Page 16 - Dgca

Budget carrier IndiGo forecasts slowdown in capacity growth next year

The carrier aims to add more than one aircraft to its fleet every week next year. As of Feb 29, it operated 366 planes, and had a further 960 on order

IndiGo exploring purchase of widebody aircraft to counter Air India

IndiGo has repeatedly toyed with the idea of introducing long-haul services to tap the growing pool of affluent Indians flying further afield to places such as the UK and Europe

New FDTL rules: Have enough pilots, won't cancel flights, says Akasa CEO

As of February 2024, the cancellation rate at Akasa Air has been 0.30 per cent, which is the lowest among domestic Indian carriers

CAE signs deal with Akasa Air to train budget carrier's B737 Max pilots

Agreement gives Akasa Air 'access to world's best training facilities' for 15 years

Air India Express to operate non-stop flights to Kochi, Imphal from Kolkata

Air India Express, a subsidiary of Air India, is all set to begin non-stop flights to Imphal and Kochi from Kolkata this April, an airline official said. "The flights to Imphal will operate daily, while those to Kochi will fly six days a week," he said. The flight from Kolkata to Imphal will depart at 7 am and will reach in Manipur capital at 8.05 am. The return flight will depart at 8.35 am and arrive in Kolkata at 10.20 am, he said. The Kolkata-Kochi flight will take off at 11.25am and reach the destination at 2.35pm, while the return flight will leave at 3.05pm and land here at 6.10pm. The airline through route integration will be operating more flights on various domestic routes, sources said. Meanwhile, the airline has recently announced introduction of four fare products - Xpress Lite (cabin baggage only fares), Xpress Value (15 kg check-in bag fares), Xpress Flex (unlimited changes with no change fees), and Xpress Biz (business class seating with complimentary Gourmair meal

DGCA issues license for Ambikapur airport to begin flight operations

The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) has issued the aerodrome license for Ambikapur airport in Chhattisgarh's Surguja district to start flight operations, officials said on Saturday. Maa Mahamaya Airport, Ambikapur, has been developed in the 3-C VFR category to expand air services in the state, a public relations department official said. An application, seeking a license to start air services from the airport, was submitted to the DGCA in December 2022. The aviation regulator on Friday granted the license to the state government for Ambikapur Airport, he said. With this, the state now has three licensed airports -- Bilaspur, Jagdalpur and Ambikapur under the regional connectivity scheme (RCS), he added. The license has paved the way for the operation of 72-seater flights from Ambikapur, he added. The state government has already been making efforts to start air service from Ambikapur Airport to Raipur, Bilaspur, Lucknow, Patna, and Ranchi. With the commencement of fl

DGCA sticks to June 1 deadline for revised flight duty norms for pilots

Aviation regulator DGCA has decided not to extend the June 1 deadline for implementing the revised flight duty norms for pilots and asked airlines to submit the revised schemes by April 15, according to a communication. The Federation of Indian Airlines (FIA), comprising Air India, SpiceJet and IndiGo, had written at least twice to the regulator seeking more time for implementation of the revised Flight Duty Time Limitations (FDTL) norms were issued on January 8. The new norms, to come into force from June 1, provide for rest time for pilots and seek to alleviate pilot fatigue. In a communication to the FIA, the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) said that airlines have to take all necessary steps to roll out the revised FDTL CAR, with effect from June 1, 2024. Further, the carriers have been asked to ensure that the FDTL schemes in tune with the revised norms are submitted for approval by April 15. The revised norms provide for increased weekly rest time to 48 hours for

DGCA refuses to extend June 1 deadline to implement new FDTL rules

FDTL norms are important as they ensure adequate rest for pilots so that there is no untoward incident

Domestic air traffic rises 4.8% to 12.64 mn in Feb, 155K faced delays

Domestic air traffic rose 4.8 per cent on an annual basis to 126.48 lakh in February, while more than 1.55 lakh passengers were affected by flight delays during the same period, according to official data released on Friday. In February, Air India's market share rose to 12.8 per cent from 12.2 per cent while that of IndiGo marginally dipped to 60.1 per cent from 60.2 per cent in January. The domestic air traffic climbed to 126.48 lakh in February compared to 120.69 lakh in the year-ago period, the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) said. However, the traffic was less than 1.31 crore reported in January. "Passengers carried by domestic airlines during January - February 2024 were 257.78 lakh, as against 246.11 lakh during the corresponding period of the previous year thereby registering an annual growth of 4.74 per cent and monthly growth of 4.80 per cent," DGCA said. As many as 1,55,387 passengers were affected due to flight delays in February and scheduled carriers shel

