Page 2 - Aviation

FAA reducing air traffic by 10% across 40 markets amid US shutdown

The Federal Aviation Administration on Wednesday announced that it will reduce air traffic by 10 per cent across 40 high-volume markets beginning Friday morning to maintain safety during the ongoing US government shutdown. The reduction stands to impact thousands of flights nationwide. The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) is confronting staffing shortages among air traffic controllers who have been working unpaid since the shutdown began October 1, with some calling out of work, resulting in delays across the country. FAA Administrator Bryan Bedford said the agency would not for a crisis to act, citing growing staffing pressures caused by the shutdown. We can't ignore it, he said. Bedford and Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said they will meet later Wednesday with airline executives to determine how to safely implement the reduction in flights. The early indicators are telling us we can take action today to prevent things from deteriorating, Bedford said. Both Bedford a

Air India ferries 228 passengers stranded in Ulaanbaatar to Delhi

Air India ferried 228 passengers who were stranded in the Mongolian capital Ulaanbaatar to Delhi on Wednesday morning. The passengers were stranded in the Mongolian capital after their San Francisco-Delhi flight was diverted to the Mongolian capital on Monday due to a technical issue. An official said Air India's relief flight carrying the passengers from Ulaanbaatar landed in the national capital at around 8:24 am on Wednesday. The relief flight was operated with a Boeing 787 Dreamliner. There were 245 people, including 228 passengers and 17 crew members, in the Boeing 777 plane that was diverted to Ulaanbaatar, a source said on Monday. The relief flight AI183 had taken off for Ulaanbaatar on Tuesday afternoon. On Monday, the Tata Group-owned carrier said, "AI174 operating from San Francisco to Delhi via Kolkata, made a precautionary landing at Ulaanbaatar after the flight crew suspected a technical issue en route." The Boeing 777 aircraft, which operated the flight, had landed

ALPA India urges DGCA to enforce full FDTL norms to ensure pilot safety

Earlier this year, DGCA, in its affidavit before the Delhi High Court, said new FDTL norms will be implemented in a phased manner

Air India to operate relief flight to bring 228 passengers from Ulaanbaatar

Air India will operate a relief flight on Tuesday to bring back 228 passengers who are stranded in Ulaanbaatar after their San Francisco-Delhi flight was diverted to the Mongolian capital on Monday due to a technical issue. The relief flight will return with the passengers on Wednesday morning, the airline said. There were 245 people in the plane, including 228 passengers and 17 crew members, a source said on Monday. "Air India will be operating a relief flight to ferry the passengers of flight AI174 (San FranciscoDelhi of 02 November), which was diverted to Ulaanbaatar on Monday. The ferry flight AI183 is scheduled to depart Delhi this afternoon and return with the affected passengers on Wednesday morning," the airline said in a statement. The relief flight will be operated with a Boeing 787 Dreamliner aircraft. The statement also said the airline along with local authorities and the Indian Embassy in Mongolia, has been looking after the passengers and crew, including providing t

Saudi Arabia's flyadeal to begin India flights in the first quarter of 2026

Bullish on the fast-growing Indian aviation market, Saudi Arabia's no-frills carrier flyadeal will start flights to Indian cities, including Mumbai, from the first quarter of 2026. The airline's CEO, Steven Greenway, told PTI that India is one of the "most hyper-competitive markets" in the world and there is a need to have an "absolute, brutal focus on unit cost". A sister company of Saudia Airlines, the Jeddah-based profitable flyadeal has been flying for over eight years and expects to have 46 planes in its fleet by the end of this year. Currently, the carrier has 42 A320 family aircraft and has also placed orders for 10 wide-body A330 Neos that are expected to start coming in from July 2027. "Our intent is to start operating (to India) in the quarter one of next year... We expect to do the metropolises like Mumbai and Delhi, and also, our focus will be the secondary cities in India... I think Mumbai would be the first one," Greenway told PTI in an interview. Saudi Arabia and Ind

Adani Airports partners with AIONOS for AI-based passenger services

Adani Airport Holdings Ltd has entered into a collaboration with AIONOS for implementing an artificial intelligence-driven system to provide personalised passenger experience at airports. AIONOS, part of InterGlobe Enterprises, will provide a consistent engagement experience and personalised multilingual support for passengers. Both companies signed a deal in the national capital on Thursday. "The AI-driven solution will act as a 24x7 intelligent concierge, helping travellers access flight updates, gate information, baggage status, directions and airport services instantly in multiple languages," a release said. The services will be offered in English, Hindi and other languages. With AIONOS' agentic AI platform, Adani Airports will be able to engage with customers and staff across multiple touchpoints, including voice, chat, and mobile. Adani Airport Holdings Ltd (AAHL) CEO Arun Bansal said the new AI system will transform the passenger experience. Together with its in-house off

AAIB report shows nothing wrong with Air India ops: MD & CEO Wilson

Air India CEO Campbell Wilson says the AAIB's preliminary report on the June crash found no fault with aircraft, engines, or airline practices, while support for victims' families continues

Delhi airport to increase passenger handling capacity by 20% by 2030: CEO

Currently, Terminal 3 has four piers - two each for domestic and international operations

