Page 2 - Aviation Sector

DGCA proposes easing aircraft leasing conditions in boost for IndiGo

The new draft proposal replaces the word "only" with "normally", making processing of such requests potentially easier

Mumbai airport sees over 5 million international arrivals in Jan-Aug: MIAL

Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport in the city has handled over 5 million international arrivals in the January-August period this year, primarily driven by passengers from the UAE, UK, and Thailand, private airport operator MIAL said on Saturday. The facility has witnessed the international arrivals at the airport clocking a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 21 per cent in the past three years, reflecting the city's ever-burgeoning prominence on the global travel map and echoing the spirit of World Tourism Day that celebrates the power of travel in connecting cultures and economies, it added. Every year, September 27 is observed as World Tourism Day globally. Mumbai's Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport (CSMIA) is run under a joint venture, Mumbai International Airport Ltd (MIAL), which is 74 per cent owned by the Adani Group and the remaining 26 per cent by the Airports Authority of India. Between January and August this year, arrivals rose steadi

oneworld Alliance considers Indian airline partner as market expands

Given that many of its members currently serve India, the alliance is also considering ways to leverage their joint presence in country like with a loyalty deal or a joint lounge initiative, CEO said

SpiceJet adds 8 more Boeing 737s, boosting fleet ahead of festive season

SpiceJet has signed multiple settlements in recent years to resolve disputes with lessors and other creditors, but has continued to struggle with capacity expansion

Delhi Airport's upgraded Terminal 2 to reopen on October 26 with new tech

Delhi Airport's refurbished T2 will resume operations on October 26 with 120 daily flights of Air India and IndiGo, featuring self-baggage drop and India's first autonomous aerobridges

Air India enters into codeshare partnership with Kazakhstan's Air Astana

Air India has entered into a codeshare partnership with Kazakhstan's flag carrier Air Astana. "The codeshare partnership enables cooperation between the two carriers on trunk routes between Kazakhstan and India, covering Air Astana routes operated between Almaty and Delhi, and Almaty and Mumbai. "With this, Air India will place its 'AI' designator code on Air Astana's flights to and from India, providing its customers convenient access to Almaty, a rapidly growing tourism and business hub in Central Asia," Air India said in a release on Wednesday. Both airlines already have an interline partnership that came into effect earlier this year. A codeshare partnership allows an airline to book its passengers on its partner carrier on a single ticket. Air India passengers travelling to Almaty from points beyond Delhi and Mumbai will be able to conveniently travel on a single ticket and check-in their baggage through to Almaty at the point of origin, the release said. Currently, Air Indi

Abu Dhabi-bound IndiGo flight returns to Kochi after mid-air technical snag

An Abu Dhabi-bound IndiGo flight returned to Kochi early on Saturday due to a technical snag after being airborne for over two hours, according to sources. There were more than 180 passengers and six crew members onboard the aircraft, they said. There was no immediate comment from IndiGo. The flight 6E-1403 (COK-AUH) departed from Kochi at 11.10 pm on Friday and returned to the city at around 1.44 am on Saturday due to a technical snag, the sources told PTI. They also said that the passengers were flown to Abu Dhabi in another aircraft which took off at around 3.30 am and a new set of crew operated the flight as the earlier crew had to be replaced due to flight duty time restrictions. As per information available on flight tracking website Flightradar24.com, flight 6E1403 which had returned mid-way, was operated with an A320 neo aircraft.

SpiceJet posts ₹236.6 cr loss in Q1 due to maintenance issues, low demand

SpiceJet reports a consolidated net loss of Rs 236.6 crore in Q1 FY26 due to grounded planes, airspace restrictions, and subdued demand following the Air India crash

Trump admin scraps Biden-era plan of airlines paying for flight disruptions

The Trump administration on Thursday said it is abandoning a Biden-era plan that sought to require airlines to compensate stranded passengers with cash, lodging and meals for flight cancellations or changes caused by a carrier. The proposed rule would have aligned US policy more closely with European airline consumer protections. It was proposed last December in the final weeks of then-president Joe Biden's administration, leaving its fate in the hands of his Republican successor. In a document posted on Thursday, President Donald Trump's Transportation Department said its plan to scrap the proposed rule was consistent with Department and administration priorities". Industry trade group Airlines for America, a vocal critic of the proposal, said it would have driven up ticket prices for consumers. We are encouraged by this Department of Transportation reviewing unnecessary and burdensome regulations that exceed its authority and don't solve issues important to our customers," the gr

BS Infra Summit: India becoming a global gateway, say airport CEOs

Delhi and Noida airport chiefs say India is on the cusp of becoming a global aviation hub, driven by rising transfer traffic and expanding international connectivity

