Bengaluru Airport introduces AI-driven robots to provide an improved passenger experience

Kempegowda International Airport, Bengaluru (BLR Airport) has introduced AI-driven, assistance robots to enhance the passenger experience.

Currently, at the trial stage, 10 robots have been deployed at the airport to help guide passengers through the airport and answer basic queries, it said in a statement on Tuesday, June 7.

Bengaluru Airport introduces AI-driven robots to provide an improved passenger experience

The robot count will be increased in a calibrated manner and further developed over a period in terms of functionality and features, after gauging customer feedback, it said.

BLR Airport has partnered with Artiligent Solutions Pvt. Ltd. -- specialists in AI and Robotics -- to model the robots along with creating a customised passenger services software. The default language of communication will be English, with additional regional and international languages in the offing.

"Pre-empting passenger requirements and complementing new-age technology with a focused customer-centric team approach has been our winning combination".Jayaraj Shanmugam, Chief Operating Officer, Bangalore International Airport Limited (BIAL)

The robots will provide a variety of services which include providing information on the flight status, passenger convenience services, directional assistance, retail and F&B information, the statement said.

The robots will provide a variety of services which include providing information on the flight status, passenger convenience services, directional assistance, retail and F&B information

They shall navigate autonomously through the terminal and escort passengers to their desired locations. If due to any reason, the robot is unable to answer queries, passengers shall be immediately connected to the 'Airport Help Desk' via video call, on the robot screen itself, it stated.

Owned and operated by Bangalore International Airport Limited, Bangalore Kempegowda International Airport is the international gateway to Bengaluru and ranks among the busiest airports in India. The airport commenced operations in 2008 and replaced the old HAL Bangalore International Airport.

An Air Arabia flight heading from Chittagong in Bangladesh to Abu Dhabi in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) was diverted to Ahmedabad on Monday, June 6 as one of the aircraft engines failed mid-air, senior officials of Indian aviation regulator Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) said.

The DGCA has launched a probe in the matter, the officials said on Tuesday, June 7. The aircraft "experienced No.1 Engine Stall and Engine Fail ECAM warnings came on", the official added.

The flight, 3L-062, had taken off from Abu Dhabi late on June 6 and was scheduled to reach Chittagong in Bangladesh. However, the air crew declared a Mayday after the flight developed an engine snag on Airbus A320 (A6-AOT).

The air crew declared a Mayday after the flight developed an engine snag on Airbus A320 (A6-AOT).

The flight landed at the Ahmedabad airport at approximately 9:25 PM on Monday, June 6 after one of the engines "stalled" mid-air and the engine failure warning came on, they added.

Due to the warning sign, the crew had to make a "mayday" call and the aircraft was allowed to conduct an emergency landing at the airport, the officials noted. None of the passengers or crew members was injured and the aircraft landed safely.

A DGCA team from its Mumbai regional office, in consultation with the Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB), has been sent to Ahmedabad to conduct the probe, the officials added.

According to the aviation website Skybrary, ECAM is the “Airbus version of an enhanced engine indicating and crew alerting system (EICAS) system. It presents data on the engine/warning display and system display inclusive of primary engine indications, fuel quantity, flap and slat position.”

DGCA orders probe after Air Arabia crew declares mayday; emergency landing in Ahmedabad

In the past few months, there has been a spurt in aircraft engine snags. The DGCA is investigating these snags faced by Indian carriers closely with the original equipment manufacturers. And now a foreign airline’s engine snag also joins its probe list.

ALSO READ - A320neo aircraft of Air India makes an emergency landing in Mumbai after mid-air engine shut down

“In the last three months, there have been one Pratt & Whitney and three CFM engine snags. They all had different issues and were commanded to shut down. It is being investigated closely in consultation with the original equipment manufacturers (PW & CFM),” a senior DGCA official investigating the engine snags faced by Indian carriers said. Industry insiders point out five CFM engine snags in the last 6 months.

Falcon Aviation Services-a leading Business Aviation Services operator in the Middle East and Africa region, and a subsidiary of Eve Holding, Inc. (“Eve” or the “Company”), had signed a Letter of Intent (LoI) for up to 35 electric vertical take-offs and landing (eVTOL) aircraft, in April 2022.

Representative | Aviator Newsroom

The Letter of Intent (LoI) signed, saw an order placed for up to 35 eVTOL aircraft, besides the fact that both the entities agreed on collaborating with local stakeholders and authorities to extend support and accelerate the development of the Urban Air Mobility (UAM) ecosystem in the United Arab Emirates.

