Global airline executives believe that only Tatas can revive and increase market share of Air India

Global airline executives, including Emirates president Tim Clark and Lufthansa’s CEO Carsten Spohr, believe that Air India, under the Tata group, has a great opportunity to capture a larger share of the international aviation market.

They were speaking to the media on the sidelines of the 78th annual general meeting of the International Air Transport Association (IATA) in Doha.

"Airline operations in India are difficult. However, only the Tata Group could make a legacy airline work. Air India should be as big as United Airlines, because of its domestic market as well as the non-resident Indians (NRIs) abroad and the amount of economic activity that goes in and out of India. It is a goldmine.For decades, Air India has continued to be a small player on the international scene. So, it is not easy to operate in the Indian market even though the population is pretty upwardly mobile and getting more mobile over time. So, you need a safe pair of hands with business acumen to be able to activate this (Air India). If Tatas can’t make it work, nobody over there (in India) will be able to make it work."Tim Clark, President, Emirates

Currently, Air India’s fleet size is one-fifth of United Airlines. While Air India currently has approximately 128 planes in its fleet, Chicago-based United Airlines has 860-odd aircraft.

India has a huge demand unlike a lot of other countries, he said. When asked how Air India’s rise will affect Emirates, he confidently noted, “As far as Emirates is concerned, well, bring it on, quite honestly. I mean, there is plenty for everybody.”

“As far as Emirates is concerned, well, bring it on, quite honestly. I mean, there is plenty for everybody.” - Tim Clark, Emirates President

India's international passenger market is dominated by international airlines like Emirates, one of two flag carriers of the United Arab Emirates.

Emirates - which operates 170 flights connecting Dubai with Mumbai, Delhi, Bengaluru, Chennai, Hyderabad, Kochi, Kolkata, Ahmedabad and Thiruvananthapuram - carries a significant number of Indian passengers from India to Europe and the US with one stop in Dubai.

Meanwhile, Lufthansa’s Spohr said the takeover of Air India by the Tata Group will benefit Indian passengers. The Lufthansa Group appreciates the Indian government’s idea to make Air India a strong player to regain the Indian international passenger market share, he added.

“There is an opportunity for Indian carriers to take a larger share of the Indian market than what has happened in the past. Let’s be honest, most of the growth in the (Indian international passenger) market was taken by the Gulf carriers.So, I appreciate the idea of the Indian government to create a stronger player and we hope that our partner Air India will take advantage of those conditions."Carsten Spohr, CEO, Lufthansa

When asked about what kind of partnership Lufthansa Group is looking for in India, he replied, “Our partner is Air India, also here in Star Alliance. And we are watching very closely what is happening with Vistara, what is happening with other carriers, but at this point, there is no news."

Star Alliance is a global grouping of 27 airlines, which includes United Airlines, Lufthansa Group, Air Canada, etc.

ALSO READ - Air India in talks with fellow Star Alliance members for codeshare agreements

Currently, Lufthansa Group operates 42 flights per week connecting India with Germany and Switzerland.

Germany-based Lufthansa group operates various European airline brands including SWISS, Lufthansa and Austrian Airlines. Spohr said the Lufthansa Group is very happy that India has lifted its restrictions on the travel bubble.

Currently, Lufthansa Group operates 42 flights per week connecting India with Germany and Switzerland. Before the pandemic, the Lufthansa group used to operate 56 per week on the routes.

“If correct strategies are used Air India can become a very powerful player in the Indian market. Air India can definitely be strengthened. If there’s one group that can do it, it’s the Tatas."Philip Goh, Regional Vice President for Asia Pacific, IATA

India’s international passenger market is dominated by international airlines, mainly carriers based out of the Gulf region such as Emirates and Qatar Airways.

The Tatas won Air India in October 2021, finding it a pale shadow of its former self, burdened under massive debt and losses. The airline’s accumulated losses at the end of March stood at INR 83,916 crore.

The Tatas won Air India in October 2021, finding it a pale shadow of its former self, burdened under massive debt and losses.

Tata Sons’ and Air India chairman N Chandrasekaran has said the new owners will step on the gas in their initiatives to revive the airline, working on various aspects from better customer service to new planes to higher degrees of digitalisation at the back end.

