Qatar Airways plans first fully foreign-owned airline in India
India may soon get its first fully-foreign owned airline after the Modi government allowed 100% FDI in the sector last June. Qatar Airways CEO Akbar Al Baker said in Berlin Wednesday that he plans to start an airline in India with the investment arm of Qatar government. A Qatar Airways spokesperson quoted the CEO saying that since India now allows 100% FDI, he plans to do so with Qatar Investment Authority. Baker also said that he will be making an application to launch a domestic airline in India soon. Qatar Airways has for many years been eyeing a stake in IndiGo but the Indian budget carrier has not done so. Last June, the Modi government had allowed Indian carriers to be fully owned by foreign entities. While foreign carriers will still be required to have up to 49% stake in airlines here, they can now get a foreign partner — like a sovereign wealth fund or an institutional investor — and not look for an Indian partner to put in the remaining 51%. However, India is yet to review the issue of “substantial ownership and effective control (SOEC)” in the fully-foreign owned airlines it had allowed last June. Currently, flying licences are given to an airline in India only if its chairperson and two-third of the directors are Indians and if the SOEC is with Indian nationals. The issue of SOEC being with Indians arises at two times — issuing the operating licence and giving bilateral rights that India has to its airlines for flying abroad. Harold Carmichael Authentic Jersey
PAC seeks details of DIAL’s revenue
A parliamentary panel has sought details of revenue earned by Delhi airport operator DIAL since the privatisation of the facility as it observed that government is “losing heavily”. The Public Accounts Committee (PAC) headed by Congress MP K V Thomas has directed the Civil Aviation Ministry to provide the details of the total earnings of DIAL and revenue earned by the government in terms of its approved shares. Delhi International Airport Ltd (DIAL) is a joint venture in which GMR group holds 64 per cent while Airports Authority of India (AAI) has 26 per cent. The rest 10 per cent shares are with Fraport AG. At a meeting at Delhi International Airport, the PAC members observed that government is “losing heavily” in the joint venture firm DIAL and asked the Ministry officials to submit its revenue details, a source privy to information said. During the meeting, Thomas said that this information will enable the PAC to decide whether public interest was substantially served or not, the source added. Raising concerns about commercial encroachment, the PAC members observed that the space for passengers was shrinking at the country’s busiest airport, said a source. Marlon Mack Authentic Jersey
India’s Rise Into The Private Jet Industry
We don’t know too many people who don’t lose all hope when they get hit with the C-word. Kanika was diagnosed with cancer when she was 22, what’s amazing about her is not that she beat it, but that she did so in a year only with even more vigor to resume starting up JetSetGo, an online private jet concierge service. After launching in 2013, JetSetGo claims to have the largest private jet fleet in India. It’s all about increasing transparency of how to charter an aircraft for private use and also bringing back luxury and class to the flight experience. Kanika and JetSetGo shells out airport escorts, ground staff and trained cabin crew to make sure their clients feel oh so VIP. Most of the Kanika’s clientele has a net worth of at least 10 million dollars. A private jet for a birthday party start can be anything north of Rs 60,000 an hour to Rs 2.5 lakh per hour, depending on the aircraft. Another famous example is the seven course meal set for a romantic date aboard a jet. The ostrich eggs, crabmeat risotto, parma ham, pâté and the entire experience was for a cool Rs 5.5 lakh. Kanika and JetSetGo are jetsetters all the way. Their investors include Yuvraj Singh, Puneet Dalmia and advisors like one of Singapore’s richest, Karan Singh Thakral, executive director of the multi-billion dollar Thakral Group. The JetSetGo profile for Kanika says she, “A fighter all the way, she claims to have jet fuel running through her veins while breathing and eating planes.” Gareon Conley Jersey
Why India needs low-cost airlines
India is one of the fastest growing economies in the world. A report published by IATA (International Air Transport Association) has thrown light on the immense potential of the growing Indian aviation sector. Indian aviation industry is likely to rule the roost by the end of 2026, by adding more than 300 million fliers into the fold, said the report. The surging popularity of the online travel portals will propel the market outreach of the low-cost carriers, a phenomenon supported by the fact finding done by a travel market research agency, which in its report published that more than 35% of Indians preferred to book online tickets in 2015. To mention that the numbers are expected to grow manifold in the years to come would be like stating the obvious in view of the priority that the populace lays on time consumption while selecting the mode of booking travel tickets. The report tabled by the marketing agency also said that the lower LLC prices have also created a proper climate of growth for the Indian aviation industry in the last few years. The airline sector is operating with more than 400 commercial flights, and the demand will spike, whereby the industry will need more than 1700 flights in the coming few years, believe the fence sitters. Joe Mixon Womens Jersey
