Indian Aviation Market

Shankh Air gets approval to soar, set to be Uttar Pradesh's first airline

Shankh Air, Uttar Pradesh's first scheduled airline, will hub at Lucknow and Noida, connecting major Indian cities with high-demand interstate and intrastate routes

Global aviation market: Boeing faces a steep climb in catching up to Airbus

The two companies form a duopoly in the global passenger plane market, but Airbus has far outproduced and outsold Boeing in recent years

India to boost helicopter manufacturing, says aviation minister Naidu

Expanding the helicopter industry presents a significant opportunity and the government is set to advance towards manufacturing helicopters, Union Aviation Minister Kinjarapu Rammohan Naidu said on Friday. India is poised for a significant transformation in its aviation sector with the introduction of the Bhartiya Vayuyan Vidheyak Bill, 2024, he said. The Bill was moved for passage in the Lok Sabha on Friday. It promises to enhance the country's aviation capabilities, including helicopter manufacturing and the introduction of seaplanes. In a speech delivered while introducing the Bill, the minister highlighted the potential for growth in India's helicopter industry, noting that the country operated just 250 helicopters at present. "This is a great opportunity to tap into. We are going to manufacture helicopters and the state-of-design element in the Bill will improve the establishment of manufacturing plants and designs," he said. The minister expressed confidence that once the .

Bhartiya Vayuyan Vidheyak to address discrepancies in aviation law: Govt

The government on Thursday said the Bhartiya Vayuyan Vidheyak Bill 2024, which seeks to replace the 90-year-old Aircraft Act, would address the current discrepancies in the aviation law and help the industry grow. Speaking during a discussion on the Bill in the Lok Sabha, Aviation Minister Kinjarapu Rammohan Naidu underscored the need for the new legislation, noting that the Aircraft Act, 1934 has become outdated due to its numerous amendments over the years. The Bill, which was introduced in the Lok Sabha on July 31, is intended to "regulate various aspects of the aviation industry, including the design, manufacture, maintenance, operation, and sale of aircraft". Naidu explained that the 1934 Act had undergone 21 amendments, resulting in ambiguities and contradictions, particularly regarding the powers and functions of internal organizations like the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA). He pointed out that these issues have created confusion within the aviation sector, ..

Air India in 'good position', to retrofit over 100 planes: CEO Wilson

Air India will be retrofitting more than 100 planes, including 40 wide body planes, and has ordered around 25,000 aircraft seats as part of revamping the fleet, its chief Campbell Wilson said on Wednesday. Emphasising that "plenty of things" are going on as part of the transformation at Air India, Wilson said the focus is on integration, growth, optimisation and customer experience. As part of Tata Group consolidating its aviation business, AIX Connect, formerly AirAsia India, is getting merged with Air India Express and Vistara with Air India. There is "immense flexibility" for the group whether it is full or low cost services and "we are in a good position," the Air India CEO and MD said at the CAPA India Aviation Summit here. According to him, Air India will be retrofitting more than 100 aircraft and has also ordered around 25,000 seats as part of retrofitting the planes. About costs for the airline industry, Wilson said airfares have been underperforming overall inflation. Ai

Airlines ride AI: Less work for agents, human-like responses for passengers

From human-like responses to reduced workload for customer service agents to utilisation of trillions of parameters for answering air passengers' queries, artificial intelligence is providing the technological tailwinds for Indian airlines as they cater to rising traffic. For Air India, which has embarked on a five-year transformation plan, Artificial Intelligence (AI) use will be "pervasive" and its generative AI virtual agent AI.g handles over 1,300 topics. And the country's largest airline IndiGo has AI chatbot 6Eskai that has 1.7 trillion parameters, allowing it to answer questions with ease. Also, the bot can understand written, typed language, and verbal instructions using speech-to-text models. Akasa Air, which describes itself as a "cloud-native and digital-native brand", said it will continue to invest heavily in proven technology solutions across all business functions. India, one of the world's fastest growing civil aviation markets, is seeing rising domestic air traffi

