India now #4 country for air travel; passes Germany for airport traffic with over 250m passengers in 2016; IndiGo’s 40% domestic share
The latest passenger statistics from the Airports Authority of India confirm that the country’s airports handled over 254 million passengers in 2016, an increase of 20% over 2015. This means that India moves into fourth place in the global rankings, overtaking Germany, and behind only the US, China and the UK. While the US and China are well out of reach, it is possible that India could overtake the UK (whose airports welcomed over 270 million passengers last year) either in 2017 or maybe 2018. Leading the way among Indian airports was Delhi, which sailed past the 50 million passenger milestone in 2016 and finished the year handling 55.6 million passengers, an increase of 21% compared with 2015. Of the top 15 airports, 12 grew their passenger volumes by more than 15%, while two (Guwahati and Jaipur) saw growth of more than 30%. With passenger numbers at Bengaluru passing 22 million thanks to growth of 22.5%, local media have reported that there is now consideration being given to re-opening the city’s old airport, which was closed when the new airport opened in 2008. Passenger numbers on domestic routes increased by more than 20% in every month of 2016. In fact the sequence of 20%-plus growth goes back to November 2015. The last time the country achieved such growth across every month was a decade earlier in 2006. While most Indian airlines roughly maintained their market share of the domestic market across 2016, IndiGo continued to grow its share, reaching a record 42.6% in October, before falling back slightly to 40.3% in December. The airline’s increased share appears to have come at the expense primarily of Jet Airways, which saw its share of the domestic market fall from 18.7% in January to 15.3% in December, and Air India, which went from 16.0% to 14.0% during the same period. The other leading players, SpiceJet and GoAir, both pretty much held steady with around 13% and 8% respectively. Relative newcomers AirAsia India and Vistara both gained a little ground, increasing their domestic shares from around 2% to 3%. Greg Olsen Jersey
Govt to sell 51% stake in Air India? Aviation secy says not true
Union Civil Aviation Secretary RN Choubey on Tuesday denied that the government was looking to sell a majority stake in Air India. A report had claimed that the government was looking to sell a 51 percent stake in the loss-making national carrier to a strategic partner. People familiar with the matter were quoted as saying that the proposal had included reviving the airline within five years. They claimed that presentations had already been made to the Finance Ministry and the Prime Minister’s Office. While Air India spokesperson Dhananjay Kumar and Finance Ministry spokesperson DS Malik had declined to comment, Choubey cleared the air by saying that no such proposal was on the table. The national carrier, which has the largest fleet in the country with 140 planes, has 14.6 percent of market share in the domestic passenger market. Under a financial restructuring plan in 2012, Air India was slated to receive Rs 30,231 crore equity infusion, 75 percent of which it has received so far. The airline’s losses have reduced of late, with Air India reporting a loss of about Rs 3,587 crore in 2015-16, from a loss of Rs 5,859 crore in the previous year. E.J. Gaines Womens Jersey
India to fill gaps in aerial vigilance
With Pakistan and China rapidly modernising their air forces, India has intensified efforts to fill the gaps in its aerial surveillance. After handing over the first indigenously developed airborne early warning and control system, Netra, to the Indian Air Force at Aero India last week, the Defence Research and Development Organisation has set its sights on a much larger and more capable system. India is also in negotiations with Israel to buy two more Phalcon Airborne Warning And Control System (AWACS) mounted on Russian IL-76 aircraft to add to the three systems in service. Officials are hopeful of concluding the deal before Prime Minister Narendra Modi visits Tel Aviv possibly in June. Addressing journalists after handing over the first system, Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar said the gaps in AWACS were being corrected. Various programmes were being pursued simultaneously. “We have improved the serviceability of our AWACS by purchasing the shortfalls through emergency powers, so their availability is better,” he said referring to the recent emergency purchases of spares by the IAF for its platforms. The DRDO has The DRDO has planned to develop a long-range AWACS with a 360-degree coverage akin to the Phalcon. He said it would take six years to get the system “totally functional”. Gale Sayers Jersey
More intra-state flights may take UDAN on government’s regional connectivity push
The regional connectivity scheme is set to give a boost to intra-state connectivity in a number of large states in the country, as several bids under the regional connectivity scheme, or Ude Desh ka Aam Nagrik (UDAN) plan, are favouring intra-state connectivity. “Looking at the bids, we can comfortably say that a number of states will get air connectivity between the state capital and various key cities in the state,” said a senior aviation ministry official, who did not want to be identified. He, however, did not reveal the names of those states, as the counter bidding process is under way. The official also explained that Delhi itself is going to get connected to at least ten new cities after regional flights start operations. Among the ten destinations, flights to two cities — Kanpur and Bhatinda — have already been started by Air India and will start charging subsidised fares of Rs 2,500 per hour of flight once they win bids for the routes. Analysts said that this could be a game changer, as it would generate a lot of traffic for bigger carriers too. “Intra-state flights would generate huge number