Indian Aviation Industry to witness max passenger traffic growth amidst profitability pressure, says ICRA
Credit rating agency ICRA has said that the Indian Aviation Industry is likely to report 22 to 23 percent passenger traffic growth in FY2017 supported by ongoing low airfare regime says ICRA in its report. The airlines are maintaining healthy PLFs backed by low airfares. However, since the ATF prices have been on an uptrend during the year, the impact on profitability of the airlines during Q4 FY2017 is inevitable as average ATF prices during the quarter are 37.9 percent higher YoY, while the yields continue to remain under pressure. As per ICRA estimates, the fuel cost per ASKM (CASK) of the domestic aviation industry increased to Rs. 1.16 in January 2017 from a low of Rs. 0.82 in February 2016, and the same is expected to increase further in February and March 2017. “The Indian Aviation industry has reported YoY passenger traffic growth of 23.2 percent during 10m FY2017 period and the industry is heading towards completing one of the best years in terms of passenger traffic growth. The domestic passenger growth for last five years stood at 12.9 percent, 5.3 percent, 4.6 percent, 15.5 percent and 22.1 percent and the industry is likely to surpass the last year growth rate, notably on a higher base. The traffic growth performance has also been one of the best amongst other key aviation markets in the world,” said AVP and Associate Head Corporate Sector ratings ICRA, Anand Kulkarni. Chris Hogan Womens Jersey
Delhi cuts tax on aviation fuel to boost travel to smaller cities
The Delhi government has reduced the tax on aviation fuel to 1 percent from 25 percent for flights operating to smaller towns and cities, Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia said, in a move to reduce costs for airlines flying to remote areas from the Indian capital. The tax reduction is only for airlines operating under the federal government’s regional connectivity scheme, introduced last year to make flying more affordable, Sisodia said on Wednesday while presenting Delhi’s annual budget. India is the world’s fastest-growing aviation market but most of the air travel is between big cities. Under the regional connectivity scheme, the government will subsidise part of the cost for airlines to operate flights to smaller towns. Jet fuel is one of the biggest costs for airlines, especially for low-cost carriers such as IndiGo Airlines, owned by InterGlobe Aviation, SpiceJet and GoAir. Aditya Ghosh, president of IndiGo, India’s largest carrier, requested that the tax break be extended to all air travel out of Delhi, which is the airline’s biggest base. James Neal Womens Jersey
Indian air traffic grew at highest rate in the world in January: IATA
India beat all global markets in terms of domestic air traffic growth during the month of January, according to the International Air Transport Association, a global lobbying body. “January traffic soared 26.6%, marking the 15th consecutive month of 20%-plus annual growth. Demand is being stimulated by strong flight frequency,” IATA said in a statement. The fastest economic growth in the world, a growing middle class, rapid expansion by India’s carriers and the cheap airfares is pushing air traffic demand in India. China’s domestic traffic growth was not far behind, up 23.2% compared to January 2016. This was the strongest monthly growth since June 2010. Japan grew by 3.5% while Brazil contracted by 2%. Domestic air traffic in Australia grew by 1.1%, in Russia by 15.4% and domestic US by 3.5%. Geno Atkins Womens Jersey
Hyderabad, Delhi airports ranked high in service quality
Delhi International Airport (P) Ltd and Hyderabad International Airport Ltd, both managed by GMR-led consortium, have secured top rankings in airport service quality by the Airports Council International. While Delhi’s Indira Gandhi International Airport has become world’s number 2 airport in the over 40 million passengers per annum (mppa) category, Hyderabad airport was ranked number 1 in the 5-15 mppa category in the Airports Council International 2016 rankings. DIAL ranking DIAL’s score increased from 4.96 in 2015 to 4.99 in 2016 that helped IGIA scale over several other airports and attained the second position globally, after Incheon, South Korea. Delhi Airport joined the club of international airports handing over 40 MPPA. I Prabhakara Rao, CEO, DIAL, said in a statement, “We are now geared to undertake the expansion works at Delhi airport. IGIA Master Plan-2016 will further enhance the experience of our passengers.” Hyderabad tops The ASQ awards are presented to those airports whose customers have rated them the highest during the year. Delhi Airport is served by 11 domestic and 51 foreign carriers with average of 1,124 flight movements a day. The Montreal (Canada)-based Airports Council International survey in the 5-15 million passengers per annum category shows Hyderabad Airport has steadily improved its score from 4.4 in 2009 to 4.9 in 2016, measured on scale of 1 to 5. SGK Kishore, CEO, GHIAL, said in a statement, “We plan to go for expansion of the airport, where it can enhance its capacity to meet 20 MPPA.” Mark Scheifele Womens Jersey
