Category: Aviation

Jet Airways Ltd has told its pilots that the airline may be grounded in 60 days unless cost-cutting measures including pay cuts are put in place, as reported by Reuters on Friday, 3rd July 2018. Following the acute financial stringency, the authorities had requested the pilots for a 15 per cent pay cut for two years to withstand the turbulent situation, however the pilots did not agree with the proposal so far. The company was looking in to all the possible areas to reduce the running cost and for savings to create a “healthier and a more resilient business”, a ... Read more

Tourists in Tamil Nadu will soon be able to travel across their destinations on air. A feasibility report on heli-tourism has been submitted to the state government, as informed by KJ Alphons, Minister of Tourism, in the Lok Sabha. “The study was done for the introduction of helicopter services to provide heli- tourism in Tamil Nadu state including Madurai and the preliminary report in this regard has been submitted to the state government,” said the minister. Helicopter service for tourists is already available in Himachal Pradesh, Sikkim, Damand and Diu, Lakhswadeep, Andaman and Nicobar and Guwahati. Pawan Hans Limited is ... Read more

Effective 28 October 2018, Etihad Airways will increase its flights from Abu Dhabi to Canada’s largest city, Toronto, from three to five weekly services. The flights will be operated by Boeing 777-300ER aircraft, featuring 40 seats in Business Class and 340 in Economy Class. “We are thrilled to announce more flights to cosmopolitan Toronto, one of the most successful and popular destinations on our global route network. This news has been eagerly anticipated,” said Robin Kamark, Chief Commercial Officer, Etihad Aviation Group. “We have welcomed well over a million guests on our flights to Toronto since we launched the service almost ... Read more

Emirates announced that it will introduce two additional flights to its Toronto (YYZ) service, complementing its existing schedule and providing even more choice and convenience to travellers. The additional Toronto flights will be introduced on August 18 2018 and will operate on a Saturday departing Dubai as EK241 at 03:30 and arrive in Toronto at 09:30. The return flight, EK242, leaves Toronto at 14:25 and arrives in Dubai at 11:40 the next day. On Sundays, EK241 will depart at 03:30 and arrive in Toronto at 09:30. The return flight, EK242, will leave Toronto at 14:30 and arrives in Dubai at ... Read more

Jet Airways has commenced new flights on the Indore – Chandigarh – Indore – Hyderabad and Bengaluru – Guwahati routes. It has also commenced services from Indore to Hyderabad and Chandigarh. Jet Airways flight 9W 955 departed from Indore at 1245 hrs arriving at Chandigarh at 1445 hrs. On its return journey, flight 9W 958 will depart from Chandigarh at 1515 hrs and land at Indore at 1715 hrs. The flight will then depart for Hyderabad at 1800 hrs arriving at its destination at 1925 hrs. This flight will be operated by on Mondays, Wednesdays, Fridays and Sundays. Similarly, Jet ... Read more

Travellers with Indian passports will no longer require an Airport Transit Visa while transiting through the international zone of any airport in France. “I’m pleased to announce that, with effect from July 23, 2018, holders of Indian passports will no longer require an Airport Transit Visa (ATV) while transiting through the international zone of any airport in France,” tweeted Alexandre Ziegler, Ambassador of France to India. An airport transit visa is applicable for those who are just transiting the Schengen territory and who will not leave the transit area of the airport. However, hotel accommodations are only available outside the ... Read more

Cochin International Airport Limited (CIAL) has been selected for the Champion of Earth Prize -2018, the highest environmental honour instituted by United Nations. CIAL has been selected for this accolade for their revolutionary idea of using solar energy for the airport, which made Cochin Airport the first airport to function fully with solar energy. Erik Solheim, United Nation’s Global chief of Environment and Executive Director, UNEP, stated in an announcement sent to V.J.Kurian, Managing Director, CIAL, that ‘This is the United Nation’s highest environmental accolade and reflects your leadership in the use of sustainable energy” The communiqué further adds “Previous Champion ... Read more