Emirates, Etihad, Qatar Airways see 70% India flyers transit at hubs

This raises govt concerns over undercutting Indian carriers' international plans

Healthy, tough competition in Indian aviation market: IndiGo CEO Elbers

There is healthy and tough competition in the Indian market, which is also price sensitive, the country's largest airline IndiGo's chief Pieter Elbers said and emphasised that there is an enormous demand for travel. At the helm of the airline having a domestic market share of little over 60 per cent and more than 360 aircraft in its fleet, Elbers also mentioned that overall price levels in India are "very very competitive", something that he thinks one should take "as part of the change in India itself and the diversity of India". While air traffic continues to rise and airlines expand their operations by connecting new destinations, there are also concerns in certain quarters about airfares being higher, especially during peak seasons. Air ticket prices in the country are deregulated, and fares are mostly a function of supply and demand. In a recent interview with PTI, Elbers said there is healthy and tough competition in the Indian market. "Indian consumers are really eager to ..

India's aviation industry should embrace new safety rules quickly

Maximum flight times have been cut and the definition of night duty - when reduced work times are enforced - will be broadened under new rules

Christmas cheer: Spot airfares on major domestic routes remain in check

This month, the priority is to maintain fares at a reasonable level to ensure consistently high load factors

NIIF to invest Rs 675 crore in GMR's Bhogapuram airport in Andhra Pradesh

This is part of the financial partnership announced in December 2022 in which NIIF would invest in the equity capital of three airport projects of the GMR group

DGCA plans to come out with framework on gender issues early next year

The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) plans to come out with a framework early next year on what could be done to address gender issues, a top official said on Saturday. Speaking at an event here, DGCA chief Vikram Dev Dutt said the issue of gender has been debated at the regulator informally. "Systemically, when we as a regulator when we look within it... we thought we will show the mirror to ourselves as an organisation... early next year... we will come out with a framework for DGCA in terms of what we would do for gender, beyond paper and beyond official circulars," he said. Specific details about the proposed framework could not be immediately ascertained. Dutt also mentioned DGCA's larger role in influencing positive change within the private sector and sought suggestions from stakeholders. Minister of State for Civil Aviation V K Singh said the tremendous growth story in Indian aviation is synonymous with the vision, inspiration, and strength embodied by women in

Is grounded airline Go First even capable of doing test flight, asks lessor

The lessor also said that even physical inspection of the aircraft was not granted by the RP, besides the aircraft not being maintained and records not being provided to them

Limiting bilateral rights not the way to grow Indian aviation: IAG Cargo

CEO David Shepherd calls for 'fair competition' between national and international carriers

MRO service provider StandardAero open to form joint venture in India

India stands out as a major purchaser of aircraft, with major domestic airline operators such as Air India and IndiGo placing two of the world's largest aircraft orders with Airbus and Boeing

India is one of world's most competitive aviation markets: IndiGo CEO

India is one of the most competitive aviation markets in the world and there is also a lot of competition in the market, IndiGo CEO Pieter Elbers said on Tuesday. IndiGo is the country's largest carrier with a domestic market share of more than 63 per cent and is also expanding its international operations. The airline connects 32 international and 81 domestic destinations. According to Elbers, India is an incredible and one of the most competitive aviation markets in the world. IndiGo is going through a "maturing phase", he said and stressed on the need for having aviation hubs in India, which is under served. Elbers was speaking at the conference of the All India Management Association (AIMA) in the national capital.

SpiceJet most delayed Indian airline as travel season takes a toll

With the busy summer travel season arriving, only 61% of SpiceJet's flights departed on time from the country's four biggest airports - Mumbai, Delhi, Bengaluru and Hyderabad - in May

India's newest airline Akasa Air looking to raise $75-100 mn for expansion

To raise the money, Akasa Air has approached potential investors which include PE firms and high-net-worth individuals

Airfares down on some routes after aviation minister's meet but still high

At its highest, one-way fare for a Delhi to Leh flight in May stood at a whopping Rs 43,519, which is more than thrice the prices a year ago, Rs 14,334

Codeshare facility denied to United Airlines, Emirates; what does it mean

The decision is likely to hurt United Airlines which has been forced to stop its direct flights from New Delhi because of the closure of Russian airspace for US carriers