Bangalore Aviation News, Reviews, Analysis and opinions of Indian Aviation
Two weeks ago, Etihad and Jet Airways announced flights from Abu Dhabi to New York, initially operated by Etihad, and then by Jet. Last week saw Jet announcing a whole lot of flights between various Indian cities and Abu Dhabi, the latest from Bangalore and Hyderabad which will commence from March 1. All of these flights are scheduled to connect …
Read More »Monthly Archives: January 2014
Video: Government demands VIP culture at private airlines
That the government of India abuses its “Netjets” – Air India is a fact well known. Members of Parliament (MP), along with their “families”, “assistants”, and other hangers-on are provided all kinds of personalised treatment right from the kerb from where the MP is personally escorted, priority check-in, no security-screening, free snacks, free lounge access, some even want a golf …
Read More »India finally permits Airbus A380 operations
The government of India has finally cleared the runways for the world’s largest passenger aircraft, the Airbus A380 superjumbo, to operate to India. In a statement the civil aviation ministry says, The Union Minister for Civil Aviation, Shri Ajit Singh has decided to remove restrictions on flights of Airbus A-380 to India. Now, flights of A-380 to India will be …
Read More »Air France – KLM Delta offer special Republic Day sale in business class to USA and Canada
Air France KLM and its SkyTeam alliance partner Delta Air Lines have announced a special “Republic Day Offer” for travel from India to the North Atlantic. The airlines are offering a flat discount of Rs. 26,000 for all bookings made and ticketing from January 23 through 27, 2014. To avail this offer, customers can choose to book tickets online at …
Read More »Jet Airways joins air fare wars, offers 50% discount on Jet Konnect
Just when we praised Jet Airways, India’s second largest domestic airline, for not joining the self-destroying frenzy of 50 percent discount on air fares, the airline has joined the fare war frenzy first kicked off by low-fare carrier SpiceJet on Tuesday, and followed by all the other airlines now IndiGo, GoAir, Air India, and now Jet Konnect. The Naresh Goyal …
Read More »Opinion: Air India’s Star alliance membership is a precursor to Tata-SIA entry
During his visit to India, Mark Schwab the CEO of the Star Alliance, the world’s largest airline grouping, announced that national carrier Air India could join the alliance within the next six months. In a press interaction Schwab said “without giving a specific date, one can say that we will complete all the ground work and formalities of Air India’s …
Read More »ATR increases turnover 13% to retain regional aircraft leadership
The Toulouse based regional aircraft manufacturer ATR, a joint venture between the Airbus Group and Alenia Aermacchi (a Finmeccanica Group company), grew its revenues 13 percent in 2013 to $1.63 billion from $1.44 billion in 2012. The company also increased deliveries by 16 percent to 74 aircraft in 2013 compared to 64 in 2012 and up 37 percent from the …
Read More »Low fare sale. Indian airlines eat their young to survive
The stampede of cut-throat fares, which commenced Tuesday, when low fare carrier SpiceJet announced up to a 50 percent discount for 30 and 60 day advance purchase fares is reminiscent of 2008 when airlines went berserk on pricing in a mad rush for growth. This time too, almost every carrier including full service Air India, has joined this madness. Credit …
Read More »Quiz answers – spot the inconsistencies in the Mumbai airport T2 image
Last week, purely as a fun story, we posted a computer generated image of Mumbai airport’s new Terminal 2 and asked you to spot some inconsistencies. Time for the answers and for you to compare your observations with your fellow readers. Going clockwise from the bottom left. The graphic designer forgot that there are no traffic signals in the middle …
Read More »Jet Airways announces Mumbai Paris flight
Jet Airways has announced a daily direct service between Mumbai and Paris to commence on May 14, 2014. 9W 124 will depart Mumbai 12:00 and arrive at Paris Charles de Gaulle at 17:50. 9W 123 will depart Paris CDG at 21:10 and arrive Mumbai at 09:45 the following morning. Jet Airways is targeting day time connections its domestic network. While …
Read More »Plane spotting: Helicopters of the Indian Air Force
In this week’s of plane spotting, we have made a compilation of some of the helicopters of the Indian Air Force (IAF). We have also included some rare cockpit photos of some of these whirlybirds. Let’s start with the workhorse of the Indian Air Force, the Mil Mi-8. The Mi-8 is the IAF’s primary medium transport helicopter. It was first …
Read More »IndiGo strengthens Pune presence
India’s largest domestic airline, IndiGo, has strengthened its presence in the industrial town of Pune, with the arrival of its 73rd Airbus A320 aircraft. Highlighting the growing economic strength of the city which has seen air traffic double in the last five years, despite a severely constrained airport, IndiGo announced new flights connecting Pune non-stop with Kolkata and additional non-stops …
Read More »High resolution aerial view of Mumbai airport new terminal T2. Can you spot the inconsistencies?