Aviation ministry to review performance of training organisations soon

The civil aviation ministry will soon convene a meeting to review the performance of flying training organisations in the country against the backdrop of most of them not faring well in recent rankings. In the first-ever ranking of Flying Training Organisations (FTOs) by aviation watchdog DGCA, none of the 35 organisations in the list managed to get top ratings of 'A+' and 'A'. Out of the 35 FTOs, 13 got 'B' and 22 received 'C' rankings. Civil Aviation Minister K Rammohan Naidu told PTI that he will meet with representatives of FTOs to discuss ways to improve their standards. Their rankings will be conducted every six months, the minister said, adding that monthly meetings to review the FTOs' performance are not required. FTOs provide training for pilots and other aviation professionals. Operational aspects, performance, safety standards, compliance standards, and assistance to students were considered by the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) in evaluating the FTOs for

Pilots' body welcomes DGCA move to allow private centres for medical tests

Aviation regulator DGCA has decided to empanel private aeromedical evaluation centres for conducting civil aviation medical tests, with the pilots' grouping ALPA India saying the move will streamline pilot medicals, ensure higher efficiency and greater compliance with international norms. Welcoming the decision, the Airline Pilots' Association of India (ALPA India) said it marks the end of routine civil aviation medicals being conducted at Indian Air Force (IAF) centres. "The move, long advocated by ALPA India, represents a major milestone in the separation of military and civil medical evaluation frameworks, bringing India in line with global aviation best practices. The association had consistently raised concerns about the logistical inconvenience, lack of standardisation, and non-transparent procedures in Air Force medical evaluation," ALPA India said in a release. According to the release, the earlier requirement of undergoing every fifth medical at IAF centres often resulted i

Air India's Newark-bound plane returns to Mumbai following technical issue

A Newark-bound Air India flight, operated with a Boeing 777 aircraft, returned to Mumbai on Wednesday morning due to a technical issue. The Boeing 777 plane, which took off at around 1.50 am for Newark on Wednesday, was airborne for over three hours before returning to Mumbai, according to information available on flight tracking website Flightradar24.com. "The crew of flight AI191 operating from Mumbai to Newark on 22 October, made a precautionary air-return to Mumbai due to a suspected technical issue. The flight landed safely back in Mumbai, and the aircraft is undergoing necessary inspections," the airline said in a statement. Air India said AI191 and AI144 (scheduled to operate from Newark to Mumbai) were cancelled. All affected passengers at Mumbai have been provided hotel accommodations and have been rebooked on alternative Air India and other airlines' flights to their destination. Details about the number of passengers were not disclosed. The passengers of AI144 from Newa

Lessors protest India's draft rules on payment of dues to reclaim jets

India is a key market for lessors as hundreds of new planes are on order by the likes of Air India and IndiGo

IndiGo signs contract to buy additional 30 A350 widebody planes from Airbus

India's largest carrier and the European aircraft manufacturer had, in June this year, signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) for these additional 30 planes

Air India Express to launch direct Agartala-Bagdogra flight from Oct 26

The service will coincide with the beginning of the winter flight schedule, marking a new chapter in Tripura's aviation connectivity

Aircraft lands safely after windshield cracks ahead of its Chennai arrival

A crack in the windshield of an aircraft belonging to a private airline carrying 76 passengers from Madurai was detected by the pilot ahead of its landing at the airport here on Saturday, authorities said. The pilot noticed the crack in the front glass and informed the Air Traffic Controller at the airport here. On receipt of the information, arrangements were made at the airport and the plane landed safely, they said. The aircraft was taken to a separate bay (Bay No 95) for parking and passengers later safely disembarked. Currently, arrangements are being made to replace the windshield, they said. The cause of the incident is not yet known, they said. Due to the incident, the flight's return journey to Madurai has been cancelled, they added.

Akasa Air plane flying from Pune to Delhi suffers bird hit; lands safely

An Akasa Air aircraft flying from Pune to Delhi suffered a bird hit on Friday and landed safely in the national capital. The plane is being examined by the engineering team and will be released for service after a thorough inspection, an airline spokesperson said in a statement to PTI. "Akasa Air flight QP 1607 flying from Pune to Delhi on 10th October 2025 experienced a bird hit. The aircraft landed safely and all passengers and crew members were deplaned," the spokesperson said. Details regarding the number of passengers were not disclosed. The flight, operated with a Boeing 737 MAX 8 aircraft, landed in the national capital little past 10 am on Friday, according to information available on flight tracking website Flightradar24.com. The aircraft that suffered the bird hit was scheduled to operate the flight from Delhi to Goa. This service was delayed by a few hours as another plane was deployed for the route, according to sources.

Pilot body demands grounding of Air India's B-787s over technical failures

The Federation of Indian Pilots highlighted two recent incidents when the aircraft suffered serious systems' failures, including deployment of the emergency turbine motor in one case

Fewer flights, firmer fares: Why air tickets are not getting any cheaper

With fewer planes flying and steady passenger demand, airfares are likely to stay firm or rise modestly through the festive and winter travel season

Air India Colombo-Chennai flight suffers bird hit, return journey cancelled

An Air India Colombo-Chennai flight carrying 158 passengers suffered a bird hit on Tuesday, forcing the airline to cancel its return journey, airport authorities said. The aircraft landed safely, and all the passengers were safely disembarked from the plane, they said. The bird hit was detected after it touched down at the airport here, the authorities added. The aircraft has been grounded, and extensive checks were carried out by the Air India engineers and the airline officials cancelled its return journey due to the incident, they said. The airliner arranged another aircraft for 137 passengers who later left for Colombo, they said.

Boeing preparing to raise 737 Max output to 42 jets as soon as October

The company is also laying the groundwork to increase the manufacturing pace again in April and once more in late 2026