New DGCA rules stipulate airlines have to apply for permit at least 90 days before launch
Tata group-owned AirAsia India's inability to get approval for international flights is hurting UDAN, the Indian government's regional air connectivity project that also aims to link cities in Northeast India and Odisha to places abroad. Sources said the civil aviation ministry is waiting for the low-cost airline to come under the full ownership of Tata Sons and become part of Air India, the former state-owned carrier now owned by the private conglomerate, before allowing it to operate international flights. Tata owns 84 per cent stake in AirAsia India and it is understood that the group will complete the process of buying rest of the stake by July's end.
AirAsia India, whose top officials have promised to offer low and competitive airfares, would have Chennai as its hub and would focus on connecting Tier-II cities to begin with.
Paving the way for launch of its flights, Tata-Singapore Airlines joint venture airline Vistara was on Monday granted flying permit by aviation regulator DGCA, almost nine months after it applied for the licence.
Landslides blocked arterial roads leading up to Dharali where dozens of people were trapped and many homes and cars swept away by the raging waters on Tuesday. Eleven Army personnel from the nearby camp in Harsil were among those missing.
The real heroes of Operation Sindoor were not the armed forces or political leadership, but the ordinary citizens of India who refused to fall into the trap of communal provocation, asserts Colonel Anil A Athale (retd).
Over the past eight months, a team of 80 people has been diligently working to harmonise operating procedures across four airlines run by the Tata group, as part of two mergers, revealed Campbell Wilson, Air India's chief executive officer (CEO), on Friday. The Tata group is consolidating its aviation business by merging four airlines into two: Air India and Vistara are merging to form a single full-service carrier, while AIX Connect and Air India Express are combining to create a unified low-cost carrier (as a subsidiary of Air India).
Ace stock market investor Rakesh Jhunjhunwala-promoted starup carrier Akasa Air on Monday unveiled the first look of its crew uniform as it gets ready for take-off likely by this month-end. Akasa Air, which received the delivery of its first Boeing 737 max aircraft in India on June 21, also plans to conduct proving flights this week, following which it will get the Air Operator Permit for launching commercial operations. The uniform fit focuses on providing the best possible stretch to ensure their comfort over their busy flight schedules, the company said in a statement.
The development also comes against the backdrop of Turkiye backing Pakistan and condemning India's strikes on terror camps in the neighbouring country earlier this month.
Thousands of tourists have begun leaving Kashmir after a terror attack in Pahalgam killed 26 people, prompting authorities to arrange for their safe return. Chief Minister Omar Abdullah expressed concern over the exodus, while the Civil Aviation Ministry has ordered airlines to ensure there are no fare hikes and to offer extra flights from Srinagar. While many tourists are leaving, some are choosing to stay, citing the presence of security forces and their feeling of safety.
In a statement, Civil Aviation Minister K Rammohan Naidu said the airport and emergency teams responded swiftly and effectively after a full emergency was declared at 18.05 hours.
So far, most of the injured have been released. Currently, 106 people are being treated in hospitals, and another 149 are being treated in the emergency room.
If I were to explain stealth to a layperson, I'd ask them to think of the game chupan-chupai (hide and seek) we played as children, explains Air Commodore Nitin Sathe (retd).
Heeding to the demands of business jet operators, DGCA has amended its proposal to bar them from commercial flying if they did not have a three-aircraft fleet and come up with a new rule reducing the minimum requirement of planes to one.
Several new airlines are likely to fly in the Indian sky in the coming months with the government giving flying licence to four of the six companies, which had sought permits for launching scheduled, private or charter air operations.
Main imports from the neighbouring country during April-January 2024-25 included fruits and nuts (USD 0.08 million), certain oil seeds and medicinal plants (USD 0.26 million), and organic chemicals.
New airline Akasa Air on Thursday took delivery of the first 737 Max aircraft from Boeing in Seattle, USA, a statement said.
BAOA says the recent downgrade of India by the America's FAA was triggered primarily by a shortage of qualified staff for conducting safety and airworthiness inspections of aircraft.
Air India (AI)'s rise could be at the expense of three "super-connector" hubs - Doha in Qatar, and Dubai and Abu Dhabi in the UAE - as the Indian passenger would any day prefer direct flights of their national airline that is providing excellent on-time service, Arved von zur Muehlen, chief commercial officer of Saudia Airlines, said on Thursday.
