Page 5 - Civil Aviation

Non-availability of pilots impact flight operations of Vistara: Report

Flight operations of Vistara were impacted at Delhi and Mumbai airports, mainly due to the non-availability of pilots, according to industry sources. Some flights were cancelled and many were delayed at the two airports on Wednesday, they said. Specific details could not be immediately ascertained and there was no comment from Vistara. The full-service carrier operates more than 300 flights daily with a fleet of 67 planes. The sources said some pilots reported sick which impacted the schedule. Also, there are concerns among pilots about the new salary structure being implemented at the airline, which will be similar to that of Air India. The sources also claimed that the situation with respect to pilots has been aggravated by the seasonal phenomenon of crew exhausting their sick leaves as the financial year is coming to a close. According to the sources, in recent times, traffic congestion at the Mumbai airport and weather disruptions have also resulted in flight delays and ...

Supply chain issues to hit aircraft deliveries for Indian airlines: Report

Aircraft deliveries to domestic airlines are likely to be impacted amid the supply chain challenges being faced by aircraft and engine makers, a report said on Wednesday. In its report, credit rating agency Icra said Indian airlines have a total order book of around 1,700 aircraft, which is more than double the size of the current fleet. Supply chain challenges and engine failure issues remain the headwinds in the near term, Icra said in its mid-term outlook on the domestic aviation industry. "The deliveries, however, are likely to be gradual, spanning over the next decade, and will also be impacted by the current supply chain challenges encountered by engine and aircraft Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEMs)," it said. India is one of the fastest-growing civil aviation markets and domestic air traffic is on the rise. Airlines have also embarked on ambitious expansion plans to cater to the increasing travel demand. Since February last year, Akasa Air, Air India and IndiGo togeth

Manoj Chacko's Fly 91 gets air operator permit, routes under UDAN scheme

Goa-based regional airline FLY91 on Wednesday received the Air Operator Certificate (AOC) from aviation regulator DGCA. The carrier has now completed all the compliance requirements and will start commercial operations soon, it said in a release. FLY91 received its first ATR 72-600, one of the two aircraft leased from Dubai Aerospace Enterprise, last week. The airline has already been allocated its first set of routes under the government's regional air connectivity scheme UDAN, the release said. Under UDAN, the airline will connect Sindhudurg, Jalgaon, Nanded in Maharashtra and Agatti in Lakshadweep. FLY91 (Just Udo Aviation Pvt Ltd) is headquartered in Goa.

Average daily domestic traffic jumps by 3.78% in February, shows data

As the demand remains high, four of out six major carriers recorded load factors at above 90 per cent in February

Akasa Air to trim its budget for 2024-25 as part of cost control measures

Akasa Air, which is all set to start international services this month, has decided to trim its budget for the next financial year starting April as part of cost control measures, according to two sources. When contacted, an airline spokesperson said it is always looking for prudent ways to control costs. The carrier, which commenced commercial flights on August 7, 2022, operates more than 20 Boeing 737 Max aircraft. The sources in the know told PTI on Monday that the airline has decided to reduce its budget for 2024-25 fiscal and the reduction could be up to 20 per cent compared to the current financial year. "As a cost-conscious business, we are always looking for prudent ways to control our costs without sacrificing safety, our customers' experience or the long-term health of the business. Cost consciousness does not apply to employee salaries," an Akasa Air spokesperson told PTI. "We take great pride in offering a market leading compensation package to each work group at the .

DGCA fines Air India Rs 30 lakh over failure to provide wheelchair

The 80-year-old passenger died of heart attack after he walked from plane to the terminal in Mumbai airport

Flight delays reduce at Mumbai airport post congestion driven cancellations

The airlines have cancelled about 200 flights per week to and from the Mumbai airport from February 15 onwards

India expected to become centre of world aviation in 15 years, says Airbus

The world's two largest aircraft orders were placed by IndiGo and Air India in the last year. In June 2023, IndiGo had placed an order for 500 A320neo family planes with Airbus

Not looking to acquire stake in Indian carriers: Malaysian carrier AirAsia

Budget airline flies to 14 Indian cities from Kuala Lumpur and Bangkok, plans to expand service in India

Matter 'practically settled' with Celestial Aviation: SpiceJet to NCLT

Counsel for Celestial told the tribunal that while they have received payments, the airline missed certain agreed-on deadlines for payment

Canada's Lynx Air to shut down, leaving no clarity for customers on refunds

Canadian discount airline Lynx Air will shut down on Monday and suggested that it could cancel many flights over the weekend too, leaving customers scrambling to make new travel plans. Lynx announced the shutdown late Thursday and told customers to contact their credit-card company about getting a refund for cancelled flights. The Calgary, Alberta, airline said it could not help with refunds. Canada's transport minister, Pablo Rodriguez, said he was following Lynx's announcement that it was filing for restructuring. He said he expected Lynx to help passengers get home and fully refund customers. The shutdown will take effect early Monday. On its website, the airline said, we will continue to operate the majority of our flights through this weekend. The airline said it put tremendous work into growth after launching the Lynx brand two years ago, but that inflation, fuel costs, competition and other factors have ultimately proven too steep a mountain for our organisation to ...

