that Air India Express employees who were interviewed for internal job postings for higher ranks were offered lower job positions even after clearing the interviews. Queries sent to Air India Express on April 26 regarding the letter remained ..

'Indian airlines will need 60 wide-body planes for long routes by FY2032'

Indian airlines will require around 60 more wide-body aircraft to serve long and ultra-long haul markets in financial year 2032, aviation consultancy CAPA India said on Thursday. India is one of the world's fastest growing civil aviation markets but at present, only Air India and Vistara have wide-body planes in their fleets. IndiGo on Thursday announced placing a firm order for 30 A35-900 planes and also has the right to buy up to 70 more aircraft. During a webinar on 'Outlook for Wide-body Aircraft in India', the consultancy said the country's long and ultra-long haul market is "ripe for disruption, provided that Indian carriers lead the charge". Long and ultra-long haul operations can be structurally profitable given the strong demand for non-stop connectivity, it said and added that higher pricing thresholds and stability are visible. Further, it said the wide-body aircraft needed by Indian carriers to serve long and ultra-long haul markets by FY2032 will be around 100, which

DGCA directs airlines to seat kids up to 12 years with their parents

Airlines shall ensure that children up to the age of 12 years are allocated seats with at least one of their parents or guardians, who are travelling on the same PNR the DGCA mentioned

Women pre-book window seats, men prefer aisle in domestic flights: MMT

MakeMyTrip's 'India Travel Trends Report' showed that 50% of all domestic flyers pick flights between 9 am and 6 pm, irrespective of the destination or the origin

Over 1,300 bird-hit cases reported in 2023, the highest in six years

Firecrackers, scarecrows, horns and zon guns being used to scare birds

Delta Q1 earnings tops Wall Street estimates on buoyant travel demand

Demand is particularly strong for premium travel, benefiting carriers like Delta, which has positioned itself as a premium airline. Recovery in corporate travel is also gathering steam

Air India to start Delhi-Ho Chi Minh City in Vietnam flights from June 1

Air India will start direct flights from the national capital to Ho Chi Minh City in Vietnam from June 1. The airline will use A320 neo aircraft with a two-class configuration to operate the flights five days a week -- Mondays, Wednesdays, Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays, according to a release on Wednesday. The flights will commence from June 1. "The new service will also enable convenient one-stop connections to Vietnam via Delhi for travellers from the US, Canada, UK, and Europe," the release said. Currently, Air India flies non-stop flights to Singapore, Bangkok and Phuket (Thailand), and Yangon (Myanmar).

Air India gets feedback on new cabin crew uniforms, including fabric issues

Air India has received feedback on the new cabin crew uniforms, including about fabric issues, and will soon start their production for all the cabin crew after taking into consideration the inputs, according to people in the know. In December, the Tata Group-owned airline unveiled the new uniforms, designed by Manish Malhotra, for its cabin and cockpit crew. Initially, the uniforms were introduced with much fanfare for crew members of the carrier's A350 aircraft. When contacted, an Air India spokesperson on Monday said production programme for the uniforms for all its cabin crew members will start in about a week's time. Two persons in the know said there are some issues with the fabric used for the new uniforms, including that colour was fading fast. Another person said the feedback on the uniforms will be taken into consideration before starting production for all crew members. "Air India can confirm that the uniform sizing and production programme for our over 8,000-strong ca

Spirit Airlines to defer Airbus deliveries, layoff 260 pilots to save cash

A snag with Pratt & Whitney Geared Turbofan (GTF) engines has forced Spirit to ground some of its A320neo aircraft, pinching the company at a time when it is already grappling with a cash crunch

Air India hired over 5,700 people in FY24, including over 3,800 flying crew

Air India hired more than 5,700 employees, including over 3,800 flying crew, in the financial year ended March 31, as part of the five-year transformation plan to revive the fortunes of the airline. As part of expanding its presence, the carrier launched 16 new routes, including 11 international ones, in the last financial year. It inducted four A320 neos, 14 A321 neos, eight B777s, and three A350s during this period. In his message to the staff on Friday, Air India CEO and MD Campbell Wilson said the airline has onboarded the first batch of cadet pilots who will soon commence ground training with its partner flying schools in the US later this month. "Also, after much hard work, our cabin crew team also cleared the backlog of training batches -- and marked the release-to-service of our 4000th new crew member since privatization!," he said. According to a communication highlighting the activities done during the take off phase of the five-year Vihaan.AI plan, the airline hired more

