Page 15 - Aviation

Merger with Vistara may be completed by December, says Air India CEO

Vistara, a joint venture between Singapore Airlines and Tata Group with a ratio of 51:49, is currently undergoing a merger with Air India to create a unified full-service carrier

'Affordable' electric air taxis

They may not only be greener than battery-powered cars but also have the potential to upend the real estate market

Air India, Lufthansa deepen ties, expand codeshare on India-Australia route

Passengers flying with Lufthansa from Frankfurt and Munich can now seamlessly connect to Sydney and Melbourne via Delhi and Mumbai airports using Air India flights

Cheaper air fares? New DGCA guideline to make flying more affordable

The new DGCA guidelines require airlines to offer these services as "opt-in" options. This means the base fare will not automatically include these charges, and passengers can choose to add them on on

Go First: Busy Bee Airways to evaluate position after reviewing court order

With the Delhi High Court allowing lessors to take back 54 planes leased to bankrupt Go First, joint bidder Busy Bee Airways' Nishant Pitti on Friday said he will consider any necessary adjustments to its proposed offer for the airline after reviewing the court order. Busy Bee Airways, along with SpiceJet chief Ajay Singh, has put in a bid for Go First under the insolvency resolution process. Travel portal EaseMyTrip's co-founder and CEO Nishant Pitti is a majority shareholder in Busy Bee Airways. On Friday, the court directed the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) to forthwith process the applications filed by several lessors for deregistration of their 54 planes so that they could take them back from the crisis-hit Go First airline. In a post on X, saying it is on behalf of Busy Bee Airways, Pitti said, "We will review the details of the order once we receive the official document". Following this review of the court order, it will evaluate the position and consider any

IndiGo's wide-body aircraft order augurs well for Indian aviation: CRISIL

Budget carrier IndiGo's decision to acquire wide-body planes augurs well for the Indian aviation industry as international long-haul routes are comparatively more profitable and will also help in creating an aviation hub in the country, according to rating agency CRISIL. Till January last year, IndiGo operated single-aisle Airbus aircraft fleet and in February 2023, it started operating wide-body Boeing 777 wet-leased from its codeshare partner Turkish Airlines. Currently, the airline has two wet-leased B777 operating flights to Istanbul from Delhi and Mumbai. On Thursday, the country's largest airline announced placing a firm order for 30 wide-body Airbus A350-900 planes, to be powered by Rolls-Royce's Trent XWB engines, and also has the option to purchase 70 more such aircraft. "The development (IndiGo's A350 aircraft order) augurs well for the industry as these (international long haul) routes are comparatively more profitable and open up avenues for innovative combinations as ..

Boeing hunting for new CEO to mend damage done by safety incidents

Late last month, the company announced that Calhoun would step down at the end of the year, much earlier than expected

Transforming agriculture with drone tech: The rise of Thanos Technologies

The agricultural drones automate the hazardous task of pesticide spraying, thereby improving the lives of Indian farmers

Aionos to bridge silos within aviation, hospitality using AI: Rahul Bhatia

Aionos, wherein IGE will hold the majority shareholding, was launched here on Tuesday in presence of Gurnani and Bhatia

IndiGo says it follows fair process of succession readiness amid some exits

The country's largest airline IndiGo on Monday said it follows a fair process of succession readiness amid some senior executives set to leave from their current roles. The carrier's Senior Vice President Engineering S C Gupta and Senior Vice President Inflight Services Suman Chopra will be leaving from their current positions. They have been with IndiGo since 2006 when it started operations, according to executives. Against this backdrop, IndiGo said retirement or superannuation is a natural process in any organisation, and that at senior levels, these are also personal decisions. "At IndiGo, we follow a fair process of succession readiness. Internal succession also provides opportunities for growth for individuals and the organisation. IndiGo works towards its next phase and its goal to double in size by the end of the decade," it said in a statement. IndiGo operates around 2,000 flights daily.

Boeing's safety culture to come into spotlight at US Senate hearings

Boeing has been grappling with a crisis that has undermined its reputation following the Jan. 5 mid-air panel blowout on a 737 MAX single-aisle plane

Vistara cancels flights on Thu; efforts continue to address pilots' issues

Vistara continued to cancel flights on Thursday as the Tata Group works to address pilot issues, while fares spiked in some routes due to cancellations, according to sources and travel industry executives. A day after Vistara CEO Vinod Kannan apologised to pilots about the issues and assured them of taking steps to resolve them, the airline saw cancellations of around 20 flights. The number of flight cancellations was in the double digits on Thursday but less than 26 cancellations were seen on Wednesday and the situation is improving, the sources said. Vistara, which is to operate more than 300 flights daily in the ongoing summer schedule, has decided to temporarily scale back operations. Meanwhile, two pilots' groupings on Thursday said the problems raised by Vistara pilots are not isolated but rather 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