Goa-based airline FLY91 to start commercial services from March 18

Regional airline FLY91 will start commercial services from March 18, with flights connecting Goa to Bengaluru and Hyderabad. Besides, it will have flights to Sindhudurg from Bengaluru and Hyderabad. The Goa-based carrier plans to start flights to Lakshadweep from April, its chief Manoj Chacko said on Tuesday. The airline received its air operator permit from aviation regulator DGCA on March 6. At a briefing at the Mopa airport, FLY91 MD and CEO Manoj Chacko said the airline will have a total of six ATR 72-600 planes in six months. Currently, there are two aircraft in its fleet. "We aim to connect Bharat," Chacko said and added that initially, it will connect 13 city pairs. The carrier plans to start flights to Lakshadweep from April. In the next five years, FLY91 plans to have around 35 planes, connect 50 cities and 6 bases, Chacko said. The carrier, operated by Just Udo Aviation Pvt Ltd, seeks to enhance air connectivity across Tier 2 and Tier 3 cities. Chacko said the airli

Several team members resigned as part of strategic restructuring: SpiceJet

SpiceJet on Tuesday said several members of its commercial team have resigned with immediate effect, as part of a strategic restructuring at the airline. On Monday, sources said the airline's Chief Operating Officer Arun Kashyap and Chief Commercial Officer Shilpa Bhatia have put in their papers. "As part of SpiceJet's strategic restructuring, several members of the commercial team including the Chief Commercial Officer have left the company with immediate effect," an airline spokesperson said in a statement on Tuesday. With the recent fundraise, the spokesperson said it is speeding up the process of resolution of all past disputes, and continues to see significant growth in revenue and load factor.

Airbus gets DGCA approval for new generation H160 helicopter in India

Airbus has received approval from aviation regulator DGCA for its new generation H160 helicopter in India. More than 100 helicopters of Airbus, including the single-engine H125, are being operated by various entities in the country. In a release on Thursday, Airbus said its H160 helicopter has been granted the letter of type acceptance by the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) that will pave the way for its entry into the Indian market. A multi-role helicopter, H160 can be used for offshore transportation, emergency medical services, private and business aviation and public services, among others. Sunny Guglani, Head of Airbus Helicopters, Airbus India and South Asia, said the DGCA approval paves the way for the introduction of the world's most modern helicopter in India starting with a corporate customer followed by the potential deployment for other types of missions. "Airbus Helicopters is committed to developing a holistic helicopter ecosystem in India, including ...

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.

Flight ops from Dehradun to Ayodhya, Varanasi, Amritsar start today

Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami inaugurated the flight operations from Dehradun to these three major citiesThe three services were launched from Dehradun's Jolly Grant Airport on Wednesday.CM Dhami inaugurated the event by lighting a lamp and cutting a cake.Speaking on the occasion, the Chief Minister said, "We endeavour to make moving the people within the entire state of Uttarakhand convenient, simple and easy. For this, we are continuously making efforts and the people of the country are travelling to different places in the state.""Flagged off air services from Jolly Grant Airport, Dehradun to Shri Ayodhya Dham, Amritsar, Pantnagar and Varanasi and gave boarding passes to the passengers and wished them a happy journey. As a result of the efforts of the double engine government, the air connectivity of Devbhoomi Uttarakhand is continuously getting strengthened. With the start of these air services, while people will get convenience in transportation, tourism in the state will ...

Flyers with special needs share ordeal: Airlines ensure enough wheelchairs

The number of people with disability and reduced mobility travelling by air has gone up over the years

DGCA changes rules, mandates alcohol test for 25% airport employees

A total of 189 people working at 59 Indian airports were found drunk on duty in the first half of 2023, marking a 32 percent year-on-year increase, as per the data from DGCA

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

DGCA issues stricter breath analyser norms for air traffic controllers

Aviation regulator DGCA has mandated that at least 25 per cent of the air traffic controllers, aircraft maintenance engineers, and personnel carrying out safety-sensitive work at an airport will have to undergo a breath analyser test daily. The revised Civil Aviation Requirements (CAR) in this regard will come into force after three months, the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) said in a release on Thursday. Currently, the breath analyser test percentage required is 10 per cent and that has been increased to 25 per cent. It will be applicable for air traffic controllers, ground staff, aircraft maintenance engineers, and ground handling services personnel right. According to the regulator, revisions have been made to the CAR on the procedure for breath analyser examination of the personnel engaged in safety-sensitive work such as aircraft maintenance, air traffic control services, aerodrome operations, and ground handling services for detecting the consumption of ...

Air India fined Rs 30 lakh over man's death after wheelchair unavailability

The man, in his 80s, died on February 12 after collapsing when he decided to walk after being told by Air India that the waiting time for the wheelchair was long due to heavy demand

DGCA unlikely to extend June 1 deadline to implement new FDTL rules

In a bid to ensure better fatigue management, the DGCA on January 8 revamped the FDTL regulations