IC 814: The Kandahar Hijack begins by asking why the hijack lasted seven days and ends in wondering if the good guys fought the bad ones hard enough, observes Sukanya Verma.
Tata Group-owned Air India has placed an order for 840 planes with Airbus and Boeing, including the option to acquire 370 aircraft, with a senior airline official on Thursday saying the order is a "landmark moment" in the Indian aviation history. The announcement by Air India's Chief Commercial and Transformation Officer Nipun Aggarwal comes a day after the airline said it has placed a firm order for 470 aircraft -- 250 from Airbus and 220 from Boeing. In a LinkedIn post, Aggarwal said the airline is humbled by the excitement generated across the world by the airline's aircraft order.
Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee on Friday indicated that a decision on purchase of Airbus by Air-India and Indian Airlines is likely to be taken during the current visit of French premier Jean-Pierre Raffarin to the country.
The Tata group-owned Air India will induct over 90 aircraft in two years as it looks to widen its footprint and grab a larger market share. The plan includes 56 planes from the mega aircraft order that the airline has now finalised with Airbus and Boeing. These will be in addition to previously announced leases of 36 planes that include Airbus A320Neo, A321Neo, and Boeing 777 aircraft.
The Nicaragua bound charter Legend Airlines Airbus A340 flight, that was grounded at Vatry airport in France for four days on suspicion of human trafficking, arrived in Mumbai on Tuesday, December 26, 2023.
The growth in India's domestic aviation capacity in calendar year 2023 (CY23) was the sixth highest among 20 major domestic markets, compared to the pre-pandemic year of CY19. The domestic capacity in the country surpassed the pre-pandemic level seen in CY19 and was up 5 per cent in CY23. It trails Mexico, Columbia, China, Vietnam, and Spain, which have shown higher growth, according to data shared in a seminar organised by global travel data provider OAG on global aviation trends in 2023.
Airbus's assembly plant in north China's Tianjin plans to roll out 48 A320 aircraft in 2012, nearly doubling its current production capacity.
In a LinkedIn post on Wednesday, February 15, night, Nipun Aggarwal had said Air India, in addition to the order of 470 planes, had the option to purchase 370 aircraft from Airbus and Boeing.
European aeroplane maker Airbus Industrie hopes to sell 55 of its A380 planes, including 10 freighter aircraft, in India in 20 years.
The SIA A-380s can fly 471 passengers in a three-class configuration of first class suites, business class and economy.
The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) on Monday suspended operations at Redbird Flight Training Academy, one of India's largest flight schools, across all five of its training bases in the country. This action was taken after five accidents involving the institute's planes in the past six months. The DGCA announced it would conduct an audit of the academy's maintenance practices and also proficiency checks of the institute's flight instructors before allowing it to resume operations.
Air-India Ltd's board will discuss on April 3 whether the state-run long-haul carrier should place orders for 17 long-range aircraft from Boeing or Airbus, a spokesman for the airline said on Wednesday.
"Indian Airlines has chosen to buy 43 Airbus planes. It's my strong wish the choice be finalised soon," said French Prime Minister Jean-Pierre Raffarin on Thursday.
The A350 XWB is a family of mid-sized wide-body airliners designed to enhance fuel, operating costs and environmental efficiencies during medium-to-long haul airline operations.
India's private carrier Kingfisher Airlines, which placed orders for 30 Airbus A320 aircraft worth $1.9 billion at the ongoing Dubai Air Show, has said the carrier would go public to finance the deal.
The new airline has begun recruiting pilots and is close to confirming its top executives, including a Singapore Airlines executive as its chief executive officer.
InterGlobe Enterprises Ltd on Thursday announced its plans to launch IndiGo, its nation-wide low-cost airline venture.
The fresh bout of trouble has forced IndiGo to ground aircraft periodically since July, and on August 20, the number of grounded aircraft touched nine
UB Group's Kingfisher Airlines, which is scheduled to launch domestic operations from April next, would sign a deal with European aircraft manufacturer Airbus Industries for supply of 14 aircraft in Mumbai on December 18.
Air-India has taken two Airbus A310=300 aircraft from the Kuwait-based ALAFCO Aviation Lease and Finance Company on operating lease for a period of three years.
SpiceJet is in talks with aircraft makers for a jet deal.
China partly lifted a blockade on 45 long-haul A330 jet orders during a visit by French President Francois Hollande last month.
Bullish on the growth opportunities in the Indian civil aviation space, Europe's leading aircraft manufacturer Airbus today said it planned to invest about $1 billion in the next 10 years.
Air India on Friday said it has completed the acquisition of its first A350-900 aircraft by way of a finance lease transaction with HSBC through the GIFT City. This is also the first wide body aircraft to be leased through the GIFT City, the country's first International Financial Services Centre (IFSC). In a release, the airline said the transaction was facilitated by its wholly-owned subsidiary AI Fleet Services Ltd (AIFS) and is also the first financing transaction from the orders for 470 aircraft that were made earlier this year.
Initial reports say the pilots had asked for a change in route (it was flying to Singapore) because of adverse weather.
The international cargo operations of two major carriers - IndiGo and Air India Group (Air India and Vistara) - are experiencing opposite trajectories despite both the airlines significantly expanding their international flight offerings over the past year. During the fourth quarter of 2023-24, IndiGo's international non-passenger cargo business declined to 6,848 tonnes. This is an 18.2 per cent year-on-year (Y-o-Y) decrease, according to data from the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA)
The Wadia family-promoted budget carrier GoAir on Wednesday said it has placed an order worth $1.2 billion with Toulouse-based Airbus Industrie to buy 20 Airbus 320 aircraft as part of the airline's fleet expansion programme.
India will be one of the key centres for design and development of the A350 aircraft, European aircraft manufacturer Airbus' answer to the Boeing 787 Dreamliner.
For the first time in 13 years, since Jet Airways' A330 planes exited the airline's fleet in around 2010, an Indian wide-body aircraft will have a Rolls-Royce-powered engine, with Air India ordering 40 Airbus A350 planes. On Tuesday, Air India announced its mega aircraft order for 470 aircraft, including A350 planes. The A350 aircraft, which will come in two variants, are powered solely by Rolls-Royce Trent XWB engines and the local team has begun work to assist Air India with its aircraft-induction plans.
Public carrier Indian (formerly Indian Airlines) on Friday signed a deal with Airbus Industrie for the purchase of 43 aircraft as part of its fleet expansion plan, which was cleared by the government earlier.
The interiors of the world's biggest passenger airline, the Airbus A 380 resemble a luxury hotel.
Private carrier Air India on Tuesday unveiled its new collection of uniforms, designed by Manish Malhotra, for its cabin and cockpit crew. The new uniforms will be introduced in a phased manner over the next few months, starting with the entry of service of Air India's first Airbus A350 aircraft, the company said in a statement. "Air India's crew uniforms are amongst the world's most storied in aviation history, and we firmly believe that Manish Malhotra's innovative ensemble will script an exciting new chapter for Air India's future narrative," said Campbell Wilson, chief executive officer and managing director at Air India.
Launch on 10 sectors in the winter schedule.
India and the European Union today issued a Joint Action Plan covering various areas of cooperation and signed the Framework Agreement on cooperation in Europe's Galileo navigation project
French authorities launched a judicial investigation into the conditions and purpose of the trip, with a unit specialising in organised crime investigating suspected human trafficking.
Air-India's decision to purchase Boeing's 787 Dreamliners has re-ignited the fight for supremacy between Boeing and Europe's Airbus in the civil aviation market, media reports said in Washington.
