Civil Aviation Secretary Vumlunmang Vualnam on Thursday said the number of planes with domestic airlines will increase to 1,400 in the next five years as he highlighted the growth potential of the country's aviation space. Currently, the fleet is around 800 aircraft and leading carriers IndiGo and Air India have placed significant plane orders.
The Delhi High Court agreed to hear a plea regarding mass flight cancellations by IndiGo, while the Supreme Court acknowledged the chaos as a 'serious matter'. IndiGo has cancelled 500 flights, leaving many passengers stranded.
Union Minister Pralhad Joshi assures that the Indian government is prepared to bring back Indians stranded in the Gulf region due to the Iran-Israel conflict and disruptions in Dubai, emphasizing citizen safety as the top priority.
Four buildings -- Atulyam 1, 2, 3 and 4 -- which were damaged in the crash are being vacated, and occupants will be given alternative accommodations.
The national carrier to get lion's share of the Rs 1,978 crore budgetary support demanded by the ministry for 2010-11.
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.
The home ministry on Wednesday dropped domestic air travel from the list of prohibited activities during the ongoing lockdown, paving the way for operations of regular commercial flights. Union Home Secretary Ajay Bhalla issued the order in this effect in his capacity as chairperson of the national executive committee under the National Disaster Management Act.
The Centre has appointed senior IAS officers Vumlunmang Vualnam and Neeraj Mittal as new secretaries in the ministry of civil aviation and the department of telecommunications respectively in a major secretary-level bureaucratic reshuffle, a government order stated.
The last rites of veteran Congress leader and former Union minister Shivraj Patil were performed with full state honours in his home district, Latur, in Maharashtra on Saturday, with many top leaders in attendance.
In 14 days, more than 350 flights operated by the Indian carriers have received hoax bomb threats. Most of the threats were issued through social media.
"There are approximately 52,042 employees working in the civil aviation sector in the attached/autonomous/public sector organisations under this ministry. There are no such proposals in the above organisations," minister of state (Independent Charge) for civil aviation, Praful Patel informed the Rajya Sabha.
The ministry also said it remains committed to full transparency relating to the ongoing investigation and will follow all mandated protocols and norms in the larger interest of the highest standards of passenger Safety and convenience.
In modern aircraft, there are cockpit voice recorder and digital flight data recorder.
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.
'AAIB preliminary report was more detailed than most people were expecting.'
An Air India passenger allegedly urinated on a fellow traveller during a flight from Delhi to Bangkok on Wednesday. Air India has reported the incident to the authorities (DGCA) and is investigating the matter. The airline has also stated that its crew followed all laid down procedures in handling the situation and offered assistance to the aggrieved passenger.
'It is most pertinent to note that in over 25 years of flying, Captain Sabharwal had not had a single incident or accident-causing fatalities or otherwise'
'The ministry may like to consider setting up an ombudsman similar to electricity ombudsman and insurance ombudsman, to ensure a time-bound resolution of consumer issues within the airline sector.'
Taxes on ATF in India are among world's highest, and are seen as key reason for mounting losses of airlines.
The trial of Abu Jundal, accused in the 26/11 Mumbai terror attacks, is set to resume after the Bombay High Court overturned a lower court order requiring authorities to hand over confidential documents to the accused.
The DGCA will concentrate only on technical and safety aspects.
'She was not a yes person. She would tell the truth and her feelings to Indira Gandhi, and Indira Gandhi would value her opinion. The same was the case with Rajiv Gandhi who would value her opinion.'
In 2017, 60 million passengers flew between India and the UAE, the largest overseas air travel market from India.
The Mumbai police have registered a case against an unidentified person after three airlines received bomb threats on their X handle, an official said on Tuesday.
With terror threats looming large over the civil aviation sector, an advisory council of experts will be set up soon to deliberate on and recommend measures to step up aviation security.
'Earlier, the NTSB was actively flagging technical issues with Boeing. But now, the narrative is shifting toward 'human error'.' 'That term is often misunderstood -- it could mean pilots, engineers, refueling staff -- anyone.' 'But this framing ('human error') conveniently steers the conversation away from mechanical or design faults.'
A proposal to hike foreign direct investment cap in helicopter and sea-plane operations, MRO facilities, charters, air-cargo and non-scheduled air operations has been moved by the civil aviation ministry for the Cabinet's consideration.
Protocols for the Bomb Threat Assessment Committee (BTAC), convened in the event of a bomb threat call to an aircraft or airport, have been tweaked to better tackle the spate of the ongoing 'random' Internet-based threats being made to various Indian airlines, official sources said Tuesday.
The cost of any flight from Delhi and Mumbai could rise by up to Rs 3,000 soon unless the airport regulator is able to reverse a court order.
The environment ministry has objected to the fact that around 115 hectares (or 7.3 per cent) of total land for the project is mangrove forest. It recently conveyed this to both Cidco and the civil aviation ministry. The matter is now with the prime minister's office. Cidco Vice-Chairman and Managing Director GS Gill said the corporation had sought an appointment with the environment ministry officials to make another presentation on the project in the next 10 days.
India, which plans to start flights to Kabul whenever Pakistani airspace opens, on Wednesday agreed to take a slew of steps, including waiving off expenses, to assist Afghanistan in building up its aviation infrastructure.
The DGCA has formed two specialised teams to internally monitor IndiGo's daily operations.
There is no clarity on the stand taken by the PM on many issues plaguing the aviation sector
Security at the Mumbai airport has been tightened following intelligence inputs suggesting that terrorists were planning to carry out a hijacking attempt for securing the release of some terrorists.An alert has been issued following a meeting of senior officials of Civil Aviation Ministry, Bureau of Civil Aviation Security and Home Ministry, Civil Aviation Ministry sources said on Thursday.During the meeting, preparedness of 'different layers' were discussed.
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.
'Where rostering systems are automated and duty time software interfaces directly with DGCA, the assertion that they suddenly discovered crew shortages is simply implausible.' 'If adequate crew planning hasn't materialised within 12 to 24 months from inception, how will 45 days -- from December 5 to February 12 -- suddenly resolve matters?'
Aviation Minister Praful Patel has requested FM to rationalise taxes on aviation fuel in Budget 2008-09.
Incumbent airlines oppose the proposal.
Maintaining that civil aviation flew thousands of tonnes of equipment and passengers across the country on a daily basis, he said grant of infrastructure status would help the industry in its dealings with the RBI as well as the commercial banks, both in the private and public sectors. On Kingfisher's global plan, Mallya said the airline would launch services to Hong Kong and Singapore as soon as its aircraft were ready.
