Page 6 - Airlines

Alliance Air to hold Board meeting on Sept 16 to restore pilots' salaries

During the peak of the Covid pandemic, Indian carriers had cut the salaries of their employees to reduce losses. This year, while most of them have restored the salaries, a few are yet to do so

Could an Indian airline be in race for SriLankan Airlines stake buy?

Even if things improve, it would be hard to keep funding the airline's operations, as the airline has been bleeding money for a while.

IndiGo announces codeshare with Virgin Atlantic; to cover 7 cities in India

The codeshare will allow Virgin Atlantic passengers to book a single ticket to travel from London to Delhi or Mumbai, and then take IndiGo flight to these Indian cities

New pricing model aiming to prune jet fuel cost by 15% likely in two months

OMCs to shift to single uniform system instead of the prevailing dual pricing mechanism for domestic and overseas airlines

Two Air France pilots suspended after fighting in cockpit: Offical

Fisticuffs in the cockpit, leaving a leaky engine running while cruising over Africa -- Air France pilots are under scrutiny after recent incidents that have prompted French investigators to call for tougher safety protocols. Two Air France pilots were suspended after physically fighting in the cockpit on a Geneva-Paris flight in June, an Air France official said Sunday. The flight continued and landed safely, and the dispute didn't affect the rest of the flight, the official said, stressing the airline's commitment to safety. Switzerland's La Tribune reported that the pilot and co-pilot had a dispute shortly after takeoff, and grabbed each other by their collars after one apparently hit the other. Cabin crew intervened and one crew member spent the flight in the cockpit with the pilots, the report said. News of the fight emerged after France's air investigation agency, BEA, issued a report Wednesday saying that some Air France pilots lack rigor in respecting procedures during safet

Crisis-hit Sri Lanka to privatise national carrier as it runs out of money

Sri Lanka on Monday said it will privatise the country's loss-making national carrier as the cash-strapped government "can no longer afford to inject money" into running the airline. The government is looking to sell a 49 per cent stake each of the SriLankan Airlines' catering and ground-handling units in efforts to restructure the state-run carrier, while 51 per cent will be retained under state hold, Aviation Minister Nimal Siripala de Silva told reporters here. This restructuring is essential as the government can no longer afford to inject money into running the airline, he said. Annually the government has been providing the airline between USD 80 billion to USD 200 billion to run its operations, de Silva said. The minister said the revenue from the sale of the catering operation can be used to pay off debt amounting to USD 80 million that was obtained by mortgaging its shares, as well as some other loans. The airline's debt currently amounts to USD 1.226 billion (LKR 401 ...

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 ...

Delhi-bound Air India flight from Sydney makes emergency landing in Kolkata

A Delhi-bound Air India flight from Sydney made an emergency landing in Kolkata on Wednesday after a 50-year-old passenger complained of breathlessness, airport officials said. The flight with 159 passengers aboard was at the Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose International Airport for two hours from 4.50 PM till 6.50 PM before leaving for the national capital. The flyer was admitted to a hospital in Kolkata, they added.

SpiceJet exploring stake sale to raise Rs 2,000 cr, says CMD Ajay Singh

SpiceJet is looking to raise investments from external parties, including airlines, said Ajay Singh on the sidelines of an ASSOCHAM event

Akasa Air has strong financials to place order for more planes: CEO

The Jhunjhunwala family holds stakes in the airline through three discretionary trusts

Airlines will have to take action against flyers without mask: DGCA

Aviation regulator DGCA on Wednesday asked all Indian carriers to strictly enforce COVID-19 protocol, including mask mandate for passengers, in aircraft amid a rise in infections across the country. In a statement, the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) said it will be conducting "random checks" in aircraft across the country to see if the COVID-19 protocol is being enforced or not. Airlines have to ensure that passengers are wearing face masks properly throughout the journey and there is proper sensitisation of passengers through various platforms, it mentioned. "In case a passenger does not comply with the directions, strict action will be taken by airlines against the passenger," it added. In view of the rise in the number of COVID-19 cases, the airlines have been advised again on August 16 to strictly comply with COVID-19 protocol inside the aircraft, it mentioned. India on Wednesday recorded 9,062 fresh COVID-19 infections that took its tally to 4,42,86,256, while t

Interline agreement: Jetstar passengers can now book seat on IndiGo flights

Passengers of Australian low-cost airline Jetstar can now book seats on IndiGo flights as an interline agreement between the carriers went live on Wednesday, according to a statement. "As demand for air travel continues to recover, Jetstar customers looking for low-cost travel options can now access IndiGo's low fares from Jetstar's hub in Singapore to key Indian destinations including Bengaluru, Chennai, Kolkata, Mumbai, New Delhi, and Tiruchirappalli via jetstar.com," the carriers said in a joint statement. Australian carrier Jetstar, which is the low-cost subsidiary of Qantas, and IndiGo announced in April that they had entered into an interline partnership. Sanjay Kumar, Chief Strategy and Revenue Officer, IndiGo, "The partnership will enable customers to enjoy seamless connectivity between Jetstar and IndiGo and access to a wide variety of destinations across Asia Pacific.

Akasa Air is well-capitalised, to add one aircraft every two weeks: CEO

Vinay Dube said the airline was well-capitalised to induct 72 aircraft over next 5 years, while mourning the death of Akasa's top backer and ace investor Rakesh Jhunjhunwala who passed away on Sunday

Complaints over flight cancellations, denial of boarding dip in FY22

DGCA data shows that airlines had to shell out Rs 3 crore to settle claims arising from such complaints

Delhi, Bengaluru airports start facial recognition for quicker boarding

Digi Yatra facility is voluntary for passengers and it keeps their data safe, say officials

ATF price fall would benefit airlines under pressure: Jyotiraditya Scindia

Notably, ATF prices have been coming down during the last few weeks after jumping to record levels, primarily due to the Russia-Ukraine war that began on February 24.

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.

To improve surveillance, airlines asked to share PNR details with Customs

National Customs Targeting Centre-Passenger has been established by CBIC to process PNR info for risk analysis of passengers

Airlines asked to share PNR details of international passengers with govt

The move is aimed at preventing law offenders from fleeing the country

478 glitches faced by Indian airlines in a year; Air India alone faced 184

Indigo followed Air India with 98 glitches. Spicejet faced 77 such glitches and stood third on the list