Boeing paid $160 mn in compensation after MAX 9 grounding, says Alaska Air

"Although we did experience some book away following the accident and 737-9 MAX grounding, February and March both finished above our original pre-grounding expectations," Alaska said

FLY91 partners with IBS Software to power its commerce operations

FLY91, the country's youngest regional airline, has partnered with IBS Software to power its commercial operations. FLY91 aims to provide an air alternative to road and rail travel across underserved routes in India. IBS Software has created a reservation experience designed to deliver a simple, efficient and cost-effective experience, to attract and retain customers, a press release from the company said on Wednesday. "By implementing IBS Software's modern omni-channel iFly Res commerce platform, FLY91 will not only create a compelling user experience powered by the platform's rich set of APIs and flexible rules engine, but also deliver dynamic pricing. "These real-time dynamic and personalised pricing capabilities are a vital tool in delivering the most cost-effective fares and ensuring pricing is competitive with alternative modes of transport," IBS Software said in the release. Additionally, access to an API-driven ecosystem gives FLY91 the ability to open its services and rou

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.

Mahindra Aerostructures signs $100 milllion contract with Airbus Atlantic

Mahindra Aerostructures on Monday announced it has signed a multi-year contract worth around USD 100 million with Airbus Atlantic for the manufacturing and delivery of metallic components for the entire Airbus commercial aircraft family, including the A320 family planes. Under the contract, the company will supply close to 2,300 varieties of metallic components to Airbus Atlantic in France from its manufacturing base in India, Mahindra Aerostructures Pvt Ltd (MASPL) said in a statement. The contract adds to existing MASPL programmes to deliver parts directly to Airbus at their facilities in France and Germany, it said. MASPL has been a direct supplier to Airbus Group since 2015, and partners with Airbus on numerous initiatives. Developing the relationship with Mahindra Aerostructures will help the company benefit from their robustness, expertise, and high-end technology capabilities in order to strengthen the company's supply base, said Airbus Atlantic Chief Procurement Officer Jos

Need to focus more on security aspects related to air cargo: Home secy

Home Secretary Ajay Kumar Bhalla on Monday said the country's civil aviation sector is witnessing rapid growth that will also bring different kinds of challenges, and highlighted the need to look more at security aspects related to air cargo. Speaking at the function to mark the 38th Raising Day of the Bureau of Civil Aviation Security (BCAS) in the national capital, he emphasised the need for using cutting-edge technologies in various areas, including surveillance. The country's aviation sector is seeing rapid growth and records are likely to be set in 2024. In the years to come, it will be much more, Bhalla said. However, he also said challenges of different kinds are also going to come. One area of concern is about air cargo, Bhalla said, underlining the need to look more at the security aspects in this regard, especially the "safety and security of multi-modal transport". While stressing that all have to put their efforts together, Bhalla said new technologies are creating mor

Air India Express will operate over 360 daily flights in summer schedule

Air India Express will operate more than 360 daily flights during the summer schedule, with international services set to rise by over 20 per cent. The airline is in the process of completing the merger with AIX Connect (earlier known as AirAsia India) and the schedule includes flights of both carriers. In a release on Monday, Tata Group-owned Air India Express said it will offer over 360 daily departures during the summer schedule. Compared to last year's summer schedule, there will be an increase of over 25 per cent in domestic flights and more than 20 per cent rise in overseas services. "This translates to an additional 55 domestic flights and 19 international flights, bringing the total to 259 domestic and 109 international departures," the release said. Generally, the summer schedule is from the last Sunday of March till the last Saturday of October. In 2024, the summer schedule will be from March 31 till October 26. Among others, the airline will be increasing its frequenci

Starburst Accelerator, IIT Madras join hands for €100 million startup hub

This partnership will enable export promotion and provide support for Indian ASD start-ups to explore international markets through the extensive network of Starburst

Boeing CEO Dave Calhoun to step down this year, board chairman to exit

Boeing CEO Dave Calhoun will step down from the embattled plane maker at the end of the year after a series of mishaps at one of America's most storied manufacturers. Board Chair Larry Kellner has also told the company he doesn't plan to stand for re-election. Boeing also said Monday that Stan Deal, president and CEO of its commercial airplanes unit, will retire from the company. Stephanie Pope will now lead the division. The Federal Aviation Administration has put the company under intense scrutiny and recently ordered an audit of assembly lines at a Boeing factory near Seattle, where the company builds planes like the Alaska Airlines 737 Max that suffered a door-panel blowout on Jan. 5. Investigators say bolts that help keep the panel in place were missing after repair work at the Boeing factory. The incident has raised scrutiny of Boeing to its highest level since two crashes of Boeing 737 Max jets in 2018 and 2019 that killed 346 people. Shares rose more than 2% before the mark