Page 6 - Flights

Air India seeks lower landing fees for long-haul flights at Delhi airport

Air India has sought incentives for increasing the international to international traffic at the Delhi airport as well as lower landing charges for long-haul and ultra long-haul flights. The suggestions have been made by the Tata Group-owned airline to the Airports Economic Regulatory Authority (AERA) on the tariff proposal for the Delhi airport for the 2024-29 control period. The airline is slowly expanding its wide-body operations as well as network to cater to rising air traffic demand. When asked about the airline's suggestions, Air India CEO and MD Campbell Wilson told PTI that economic structure of the market should be supportive of the efforts to make India an aviation hub. DIAL, the operator of the Indira Gandhi International Airport (IGIA) in the national capital, has proposed different user fees for economy and business class passengers as well as for peak and off-peak hours. According to Air India, the variable tariff proposal needs to include incentive for increasing I

DIAL cries foul over flight operations from Hindon airport in Ghaziabad

Delhi HC refuses to grant interim relief, but agrees to hear plea

Delhi airport operator sues govt for allowing flights from defence airbase

The airport in Delhi is one of India's busiest, with about 73.6 million passengers last year, although it made a loss of $21 million because of higher government fees

AI Express adds 100th plane in fleet; aims at 500 daily flights by Mar-end

Air India Express now has 100 planes in its fleet by inducting another Boeing 737-8 aircraft, which operated its first flight on Bengaluru-Hindon route. In a release on Monday, the airline said it will be operating over 500 daily flights by the end of this month across a fast-expanding network of 54 destinations across India, the Middle East and Southeast Asia. From a fleet of 26 Boeing 737 NGs and 28 A320 aircraft in January 2022, when the airline was taken over by the Tata Group, the carrier's has almost doubled its fleet to 100 aircraft, according to the release. The 100th aircraft, featuring 'Chittara' tail art inspired by Karnataka's traditional mural painting, was flagged off by the airline's Managing Director Aloke Singh at Bengaluru's Kempegowda International Airport. "In just over three years since privatisation, we integrated and merged the LCC (low cost carrier) airlines, while scaling up rapidly with a modern and fuel-efficient fleet, broad basing our domestic network,

'No passengers, no planes': Here's why Pak's newest airport is a mystery

With no passengers and no planes, Pakistan's newest and most expensive airport is a bit of a mystery. Entirely financed by China to the tune of USD 240 million, it's anyone's guess when New Gwadar International Airport will open for business. Located in the coastal city of Gwadar and completed in October 2024, the airport is a stark contrast to the impoverished, restive southwestern Balochistan province around it. For the past decade, China has poured money into Balochistan and Gwadar as part of a multibillion dollar project that connects its western Xinjiang province with the Arabian Sea, called the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor or CPEC. Authorities have hailed it as transformational but there's scant evidence of change in Gwadar. The city isn't connected to the national grid electricity comes from neighboring Iran or solar panels and there isn't enough clean water. An airport with a 400,000 passenger capacity isn't a priority for the city's 90,000 people. This airport is no

Cheaper indirect routes pull Indian flyers away from direct Europe flights

Data from OAG, covering December 2023 to November 2024, shows that as much as a third of flyers between Mumbai and London and a fourth of flyers from Delhi to London travel indirectly

Govt says 255 passengers placed in 'no fly list' in last three years

The government on Monday said 255 passengers were placed in the 'No Fly List' by airlines in the last three years for various reasons, including incidents of misbehaviour, quarrels and manhandling of crew members. A total of 82 people were placed in the list in 2024 while the count stood at 110 in 2023 and at 63 in 2022, as per data shared by the civil aviation ministry with Rajya Sabha. In a written reply, Minister of State for Civil Aviation Murlidhar Mohol said passengers were placed in the 'No Fly List' for incidents of misbehaviour, quarrels and manhandling of crew members, among others. Adequate regulatory frameworks are in place to ensure safety of the aircraft/ persons/ property/ good order and discipline on board the aircraft and to handle the unlawful/disruptive behaviour on-board the aircraft, he noted. A person aggrieved due to inclusion in the list can appeal within 60 days from the date of issue of the order, to an appellate committee constituted by the ministry. The

Bangladesh high commissioner announces direct flights with Pakistan

To further strengthen bilateral ties, Bangladesh's High Commissioner to Pakistan announced plans to begin direct air services between Bangladesh and Pakistan. According to The Express Tribune, Mohammad Iqbal Hussain was speaking at a press conference in Peshawar on Saturday. Hussain emphasised the deep and historic relationship between the two countries and expressed the intention to initiate direct flights to facilitate travel and connectivity. He noted that such a move would enhance cooperation in various sectors, including tourism, education, and trade. However, no timeline for the direct flights was announced. The High Commissioner also highlighted the growing trade and diplomatic relations between Bangladesh and Pakistan, stating that these ties would continue to grow stronger. He underscored Bangladesh's commitment to freedom of expression, noting how social media has empowered the younger generation to voice their rights, contributing to a robust culture of free speech in

