Turkish Airlines (THY) has signed a firm order with European airframer Airbus S.A.S. for the purchase of ten A321-200s narrow body passenger aircraft and three A330-200F freighter aircraft for delivery from 2012 onwards. The airline has an existing backlog of 27 aircraft on order with Airbus from earlier contracts placed in 2009 and 2010. The ten A321 ordered today are …

From the recently concluded Aero India 2011 show. Two magnificent beauties. One an Angelina Joile – a new entry to the fold, one a Grace Kelly – a timeless beauty which will never fade from our memories. The Indian Air Force is soon expected to finalise an order for the Boeing C-17 Globemaster III strategic transport aircraft with their huge …

As expected, when it launched its four flights a week on the Abu Dhabi Bangalore sector earlier this year, the national carrier of the United Arab Emirates, Etihad Airways, will increase its frequency and make the flight a daily service from the Summer 2011 schedule which commences from March 25. Compared to its other dominant GCC rivals Emirates airline and …

National carrier Air India, continues the tradition of operating all women flights on International Womens’ Day, 8th of March. The airline will operate flights with all women crew together with women dispatchers, women load and trim staff, women engineers, women staff at check-in counters, women doctor for crew breathalyser test, women staff for security checks and women conducting the LOSA …

The readers of Bangalore Aviation are a well travelled, highly knowledgeable group. In our on-going efforts to make the site more interactive, we seek your valuable inputs on various aspects of aviation and travel. This week, the questions concern international travel. What what factors are important to you when purchasing an international air travel ticket. This survey is now closed. …

Delta Air Lines continues to be the world’s largest airline measured by available seat-kilometre (ASK) capacity, offering a whopping 28.3 billion seat-kilometres per month. They are followed by American Airlines and in a change, Emirates airline has overtaken United Airlines for the third spot. United is one of only two airlines that is offering a reduced seat capacity in March …

Two years ago in February 2009, Air France Cargo took delivery of the first Boeing 777F freighter aircraft. Watch delivery video here. Powered by General Electric’s GE90-110B1L engines which meet QC2 noise standards, the Boeing 777F freighter is based on the 777-200LR platform. It can carry more than 100 metric tons of payload and fly 4,900 nautical miles (9,070 kilometres). …

India’s aviation regulator and inspector the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) has released its investigative report in the engine fire incident of Air India Boeing 747-400 VT-ESM Konark at Mumbai on September 4, 2009. As per the DGCA, the primary cause for the accident was the complete dislodging of No. 1 strut fuel feed line coupling due to dislodging …

After the price of a ticket, the on-time performance of an airline is the biggest factor influencing a potential traveller to purchase a ticket for domestic air travel. This explains why punctuality maniacal IndiGo is rapidly gaining market share in India. Thanks to the hundreds of Bangalore Aviation readers who participated in this survey. Survey respondents could select up to …

Air India has finally moved to a single airline code (AI) for all its flights, including those from the erstwhile Indian Airlines (IC) and Alliance Air (CD). The list of revised flight numbers is as below.

The Indian budget for 2011-12 has raised the cost of air travel by imposition or raising of service tax. Earlier this morning, the Indian Finance Minister, Mr. Mukherjee, announced that the service tax on air travel by economy class would be raised by Rs. 50 for domestic trips and by Rs. 250 on international. Domestic business and first class passengers …

While many are familiar with the front line air superiority fighter of the Indian Air Force (IAF) the Sukhoi Su-30MKI, the MiG-29 Baaz (meaning Hawk) has remained in relative obscurity with the public. A further development of the MiG-29 is the MiG-35 which was a contender for the 126 MMRCA tender of the IAF. India was the first international customer …

Fog and the accompanying low visibility is the bane of air travel across the world, and especially during the peak winter season in north India. The higher the category, the lower are the minima for visibility. So for a foggy Delhi, a Cat-IIIB is most suited. However it is an integrated system. i.e. to be able to land in just …

Continuing our series of major scheduled civil aviation accidents with fatalities in the 100 years of Indian civil aviation. Yesterday we covered till the year 1952, today we continue forward till 1957. The early 1950’s were a torrid time for Indian aviation from a safety perspective, and 1953 continued the high rates of accidents in India. The war surplus Douglas …

Yesterday we focussed on the highlights of the last 100 years of Indian civil aviation. Today we focus on the tragedies. We are listing the major scheduled commercial civil aviation accidents with fatalities that have occurred to Indian carriers or within the geographic confines of India. Military, non-scheduled, and private/business jet/charter aircraft are excluded or the list will be too …

In what is considered the world’s first airmail service, on 18 Feburary, 1911 the first commercial civil aviation flight in India took place in India between Allahabad and Naini, a distance of 6 miles when Henri Piquet carried 6500 mails on a Humber biplane. The first international flight to and from India commenced in December 1912, when the Indian State …

Civil Aviation minister Vayalar Ravi kicked off the centenary year celebrations at the nation’s capital New Delhi, earlier this morning. Bengaluru International Airport Limited, the airport operator of Bangalore, together with its partners and concessionaires began the celebrations with an auspicious lighting of the lamp followed by unveiling of the official Civil Aviation Centenary Year logo. The two large installations …

Tomorrow, February 17, 2011 marks the 100 year anniversary of civil aviation in India. To commemorate this milestone, the year 2011-12 has been being declared as the ‘Civil Aviation Centenary Year’. From humble beginnings, India has grown in to the ninth largest civil aviation market in the world. Airlines, airports, aircraft, and pretty much anyone connected with civil aviation in …

Three Indian airports have received awards during the 2010 annual airport service quality (ASQ) survey of Airports Council International (ACI). This year, the top five airports in the world are all from east Asia. 1) Seoul Incheon (ICN), 2) Singapore Changi (SIN), 3) Hong Kong Int’l (HKG) 4) Beijing Capital Int’l (PEK) and 5) Shanghai Pudong (PVG). As per the …