But the aviation-to-automobile conglomerate has to grapple with a host of challenges including an inflated workforce, a chunk of which will likely be let go after a year; old planes that need refurbishing and old archaic maintenance contracts that need to be restructured.

ALSO READ - Air India eyes Multiple Hubs, International Expansion

ALSO READ - Air India prepares to add more than 200 aircraft; the most significant order in a long time

Summary

As an indication that the new promoters of Jet Airways, Kalrock Capital and Murari Lal Jalan have set in motion the process to start operations again, the company has invited applications from experienced pilots. The move comes after the recent approval from the National Company Law Tribunal’s (NCLT) for the airline to resume operations, which previously ceased due to financial insolvency. After its grounding in April 2019, this is the first time the airline has issued a job posting on Tuesday via Twitter (August 3, 2021).

Jet airways

 “Jet Airways is back and is looking for experienced pilots. Hope to have you onboard soon!” The airline said in the tweet.

https://twitter.com/jetairways/status/1422522542510645255

The company has posted a survey link, asking more than 30 questions, including experience of pilots on a B737 and A320 aircraft, along with licence endorsements for CAT-3 operations, Extended Diversion Time Operations (EDTO), and Leh Airfield Ops. It also asked to share experience details on A330, B777 and B787 aircraft.

The end of the form only requests further details about the A320 and 737 ratings, which are the most likely aircraft to be chosen for restarting operations. Jet Airways previously operated all these planes except the A320 family aircrafts and B787, which was on order.

Jet airways B777

Interestingly, the application form has been designed in a way that will keep Airbus and Boeing guessing regarding Jet's future fleet plans. Generally outspoken, Mr. Jalan has previously dropped hints that the revived airline will be a full-service carrier like before which certainly means that the fleet will be a combination of widebody and narrowbody planes. Also, Jet 2.0 will be inducting newer models which are more fuel efficient.

A blow to existing employees

This comes even as Jet Airways has most of earlier employees still on its payroll who haven’t quit in hopes to get reabsorbed in the company. The consortium also said out of the 4,000 employees, only 50 will be retained in Jet 2.0. According to a report in The Times of India, around 3,796 employees did not resign hoping to be retained whenever Jet resumed operations.

Click here to apply

When was the last time we all heard an airplane coming down after a lighting strike? As ironical as it may sound, airplanes get hit by lightning every day, yet we seldom hear of any fatalities.

Statistics

Even though lightning activity can vary by geographic location, its frequency is such that, an aircraft is struck by lightning every 1,000 flight hours, the equivalent of one strike per aircraft per year.

It is estimated that most of the strikes are triggered by the aircraft itself and they generally occur during the climb and/or descent phase at an altitude of 1,524 to 4,572 meters.Aircrafts are built to power through these electrical power outages and rarely pose a safety risk, although it can cost a fortune to the companies in post lightning strike  repairs and flight delays/cancellations.

Statistics shows commercial airliners get struck by lightning once or twice a year.

How severe can they get?

9 times out of 10,lightning strikes result in less or no damage to the aircraft, although it can be an unpleasant experience for the crew and passengers alike. That said, it can cause minor damages to the to aerials, compasses, avionics, and leave small puncture holes in the fuselage and tail fins.

Engine shutdown on both FADEC and NON-FADEC engines have been known to occur in more severe cases. The generators might go down leading to the shutting off of cabin lights but this is only a temporary phase and the lights will be back as soon as the generators are reset.

Decoding lightning activity

Areas highlighted in orange, red, brown, and black have the highest thunderstorm activity.. white, gray, purple, and blue areas show the least activity.

Lightning activities are influenced a lot by geographical locations. Areas in and around the equator tend to experience the most lightning events as thunderstorms are rampant due to warm temperature leading to convection. Seasons play their part too with the most occurences reported in spring and summer.

How does lightning strike an aircraft?

source

The initial strike of a lightning charge may be seen as a glow on the nose or wingtips. The charge then travels through the aircrafts' metallic shell before exiting through a point in the tail. A single strike may contain around 100,000 volts (30, 000 amps).

