Staff crunch hits Air India’s MRO plans
Air India’s plans to grow its maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO) business faces a big risk as it faces a severe shortage of aircraft engineers. Air India hived off its engineering department into a separate unit last January to tap business from other airlines. Primarily, it still caters to Air India’s aircraft maintenance but aims to double its third party business to Rs 130 crore in FY 17. Air India’s MRO unit has around 600 aircraft maintenance engineers and faces a shortage of around 100-150 personnel. Recently it hired around 100 of its retired engineers on contract but still the shortage persists. “Over the next two-three years we will require 250 engineers and the shortage could become a bottleneck to our growth,” said H R Jagannath, CEO of Air India Engineering Services Limited. Part of the additional manpower will be utilised to maintain new aircraft being inducted in Air India’s fleet. But hiring engineers is also proving difficult as it essentially means poaching from another airline. The fresh hiring is also to cater to 15-20 employees who are retiring each month. It takes two-four years for an aircraft technician to secure a type rating and maintenance engineers license and Air India has also begun offering on-job training to technicians from other companies, enabling them to apply to the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) for licence. “We are seeking support of DGCA and Boeing for the training programme. The government too should support the MRO sector by offering five year tax holiday, ” he said. Earlier this year, Air India’s MRO began carrying out ‘C’ check (heavy maintenance check) on Jet Airways Boeing 777 aircraft. It has also signed a memorandum of understanding with SpiceJet to maintain its Boeing 737 and efforts are underway to secure European Aviation Safety Agency certification for MRO facilities in Nagpur and Thiruvananthapuram. The MRO unit will also start test and minor repairs of General Electric engines which power Boeing 777 planes at its Nagpur unit later this year and complete overhaul of engines will be carried out from next year. The engine overhaul facility, the first of its kind in India, will significantly boost the MRO business as it can undertake engine repairs of all General Electric engine customers. Jordie Benn Authentic Jersey
BookMyCharters wants to be the Uber of Indian skies
A Mumbai-based startup is changing the way millionaires book private jets and negotiate city traffic to reach airport in time. Traditional methods of booking chartered flights done through brokers take up to 48 hours or longer. Enter BookMyCharters, the long-drawn process ends in a click. Travellers get fare, aircraft type and availability and can make bookings in under a minute. The startup, which wants to be the Uber of India’s chartered aviation skies, lets fliers generate quotes and book private jets real-time — much like Uber the American taxi aggregator it is trying to emulate. “It’s like booking a cab,” says Sachit Wadhwa, co-founder of BookMyCharters. The cost for a hiring an 8-seater private jet from Delhi to Chandigarh could come to as low as Rs 30,000, a search on the company’s website showed. BookMyCharters, led by parent Baron Aviation, launched in December 2015 and offers services across 22,000 routes, 150 locations and has 40 diverse aircraft within India. In cities like Mumbai, it also organises a pick-up from a nearby helipad and then off to Juhu Airport, from where a private chauffeur escorts fliers to the jet. J.R. Richard Authentic Jersey
Air India posts operational profit for first time in 8 years
Air India posted an operational profit of Rs.105 crore in 2015-16 compared with an operational loss of Rs.2,636 crore in 2014-15 due to an increase in traffic growth. This is the first time the national carrier has posted an operational profit since it was merged with erstwhile Indian Airlines in 2007, the financial results of 2015-16 cleared by the airline’s auditors and approved by its Board showed. A sharp decline in aviation turbine fuel prices helped it bolster operational profit to more than Rs.100 crore in 2015-16 even as the airline was earlier expecting an operational profit of Rs.8 crore. Mike Cammalleri Womens Jersey
Foreign registered aircraft may soon fly in India