Vistara expects normal ops by May, stretched roster caused disruptions: CEO

Full-service carrier Vistara expects operations to normalise by May as the flight disruptions mainly caused by a stretched roster for pilots are getting addressed, its CEO Vinod Kannan said on Friday. He also said the concerns raised by the pilots are being reviewed and discussed by the airline. The Tata Group airline cancelled many flights earlier this week due to the non-availability of pilots and has also been forced to temporarily reduce the overall flight operations in order to stabilise the situation. The carrier cancelled more than 125 flights over three days from April 1. In an exclusive interview with PTI on Friday, Kannan said the need to cancel flights at short notice will not happen after this weekend as the buffer situation for pilots is stabilising. "It might be a reduced schedule... we are back to normal as far as the flights that are operating... the need to cancel flights at short notice will not happen after this weekend," he said. According to him, the buffer ..

Two pilots' unions flag work culture concerns at Tata Group airlines

Two pilots' groupings on Thursday said the problems raised by Vistara pilots are not isolated but indicative of systemic issues across Tata Group aviation entities. In a detailed letter to Tata Group Chairman N Chandrasekaran, the Indian Commercial Pilots' Association (ICPI) and the Indian Pilots' Guild (IPG) urged the group to engage in a constructive dialogue with the pilot community. Tata Group has four airline ventures -- Air India, Air India Express, AIX Connect (formerly AirAsia India), and Vistara. IPG represents Air India pilots operating the airlines' wide-body fleet while ICPA represents pilots operating the single aisle aircraft. In recent days, Vistara has been forced to cancel more than 100 flights due to non-availability of pilots who are protesting against pay revision and other issues. "The pilots of Vistara have been steadfast in their advocacy for fixed 70 hours compensation, improved working conditions, and stable roster. "After thorough assessment and consulta

Domestic and international air traffic cross pre-pandemic peak in FY24

International air traffic in India saw faster growth than domestic air traffic in 2023-24

DGCA asks Vistara to provide information about flight cancellations, delays

Airline asked to comply with regulations on assisting passengers affected due to cancellations or delays

As Vistara officials continue to protest for pay revision, 15 pilots quit

As a section of Vistara pilots continue to protest against pay revision, at least 15 senior first officers resigned from the airline recently, sources said on Tuesday. The airline operates a little over 300 flights daily and has a fleet of 70 planes comprising A320-family aircraft and Boeing 787s. Over the past few weeks, the Tata Group airline has been grappling with simmering discontent among pilots, with many first officers of its A320 fleet reporting sick. The sources said at least 15 senior first officers resigned from Vistara and joined a domestic budget carrier. A Vistara spokesperson declined to comment on the resignations. The airline has around 800 pilots and the senior first officers who resigned had completed their conversion training that allowed them to operate wide-body Boeing 787 planes. However, they did not get the duty for flying the 787 aircraft, the sources said. The airline, which is in the process of merging with Air India, has introduced new contracts for

SpiceJet to soon receive Q400 plane as part of settlement with lessor NAC

SpiceJet on Tuesday said it will soon be receiving a Q400 aircraft as part of the settlement reached with lessor Nordic Aviation Capital (NAC) last year. The airline has settled all past liabilities for the Q400 planes leased from NAC, and under the settlement agreement it already has five Q400 aircraft. "The ownership of these planes has been transferred to SpiceJet," the airline said and added that the sixth Q400 plane is en route to India from Germany. The aircraft is expected to arrive in Delhi soon. The carrier, which is taking various measures to deal with multiple headwinds, recently announced four major settlements with key aircraft lessors. According to the airline, these settlements will result in substantial savings of Rs 1,252 crore.