Page 9 - Indian Aviation

DGCA imposes penalties worth Rs 2.75 cr on India carriers in 2023

DGCA said it imposed fines on domestic carriers such as Air India, IndiGo, AirAsia India and SpiceJet for issues related to non-compliance in 2023

Fog of confusion

The aviation ecosystem needs to cooperate better

Govt asks airport operators to explore biometric models for smooth travel

The civil aviation ministry, which is taking measures to prevent congestion at airport in the upcoming festive season, has asked airport operators to look at the successful biometric models being used in other countries for smooth travel of air passengers. During a meeting with an advisory group, civil aviation minister Jyotiraditya Scindia asked airport operators to promote Digi Yatra, which provides for contactless, seamless movement of passengers at various check points at airports based on Facial Recognition Technology (FRT). Currently, Digi Yatra is available for domestic passengers at 13 airports, including Delhi, Mumbai and Varanasi. At the meeting on Tuesday, the airport operators were also tasked with presenting biometric enabled models being successfully used in other countries, according to an official release. On December 15, Scindia said the Digi Yatra facility will be available at 25 more airports in 2024. The release said that a suggestion at the meeting was to ...

India's busiest routes see surprise dip in airfares for year-end travel

Fare 'adjustment' comes as airlines seek to rectify missteps taken before Diwali

CDS General Anil Chauhan to open HAL's avionics exposition in Delhi

State-owned aerospace and defence equipment maker to showcase capabilities in avionics

Is grounded airline Go First even capable of doing test flight, asks lessor

The lessor also said that even physical inspection of the aircraft was not granted by the RP, besides the aircraft not being maintained and records not being provided to them

Air India targets 5x members for frequent-flyer plan in four years

In August, Air India Chief Executive Officer (CEO) and Managing Director (MD) Campbell Wilson announced that a thoroughly revamped loyalty programme is set to launch early next year

Go First CEO Kaushik Khona resigns amid airline's uncertain future

Grounded Go First's CEO Kaushik Khona has put in his papers, nearly seven months after the no-frills airline filed for insolvency proceedings. In an e mail to the airline's employees on Thursday, Khona said that November 30 is his last day at the company. Khona had returned to Go First in August 2020 as its CEO. "With a heavy heart, I have to inform that today is my last day with the company. I got an opportunity to work for Go FIRST once again in August 2020 and with your able and active support I tried to perform to my best abilities," Khona said in the e mail. Earlier, he was with the carrier from 2008 to 2011. "... the Board of Directors decided to file for Section 10 application under the IBC and we still continued to provide the best support to the company We were hopeful that we will resume the operations soon and at least from June 2023 but it got delayed" he said in the e mail accessed by PTI. Section 10 pertains to voluntary insolvency proceedings under the Insolvency a

Limiting bilateral rights not the way to grow Indian aviation: IAG Cargo

CEO David Shepherd calls for 'fair competition' between national and international carriers

Go First lenders to vote on liquidation amid lack of suitors: Report

The proposal whether or not to liquidate the airline has been floated and with individual lenders will take the proposal to their boards and submit final votes in 10-15 days, the report said

Always evaluating options: IndiGo amid reports of inducting premium flights

IndiGo on Thursday said it always evaluates available options amid reports that the budget carrier is likely to have a premium class in its flights. The airline, which has a domestic market share of more than 62 per cent, is expanding its operations. It has a fleet of more than 330 aircraft, and 970 planes are on order. "We are always in the process of evaluating options available. As a policy, we do not comment on speculations and will share any information if and when we have anything to share," IndiGo said in a statement. The statement came in the backdrop of reports that the airline plans to have a premium class in its A321 XLR aircraft and also launch a loyalty programme. IndiGo expects delivery of A321 XLR planes in late 2024 or early 2025. "XLR will help us expand our range... when XLRs come in, that can bring us further into Europe to places like Athens... it can bring further into Asia to places like Seoul...," IndiGo CEO Pieter Elbers said on November 6.

Domestic air traffic touches new peak with 4,59,526 passengers on Nov 20

For the third straight day, the country's domestic air traffic touched a new peak on Monday as airlines carried 4,59,526 passengers. With the traffic numbers touching a fresh single-day record on Monday (November 20), the civil aviation ministry said that post-Covid, India's domestic aviation turnaround story has not just been overwhelming but inspiring as well. "Positive attitude, progressive policies, and deep trust among passengers are taking it to new heights with every flight, every day," the ministry said in a post on X. On November 20 (Monday), there were 4,59,526 passengers and the total flight movements stood at 5,958, as per the latest official data. The count of domestic air passengers was at 3,94,07 and the number of flight movements was 5,468 on November 20, 2022. Sharing a graphic of the figures, the ministry said, "India's domestic aviation touching new skies, daily". Civil aviation minister Jyotiraditya Scindia on Tuesday said, "Another day, another record!". In

Foreign airlines see India's potential as global aviation hub for APAC

Executives at Japan Airlines and Thai Airways see India as a transit hub to connect Asia Pacific with West Asia and Africa

Diwali Bonanza: Airfares see up to 9% decline on key domestic routes

On the Mumbai-Ahmedabad route, ticket prices decreased marginally from Rs 3,700 to Rs 3,650 in the aforementioned period

Go First lenders to challenge move that could let lessors reclaim planes

The Go First bankruptcy filing lists Central Bank of India, Bank of Baroda, IDBI Bank and Deutsche Bank among its lenders

New national policy may turn India's airports into global transit hubs

If enacted, the policy will address challenges such as double security checks and immigration bottlenecks to better streamline travel

Go First lenders to not release more funding to grounded airline: Report

"Now the situation is quite different and the future is bleak," said a banker with a state-run bank that has exposure to Go First

DGCA committee may conclude graft probe against senior official in a week

It has been alleged that Anil Gill, Director of the Flying and Training Division at the DGCA, misused his authority to obtain three aircraft as bribes from flying schools

A-I expands domestic, global distribution networks with global partners

Air India on Monday said it has ramped up its domestic and international distribution networks with extended multi-year agreements with global distribution systems partners Amadeus, Sabre and Travelport. "The deals together enable travel agents, resellers, and corporations around the world to access Air India's seat inventory and fares. Air India's new expanded agreements with the GDS partners now include the delivery of New Distribution Capability (NDC) products that provide travellers benefits such as personalised pricing, attractive fare bundles, and new ancillaries," it said in a release. The agreements with Amadeus and Sabre have been expanded to include the domestic content as well as distribution and servicing of NDC content, it added. Tata Group took control of loss-making Air India in January last year and a transformation plan is underway at the airline.

Govt to meet airlines officials to discuss consumer grievances on Nov 8

Amid rising complaints from air travellers, the Centre has called a meeting on November 8 with senior officials of all airlines and travel portals to discuss grievances related to 'refund not given after ticket cancellation' and showing every seat as 'paid' despite free web check-in, among others. Consumer Affairs Secretary Rohit Kumar Singh, in a media briefing, said about 10,000 complaints related to the airline sector has been received through the government's National Consumer Helpline in the last one year. About half of the complaints are related to "ticket cancelled but no refund received from airlines". Some of the major grievances also include airlines showing every seat as paid despite free mandatory web check-in, he said. "These complaints are just a tip of the iceberg. We have called a meeting on November 8 to discuss these consumer grievances with all airlines, travel portals and consumer organisations," Singh said. While booking a ticket either through airline websites