Page 5 - Civil Aviation Sector

16,000 remote pilot certificates issued for operating drones in India: Govt

As many as 16,000 Remote Pilot Certificates (RPCs) have been issued for operating drones in the country, Minister of State for Civil Aviation Murlidhar Mohol told the Rajya Sabha on Monday. The certificates have been issued by the DGCA-approved Remote Pilot Training Organisations (RPTOs). In a written reply, Mohol also said that 48 drone companies are producing DGCA type-certified Unmanned Aircraft System (UAS) models in the country and 70 models have been type certified by the regulator. "The drone industry is witnessing growth in India. Till date, 16,000 Remote Pilot Certificates (RPC) have been issued by Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA)-approved RPTOs," he said. There are 116-DGCA-approved RPTOs.

Panasonic Avionics opens new software design & development facility in Pune

In-flight Engagement and Connectivity (IFEC) solutions provider Panasonic Avionics on Wednesday opened a new software design and development facility in Pune. The new facility, inaugurated by the Minister of State for Civil Aviation, Murlidhar Mohol, is the first in the country by Panasonic Avionics Corporation dedicated to supporting the development and delivery of IFEC solutions. The facility employs over 200 skilled engineers in the beginning with growth plans in place to scale it up further to support the increasing demand from airlines for these solutions, the company said. Panasonic Avionics said the new facility will accelerate its software development capabilities and help improve the time-to-market for robust, next-generation IFEC and digital solutions. "With its huge number of skilled engineers, and fast-growing aviation sector, India is a natural location for us to invest in for the future of our business, and we look forward to accelerating our software innovation and .

Tripura min writes to Civil Aviation Minister for BCAS office in Agartala

Tripura Transport Minister Sushanta Chowdhury has asked Civil Aviation Minister K Rammohan Naidu to sanction a new regional office of the Bureau of Civil Aviation Security in Agartala. In a letter to Naidu, the Tripura transport minister said MBB Airport in Agartala is the second busiest airport in the northeast after Guwahati's Lokpriya Gopinath Bordoloi International Airport. "It is reliably learnt that 17 new offices of BCAS will be set up across the country shortly. MBB Airport in Agartala, Tripura, is the second busiest airport in the entire Northeast of India after Guwahati's Lokpriya Gopinath Bordoloi International Airport. The annual traffic at MBB Airport is about 13 lakh," Chowdhury said in a letter to the Union minister on Saturday. Chowdhury stated, "The new terminal building of MBB Airport which was inaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in January 2022 is a modern and international category. Infrastructure for international flight operations between Agartala and .

Rajasthan tourism industry optimistic about state's civil aviation policy

Tourism expert Mohan Singh Mertiya says the projects listed under the policy will improve aviation in the state, "which will be a big support to the tourism industry"

'Bright future for air cargo sector, needs faster turnaround time'

To tap the potential of the country's air cargo sector, the focus should be on further improving processes as well as ensuring faster turnaround time, a senior government official said on Thursday. The government is working on developing logistics hubs. Piyush Srivastava, Senior Economic Advisor at the Ministry of Civil Aviation, said the air cargo sector has a bright future and the number of freighters in the country is expected to rise. Currently, Indian carriers have around 18 freighters. There will be a focus on further improving the ease of doing business and faster turnaround time in the air cargo sector, he said while speaking at the conference organised by the ACFI (Air Cargo Forum India) in the national capital. While passenger traffic has recovered after being hit by the coronavirus pandemic, air cargo is yet to fully recover to the pre-Covid levels. In 2023-24, the air cargo handled in the country was a little over 3.36 million tonnes. Surendra Kumar Ahirwar, Joint ..

IndiGo, Garuda Aviation Academy to train fresh pilots as junior officers

No-frills carrier IndiGo on Thursday said it has partnered with Garuda Aviation Academy to train fresh pilots as future junior first officers, under the airline's Cadet Pilot Program. The 21-month course includes a three-month ground schooling at Garuda Aviation Academy training centre in Gurugram, followed by 12 months of training at 43 Air School in South Africa, which has a track record of training over 6,000 ab-initio pilots over the years, IndiGo said. Over the last 13 years, the airline said, it has formed eight such partnerships and inducted over 1,000 pilots through these full training programmes, including commercial pilot licence and A320 type rating, the airline said. These courses start right from cadet selection to induction into the airline as a pilot, according to the airline. "The partnership with Garuda Aviation Academy will bolster our Cadet Pilot Programme. We believe that this 21-month course will successfully foster the next generation of skilled pilots who wil

IndiGo flight from Chennai to Mumbai receives bomb threat; lands safely

IndiGo, in its statement, said that all the passengers were safely disembarked from the aeroplane

Boeing's CEO to face questions about plane safety from US senators

US lawmakers are expected to press Boeing's chief executive on Tuesday about the company's latest plan to fix its manufacturing problems, and relatives of people who died in two crashes of Boeing 737 Max jetliners plan to be in the room, watching him. CEO David Calhoun is scheduled to appear before the Senate investigations subcommittee, which is chaired by Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., a Boeing critic. The hearing will mark the first appearance before Congress by Calhoun or any other high-ranking Boeing official since a panel blew out of a 737 Max during an Alaska Airlines flight in January. No one was seriously injured in the incident, but it raised fresh concerns about the company's best-selling commercial aircraft. The National Transportation Safety Board and the Federal Aviation Administration are conducting separate investigations. From the beginning, we took responsibility and cooperated transparently with the NTSB and the FAA, Calhoun said in remarks prepared for the

