Civil Aviation Minister K Rammohan Naidu on Friday said various operational measures, including keeping new flight duty norms in abeyance, will help address the IndiGo flight disruptions, and complete restoration of services is expected in next three days.
At least 148 flights were cancelled and over 150 flights were delayed at the Delhi airport on Wednesday due to dense fog and low visibility conditions.
'IndiGo will receive a sharp rap on the knuckles -- a punishment, a huge penalty. 'I look towards them creating a compensation fund.' 'I would like to think they would do that for all the passengers who are affected on every single day since cancellations began.'
Karnataka's Chief Minister Siddaramaiah has requested Prime Minister Narendra Modi to take measures to protect Indian citizens in the Middle East due to escalating geopolitical tensions, including initiating evacuation plans and enhancing diplomatic efforts.
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Such direct import was formally allowed in February 2012 but the aviation companies lack the infrastructure to do so.
In recent times, there have also been instances of GPS spoofing and interference incidents at Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata, Amritsar, Hyderabad, Bangalore and Chennai airports.
Civil Aviation Minister Ram Mohan Naidu addressed the Lok Sabha regarding the recent IndiGo flight disruptions, assuring that the airline will be held accountable and strict action will be taken for non-compliance and passenger hardship.
The EC is learnt to have invoked the 'party in power' clause of the poll code in the case as it could be averred that party in power' is using government transporter for election publicity.
The prevalent practice is that airlines have to pay between Rs 4,000 and Rs 4,500 per filled seat as departure tax.
The civil aviation ministry is open to the idea of raising the foreign direct investment level from the present 40 per cent to 49 per cent, even as there are indications that a decision on the issue could be taken in the Union Budget.
DGCA provided temporary relief to IndiGo, which is partially owned by Rahul Bhatia, by rolling back the night duty definition to 12 am-5 am from 12 am-6 am earlier, and allowing its pilots to do six night-landings from two earlier, besides other relaxations.
Sri Lanka has established emergency hotlines and is in close contact with its diplomatic missions in West Asia following escalating tensions in the region. The country is also preparing its airports for potential flight diversions and emergencies.
All colleagues, who came in contact with the employee, have been asked to go into self isolation as a precaution, the ministry said.
IndiGo has processed refunds totalling Rs 610 crore and delivered 3,000 pieces of baggage to passengers after recent flight disruptions, according to the government.
Govt to introduce new aviation policy on May 15.
The civil aviation ministry is monitoring the impact of volcanic ash plumes from Ethiopia on flight operations, leading to cancellations and delays. The situation is being closely monitored, and necessary precautions are being taken.
IndiGo has seen its pilots' strength depleting by 378 pilots in the last nine months despite its chief operating officer and Accountable Manager, Isidro Porqueras stating to the DGCA in a letter last December that "the overall impact of implementing the proposed changes above (now-implemented FDTL) norms would amount to an approximate 3 per cent increase in crewing requirements.
Though NOC was issued by the Ministry last week, this was the first formal statement by the AirAsia CEO on microblogging site Twitter.
Aviation regulator DGCA plans to implement measures to control excessive air ticket price increases, following concerns raised during a parliamentary panel meeting. The meeting also addressed air safety issues in light of the Ahmedabad plane crash.
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The ministry of civil aviation has disagreed with a proposal of the Prime Minister's Office to explore raising the cap on the number of weekly flights from Qatar in exchange for discounts on additional supplies of liquefied natural gas from there.
Sri Lanka has established emergency hotlines and is closely monitoring the situation in West Asia following escalating tensions, urging restraint and de-escalation from all parties involved.
IndiGo cancelled over 1,000 flights on Friday and said operations are expected to normalise in the next 10 days, as the country's largest airline received flight duty norms relaxation from watchdog Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA), which will probe the disruptions that have impacted thousands of passengers for four straight days.
Jet Airways chairman Naresh Goyal on Tuesday met civil aviation secretary Madhavan Nambiar on Tuesday against the backdrop of pilots of the private carrier refusing to report to work to protest against the sacking of two of their senior colleagues.
With IndiGo cancelling over 1,000 flights on Friday owing to crew shortage as the second phase of the pilots flight duty and rest period norms kicked in, huge capacity was out of the market, leading to airfares tripling and quadrupling from over the normal range, a travel industry executive said.
An IAF aircrash investigation typically concludes in two/three odd months. The reason for the crash is usually established in a week's time.
The owner of VSR Ventures, whose aircraft carrying Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar crashed, suggests the pilot initiated a 'missed approach' due to poor visibility. The owner vouches for the pilot's experience and the aircraft's maintenance.
An Air India Airbus A350 sustained engine damage after ingesting a baggage container while taxiing at Delhi airport. The incident occurred after the flight returned to Delhi due to the unexpected closure of Iranian airspace. The DGCA is investigating.
According to sources, the crisis-ridden airline cancelled 137 flights at Delhi airport and 21 services at Mumbai airport.
A specialized team from the Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB) has arrived at the Baramati crash site to investigate the accident that killed Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar and four others. The investigation will focus on the technical factors that led to the crash of the Learjet 45 aircraft during its second landing attempt.
'We have been insisting that all Boeing 787 aircraft be grounded and checked for the electrical systems.'
The Learjet 45 (LJ45), a mid-size business jet aircraft produced by the Learjet Division of Bombardier Aerospace, went off the runway while attempting to land at Baramati airport and burst into flames.
Rahul Bhatia-controlled domestic carrier IndiGo on Monday cancelled 562 flights from six metro airports, with 150 cancellations originating from Bengaluru airport alone, according to sources.
The national carrier to get lion's share of the Rs 1,978 crore budgetary support demanded by the ministry for 2010-11.
The United Arab Emirates intercepted several Iranian missiles and drones, resulting in casualties and damage to infrastructure, including the Dubai airport and Burj Al Arab.
The MoCA said on Twitter on Wednesday that it 'has designated all the airlines operating under Vande Bharat Mission & air transport bubble arrangements as designated agencies for this purpose'. 'Passengers may book tickets directly with the airlines concerned. They need not apply/register with the Ministry of Civil Aviation,' it added.
The airline announced that it will fully refund all bookings cancelled between December 5 and December 15 and will offer a waiver on all cancellation and rescheduling requests.
'During the meeting with DGCA on Monday, IndiGo assured operational stability and no flight cancellations after February 10, 2026, based on the current approved network, above (sufficient) crew strength.'
The budget has increased the outlay for the Ministry of Civil Aviation by 21% at Rs 12165 crore from Rs 10031 crore for FY2008-09. However, the revised estimate for FY2008-09 was at Rs 7490 crore against the outlay of Rs 10031 crore.
Out of the total Plan outlay of Rs12164.76 crore (Rs 121.65 billion) for the Ministry of Civil Aviation, Rs 190 crore (Rs 1.9 billion) is the budgetary support.
Dense fog disrupted operations at Delhi airport, leading to cancellations and delays of hundreds of flights. Airlines are offering refunds and rescheduling options.
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