Regulator BCAS seeks explanation from Vistara on Mumbai airport incident

Regulator BCAS has sought an explanation from Vistara on the incident at the Mumbai airport where passengers from a Dubai flight were taken to the domestic terminal without completing the immigration process, a senior official said on Tuesday. The incident happened on February 4. Some passengers of Vistara flight UK 202 from Dubai were taken to domestic arrivals instead of international arrivals after landing at the Mumbai airport without completing the immigration process. The official said the Bureau of Civil Aviation Security (BCAS) has sought an explanation from Vistara on the incident. In a statement on Monday, a Vistara spokesperson said a "few of our customers, arriving from Dubai to Mumbai on Vistara flight UK 202 on February 4, were erroneously taken to domestic arrivals instead of international arrivals". The airline's team worked alongside security agencies and relevant authorities to ensure that these passengers were taken to the designated area to complete their arriv

Authorities look at Airport design, e-biometrics to speed up immigration

To expedite immigration and security check processes at airports, authorities will look at possible changes in the interior design of airports, cross utilisation of X-ray machines at domestic and international terminals as well as use of new technologies, including e-biometrics. At an advisory committee meeting chaired by Civil Aviation Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia on Friday, various plans were discussed to speed up immigration and security check processes for international passengers. "We are currently discussing the design models to speed up immigration & security for international travellers. New technologies such as e-biometrics are also on the anvil and are currently being tested. These will be key in our vision for international aviation hubs in India," Scindia said in a post on X. The meeting was attended by representatives of airport operators, officials from the ministries of civil aviation, home and external affairs, Airports Authority of India (AAI), Central Industrial

Civil aviation ministry to get Rs 2,300 cr budgetary allocation for 2024-25

The budgetary allocation for the civil aviation ministry has come down to Rs 2,300 crore for the next financial year. For the ministry, the allocation in the revised budgetary estimate for the current fiscal ending March 2024 stood at Rs 2,922.12 crore. According to the documents of the interim Budget for 2024-25, the ministry will get an allocation of Rs 2,300 crore, including the revenue component of Rs 2,257.79 crore. Out of the total amount, Air India Asset Holding Ltd (AIAHL) will get Rs 1,158.79 crore in the next fiscal, higher than Rs 713.92 crore allocated for 2023-24. The provision is kept for servicing of loans transferred to AIAHL as a result of financial restructuring of Air India, as per the Budget document. AIAHL is a special purpose vehicle formed by the government that holds various assets of the national carrier Air India. The allocation for Production-Linked Incentive (PLI) Scheme for Drone and Drone Component has been hiked to Rs 57 crore for 2024-25, from Rs 3

New FDTL norms will not affect Akasa Air's flight schedule: CEO Vinay Dube

The new mandate has increased weekly rest periods for flight crew to 48 hours in a week from the previous 36 hours

As passengers eat on airport tarmac, BCAS issues notice to IndiGo, MIAL

Aviation security watchdog BCAS has issued show cause notices to IndiGo and Mumbai airport operator MIAL over the incident of passengers having food on the airport tarmac on Sunday, according to official sources. Many passengers rushed out of an IndiGo aircraft at the Mumbai airport, sat on the tarmac, and some were also seen having food there as soon as their diverted Goa-Delhi flight landed after a long delay on Sunday. Both IndiGo and MIAL were not proactive in anticipating the situation and making the appropriate facilitation arrangements for passengers at the airport, as per the notices issued by the Bureau of Civil Aviation Security (BCAS). The sources said the aircraft was allotted a remote bay C-33 instead of a Contact Stand, an aircraft parking stand that is suitable for walking passengers to and from an aircraft from an allocated boarding gate. This further added to passenger woes and deprived them the opportunity to avail basic facilities like rest rooms and refreshments

Delhi airport: 10 flights diverted, nearly 100 delayed amid dense fog

A total of 10 flights were diverted, nearly 100 delayed and some cancelled at the Delhi airport on Sunday morning as low visibility conditions due to dense fog disrupted operations. An official said a total of 10 flights, including 2 international flights, were diverted to Jaipur between 4.30 am and 12 noon. Nearly 100 flights, including overseas services, were delayed and some of the flights cancelled due to the bad weather, the official said. Through social media, airlines said their flight schedules might be impacted due to adverse weather conditions. Among the impacted flights, Air India's flight AI 185 from the national capital to Vancouver that was to depart early in the morning was rescheduled. Passengers had to wait inside the aircraft for many hours before they deboarded. After boarding was complete, the flight, which was to depart little past 5 am could not take off due to the dense fog. An airline official said that after waiting for a few hours, it was decided to ...

48 hrs weekly rest, only 2 night landings in rules to avoid crew fatigue

The revision in FDTL regulations is expected to influence flight schedules and may result in certain implications when it comes to operating costs, aviation sources said

Merger into Air India likely by mid 2025, says Vistara CEO Kannan

Kannan emphasised that the airline is cash flow positive and will not require any capital infusion from its stakeholders in the near future

DGCA to enhance regulatory capacity to induct more planes this year

The Directorate General of Civil Aviation on Thursday said there are a total of 16 airlines in the country that are operating with 771 aircraft.The DGCA informed through an official statement on Thursday that in line with the anticipated increase in aircraft inductions in 2024, it was suitably enhancing its regulatory capacity to further speed up the regulatory approvals related to the induction of aircraft.It informed further that the DGCA grants Air Operator Certificates (AOC) to Airline Operators for undertaking Scheduled and Scheduled Commuter Air transport Services. As of December 31, 2023, there are a total of 16 AOC holders endorsed with a total of 771 aircraft, the topmost regulatory authority for flight operations informed.In addition, DGCA has permitted airline operators to induct 21 aircraft on a wet/damp lease basis in 2023 to cater for capacity shortfall due to the grounding of aircraft.Last year, the scheduled operators inducted a total of 112 aircraft in their fleet ...