In an attempt to cut cost, improve ease of doing business and promote regional connectivity, national and regional carriers in India may soon be allowed to use foreign-registered aircraft for charter and regular airline flights. The Ministry of Civil Aviation held a meeting on Thursday, which was attended by Minister of State for Civil Aviation Jayant Sinha, secretary R N Choubey and acting Directorate General of Civil Aviation chief B S Bhullar among others. “Some countries like US allow foreign registered aircraft to operate in their territory. Here an Indian company has to first get the aircraft registered in India after which the aircraft can be used by it for regular or charter flights. We plan to remove this requirement as Indian domestic air traffic is growing at the fastest pace globally and we are promoting regional connectivity in a big way that will also require planes,” an official was quoted saying by Times of India. Under the current system, an Indian company can only use aircraft for regular or charter flights only after it gets the aircraft registered in India. Exemption from the current rule will make it easier for the foreign-registered aircraft owner to take back the aircraft in case of a dispute with the airline operating the aircraft. Since there are less chances of planes getting stuck in India, the leasing companies could also reduce the rentals and thus help domestic carriers. L.C. Greenwood Womens Jersey
Modi to open new terminal at Vadodara airport on Oct 22
A new terminal built for international flights at the city airport will be inaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on October 22, a top AAI official said on Thursday. “Construction of the new terminal building is part of the Centre’s efforts to modernise existing airports and develop them at par with international standards,” Guruprasad Mohapatra, Chairman, Airports Authority of India (AAI), said. “The new building has been constructed at a cost of ?160 crore and it will be inaugurated by the Prime Minister on October 22,” he told PTI. The terminal at the airport in Harni, on the city outskirts, is spread over 18,120 sq mt and can handle 700 passengers (domestic plus international) per hour. It will have 18 check-in counters, he said. The building, a steel structure, has been designed as per the Advance Building Management System. It has hi-tech security systems, energy-saving cooling mechanism, rainwater harvesting set up and super sensitive fire safety alarm, Mohapatra said. “Currently, 10 flights operate everyday from the Harni airport which is not equipped to handle more than the existing number of passengers. However, the new terminal will help in accommodating additional flights and passengers,” he said. International flights for neighbouring countries will be available from the terminal, but there will be no direct service for the US or the UK as the runway length is not enough to accommodate big aircraft. No international flight has been announced yet. S Rahej, AAI Member (Planning), who recently visited the airport, said the terminal is ready for commissioning. The foundation stone for the building was laid on February 26, 2009, but actual construction work started only in May 2011. Ranjanben Bhatt, the BJP MP from Vadodara, said the city will now find a place on the global civil aviation map. It will be Modi’s first visit to the city after assuming charge in May 2014. In the last Lok Sabha polls, Modi was elected from both Vadodara and Varanasi, but he later vacated the former. Lac Edwards Womens Jersey
GoAir to take fleet strength to 26 by March, to fly overseas by summer
Low-cost carrier GoAir today outlined plans to consolidate its domestic market presence with the addition of six Airbus aircraft to its fleet of 20 by March next, while connecting to select overseas destinations by next summer. Announcing Hyderabad as its 23rd destination in the domestic network, Wolfgang Prock-Schauer, Chief Executive Officer of GoAir, said the airline would introduce daily flights connecting Hyderabad to Chennai, Bengaluru, Bhubaneshwar and Kolkata. Hyderabad will also be connected to Port Blair via Bengaluru, which is seen to provide leisure travellers additional options. He said Hyderabad is a key market in south and central India and a significant base for business and tourism in the region. “Adding Hyderabad, with its ideal geographical locations, we reinforce our commitment towards connectivity across the country,” he said. The airliner, which operates with 20 aircraft now, expects to add one aircraft per month and take its strength to 26 by March 2017. This will enable the airliner to expand its services from the present 144 to 180-190 per day by March 2017. “Apart from strengthening the domestic network, we are looking at operating to some international destinations by next summer. We have identified a couple of locations in China, Iran, Saudi Arabia, and some locations in the Far East to offer our services,” he said. Anthony Zettel Womens Jersey
Government discusses option of sharing security expenses in airports
