Page 7 - Flight

Congress claims Khera deplaned from Raipur flight, stages dharna on tarmac

The Congress on Thursday claimed its leader Pawan Khera was deplaned from a flight to Raipur, where he was going to attend the party's plenary session. Several party leaders got off the plane after Khera was deboarded and staged a dharna on the tarmac. As drama escalated at terminal one of the domestic airport here, flight staff told Congress leaders there was confusion with Khera's bags. They said police was on its way and would explain the reason to him. Several Congress leaders raised slogans against the government while on the tarmac. "We are all on the @IndiGo6E flight 6E 204 to Raipur and all of a sudden my colleague @Pawankhera has been asked to deplane," Congress spokesperson Supriya Shrinate, who was also on the flight, said on Twitter. "What sort of high handedness is this? Is there any rule of law? On what grounds is this being done and under whose order?" she said. The flight was delayed.

DGCA proposes steps for mental health of crew, air traffic controllers

To ensure mental wellbeing of flight crew and air traffic controllers, civil aviation watchdog DGCA has proposed various measures, including mental health assessment during the medical assessments and peer support programme. A circular will be issued to airlines and Airports Authority of India (AAI) to put in place the necessary provisions to implement the recommendations, a senior DGCA official said on Wednesday. Air Traffic Controllers (ATCOs) come under AAI. Amid concerns about the mental health of flight crew and ATCOs, the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) had set up an expert panel. The panel identified three major domains where measures can be taken. They are "mental health assessment during the medical assessments, Peer Support Programme (PSP), and pre-employment psychological assessment," the DGCA said in a release. The expert panel comprised experienced DGCA officers, air safety, clinical aerospace medicine and mental health experts (psychologists). The aim w

AI Express Mumbai-Dubai flight gets delayed by 13 hrs due to technical snag

As many as 170 passengers of an Air India Express flight to Dubai had a tough time at the airport here as the flight was delayed by 13 hours due to a technical snag. The flight, which was scheduled to take off for Dubai at 3 pm on Thursday, finally left at 4 am on Friday. In a statement, Tata Group-owned Air India Express said it provided assistance to some 50 passengers, who had special requirements, including the lounge facility. However, the remaining 120 passengers were kept at the airport terminal building, an airline source said. A total of 170 passengers were booked for the flight. Significantly, Tata Group operates at least four luxury hotels in the city with one in the domestic airport terminal premises itself. "Air India Express flight IX 247 on Mumbai-Dubai route on February 9, 2023 had a progressive delay due to a technical snag, which was beyond the control of the airline," the airline said. "We made all possible efforts to minimise the difficulties of our guests, di

Air India: Accused spreading falsities with intent of further harassment

The Complainant through her Lawyer Ankur Mehindro stated that it has been brought to our knowledge that certain scurrilous and defamatory allegations have been made on behalf of the accused

Nothing suspicious found on Moscow-Goa flight: Jamnagar Airport director

According to the airport director, the flight will depart from Jamnagar to Goa between 10.30 am and 11 am

Unruly Air India passenger handed over to London police in Sep: Reports

The drunk passenger allegedly attempted to touch an eight-year-old girl inappropriately, according to a complaint by the girl's mother and 20-year-old brother travelling with her on the flight

Man urinates on woman passenger onboard Air India flight, DGCA seeks report

Air India has lodged a police complaint regarding the incident that took place on November 26 when the flight was on its way from John F Kennedy international airport in New York to Delhi

Phuket-bound IndiGo flight returns to Delhi due to technical glitch

All passengers were deboarded and shifted to the terminal building, while an alternate aircraft was arranged for the next operation

Akasa Air launches Agartala-Bengaluru flight via Guwahati on Oct 21

Akasa Air, India's newest airline, on Friday launched its daily flight services in the Agartala-Bengaluru route, via Guwahati

Air India aims 30% international mkt share in 5 years: CEO Campbell Wilson

Air India chief Campbell Wilson on Tuesday said the airline aims to have 30 per cent share in both domestic and international markets in the next five years. Currently, the loss-making carrier, which was taken over by Tata group in January, has put in place the revival plan 'Vihaan.AI'. Air India aims to have 30 per cent share in domestic and international markets in the next five years, Wilson, who is the MD and CEO, told reporters here. Currently, the airline has a domestic market share of 10 per cent and an international market share of 12 per cent. Vihaan.AI' is a comprehensive transformation plan with a detailed road map for the next five years. The airline will be inducting 5 wide-body Boeing and 25 Airbus narrow-body planes over the next 15 months. The aircraft being leased are 21 Airbus A320 neos, 4 Airbus A321 neos and 5 Boeing B777-200LRs. Air India's narrow-body fleet stands at 70 aircraft. Out of them, 54 are in service and the remaining 16 aircraft will progressively

