Indian Airlines proposes to commence its own retail courier and freight services to tap the huge domestic courier/cargo business, the Rajya Sabha was informed on Tuesday.
The Centre asked state governments on Friday to review and rationalise their taxation policy on jet fuel and land acquisition practices to encourage the expansion of civil aviation sector so that they could themselves reap the benefits of its unprecedented growth.
Civil Aviation Minister Praful Patel has said that up to Rs 2 lakh crore investment is expected in the country's civil aviation sector in the next five years, higher than any other sector.
The civil aviation sector will attract an investment worth Rs 1,00,000 crore (Rs 1000 billion) in the next four years for development, modernisation and aircraft acquisition, according to Union Civil Aviation Minister Praful Patel.
The minister, while speaking at the event organised by the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry in New Delhi on Wednesday, said the problems at AI did not come up overnight. The airline's high-cost structure and the compulsions of being a public sector unit had been the reasons and it had been making a loss, he said. AI is to incur a loss of over Rs 7,000 crore (Rs 70 billion) this fiscal year.
In the eye of the raging IPL storm, Union Agriculture Minister Sharad Pawar on Saturday rubbished the charge that his party or ministerial colleague Praful Patel was involved in any alleged wrongdoing relating to the T20 league.
The Reserve Bank of India's decision to allow airlines hedge jet fuel in global markets came in for praise from the industry and the civil aviation ministry, but end-users are unlikely to benefit in the form of lower airfares.
Union Minister of State for Civil Aviation Praful Patel said he would be ordering an inquiry into the tragic accident, and added that notwithstanding the inclement weather, it was the pilot's duty to determine a flight could be taken or not.
Civil Aviation Minister Praful Patel on Friday said the airline industry in India has grown by 400 per cent in a short span of about six-and-a-half years.
Government considers a proposal to give sops to airlines for linking metropolitan cities and small towns, Union minister for civil aviation Praful Patel informed the Rajya Sabha on Tuesday.
The airport and user development fees will be kept out of it.
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's aircraft got disconnected with the control tower of the Delhi airport for nine seconds recently, Minister of State for Civil Aviation Praful Patel informed the Rajya Sabha on Tuesday.
A coordination committee shall monitor the start up clearances to manage and prioritise the movement of flights during fog.
Unions boycott launch of new fleet to protest the merger of Indian Airlines and Air India.
Besides human resources integration, the merged airline, is expected that the combined airliner would have the benefit of increased cost savings and profitability of Rs 820 crore by 2010.
Civil Aviation Minister Praful Patel and former Minister of State Shashi Tharoor were seen having a long chat in the Lok Sabha on Thursday, after a newspaper reported their alleged link in the Indian Premier League bids for the Kochi team.
The ministry of civil aviation will seek a complete rollback of service tax levied on domestic air travel in the recent Budget, Civil Aviation Minister Praful Patel said on Wednesday.In his Budget speech on February 26, Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee had proposed a service tax of 10 per cent on both domestic and international travel. Earlier, the service tax was restricted only for international travel.
"There was a drop of 30 per cent in passenger load factor leading to losses in many top airlines in the world including British Airways. But last quarter of 2009 has again raised some hopes of revival in the country," Patel told reporters in Nagpur on Monday.
Latur and Nanded in Marathwada region of Maharashtra would soon be on the aviation map with the launch of flights from this metropolis to these towns, Civil Aviation Minister Praful Patel has said.
Government plans a new look for the Indira Gandhi International Airport before the Commonwealth Games in 2010, the Rajya Sabha was informed on Tuesday.
The government on Friday announced it had entered into an agreement with the United States to establish an Aviation Cooperation Programme to modernise the sector's infrastructure.
Favouring the centre-state cooperation model adopted by northeastern states to develop aviation infrastructure in the region, Civil Aviation Minister Praful Patel on Thursday asked state governments to tie up with public sector carriers to provide fo
The inaugural Air-India Boeing 747-400 Mumbai-Los Angeles flight, carrying 170 passengers, was on Friday flagged off by Minister of State for Civil Aviation Praful Patel.
The government is examining alleged financial irregularities, sources of funding and other aspects of Jet Airways, the Lok Sabha was informed on Friday.
Air India delayed the payment of March salary to its employees by a month as it had to meet year-end expenses for various purposes, Parliament was informed on Thursday.
Gujarat Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel allocated portfolios following a major cabinet reshuffle, with Harsh Sanghavi becoming Deputy CM and receiving Home and Industries. New ministers, including Rivaba Jadeja, were also assigned responsibilities.
As many as 128 pilots have left Air India, Indian Airlines and Alliance Airways between 2004 and 2006, the Rajya Sabha was informed on Tuesday.
The Nationalist Congress Party said on Thursday it will fight the upcoming Lok Sabha elections in Gujarat with the Congress and talks on seat sharing has already started and it is expected to be finalised in next couple of days.
The last rites of Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar, who died in a plane crash, were held with full state honors in Baramati. Prominent leaders and thousands of mourners attended the funeral.
Even in the domestic aviation scene, consolidation talks are on among some private airlines.
As many as 460 foreign nationals are working as commanders in flights by domestic carriers to meet the shortage of pilots, Minister of state for Civil Aviation Praful Patel informed the Rajya Sabha on Tuesday.
As many as 170 out of the 454 airports and airstrips available in the country were non-operational, the Lok Sabha was informed on Thursday.
The civil aviation ministry assured employees of state-owned carriers Air-India and Indian on Wednesday that the planned merger of the two would not involve retrenchment, cuts or losses in pay scale, perks or allowances.
Air India has taken 15 foreign pilots on a one-year contract to tide over the shortage of trained commanders in the country.
Air India had to ground 281 flights over the past three years, most of them due to a technical snags.
New Civil Aviation Minister Vayalar Ravi on Thursday sought the support of all employees of ailing Air India in restoring its lost glory and said the staff and the management should work in coordination to achieve this.
India and Thailand have signed an MoU enabling operation of more flights by their airlines between the two countries, Rajya Sabha was informed on Tuesday.
Union Minister for Civil Aviation Praful Patel flagged off SpiceJet, India's latest low cost, no-frills airline on Tuesday on the Delhi-Ahmedabad-Mumbai route with a Boeing 737-800 aircraft in an efficient all economy 189 seat configuration.
