Defence ministry signs INR 3,700 crore contract with BEL to improve IAF radar operations

The defence ministry on Thursday, March 23 signed two contracts worth over INR 3,700 crore with Bharat Electronics Limited (BEL) for radars and receivers, which will enhance the operational capabilities of the Indian Air Force.

The first contract worth over INR 2,800 crore pertains to the supply of Medium Power Radars (MPR) 'Arudhra' for the IAF, and the second, at an overall cost of around INR 950 crore, relates to 129 DR-118 Radar Warning Receivers (RWR).

Both projects are under the 'Buy Indian-IDMM (Indigenously Designed Developed and Manufactured)' category. The projects are aimed at enhancing the surveillance, detection, tracking and electronic warfare capabilities of the air force.

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"These essentially embody the spirit of 'Aatmanirbhar Bharat' and will help facilitate the realisation of the country's journey to achieve self-reliance in defence manufacturing," the Indian Air Force (IAF) said in a statement.

MPR (Arudhra) radar has been indigenously designed and developed by the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) and will be manufactured by BEL. Its successful trials have already been conducted by the IAF. It is a 4D multi-function phased array radar with electronic steering in both azimuth and elevation for surveillance, detection and tracking of aerial targets.

The system will have target identification based on interrogations from co-located identification friend or foe system. The DR-118 RWR will considerably enhance the electronic warfare capabilities of the Su-30 MKI aircraft. The majority of sub-assemblies and parts will be sourced from indigenous manufacturers, the statement said.

The IAF said the project will boost and encourage active participation of Indian electronics and associated industries, including MSMEs. It is also expected to generate employment of approximately two lakh man-dayoverof three and half years, it said.

No-frills airline IndiGo is expecting to fly 100 million passengers and is planning to have 350 aircraft in its fleet in the next fiscal, according to a presentation by the airline at the analysts/investors meeting on Thursday, March 23.

At the same time, the airline is looking to end the current fiscal with around 306 planes in the fleet with the passenger volume estimated at over 85 million. The number of destinations is expected to go up to 115, with around 10-15 destinations likely to be added to the network during the year, as against 104 in FY23, including 78 domestic and the balance being international.

ALSO READ - IndiGo is “back with a bang” with several incoming international flights

India’s largest domestic carrier has a market share of 55% and as many as 490 aircraft are set to join its fleet by the end of the decade, including several Airbus XLRs, which will help it reach Europe.

IndiGo intends to have 350 aircraft in its fleet; to fly 100 million passengers by the FY24 end

ALSO READ - IndiGo negotiating “several hundred aircraft” order from Airbus – French FM Bruno Le Maire

Recent reports also suggest it could place another significant order soon, possibly at the Paris Air Show, according to French Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire. IndiGo is already the largest Airbus A320neo customer, and it also has several A321XLRs on order, with which it hopes to expand its international offerings even more.

While demand continues to be strong in the March quarter of the ongoing fiscal, external variables such as volatility in forex and fuel, global supply chain disruption as well as inflationary cost pressures (are) impacting performance.

ALSO READ - IndiGo awarded as World’s Youngest Aircraft Fleet 2023 in the ‘100+ aircraft in their fleet’

On the capacity side, the airline projects it to be in the mid-teens compared to the estimated over 18% in the current fiscal. The airline, in the presentation, said it aims to boost economic growth, social cohesion and mobility in the country by developing its own model with affordable air connectivity and on-time service, among others, across the domestic and global markets.

The government is looking to increase the number of airports in the country to 220 by 2025 from 140 (as on February 28) and invest USD 11.8 billion to construct new Greenfield airports and develop existing Brownfield airports over four years, coupled with the regional connectivity scheme UDAAN, which connects small cities with big cities, the airline said in the presentation.

IndiGo, in the presentation also stated it will double in size and scale by 2030. At 10:50 am, the share price of InterGlobe Aviation Limited, which operates IndiGo, was trading at INR 1,901, down nearly 0.3%, on the NSE.

While IndiGo is ahead of peers in terms of orders, airline management said it does not have clarity on the capacity addition outlook by peers. It believes given the strong demand outlook in the aviation sector in India, competition can not be ignored.