of air fliers not just in the country but would also generate business for national airlines, which can provide onward feeds to air passengers being brought to the state capital by regional carriers,” said Mark Martin, founder and CEO of Martin Consulting. Martin, however, said that the scheme would have been much more effective if the government had removed some complexities. “The scheme today is a complex one, where there are a lot of processes before the subsidy is actually released. If the government had provided airlines subsidies on the cost of fuel, which is the highest operating cost for airlines, it would have been much more effective,” said Martin. The government is also hopeful of announcing the award of regional flights post March 11, after the code of conduct gets over post the announcement of election results. “We will be able to finish the award of routes by the first week of March. The announcement can only be made after March 11, 2017. We expect regional flights to begin by the end of March,” said the ministry official quoted above. The government expects that the subsidy outgo during the first year of regional operations would be to the tune ofRs 350 crore and the government would generate it by charging the airlines. Trevor Williams Womens Jersey
Work on Bhogapuram airport will begin soon : Aviation Minister
Visakhapatnam as a modern growing industrial city needs a new international airport and therefore the Centre has taken up the project at Bhogapuram in Vizianagaram district. Work on the project will begin once the land acquisition process is completed, Civil Aviation Minister P. Ashok Gajapati Raju, has said. He was interacting with members of the local branch of the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) here on Monday. He said, “The Collector of Vizianagaram district has told me that most of the lands have been acquired for the project,” he said. The project falls in Vizianagaram Lok Sabha constituency, represented by the minister himself. He said the Civil Aviation Ministry was spending more than Rs. 1,500 crore on improving the Rajahmundry, Vijayawada and Tirupati airports in the state. “We are extending the runways at Gannavaram (Vijayawada) and at Madhurapudi (Rajahmundry) airports. We are also creating other facilities and also improving the Tirupati airport. Nightlanding facilities are being created at these airports to improve connectivity,” he said. Air cargo from Vizag: O. Naresh Kumar, the CEO of a local software company, and several others raised the issue of setting up an air cargo complex at the Visakhapatnam airport to meet the needs of the local industry. They wanted a specific assurance from the minister on the issue. The minister said there were some procedural problems, which were being sorted out. On the whole, he said, on the cargo front Indian airports were way behind and “except at Chennai airport, we are not handling much cargo. The Government and the industry and trade should work together on the issue. You should tell us what kind of policy intervention you require.” A representative from Brandix India Apparel Ltd sought a direct flight to Colombo from Visakhapatnam and the minister said he would look into the demand. Local member of Parliament, K. Haribabu, said 30 major projects were coming up in and around Visakhapatnam city, after the bifurcation of the State, tremendously increasing the importance of the city and correspondingly air connectivity was also being improved. G.S Shiv Kumar, the chairman of the CII (Andhra Pradesh), presided over the session. Calle Rosen Jersey
JSW group to foray into aviation business
Sajjan Jindal’s JSW Group is entering the civil aviation business. It has bid for the Bengaluru-Vijayanagar route under the government’s regional connectivity scheme, its top executive said. “Our Group has submitted the bid under the government’s scheme and the bid is only for one route, which is Vijayanagar to Bengaluru. No listed company is involved,” joint managing director and Group’s chief financial officer Seshagiri Rao said. The foray into civil aviation would mean that the proposed SPV will need to get approvals from the aviation ministry and the Directorate General of Civil Aviation as a scheduled commuter airline before it launches operations. He added that the group is not looking at this venture as an entirely commercial venture. “It is not a purely commercial venture for us and we are looking at it more from a perspective of providing connectivity to our plant. It may become a big business in the future but as of now our investment is only in the range of about Rs 20 crore,” Rao said. Rao, however, did not reveal any details on the type of aircraft that will be used to launch operations saying he is not aware of those details. He further said that about 25 to 30 people from their company travel to Vijayanagar daily. “This route will also help tourists travelling to Hampi,” he said. Tourists traveling to Hampi now have only the road and rail routes, which take about six hours from Bangaluru. Hampi is a popular tourist destination, dotted with temples and a UNESCO World heritage site, with monuments dating as far back as 1442 from the Vijayanagara empire. An Airports Authority of India official, when contacted, confirmed that JSW Group has applied, but refused to reveal any further details, as the bidding process is still on. Another aviation ministry official, when contacted, said: “The proposals are from 11airlines, including Air India and SpiceJet, and they expect to kickstart operations at about 15 unserved or underserved airports soon.” The Modi government, in June last year, announced a plan to provide regional air connectivity at a fare of Rs 2,500 per hour of flight. According to the scheme, the government would bridge the gap between cost of operations through the regional subsidy fund that has been created by charging domestic airlines a charge per flight. J.J. Watt Jersey
Centre mulls dedicated cargo airport for Telangana, UP