Typical after-effects

Temporary flickering of lights or short-lived interference with equipment.Ferromagnetic aircraft components may become strongly magnetised after a powerful lightning jolt.Lightning strikes at night may temporarily blind the flight crew hampering visibility.

How do airlines shield themselves ?

The metal skin that goes into the construction of a modern day fuselage is thick enough, providing the first line of defence while at the same time, preventing the entry of electromagnetic energy from penetrating the electrical wires. Modern planes are made of lightweight carbon composite covered with a thin layer of copper that act as Faraday Cages. Fuel tanks located under the wings are shielded from lightning sparks as the surrounding structural components and fuel and filler caps have a temperature threshold of up to 30,000 degree Celsius and hence can withstand any burning from lightning.

Lighntning strike on fuel tank

Additionally, lightning protection on airplanes may include:

Wire bundle shieldsGround strapsComposite structure expanded foils, wire mesh, aluminium flame spray coating, embedded metallic wire, metallic picture frames, diverter strips, metallic foil liners and coated glass fabric

In anywhich case, standard protocol advises pilots to stay atleast 20 nautical miles away from Cumulonimbus clouds (Cb) which are notorious for producing thunderstormsRest assured, modern aircrafts are specifically designed to quickly dissipate lightning strikes and in which case, a static wick will be the main target of lightning exiting the aircraft.

Captain Abhilasha Barak has created history by becoming the first woman officer to join the Army Aviation Corps as Combat Aviator. The announcement was made on the official social media page of the Additional Directorate General of Public Information, IHQ of MoD (Army) on Wednesday, May 25.

Captain Barak's achievement has been described as a "Golden Letter Day" in the history of Indian Army Aviation. Upon successful completion of her training, Captain Barak was awarded the Coveted Wings along with 36 Army pilots, the post said.

Captain Abhilasha Barak becomes Army Aviation's first woman combat pilot

Captain Abhilasha Barak hails from Haryana and is the daughter of Colonel (Retired) S Om Singh. She was commissioned into the Army Air Defence Corps in September 2018. Captain Barak did several professional military courses before joining the Army Aviation Corps.

She attained ‘A’ grading in the Army Air Defence Young officers course, 75.70% in Air Traffic Management and Air Laws course and passed the promotional exam, Part B, in her first attempt.

"While growing up in military Cantonments, and being surrounded by people in uniform, it always seemed like an ordinary affair. I never realised it (that it was different) until our family moved out of the military life, after my father’s retirement in 2011. The feeling only grew stronger after seeing my elder brother’s passing out parade at Indian Military Academy in 2013. That was the moment I knew what I wanted to do for the rest of my life.After completing my training from Officers Training Academy, Chennai, in 2018, I opted for Army Aviation Corps. As I was filling the form, I knew I was eligible for only ground duty role but I ended up mentioning that I had qualified Pilot Aptitude Battery Test and computerised pilot selection system. Somewhere in my heart, I always knew that the day was not far away when Indian Army would start inducting women as combat pilots."Captain Abhilasha Barak, Combat Aviator, Army Aviation Corps

According to the official website, the inception of the Army Aviation wing of the RAF in India took place in 1942. However, it was only in August 1947 that the first Indian Air Observation Post-flight was raised.

The Army Aviation Corps, in particular, was established on November 1, 1986. It was “immediately inducted into Operation Pawan,” which has been described as a “crucial test” for the Corps that had been newly formed.

https://twitter.com/adgpi/status/1529368643272056832

The division is headed by a Lieutenant General rank officer who is known as the Director General of Army Aviation. Over the years, it has expanded with the addition of new units and equipment like Cheetah, Advanced Light Helicopter Dhruv, weaponised ALH Rudra and Light Combat Helicopter. 

In August 2021, Army Aviation got control of the Army’s Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAV) which were earlier with the Artillery, bringing all aviation assets under one roof.

The main roles of the choppers include observation, reconnaissance, casualty evacuations, load drops as well as search and rescue operations besides attack.

She attained ‘A’ grading in the Army Air Defence Young officers course, 75.70% in Air Traffic Management and Air Laws course and passed the promotional exam, Part B, in her first attempt.