IndiGo has code-share agreements with seven airlines and is looking to add more partners. It is looking to increase its available seat kilometre of ASK (a measure of an airline’s carrying capacity to generate revenue) to 30% in the next one to two years. The expansion will lead to frenzied hiring by the airline.

ALSO READ - Jefferies assigns an ‘underperform’ rating to IndiGo; projects a 13% stock decline

Jefferies expects IndiGo to benefit from the recent fall in crude oil price, as fuel accounts for over 40% of costs, it is of the view that intensifying competitive intensity could weigh in the medium term. Jefferies has retained an 'underperformed' rating on IndiGo.

ALSO READ - IndiGo reportedly in talks with both Boeing & Airbus for around 500 aircraft

Except for one wet-leased B777-300(ER) and thirty-nine ATR72-600s, IndiGo operates an all-Airbus narrowbody fleet comprising twenty-two A320-200s, 121 A320-200Ns, two A321-200(P2F)s, and seventy-nine A321-200NX.

ALSO READ - IndiGo receives last 15 A320neo & A321neo from Avolon

The latest Airbus order data also shows that IndiGo still has 180 undelivered A320neo and 308 undelivered A321neo outstanding, meaning any further order from IndiGo for several hundred aircraft would signal a massive commitment to fending off the Tata Sons airlines and maintaining their market dominance.

After three difficult years due to Covid and a complex economic and geopolitical environment, ATR is set for growth in 2023. In the context of industry-wide supply chain issues, ATR delivered 25 new and 11 pre-owned aircraft in 2022. Nonetheless, the global ATR in-service fleet is now close to pre-Covid numbers with 1,200 aircraft flying, and the current backlog stands at a solid 160 aircraft. Last year saw 150 new routes created with ATR aircraft. 

As part of its commitment to decarbonization, ATR performed the first 100% Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF) flight in history with a commercial aircraft, and its brand-new PW127XT engine was certified and entered into service. At the same time, ATR successfully advanced the development of its aircraft family, completing the first test flight of the ATR 42-600S (Short Take-Off and Landing) and launching a feasibility study for its next-generation EVO concept. These achievements showcase the commitment to connectivity, sustainability, and innovation that ATR stands for.

ATR Chief Executive Officer, Nathalie Tarnaud Laude, said: “The goal for 2023 is to maintain our position as the leading regional aircraft manufacturer, by targeting at least 40 deliveries, with the ambition to ramp up production to 80 aircraft in the coming years. With their unbeatable economics, latest technologies, and unrivaled environmental performance, ATR aircraft are what customers need to operate their routes profitably, despite inflation and energy uncertainty. What drives us is that sustainable regional aviation has the power to improve lives globally, providing vital connections to communities and economies, which translates into Gross Domestic Product increases and employment.”

Now that travel restrictions have been lifted, the company plans to capitalize on the high replacement demand – 1,500 turboprops over the next 20 years –, to tap into underserved markets such as the United States, to increase its footprint on the freighter market, and to explore new opportunities, such as corporate, governmental and humanitarian operations.

The ICAO Council has approved a new amendment addressing international instructions on the carriage of active small lithium battery-powered electronic devices in checked baggage.  Based on the revised requirement, devices powered by small lithium batteries in checked baggage can stay turned on during the flight, provided their lithium metal battery’s lithium content is less than 0.3 grams, or if its lithium-ion battery’s output is less than 2.7 Wh.  For devices with lithium batteries that exceed the above limits, the obligation to turn them off in checked baggage remains. 

The Council Decision follows on recommendations from the Air Navigation Commission and its Dangerous Goods Panel, which had advised that restrictions were unnecessary for such small lithium batteries and cells. The main reason for the restrictive restrictions is the risk of causing a fire. Lithium-ion and lithium-polymer batteries, which are used in most electronic devices, are sensitive to mechanical damage, vibration, and high temperatures. They can evaporate or leak, increasing the risk of ignition. In addition, electronic devices can also interfere with an aircraft’s onboard systems (navigation or communications). Some electronic devices (e.g., drones) can also pose a safety risk to the flights themselves. 