Boeing pitches B737 MAX 10 to Indian operators
Boeing(BOE, Chicago O’Hare) has pitched its proposed B737 MAX 10 project to two of India’s largest operators of the B737 Family of jets, SpiceJet (SG, Delhi Int’l) and Jet Airways (9W, Mumbai Int’l), Dinesh Keskar, the US manufacturer’s Senior Vice President (Sales – Asia Pacific & India), has told Reuters. As such, according to the report, Boeing has pitched to the two Indian operators as a means of determining market receptiveness to the aircraft, which is aimed at the A321neo niche. According to Keskar, the MAX 10 would be ideally suited to Indian carriers running frequent shuttle flights between the country’s main hubs. “If you are flying to the metros this (737 MAX-10) will be a perfect airplane, because runways are long, demand is there, frequency is already there,” he said. According to Boeing, the B737 MAX 10 will feature a 66-in. fuselage stretch, or two seat-rows, on the B737 MAX 9. Seating a total of 230 in a single class configuration, the upgraded CFM International Leap 1B-powered twinjet could make its debut as early as 2020. Joseph Noteboom Authentic Jersey
GMR-led Delhi Airport ranked No. 2 position in passenger survey
Delhi International Airport (P) Ltd, a GMR led consortium, has announced Indira Gandhi International Airport has become the world’s number 2 airport in the over 40 million passengers per annum category, as per the Montreal (Canada)-based Airports Council International 2016 rankings. DIAL’s score increased from 4.96 in 2015 to 4.99 in 2016 that helped IGIA scale over several other airports and attain the second position globally, only after Incheon, South Korea. Delhi Airport has joined the club of international airports handling over 40 MPPA. I Prabhakara Rao, CEO- DIAL, in a statement, said: “Our focus has always been on enhancing customer’s experience. As we witness robust growth, we look forward to strong collaboration and support of airport stakeholders as well as our passengers. We are now geared to undertake the expansion works at Delhi Airport. IGIA Master Plan-2016 will further enhance the experience of our passengers and create new benchmark for the aviation community worldwide”. Angela Gittens, Director General, ACI World, said: “Promoting a culture of continuous service improvement has become a matter of gaining competitive advantage and optimising non-aeronautical revenue performance. ACI recognises these accomplishments and we look forward to seeking more effective, efficient and profitable ways of serving the flying public together.” The ASQ awards are presented to those airports whose customers have rated them the highest over the course of the year. The awards will be presented in Port Luis, Mauritius, October 2017. Delhi Airport is served by 11 domestic and 51 foreign carriers with average of 1124 flight movements a day. DIAL is a consortium comprising of GMR Group, Airports Authority of India and Fraport. Hyderabad airport too flies high Meanwhile, GMR Hyderabad International Airport Ltd has secured the first position in Airport Service Quality passengers survey in the 5-15 million passengers per annum category for 2016. The survey statistics shows that Hyderabad Airport has steadily improved its score from 4.4 in 2009 to 4.9 in 2016, measured on scale of 1 to 5. Hyderabad Airport has the honour to be the first airport in the country to have been awarded by ACI, The Director General’s Roll of Excellence in Airport Service Quality in 2014 for consistently earning the top five ranking in its category in the ASQ for five years in a row. SGK Kishore, CEO, GHIAL, in a statement said, “We are thankful to our passengers and all stakeholders to be part of this journey and helping us in reaching this milestone, yet again. The efforts put in by our partner airlines, concessionaires, housekeeping and other support staff have played a major role in this achievement.” Kishore, said, “Hyderabad Airport, running in to its 9th year of operations, is designed to cater to 12 MPPA. It has witnessed a growth of more than 20 per cent in the last year with a passenger throughput of close to 15 MPPA in CY 2016. We soon plan to go for expansion of the airport, where it can enhance its capacity to meet 20 MPPA.” The airport, with an initial capacity of 12 million passengers per annum (MPPA) and 1,50,000 MT of cargo handling capacity per annum, has the flexibility to increase capacity to accommodate over 40 MPPA in a phased manner. Russell Wilson Jersey