The Centre is considering a proposal each from Telangana and Uttar Pradesh for setting up a ‘dedicated cargo airport.’ Telangana wants a dedicated cargo airport to be built in northern Hyderabad, while Uttar Pradesh is seeking the green signal to construct one such airport in the western part of the state, official sources said. The Centre has informed these two states that the Airports Authority of India (AAI) had appointed a consultant to study and suggest name(s) of airport(s) or site(s) in the country that can be ‘developed’ or ‘converted’ as ‘dedicated cargo airport(s)’ – which may also be termed as ‘merchant airport(s).’ The AAI, subject to the Centre’s approval, would facilitate the construction of such dedicated cargo airport(s) once the site(s) and plans are finalised, and after finding that the same would be geographically suitable for air transportation, the sources said. They added that the cargo airport(s) may also act as ‘air cargo hub(s)’ in the country. Yadier Molina Womens Jersey
Will start receiving ordered Boeing planes from mid-2018, says SpiceJet
Stating that Indian aviation market is the fastest growing in the world, SpiceJet on Monday said that it aspires to be the most profitable airline in the country. “We have the best on-time performance in the industry. We will try to reduce costs and increase ancillary revenue,” it said. The low-cost carrier also said that it will start receiving the ordered Boeing planes from mid-2018. Meanwhile, India’s domestic travel demand in 2016 touched nearly 100 million mark, with the Indian airlines flying a total of 998.88 lakh (99.88 million) passengers between the January-December period of 2016 as compared to 810.91 lakh in 2015, an increase of 23.18 per cent over 2015. The data showed that the low-cost carrier (LCC) SpiceJet had the highest passenger load factor (PLF) during the month under review at 93.7 per cent. “Not only have we scored a hat-trick with the best OTP (on-time performance) for the third consecutive month in a row, we have also recorded over 90 per cent passenger load factor for 21 successive months,” G.P. Gupta, Chief Administrative Officer, SpiceJet, said in a statement. Recently SpiceJet also changed the uniform of its workforce. The uniforms retain the carrier’s signature red colour largely, while incorporating new designs. Inspired by the airline’s image of “Red.Hot.Spicy”, the new range of uniforms has been introduced to enhance the style quotient. The new range includes a unique design for each department, specifically styled to suit the different seasons. For instance, the summer wear for the female cabin crew will include a one-piece dress. The range for pilots includes a single button slim cut black suit for men. Patrik Laine Jersey
Did you know? Every 9 in 10 AAI airports are running a loss
The Airports Authority of India (AAI) is making losses at 90 percent of the airports it operates, reports Business Standard . This is due to a lack of aviation activity at the airports, with 30 of the 109 loss-making airports under it completely bereft of any aircraft traffic. The government’s regional air connectivity initiative is planned around bringing these airports back into use by subsidising airlines to fly to such locations. Only 13 of the 125 airports under its belt are currently profit making. The AAI earned Rs 10,824 crore as income in the financial year 2016, out of which, a third came from revenues made by private airports. The Delhi International Airport has to pay 45.99 percent of its revenues to AAI, while the Mumbai International Airport shells out 38.7 percent. The public sector entity also receives consession fees of 4 percent of revenues of the Hyderabad and Bengaluru airports. AAI attributes the losses to low traffic at airports which translates into meagre revenues. With revenues at a minimum, the airports always end up with higher expenditures over revenues. It has started focussing on its bigger loss-making airports for now, with hopes that the Centre’s regional connectivity scheme kicks in soon. Profits for AAI in FY16 stood at Rs 2,537 crore. Almost a fifth of its profits, around Rs 560 crore, was given to the Centre as dividend for the same period. Kapil Kaul of aviation consultancy firm CAPA told Business Standard that an urgent restructuring of AAI is essential. Bhopal airport, which has regular flight activity, is the top loss making airport for AAI with a Rs 52.6 crore loss in FY16. Other airports which also contribute to high losses include Amritsar, Aurangabad, Varanasi airports among others. Harrison Phillips Jersey
JSW Group to boost PM Modi’s plan to improve flight connectivity for small towns and villages
JSW Group, the Indian conglomerate led by billionaire Savitri Jindal, applied under a subsidy program spearheaded by Prime Minister Narendra Modi to improve flight connectivity for small towns and villages. The group made a bid in an ongoing auction process which will allow companies asking for minimum government subsidies to operate scheduled commercial flights to the country’s underutilized airstrips. The aim is to improve connectivity between the group’s plants, Chief Financial Officer Seshagiri Rao said in a phone interview Monday. The firm isn’t bidding under listed entities such as JSW Steel Ltd., India’s largest privately owned producer of the material. Modi has promised tax breaks and waivers of landing and parking charges for some underused airfields in the world’s fastest growing aviation market, which is also among the costliest due to taxes and airport charges. The prime minister is trying connect India’s 450 airports and airstrips, mostly in smaller towns, by vowing to fund some of the airlines’ losses if they fly to such airports. JSW Group, whose businesses range from metals to power generation, also plans to venture into electric cars by 2020 on expectations the government will promote such vehicles and falling battery prices will make them more affordable, Chairman Sajjan Jindal said in January. Kirk Mclean Jersey