We are ecstatic to partner with Eve and be the first operator of eVTOL in Dubai & the MENA region. The launch of this concept fully aligns with the Smart Dubai vision and will contribute to positioning Dubai as a global leader in sustainable Urban Air Mobility transportation. Falcon is actively engaged in Urban Air Mobility emergence and committed to delivering an effective and sustainable new urban transportation mode and providing the community with better and faster solutions. We are particularly proud to take a new step in the UAE, in a project that will be revolutionary for sustainable urban mobilityCaptain Ramandeep Oberoi, Chief Operating Officer of Falcon, said

Captain Ramandeep Oberoi | Aviation International News

Deliveries are expected to commence by 2026 and the collaboration will launch the first eVTOL touristic flights from the Atlantis, The Palm in Dubai.

We are thrilled about partnering with Falcon and having the immense opportunity to enable the future urban mobility in the United Arab Emirates and launch eVTOL flights in Dubai. This is a massive challenge for both companies, which will help to position Dubai as a leader in the urban air mobility market. Eve’s global experience, which spans different regions across the globe, will surely benefit the achievement of this projectsaid Andre Stein, co-CEO of Eve

Andre Stein | Forum Nacional

After having established itself as a leading operator in the aviation industry in the UAE and the MENA region, Falcon Aviation is located at Abu Dhabi’s Al Bateen Executive Airport and Dubai’s Al Maktoum International Airport.

Backed by Embraer S.A.’s more than 50-year history of aerospace expertise, Eve focuses more on accelerating the Urban Air Mobility ecosystem. According to the company, the UAM market is an estimated $760 billion industry and is apparently in no hurry to launch its aircraft which it dubs a flying taxi.

Stein highlighted the fact that the company is adopting a more holistic approach and is leaning more towards the “right direction”, than running in haste to provide investors with a preview of a prototype.

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Low-cost carrier SpiceJet has clarified that it has 650 pilots who have been trained on MAX aircraft and the DGCA decision to not allow 90 pilots to fly MAX aircraft won't impact operations. The airline is retraining them as per the DGCA order.

ALSO READ - DGCA fines SpiceJet with INR 10 lakh for using the faulty simulator to train B737 Max pilots

“This restriction does not impact the operations of MAX aircraft and the company has adequate trained pilots available for its operations. Basis the observation of DGCA these 90 pilots shall undergo re-training. DGCA has imposed a penalty of INR 10 lakh basis its audit observations," SpiceJet said in the BSE filing.

SpiceJet claims to have no impact on operations after 90 pilots barred from flying B737 MAX

The faults were detected during a surveillance check by the DGCA at the Greater Noida-based facility of CAE Simulation Training Pvt Ltd (CSTPL).

The aviation regulator had imposed INR 10 lakh penalty on the airline after it had used faulty simulators to train these pilots. The carrier has enough trained pilots on hand to meet its needs. These 90 pilots will be re-trained based on the findings of the DGCA.

ALSO READ - 90 SpiceJet pilots barred from flying Boeing 737 Max planes by the DGCA

In a statement, DGCA Director General Arun Kumar said: "For the moment, we have barred these pilots from flying Max and they have to retrain successfully for flying Max. "Also, we will take strict action against those found responsible for the lapse."

SpiceJet has clarified that it has 650 pilots who have been trained on MAX aircraft and the DGCA decision to not allow 90 pilots to fly MAX aircraft won't impact operations.

The airline, which operates 11 of the 13 MAX currently in its fleet, says the 60 daily flights operated on these planes will not be affected.

“About 144 pilots are required to manage 11 aircraft (MAX). SpiceJet has currently 560 trained pilots on MAX. The trained pilot strength is more than sufficient for continuing normal operations,” the airline spokesman said.

Notably, this happened within eight months of the DGCA lifting a ban on Boeing 737 MAX aircraft. While it was grounded worldwide from March 2019 to December 2020 following two crashes — in Indonesia and Ethiopia — killing 346, DGCA lifted the ban much later in August 2021.

The airline, which operates 11 of the 13 MAX currently in its fleet, says the 60 daily flights operated on these planes will not be affected.

SpiceJet shares fell 1.69% to INR 46.40 after India's aviation regulator imposed an INR 10 lakh fine on the low-cost air carrier for training pilots on the faulty simulator.

ALSO READ - SpiceJet posts net profit for Q3

On a consolidated basis, it reported a net profit of INR 42.47 crore against a net loss of INR 66.78 crore. Revenue from operations rose 34.8% year on year to INR 2204.68 crore on 31 December 2021.

This is the third instance when DGCA has imposed a financial penalty on operators after the regulator got the power to impose a financial penalty for violation of rules.

On a consolidated basis, it reported a net profit of INR 42.47 crore against a net loss of INR 66.78 crore.

ALSO READ - DGCA fines two flights schools for violating rules

In October 2021, the regulator had levied a fine of INR 75,000 on two flight training schools for irregular maintenance of breath analyser equipment.