DGCA asks those likely to be affected by a scheduled air operator's permit to the airline to give suggestions, objections within 30 days.
Regulator said that no permit will be given until it submits a revival plan.
The Cabinet Committee on Security (CCS) met on Wednesday under the chairmanship of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and firmed up the responses to the terror attack.
Akasa Air has asked the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) to exempt it from deploying CAT-III trained pilots on flights to and from two major fog-affected airports, Kolkata and Bengaluru, for specific periods, since there is a shortage of such pilots in its roster.
The airline has two operating permits and offers both full service and no-frills service in the domestic market.
Facing disruptions due to non-availability of crew, Vistara on Sunday announced reducing 10 per cent of its capacity or 25-30 flights daily and most of the cancellations are in the domestic network as the Tata Group airline strives to stabilise operations. The full-service carrier is to operate over 300 flights daily in the ongoing summer schedule and witnessed significant disruptions earlier this week as many pilots reported sick, resulting in cancellations of flights. "We are carefully scaling back our operations by around 25-30 flights per day, i.e. roughly 10 per cent of the capacity we were operating.
Magic Air, a start-up airline slated to be launched from November by a Person of Indian Origin, Neera Radia , has already run into turbulent weather, with the government on Thursday saying it cannot permit PIOs to operate an airline.
Earlier, the JV company got a go-ahead from the Foreign Investment Promotion Board in October 2013 and was awaiting AOP for launching a full-service carrier.
The avalanche hit the BRO camp between Mana and Badrinath between 5:30 am and 6 am on Friday, burying the workers inside eight containers and a shed, according to the Army.
Lenders of bankrupt airline Jet Airways, led by the State Bank of India (SBI), on Thursday told the Supreme Court that successful bidder Jalan Kalrock Consortium (JKC) was "unwilling" to pay the dues and that the "liquidation" was the only option left. The bench led by Chief Justice of India (CJI) DY Chandrachud was hearing the SBI-led consortium plea against the NCLAT's March order upholding ownership transfer of the bankrupt airline to JKC.
'I have a deep affection for Indian cricket. If someone asked me to come back, I wouldn't say no.'
AirAsia India, which is using the training facilities of its parent airline AirAsia in Malaysia, plans to set up similar facilities in India in the coming years, airline sources said.
'If there is a military standoff eyeball to eyeball on the western border, the Chinese could create problems by making movements in the north, in our northeast, which could involve us tying down some forces there so that could stretch our military actions.'
Inching closer to launch its operations, new no-frill carrier AirAsia India on Saturday took delivery of its first Airbus A-320 as it landed in Chennai after flying in from Toulouse headquarters of the European aircraft manufacturer.
According to the resolution plan, the airline is planning to start with six to seven aircraft on domestic routes and looking to restart international service within six months of resuming operations.
More than five years ago on an April evening, cash-starved Jet Airways announced temporary grounding of operations after flying as a full service airline for 25 years. Since then, more than 20,000 jobs and money worth thousands of crores owed to lenders, vendors and passengers evaporated while awaiting an insolvency resolution. And today, the Supreme Court ordered the airline's liquidation, marking the formal completion of a turbulent journey into the sunset and shattering lean revival hopes.
In the season of aviation action, Rakesh Jhunjhunwala-backed Akasa Air has secured the crucial no-objection certificate (NoC) from the civil aviation ministry. It expects to start operations next summer. The airline will now have to apply for the Directorate General of Civil Aviation for operations permit. Aviation sector has been in the limelight with the Tata Group winning the Air India bid last week.
According to sources, Vistara was looking at commencing operations on Oct 15 to commemorate J R D Tata's flight from Karachi to Mumbai on the same date in 1932.
The city's Air Quality Index (AQI) stood at 420 at 8 am on Thursday, compared to 426 at 4 pm on Wednesday. The AQI map prepared by the Central Pollution Control Board showed clusters of red dots (indicating hazardous air quality) spread across the Indo-Gangetic plains.
Teh word means expanse.
The air quality is expected to improve further due to wind speed favourable for the dispersion of pollutants.
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