Since the standoff in Eastern Ladakh in 2020, the Army Aviation had seen a quantum jump in the employment of helicopters along the Northern borders.

The three services have gradually opened up key postings for women in the last few years.

In 2018, flying officer Avani Chaturvedi of the Indian Air Force scripted history by becoming the first Indian woman to fly a fighter aircraft solo. She flew a MiG-21 bison on her first solo flight.

In a significant move, the Army 2019 began the process of inducting women into the military police.

Chaturvedi was part of a three-member women team commissioned as flying officers in July 2016, less than a year after the government decided to open the fighter stream for women on an experimental basis.

In 2020, the Navy announced deploying its first batch of women pilots on the Dornier maritime aircraft. In a significant move, the Army 2019 began the process of inducting women into the military police.

The role of the military police includes policing cantonments and army establishments, preventing breaches of rules and regulations by soldiers, and maintaining the movement of soldiers as well as logistics during peace and war.

Over 20 months after the Air India Express Calicut accident which killed 21 people, the role played by the infrastructural inadequacies of the table-top Kozhikode airport runway is in focus.

A government committee, in a report, made public on Wednesday, May 25, recommended that the Airports Authority of India (AAI) acquire land in 11 months for Kozhikode runway extension to provide what’s called a Runway End Safety Area or RESA.

It is an area laid out beyond the runway end to arrest and decelerate overshooting or undershooting aircraft.

AAI recommends runway extension for Kozhikode airport

The Kozhikode airport hilltop runway had a RESA even in August 2020 when the Air India Express accident occurred. But it is entirely paved, with no soft portions. Back then and currently as well, the land-starved Kozhikode airport’s hard surface RESA is used by aircraft to taxi.

“The committee was unanimous in its opinion that safety is paramount and RESA, as mandated in the extant rules and regulations, has to be provided to enhance the safety of operations at Kozhikode airport,” the report said.

It recommended the existing 90m-long RESA be filled with 15cm sand or soft soil for effective deceleration of aircraft that go off the runway. The state government may be requested to provide sufficient suitable filled up levelled land for runway expansion, it said, setting a March 2023 deadline.

The Kozhikode airport hilltop runway had a RESA even in August 2020 when the Air India Express accident occurred.

If the land was not available by then, the runway length should be reduced to 2,540m to provide RESA of 240m from the ends of the runway strip, the report said.

On August 7, 2020, an Air India Express Boeing 737-800 aircraft operating a flight from Dubai with 184 passengers on board overshot the hill-top Kozhikode runway after a delayed touch down.

The aircraft sped past the paved RESA surface to drop 110 feet down a gorge, separate into three sections and kill 21 people, including both pilots.

On August 7, 2020, an Air India Express Boeing 737-800 aircraft operating a flight from Dubai with 184 passengers on board overshot the hill-top Kozhikode runway after a delayed touch down.

ALSO READ - The final report out on the Kozhikode air crash hints at human error and non-compliance to SOPs

The committee comprising aviation experts was formed in September 2021 to oversee the implementation of the recommendations made in the Kozhikode accident investigation report. The final report released a month earlier in August 2021, made 43 safety recommendations.

“Out of the 41 recommendations accepted by the committee, 24 recommendations (19 critical and 5 non-critical) were implemented by the respective stakeholders as per action plan,” the report said.

The report allowed the airport to continue to handle up to ‘Code C’ aircraft (such as Boeing 737, and A320), but with suggested mitigating measures in place.

ALSO READ - DGCA report crucial for resumption of wide-body aircraft operations at Kozhikode Airport

The report allowed the airport to continue to handle up to ‘Code C’ aircraft (such as Boeing 737, and A320), but with suggested mitigating measures in place.

It recommended a training program for the Kozhikode aircraft rescue and fire fighting crew; they were not familiar with the Boeing 737, which resulted in poorly coordinated rescue operations and delayed evacuation of the pilots from the cockpit.

“The Kozhikode airport perimeter road which surrounds the airport should be capable of supporting heavy fire fighting vehicles…In Nov 2019, DGCA during their surveillance had made similar observations, however, the observed deficiencies still existed as on the date of the accident,” it said.