Air India guidelines say that the carriage of battery cells in hand baggage for any electrical/electronic items is permissible now & will now not be removed at the security point. Batteries spare/loose, including lithium-ion cells or batteries, for portable electronic devices must be carried in carry-on baggage only. For lithium-metal batteries, the lithium metal content must not exceed 2 g, and for lithium-ion batteries, the Watt-hour rating must not exceed 100 Wh. Articles that have the primary purpose as a power source, e.g., power banks, are considered spare batteries. These batteries must be individually protected to prevent short circuits. Each person is limited to a maximum of 20 spare batteries.

State-owned AAI has received a total amount of INR 3,245 crore till February this year from the private partners of Ahmedabad, Jaipur, Lucknow, Guwahati, Thiruvananthapuram and Mangaluru airports, according to the government.These airports were awarded for operations, management and development under Public Private Partnership (PPP) for a lease period of 50 years. The airports were won by the Adani group through a competitive bidding process."Private partners of Ahmedabad, Jaipur, Lucknow, Guwahati, Thiruvananthapuram and Mangaluru airports have paid approximately INR 896 crore to AAI as Per Passenger Fee (PPF) till February 2023. AAI has also received an amount of approximately INR 2,349 crore from the private partners of these six airports in the form of upfront fee towards the capital expenditure incurred by AAI at these airports," Union Minister V K Singh told Rajya Sabha on Monday.AAI collected INR 3,245 crore from private partners of 6 leased out airportsAirports at Ahmedabad, Lucknow and Mangaluru were leased out in 2020 while the remaining three were leased out in 2021. Tariffs have been revised at Mangaluru and Ahmedabad airports.ALSO READ - Centre plans a 30% hike in charges for small airports; Adani-run Lucknow Airport also seeks steep hikeIn a written reply, the Minister of State for Civil Aviation also said the fees at Lucknow, Thiruvananthapuram, Jaipur and Guwahati airports have not changed since taking over the airports by the new operator.Singh noted that till March 16 this year, the Airports Authority of India (AAI) has received an annual fee of more than INR 13,000 crore as revenue share from the private partners of Mumbai airport. In a separate written reply, Singh said AAI has received revenues of around INR 5,500 crore from the private partner of Delhi airport and INR 5,174 crore from Mumbai airport during the 2017-18 to 2021-22 period.To a query, the minister said that as of date, there is no plan to lease Kolkata airport under PPP.According to the minister, the Government of India (GoI) also receives 4% of the gross revenue as concession fees from the operators of Bangalore and Hyderabad airports. "So far, GoI has received an amount of approximately INR 620 crore as concession fee from these airport operators".Meanwhile, Singh said that as per the National Monetisation Pipeline (NMP), 25 AAI airports have been earmarked for leasing over the 2022 to 2025 period, with expected proceeds of INR 10,782 crore. Bhubaneshwar, Varanasi, Amritsar, Trichy, Indore, Raipur, Calicut, Coimbatore, Nagpur, Patna, Madurai, Surat, Ranchi and Jodhpur are among the airports. Others are Chennai, Vijayawada, Vadodara, Bhopal, Tirupati, Hubli, Imphal, Agartala, Udaipur, Dehradun and Rajahmundry."The value of proceeds from the monetisation of airports is dependent upon many factors including transaction timing, market conditions, investor appetite, transaction terms etc," the minister said.ALSO READ - 9 airports using the PPP model will see a 50% increase in revenue this fiscal year‘Govt aware of the privacy of drone use’The government in Rajya Sabha on Monday informed that it is well aware of the question of privacy regarding the use of drones for research, development and testing purposes. Informing the Upper House in a written reply, Civil Aviation Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia said the use of drones for research, development and testing will not breach privacy.“Such use of drone remains restricted to concerned institutions and locations within the control,” he said, adding that the government has waived the requirements of type certificate, unique identification number, prior permission and remote pilot licence for operating unmanned aircraft systems for such purposes.“This provision adequately covers all offences including breach of privacy covered under the relevant laws including the Information Technology Act, 2000 which has provisions for punishment for violation of privacy. Further, Indian Penal Code (IPC) also has provisions to penalize privacy-related offences.