Above is a computer generated image (CGI) aerial view of the new terminal 2 at Mumbai’s Chhatrapati Shivaji International Airport (CSIA), which was recently inaugurated. There are four or five inconsistencies on the air-side, reflecting a time when the CGI was made. Just for fun; can you spot them? Use the light-box image to enlarge the photo and then use …
Read More »Jet Airways to operate Etihad’s second daily between Abu Dhabi and New York JFK
Jet Airways will re-commence operating flights to New York JFK airport, but from Abu Dhabi, not from India. The airline along with its partner Abu Dhabi based Etihad Airways, which holds a 24 per cent stake in the Indian carrier, announced that Etihad will commence its second daily on the route from March 1, using two leased Jet Airways Boeing …
Read More »Gary Toomey quits as Jet CEO
Barely four months after he joined the company, Jet Airways (India) Limited today announced the resignation of its Chief Executive Officer, Mr Gary Toomey. The former Chief Executive Officer of Air New Zealand and Chief Financial Officer of Qantas, Toomey joined Jet Airways on September 25, 2013. Jet’s Chief Financial Officer, Ravishankar Gopalakrishnan, will serve as the acting CEO until …
Read More »IndiGo claims government permission to flout paid seating regulations
In June last year, India’s civil aviation regulator the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) allowed for unbundling of value added services by airlines, which allowed, amongst other things, airlines to charge for advance booking of preferred seating. [bsu_pullquote]“Seat offered on opt-in charge basis shall not exceed 25% of the total seat configuration of the aircraft” – DGCA, Air Traffic …
Read More »Opinion: SpiceJet will order Boeing 737 MAX only in next fiscal, after funds infusion
Last the week the newswires were abuzz with stories about Indian budget carrier SpiceJet ordering up to 40 Boeing 737 MAX aircraft. While the ordering of the new fuel efficient MAXs is a foregone conclusion, given the airline’s need to continue its growth, the timing is not certain. What is certain is the airline’s precarious financial position. For the second …
Read More »Exclusive photos: First plane spotting pictures of Indian Air Force Boeing C-17 from India
Yesterday after months of near misses, we finally managed to get the first independent photos from India, of the Indian Air Force’s (IAF) new Boeing C-17 Globemaster III; and it was right here in Bangalore. In June 2009, the Indian Air force (IAF) selected the C-17 to fulfil its Very Heavy Lift Transport Aircraft requirement to replace it’s ageing Ilyushin IL-76 (Gajraj) …
Read More »Airbus A350 XWB in Bolivia for high altitude flight testing
The A350 XWB development aircraft, MSN3, is in Bolivia for a series of flight tests at the high altitude airfields of Cochabamba and the capital La Paz. Cochabamba is approximately 8,300 feet above sea level, and at 13,300 La Paz is one of the highest airports in the world. Operations at such high altitude airfields are particularly demanding on aircraft …
Read More »Air India now accepts American Express credit cards for online bookings
Air India has started accepting American Express credit cards for payment of on-line bookings made on its website, for journeys originating from USA, UK, Europe, Japan and Singapore. The airline till now was accepting only Visa and MasterCard. American Express is a popular credit card, especially in the United States and offers card-holders significant privileges compared to most other credit …
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