ALSO READ - IndiGo penalised INR 5 lakh for refusing to board a specially-abled child

In the second such case, the DGCA imposed a penalty of INR 5 lakh on IndiGo for not allowing a boy with special needs to board a flight from Ranchi.

A helicopter of Thumby Aviation on May 31 bounced and turned by 270 degrees while landing at Kedarnath helipad, following which aviation regulator DGCA asked the chopper pilots to exercise caution whenever there are tailwinds when they are heading for landing, officials said on Monday, June 6.

The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) has started an investigation into this incident, its officials said. On May 31, at approximately 1:30 PM, a Bell 407 helicopter belonging to Thumby Aviation Pvt Ltd, while landing at Kedarnath helipad had an uncontrolled, very hard landing, they noted.

https://twitter.com/ANINewsUP/status/1533775618977849344

The helicopter had made an unstabilized approach to the helipad, and during the touchdown, the helicopter struck the helipad surface hard, bounced and after having lost direction by about 270 degrees, again settled down hard on the ground, they said.

The regulator issued an advisory after the incident in which it said "pilots are to exercise caution for the presence of any tailwinds during approaches, especially at Shri Kedarnath helipad".

Pilots must take adequate precautions and if the tailwinds or crosswinds are beyond the permissible limits, the approach must be abandoned and the chopper must return to the base, the advisory mentioned.

The DGCA is investigating the incident and it is planning to conduct a spot check for ensuring safety oversight of these helicopter operations, the officials noted.

Etihad Airways continues to see India as an important market and is betting on the wide-body Airbus A350 aircraft to drive demand from the Indian market, vice president, Indian subcontinent, Etihad Airways - Neerja Bhatia told CNBC-TV18 in a recent interview.

The airline has been undertaking initiatives during the last two years of the pandemic to increase efficiency and is now geared up for operating a full schedule from India.

"We have a lot of history in terms of the relationship between India and UAE. The proximity that UAE has with India is also beneficial. There is a huge Indian diaspora who are living in UAE, it is a home away from home for all the Indians working there and living there... India is a very important market for us.The prospects for demand from India are also strong on the back of its growing economy, increasing middle-class income, student and corporate traffic as well as people travelling for visiting friends and relatives in addition to leisure travel."Neerja Bhatia, Vice President, Indian Subcontinent, Etihad Airways

The airline is operating almost two flights daily from Delhi and Mumbai each, 10 flights per week from Hyderabad, nine flights a week from Bengaluru, and thrice a week from Trivandrum among flight operations from Kochi and Chennai as well.

"We are increasing our capacity and taking a pragmatic approach to network planning, we are becoming agile to cater to all opportunities and demand," Bhatia added.

The airline is also betting on its freshly inducted Airbus A350-1000 aircraft to drive demand from India. The A350 has 44 business studios and 327 economy seats.

A350 is Etihad's bet for driving demand from the Indian market

The Rolls-Royce Trent XWB-powered Airbus A350 offers 25% less fuel burn and CO2 emissions than previous-generation twin-aisle aircraft. This is in line with the airline’s focus on the environment, Bhatia said, adding that the airline has also started a green loyalty program.

In line with its focus on sustainability, the airline has also recently unveiled its new Economy class soft furnishings and tableware, with sustainability and improved passenger experience as primary objectives. This will be launched on board in the fourth quarter of the year.

Etihad posted a loss of USD 476 million for 2021 as compared to a loss of USD 1.70 billion in the year 2020. The airline carried 3.5 million passengers in 2021, with an average seat load factor of 39.6%.

The airline is also betting on its freshly inducted Airbus A350-1000 aircraft to drive demand from India. The A350 has 44 business studios and 327 economy seats.

Passenger load doubled in the second half of the year, reaching 70.1% in December as travel demand peaked during the winter holiday period.

While demand has picked up globally for airlines with a spike in leisure as well as corporate traffic, the current challenges for the aviation sector worldwide are the rising fuel prices, which have seen a spike since the Russa-Ukraine war.

This has also resulted in airlines having to re-route their flights, leading to higher flight time and more costs. "Biggest pain point is the ATF prices, divergent routes leading to higher cost," Bhatia added.

Etihad posted a loss of USD 476 million for 2021 as compared to a loss of USD 1.70 billion in the year 2020

Founded in 2003, Etihad Airways is the national carrier of the emirate of Abu Dhabi, based at Abu Dhabi International Airport.

Operating a fleet of narrow and wide-body Airbus and Boeing aircraft, Etihad provides a rapidly expanding network of services within the Middle East and to Africa, Europe, Asia, North America and Australia.

In addition to its core activity of passenger transportation, Etihad earns significant revenue from its cargo operation, Etihad Crystal Cargo. Etihad Airways forms part of the Etihad Aviation Group.