Projected air travel growth runs counter to climate goals, says study

Steps to tame fast-growing air travel could include limiting airport infrastructure growth and corporate travel while increasing taxation on the sector

Global air finance summit in Dublin to address jet shortages, trade risks

Ireland is home to the worldwide aircraft leasing industry, which controls about half the world's airline fleet

Over 500 flights delayed, 24 train ops hit in Delhi amid dense fog

According to flightradar24 data, till 5.30 pm on Friday, about 145 arrivals were delayed at the national capital's airport

Delhi airport issues advisory for flights not compliant with non CAT III

Passengers are requested to contact the airline concerned for updated flight information

Delhi shivers as dense fog blankets national capital; flights diverted

General visibility dropped to zero at 6 am on Friday, prompting authorities to implement measures for safe operations

Japan Airlines hit by cyberattack; domestic, international flights delayed

Japan Airlines has apologised for the inconvenience caused to passengers and assured that updates would follow as the situation evolves

Flights not compliant with CAT III might get affected: Delhi airport

CAT III, or Category III, is an approach system that allows flights to land safely during poor visibility conditions

DGCA slaps Akasa Air with Rs 10 lakh penalty over boarding denial

This is not the airline's first run-in with the regulator. In October, the DGCA imposed a Rs 30 lakh fine on Akasa Air for lapses in pilot training

Indian aviation set to soar in 2025 with more planes, flights, and airports

The trails of mega-mergers, tailwinds of expanding fleets, flights and airports will dot the fast-growing Indian aviation firmament in 2025, though the dark clouds of supply chain woes will persist longer. Also, new airline takeoffs, the future trajectory of revised norms to tackle pilot fatigue and efforts to reduce carbon emissions will be on the radar. And in 2024, two airlines flew into the sunset, one airline is on a liquidation taxiway, aircraft orders climbed, single-day domestic air passenger traffic soared past record 5 lakh at least twice, and airfare movements continued to raise concerns. Not to leave out 999 hoax bomb calls received by airlines till November 14 this year. The aviation sector had its share of accidents in the form of a few trainer aircraft crashes and a roof collapse incident at Terminal 1 of the Delhi airport that killed one person. For the "fascinating" Indian market, where the domestic air traffic is projected to jump to 164-170 million this fiscal ..

AI Express inaugural Surat-Bangkok flight records brisk liquor sales

Air India Express' inaugural four-hour flight from Surat in Gujarat to Thailand capital Bangkok saw good sales of liquor onboard, with some passengers claiming the stock ran out. The flight, operated with a Boeing 737-8 aircraft on Friday, had 175 passengers and six crew members onboard. The passenger capacity of the plane is 176. Liquor consumption is prohibited in Gujarat. Officials of the budget airline on Sunday said there were brisk sales of alcohol on the flight from Surat to Bangkok and the stock was not exhausted, as claimed by some on social media. Some passengers had taken to social media, saying the airline ran out of liquor. There was sufficient stock of liquor as well as food onboard, the officials added. There was no official statement from the Tata Group-owned Air India Express. According to the officials, generally, a passenger is not served more than 100 ml of liquor during a flight. The airline offers five types of liquor onboard. A 50 ml of Chivas Regal is p

Revised flight duty norms to apply from Jun 2025: IndiGo, AI tell DGCA

Two major airlines IndiGo and Air India have told aviation regulator DGCA that the revised flight duty norms for pilots can be implemented only in a phased manner starting from June next year, according to sources. The Directorate General of Civil Aviation's revised Civil Aviation Requirement (CAR) relates to flight duty time limitation seeks to provide more rest time for pilots amid concerns over pilot fatigue. Initially, the new norms were to come into effect from June 1 this year but was postponed. The pilots' bodies -- Indian Pilots Guild, Indian Commercial Pilots Association and Federation of Indian Pilots -- told the DGCA that they want the norms to be fully implemented at the earliest from February 15, the sources told PTI. IndiGo has informed the regulator that the CAR can be implemented starting from June next year, with weekly rest period for pilots to be increased from 36 hours to 40 hours, they said. The impact of the change will be assessed with a view to potentially

Air India sees growth from domestic, short int'l flights in 2025: CEO

Air India will see most of the air traffic growth coming from domestic and short-haul international operations in 2025 as more narrow-body planes are joining the fleet and legacy wide-body aircraft will be going for retrofit next year, the airline's chief Campbell Wilson said on Thursday. The Tata Group-owned airline, which has embarked on a five-year transformation journey, expects to have a fleet of 400 planes by 2027. Currently, the total fleet strength of Air India Group, including Air India Express, is around 300 aircraft. During a select media briefing, Wilson, who has been at the helm of Air India for more than two years, said the airline group has a domestic market share of around 29 per cent and 55 per cent on the metro to metro routes. On top 120 domestic routes, the market share is about 40 per cent, he said. According to him, the retrofit of legacy wide-body aircraft will start in early 2025. "We had hoped to start retrofit of 787s and 777s by now. Unfortunately, the