India Aviation News

India’s civil aviation sector grows by 22 per cent

Sat, 31 Jul 2010 17:56:39 +0000

India’s civil aviation sector has grown by 22 per cent in the first six months of this year, according to Boeing India President Dinesh Keskar. Keskar said the growth rate from January to June varied between 19 to 25 per cent, averaging a healthy 22 per cent, and that this rate was likely to continue over the rest of 2010.

India Strategic magazine quoted Keskar as saying during the just concluded Farnborough Air Show that load factors had already gone up with a majority of the flights in India going full. Source

Aviation body gets cracking on safety rules

Sat, 31 Jul 2010 17:55:43 +0000

Two months after 158 people were killed in the Air India Express crash at Mangalore, India’s aviation regulator now wants airlines to enhance their safety standards. The circular issued last week by the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) also states that airlines cannot take disciplinary
action against staff for reporting safety lapses. Air India had issued notices to employees for leaking news about safety violations by the company after the Mangalore crash in May. Source

‘There’s urge to return to low-cost aviation’

Sat, 31 Jul 2010 17:55:00 +0000

There’s very little that’s official about Captain G R Gopinath, the former chairman of the erstwhile Air Deccan and also the pioneer of low-cost airline business in India. We hesitated to spell out his full name because it sounded so official. So it’s either Gopi or Captain as everybody calls him.

You ask him for an interview, and he calls you home. There, if he is a little late, his father-in-law chats with you while his mother-in-law offers coffee. Then, there is his pet Labrador which fools around with you at times. Source

India, Pakistan showcase aviation wares at Farnborough airshow

Sat, 31 Jul 2010 17:53:15 +0000

Led by their respective state-run agencies, India and Pakistan are exhibiting their aviation wares at the Farnborough International Airshow that got underway on Monday at Farnborough, some 55 km from southwest of London. India’s Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd (HAL) and the Pakistan Aeronautical Complex
(PAC) are among 1,393 exhibitors from 40 countries taking part in the 47th edition of the show at this Hampshire town, one of the biggest in the aviation calendar.

India’s Minister of State for Defence MM Pallam Raju is leading the Indian delegation, which includes Defence Production Secretary Raj Kumar Singh and the chief of the Southern Air Command, Air Marshal S Mukerji. Source

Long haul

Sat, 31 Jul 2010 17:52:24 +0000

There is something for the aviation industry to smile about. Jet Airways has declared profits for the last two quarters, after suffering losses for long. The last time Jet declared a profit of more than Rs 100 crore was in March 2006. The smile gets wider as SpiceJet has announced a profit of Rs 61.4 crore for 2009-10. Kingfisher may not yet be in the black, but the red has definitely turned a healthier pink. Happily for the industry, the domestic sector in May 2010 recorded 4.8 million passengers, the highest ever. Source