Korean Air signs $50 billion deal to buy over 100 Boeing aircraft

Korean Air has announced a USD 50 billion deal to buy more than 100 Boeing aircraft and several spare engines and obtain engine maintenance for 20 years. The deal was formalised at a signing ceremony Monday in Washington as South Korean President Lee Jae Myung met with President Donald Trump. The deal includes USD 36.2 billion for 103 next-generation Boeing aircraft; USD 690 million for 19 spare engines from GE Aerospace and CFM International; and USD 13 billion for the 20-year engine maintenance service contract with GE Aerospace, Korean Air said in a statement. This deal is a strategic choice to strengthen Korean Air's partnership with the US aviation industry, the Korean Air statement said. This strategic investment in the US market will further strengthen the airline's operational capabilities and global competitiveness, and foster robust commercial ties that will drive sustained growth. It said the aircraft purchase order includes 20 Boeing 777-9s, 25 Boeing 787-10s, 50 Boein

BS Infra Summit: CEOs flag key steps for India's airport hub ambitions

At the BS Infrastructure Summit, CEOs of Delhi and Noida airports said India's hub ambitions require smoother transfers, stronger bilateral agreements and collaborative industry efforts

IndiGo targets 40% fleet on finance lease by 2030: CFO Gaurav Negi at AGM

Most of IndiGo's fleet today is on operating leases, where an aircraft is rented from a lessor for a fixed term and returned at the end of the lease

Air India cancels Zurich-Delhi flight after Boeing 787 engine issue

Air India on Monday said it cancelled its Zurich-Delhi flight of August 17 due to a technical reason, days after the Tata Group-owned airline stated that it had carried out a detailed "inspection" of its Boeing 787 aircraft fleet and "no issues" were detected. However, a passenger on board said the flight aborted take-off at the last minute due to an engine issue. In the last two days, Air India has cancelled at least two flights, including one international, at the last moment, citing technical reasons. Air India operates its Boeing 787-8/9 aircraft fleet to cater to the European market. "Flight AI152 scheduled to operate from Zurich to Delhi on 17 August has been cancelled due to a technical reason, and subsequently due to night curfew in Zurich," Air India said in a statement. The airline said it has arranged alternative flights to the passengers' destination and is providing hotel accommodation, along with full refunds on cancellations or complimentary rescheduling options for

IndiGo aircraft suffers tail strike amid go-around at Mumbai Airport

The airline assured that all passengers and crew on board were safe

Over 10,000 Air Canada flight attendants go on strike, flights cancelled

More than 10,000 Air Canada flight attendants went on strike after a deadline to reach a deal passed, the union confirmed early Saturday. Canadian Union of Public Employees spokesman Hugh Pouliot confirmed the strike has started after no deal was reached. Air Canada has said all flights will be cancelled for the duration of the work stoppage. Canada's largest airline has already cancelled more than 620 flights, leaving travellers around the world stranded and scrambling during the peak summer travel season. A bitter contract fight between Canada's largest airline and the union representing 10,000 of its flight attendants escalated Friday as the union turned down the airline's request to enter into government-directed arbitration, which would eliminate its right to strike and allow a third-party mediator to decide the terms of a new contract.

Air Canada cancels flights ahead of work stoppage affecting thousands

Air Canada started cancelling flights on Thursday ahead of a possible work stoppage by flight attendants that could impact hundreds of thousands of travellers. A complete shutdown of the country's largest airline threatens to impact about 130,000 people a day. The union representing around 10,000 Air Canada flight attendants issued a 72-hour strike notice Wednesday. In response, the airline issued a lockout notice. Mark Nasr, Chief Operations Officer for Air Canada, said the airline has begun a gradual suspension of Air Canada and Air Canada Rouge operations. All flights will be paused by Saturday early morning, he said. Nasr said this approach will help facilitate an orderly restart which under the best circumstances will take a full week to complete. He said a first set of cancellations involving several dozen flights will impact long-haul overseas flights that were due to depart Thursday night. By tomorrow evening we expect to have cancelled flights affecting over 100,000 ...

Pakistan says India overflight ban cost ₹1,240 crore in just over 2 months

According to Pakistan's Defence ministry, the PAA's revenue shortfall from April 24-June 30 was PKR 4.1 billion after barring Indian aircraft

SC junks PIL seeking safety audit, says Air India tragedy singled out

The Supreme Court on Friday refused to hear a plea to appoint a retired top court judge for examining Air India's safety practices among other aspects and asked the petitioner why target the airline that witnessed an "unfortunate tragedy". A bench of Justices Surya Kant and Joymalya Bagchi told the petitioner in-person Narendera Kumar Goswami to withdraw his PIL and asked him to move the appropriate forum in case of grievances. "Don't give the impression that you are playing with other airlines. Why target Air India only which recently witnessed an unfortunate tragedy? If you want some regulatory mechanism in place, then why did you not make other airlines as party in your petition? Why only Air India?" the bench asked Goswami, a lawyer. The petitioner claimed to be a victim of "some unfortunate incident" with the airline. Justice Kant then told him, "We also travel every week and know what is the status. There was a tragedy, a very unfortunate one. This is not a time to run down a

Air India may shift maintenance in-house with Singapore Airlines' help

The Indian airline is preparing to take on pre-flight and daily aircraft inspections, minor repair work and other troubleshooting activities from state-owned AI Engineering Services Ltd, or AIESL