Well-known for its state-of-the-art passenger-friendly amenities, the Kempegowda International Airport, Bengaluru, came fist in the quarterly ACI-ASQ Arrival Survey. The airport is operated by Bangalore International Airport Limited (BIAL), In the survey conducted by Airports Council International’s Airport Service Quality survey for arrivals during April-June 2018, Bengaluru Airport gained 4.67 points (out of five). Abu Dhabi International Airport was second with 4.53 points, while Toronto Pearson International Airport was third with 4.44 points. First-of-this-kind, the survey focuses on the experience of arriving passengers – helping airports measure, benchmark and enhance service quality levels. Bengaluru Airport is the only Indian airport ... Read more

IndiGo will start direct flight from Bhubaneswar to Kolkata from August 1. Flight (A320) will depart from Kolkata and reach Bhubaneswar at 12.20 am on a daily basis and will depart from Bhubaneswar at 5.25 am. “We will also start direct flights between Bhubaneswar and Ahmedabad within few days. We have also written to IndiGo and Air Asia for starting operations between Bhubaneswar and Pune,” said Biju Patnaik International Airport (BPIA) Director Suresh Chandra Hota. BPIA announced that it will start another direct flight from Bhubaneswar to Ahmedabad. Since there are no slots available at Pune airport, they have requested the two ... Read more

Air Tanzania is all set to introduce direct flight connectivity between Mumbai and Julius Nyerere by year end. The airline is planning to begin its international operations through this service, said Baraka H Luvanda, High Commissioner of the United Republic of Tanzania. The flight, proposed to operate thrice a week,  is waiting for permissions from the government to complete the formalities of launching its first international route. “This new flight will not only assist the tourism industry, but will also be helpful for other industries to speed up their businesses in both countries,” he said. Around 40,000 Indians visit Tanzania annually ... Read more

Tourism Minister of Israel Yariv Levin, said Lufthansa AG will begin operating four weekly flights to southern Israeli beach town Eilat. He was speaking at a conference on tourism and technology held by Calcalist in Tel Aviv. Lufthansa later confirmed the service, saying it will begin operating October 28. Levin celebrated the rising popularity of the southernmost Israeli city, which is located at the northern tip of the Red Sea. International tourism to once-popular Israeli vacation town is booming again, thanks to a 2012 reform that removed restrictions on foreign carriers offering service to Israel and a marketing campaign centered ... Read more

The Government of India has announced a three-year visa for Bangladeshi students who are willing to study in the country under a newly signed bilateral agreement. The students will immediately get a minimum three-year visa, said Harsh Vardhan Shringla, Indian High Commissioner to Bangladesh. Shringla said Bangladeshi students wishing to study in India and their parents will get three-year visas immediately after their enrollments. A good number of Bangladeshi students take admissions in Indian universities every year for studies at different levels and in varied courses. “India is an important destination for higher education. It has more than 800 universities and 3,800 ... Read more

Rolls-Royce has revealed its plans to develop a hybrid electric vehicle, dubbed the “flying taxi”, which takes off and lands vertically and could be airborne within five years. Rolls-Royce showed off the plans at the Farnborough Airshow for the first time and said it hoped to manufacture a prototype version of its electric vertical take-off and landing (EVTOL) vehicle within the next 18 months, and could potentially take to the skies in the early 2020s. The Rolls-Royce EVTOL plane will seat four or five people, with a flying range of 500 miles (805 kilometres) and a top speed of 200 miles ... Read more

Winner – Coveted Airline of the Year, World’s Best First Class Airline, Best Airline in Asia and the Best First Class Airline. Singapore Airlines filled the board at this year’s Skytrax World Airline Awards, by sweeping the Coveted Airline of the Year, World’s Best First Class Airline, Best Airline in Asia and the Best First Class Airline awards. Skytrax World Airline Awards in the aviation industry, which is considered to be equivalent to the Oscars, was started in 1999. EasyJet bagged the Best Low Cost Airline in the UK award, while the Best Airline in Europe went to Lufthansa.  Lufthansa was the only ... Read more

Tourists to Oman can now obtain a visa for just five riyals, which equals to almost Rs 900 as per today’s exchange rate. Tourists were earlier required to pay 20 riyals whether they stayed back for five days or a month. The new decree aims to boost the tourism sector. Indians who hold valid visa to USA, Canada, Australia, UK, Japan and Schengen states can avail the Oman visa through an e-visa process by simply logging into https://evisa.rop.gov.om/. “Those who doesn’t have visas to the said countries, can get a sponsored visa by paying 5 Riyal plus processing fee through their tour operators,” ... Read more