Global airlines bet big on India, expect it to be hottest travel market

The domestic air travel market in India is expected to double to 300 million passengers from a record 152 million in 2023, according to government data

TDP MP Kinjarapu Rammohan Naidu takes charge of civil aviation ministry

Telugu Desam Party MP Kinjarapu Rammohan Naidu on Thursday assumed the charge of Civil Aviation Minister, succeeding Jyotiraditya Scindia in the new Narendra Modi-led NDA government. The 36-year-old three-time MP is the youngest Cabinet Minister in the Modi 3.0 government. "I am feeling extremely happy to be given this responsibility of leading a very important ministry, not only in the country but also in the entire world. First of all, I would like to thank TDP (Telugu Desam Party) chief and Andhra Pradesh CM Chandrababu Naidu for giving me the opportunity to join the Cabinet and PM Modi for assigning me this ministry," he said. Naidu further said that one of the most important priorities will be to create an "ease of flying" scenario in civil aviation as air travel is becoming more and more approachable to the common man, and that has always been the motto of this government. "...we will make civil aviation or the air travel in this country more approachable to the common man of

British Airways to start New Delhi-London daily flight from April 20

Expanding its services to India, British Airways will start a new daily flight between the national capital and London Heathrow from April 20, 2025. "This will increase the airline's schedule across India to 63 flights a week across five cities," the airline said in a release. Currently, the carrier operates 56 weekly flights to India. These include daily services from Chennai, Bengaluru and Hyderabad. The new flight, starting from April 20, will be operated with a Boeing 787-8 aircraft. Neil Chernoff, British Airways' Chief Planning and Strategy Officer said the airline is celebrating 100 years of flying to India. "We eagerly anticipate welcoming passengers on board our new flights and continuing our legacy of excellence in the skies," Moran Birger, Head of Sales Asia Pacific and Middle East at British Airways, said.

Increasing flights, more observations of clear air amid turbulence scare

As more and more flights criss-cross the skies, there are more observations of clear air turbulence, which has increased over the decades very likely due to climate change, and airlines are continuing with efforts to mitigate the impact of turbulence. Though rare, a Singapore Airlines flight from London to Singapore experienced severe turbulence on May 20 that caused the death of a passenger and left more than 70 people injured. While investigation is still on, the incident has also brought the focus on turbulence, especially the factors of climate change and Clear Air Turbulence (CAT). In recent weeks, there have also been other incidents of turbulence. Generally, CAT is defined as any turbulence where there is no cloudiness, and is invisible, which also makes detection difficult by pilots and radars in an aircraft. "While variations in climate can cause variations in CAT, a robust increase in CAT over decades is very likely to be because of climate change," Manoj Joshi, a Profess

Delhi's airport among top 10 busiest airports in the world: Full list here

ACI report: Global air travel rebounded with 8.5 billion passengers in 2023. See where India ranks

Uttar Pradesh govt targeting $2 billion investment in civil aviation

Uttar Pradesh witnessed a rise of 20 per cent in the number of flyers in FY24, indicating a sharp uptick in aviation growth in leisure and business tourism

Govt needs to expand PLI scheme to make India 'global drone hub': Report

The government needs to expand the production-linked incentive (PLI) scheme and develop an ecosystem to realise the goal of making India a global drone hub, a report said on Tuesday. An incentive of Rs 120 crore spread over three financial years was provided for Indian manufacturers of drone and drone components under the PLI Scheme notified on September 30, 2021. As per the Ministry of Civil Aviation projections, the Indian drone manufacturing industry is expected to reach Rs 900 crore by 2025 from just Rs 60 crore in 2020-21, according to a study conducted by Nexgen Exhibitions. It also noted that the Indian drone market is expected to grow at 22.15 per cent CAGR (compounded annual growth rate) during the 2024-30 period. With innovation and expansion of its application portfolio, India has the potential of becoming the global drone hub by 2030, it stated. The study highlighted that the key to realising India's vision lies in boosting the domestic drone ecosystem. Other major fac

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

Return to work or face termination: Air India Express gives crew ultimatum

Air India Express fired 25 cabin crew members and demanded others to either return to work by 4 pm on Thursday or face termination

Over 100 Air India Express flights cancelled as cabin crew calls in sick

Air India Express has opted to reduce its flight operations until May 13, with a usual schedule of around 360 flights per day, covering both domestic and international routes

Air India Express fires cabin crew members over 'premeditated' sick leave

According to Air India Express CEO Aloke Singh, more than 100 cabin crew members had reported sick just before their rostered flight duty since Tuesday night

Akasa Air now allows carriage of pets weighing up to 10 kg in cabin

Akasa Air passengers can now carry pets that weigh up to 10 kilograms in the cabin of domestic flights, with the airline on Wednesday saying the enhancement to its pet travel service has been done after taking customer feedback into consideration. In November 2022, the airline introduced the service wherein passengers have been allowed to travel on domestic flights with their cats and dogs in the cabin or cargo, based on their weight. "As part of the enhancements, Akasa Air now allows customers to travel with pets weighing up to 10 kg (including the weight of the container) in the cabin -- an increase from the previous limit of 7 kg. This change has been introduced keeping customer feedback in mind, reflecting the airline's commitment to continuously enhance its services to meet the evolving travel needs of its customers," the airline said in a release. In the cargo, pets weighing up to 32 kg are allowed by Akasa Air. According to the release, the airline has carried more than 3,20