Bangalore-bound Akasa Air flight returns to Mumbai after bird strike

A Bangalore-bound Akasa Air flight from here returned to the city airport due to a burning smell in the cabin, which later turned out to be due to a bird strike, a DGCA official said on Saturday. The Directorate General of Civil Aviation is looking into the incident, the official said. The number of passengers on board the flight could not be immediately known. "The aircraft VT-YAE, operating Akasa Air flight AKJ1103 from Mumbai for Bangalore was involved in air turnback due to the burning smell felt in the cabin. The smell increased as the thrust was increased, said the official. The airline's response to the incident was awaited. The DGCA official said, however, no other abnormality including in engine parameters was observed. "After landing during the inspection, bird remains were found on engine number 1 of the aircraft," he said and added that, "the burning smell was due to bird strike," he stated. Akasa Air started its operations on August 7 this year.

IndiGo to launch Mumbai-Istanbul flights from Jan 1, bookings begin

No-frills airline IndiGo on Tuesday said it will connect the city with Istanbul in Turkey from early next year. The non-stop air services on the new route, which will commence from January 1, will be operated daily. Bookings for these flights began from Tuesday, the airline said in a statement. These new routes and additional frequencies will enhance international connectivity between India and Turkey and beyond, through IndiGo's code share with Turkish Airlines, it said. "In line with our vision to strengthen international connectivity from India, we have launched a new connection between Mumbai- Istanbul. This will enhance international capacity and offer more options to the consumers," said Vinay Malhotra, Head of Global Sales, IndiGo.

IAF aircraft scramble after bomb threat in Iranian passenger flight

The Indian Air Force on Monday said it scrambled its fighter jets following a bomb scare on a China-bound Iranian civilian plane that was flying over the Indian airspace. An intimation was received of the bomb scare on an airline bearing Iranian registration, when it was transiting through Indian airspace, the IAF said, adding the plane was offered the option to land at Jaipur or Chandigarh but the pilots refused to divert. "IAF fighter aircraft were scrambled, which followed the aircraft at a safe distance. The aircraft was offered the option to land at Jaipur and then, at Chandigarh. However, the pilot declared his unwillingness to divert to either of the two airports. "After a while, intimation was received from Tehran to disregard the bomb scare, following which, the aircraft continued on its journey towards its final destination," it said. According to ATC sources, the incident happened on the Mahan Air flight W581 that was flying from Tehran to Guangzhou. Meanwhile, a senio

8 Cheetahs from Namibia set to arrive in Gwalior after 10-hour flight

The animals will be transported in wooden crates aboard a Boeing 747 aircraft, which sports the 'Siberian Tiger' theme livery

Aircraft with 22 people on board makes emergency landing in western Nepal

A passenger aircraft en route to the mountainous district of Mustang made an emergency landing at Pokhara airport minutes after take-off today

Pilot of prominent airline fails drug test; DGCA removes him from duty

A pilot of a prominent airline has been removed from flight duty after he failed a drug test, a senior DGCA official said on Friday. He is the fourth pilot to fail the drug test since the procedure for examination of aviation personnel for consumption of psychoactive substances came into effect from January 31. The test is done for the flight crew and ATCs on a random basis. So far, four pilots and one Air Traffic Controller (ATC) have tested positive for psychoactive substances. According to the official, a pilot of a prominent airline was subjected to the drug test in the national capital. He was found positive in the confirmatory test report received on August 23 and has been removed from the flight duty, the official said. As per the Civil Aviation Requirement (CAR), in case the result of the confirmatory drug test is positive for the first time, then the personnel concerned will be referred to a de-addiction centre by the organisation concerned for de-addiction and ...

Maldives-bound Go First flight diverted to Coimbatore after smoke warning

The aircraft landed safely at the airport and has been parked in the apron. The pilot reported that all operations were normal, the sources said without elaborating.

Delhi-bound IndiGo flight grounded at Patna airport after bomb threat

A Delhi-bound IndiGo flight (6e 2126) reportedly grounded at Patna airport after a passenger claimed that he had a bomb in his bag

Windshield of Go First's flight cracks mid-air, plane diverted to Jaipur

This is the third incident of technical malfunction on a Go First aircraft in two days

Heathrow restrictions hit Virgin's India-London flight, more could follow

Virgin Atlantic cancelled its Delhi-London flight on Thursday and other carriers could also pull out India-London flights from their summer schedule