Government today deliberated the possibility of sharing of a portion of security expenses in airports by travellers with the Civil Aviation Ministry opposing the move backed by the Home Ministry. A high-level meeting, chaired by Home Minister Rajnath Singh, discussed the issue but no decision has been taken on it, sources privy to the deliberations said. The Civil Aviation Ministry, led by Minister Ashok Gajapati Raju and his junior Jayant Sinha, argued in the nearly two-hour long meeting that security in airports is a “sovereign function”. Hence, responsibility falls on the government and all expenses should be borne by it. The Home Ministry, led by Rajnath Singh and his junior Kiren Rijiju, agreed with the Civil Aviation Ministry’s argument but suggested that a portion of the security expenses should be taken care of by the airport operators, which normally pass on such expenses to travellers. “However, no decision has been taken on the issue and further deliberations will take place in near future,” the source said. Dwight Clark Womens Jersey
Groundwork at Navi Mumbai airport site begins
Work on levelling land in the core area of the Navi Mumbai international airport (NMIA) has finally started, almost two decades after a second international airport for Mumbai was proposed. Cidco, which will undertake the cutting of 92-odd metre high Ulwe hill and diversion of the eponymous river, has started some basic work even as the crucial stage II forest clearance is awaited from the Union ministry of environment and forests (MoEF) and a parcel of the tender for hill cutting awaits finalisation. Cidco senior PRO Mohan Ninawe told TOI on Wednesday: “Machinery has been deployed on the site and work has started, but the hill cutting will start only after the entire tender is finalised. Also, the forest clearance is expected any time soon. Raigad collector Sheetal Ugale has submitted the papers to the MoEF.” The tender for hill cutting is worth around Rs 2,000 crore. The first two parts of the tender, said to be around Rs 550 crore, was repackaged owing to change in engineering works and design for combining the cutting and diversion of the Ulwe river. This part is currently under tendering process. The other two parts have been finalised. C.J. Uzomah Authentic Jersey
New Delhi’s T1D May Go All IndiGo
In a first-of-its-kind agreement, budget carrier IndiGo, India’s biggest airline by market share, may get Delhi airport’s domestic terminal, better known as Terminal 1D, for its exclusive use. Civil aviation secretary RN Choubey confirmed to HT that talks between GMR-led Delhi International Airport Ltd (DIAL), the consortium that operates the Indira Gandhi International (IGI) airport, and IndiGo were at an “active” stage. “Talks are now at a very active stage between the airport operator and airlines.” Besides IndiGo, T1D is used by low-cost carriers SpiceJet and GoAir for domestic operations. IGI’s T3 handles all international, as well as some local flights. “This discussion has got an operational and a commercial dimension so the airport operator and airlines have to sit together. They are doing so and talking about the details,” said Choubey. The exercise, however, is unlikely to be a smooth one. Both SpiceJet and GoAir have resisted the move to shift out of T1D. “We have opposed the move to shift us out of T1,” said SpiceJet spokesperson Ajay Jasra. Sources said both SpiceJet and GoAir have argued that no single airline should be favoured and, if need be, all three should be moved out. Scott Niedermayer Jersey
ICRA: Air passenger traffic continues on a strong growth trajectory; records 20% increase in August 2016
During August 2016, the air passenger traffic in the country stood at 21.4 million, exhibiting a substantial growth of 20% over August 2015. In 5m FY2017, the passenger traffic has reported a y-o-y growth of 19%, aircraft traffic has grown by 15% and cargo traffic has grown by 7%. Harsh Jagnani, VP, ICRA Ltd elaborates, “August 2016 reported slight decline (1.1%) in total passenger traffic on m-o-m basis; however, on y-o-y basis there had been a growth of 20% reflecting the continuing overall positive growth trajectory. The passenger traffic growth in August has been driven primarily by significant y-o-y increase in domestic passengers (23%), which constitute over 77% of the total passenger traffic in the country as of August 2016. The aircraft traffic has reported similar trends with a negligible m-o-m growth and y-o-y growth of 13% in August 2016”. The domestic traffic (both passenger and aircraft) continues to dominate the total traffic with domestic passenger traffic and domestic aircraft traffic reporting a 23% and 15% y-o-y increase respectively in August 2016, significantly higher than the 8% growth reported in both international passenger and aircraft traffic. The passenger growth in the country has remained broad-based with 18 out of the top 20 airports exhibiting double-digit y-o-y growth rates. The growth remained robust across both metro cities (y-o-y growth of 20%) and non-metro cities (y-o-y growth of 19%). Chris Hogan Authentic Jersey