AAI has agreed to install runway centerline lights at Kozhikode and Mangalore during the next recarpeting of the runway which is due in 2022 and 2024 respectively, the report said. Despite recommendations made in two incident reports earlier, AAI hadn’t done this.

(With Inputs from The Times of India)

Summary

Budget domestic carrier SpiceJet will launch 16 new flights from August onwards. Accordingly, they will add Bhavnagar in Gujarat to its domestic network. Bhavnagar will now be connected to Delhi, Mumbai and Surat with direct flights starting August 20.

spicejet

Besides, the budget carrier will also launch 10 more flights that will connect Gwalior with Jaipur, Kishangarh (Ajmer) with Mumbai, Belagavi with Delhi and Vishakhapatnam with Bengaluru, and add frequency to the Delhi-Jammu sector.

Management is optimistic

According to Shilpa Bhatia, Chief Commercial Officer, SpiceJet: "Strengthening regional connectivity between metros and underserved cities is at the heart of SpiceJet's mission and vision and we are delighted to add the beautiful city of Bhavnagar to our fast-expanding domestic network.

SpiceJet will be the first airline to operate non-stop flights between these routes

"Being one of the key cities for trade and commerce with many large & small scale industries, having the world's largest ship breaking yard and variety of holy places to visit, Bhavnagar comes with great potential for both business and leisure travellers alike."

Furthermore, she said the industry-first flights connecting Gwalior with Jaipur and Mumbai with Kishangarh and other new and additional flights will support the domestic expansion we are aiming for aggressively.

"SpiceJet is well aligned and fully committed to aid the recovery of air travel and realise India's dream of a having a strong, stable and progressive aviation market by constantly adding new routes and destinations."

Bhatia added that the additional flights will “support the domestic expansion we are aiming for aggressively”.

spicejet

First to start

SpiceJet will be the first airline to operate non-stop flights between the following routes: Bhavnagar-Delhi, Bhavnagar-Surat, Gwalior-Jaipur, and Kishangarh-Mumbai, the statement added.

 “SpiceJet is well aligned and fully committed to aid recovery of air travel and realise India’s dream of having a strong, stable and progressive aviation market by constantly adding new routes and destinations,” Bhatia said.

FROMDESTINATION DEPARTURE FREQUENCYEFFECTIVE DATEBengaluruVishakhapatnam 7:05 PM 1,2,3,4,5,6,705.08.2021Vishakhapatnam Bengaluru 9:15 PM 1,2,3,4,5,6,705.08.2021New DelhiBelagavi 2:30 PM 1,513.08.2021BelagaviNew Delhi 5:05 PM 1,513.08.2021New DelhiJammu 6:15 PM 1,2,3,4,5,613.08.2021JammuNew Delhi 8:05 PM 1,2,3,4,5,613.08.2021JaipurGwalior 6:30 PM 1,3,5,720.08.2021GwaliorJaipur  8:00 AM 1,3,5,720.08.2021New DelhiBhavnagar  6:35 AM 1,3,4,5,6,7 20.08.2021 BhavnagarMumbai 9:05 AM 1,3,4,5,6,7 20.08.2021 MumbaiBhavnagar 2:20 PM 1,3,4,5,6,7 20.08.2021 BhavnagarNew Delhi 3:45 PM 1,3,4,5,6,7 20.08.2021 SuratBhavnagar 1:35 PM 4,6,720.08.2021 BhavnagarSurat  2:40 PM 4,5,720.08.2021 MumbaiKishangarh(Ajmer) 12:40 PM 1,3,5,720.08.2021 Kishangarh(Ajmer)Mumbai 3:10 PM 1,3,5,720.08.2021 FULL FLIGHT SCHEDULE (1=Monday and thereon)

The airline operates over 63 daily flights under UDAN connecting 14 UDAN destinations to various parts of the country. SpiceJet already connects Gwalior with Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Jammu and Kolkata under UDAN. From Gwalior, SpiceJet will also offer convenient connections to Goa, Guwahati, Kochi, Kandla, Belagavi, Gorakhpur, Patna, Mangalore and Chennai through one-stop flights. The carrier operates a fleet of Boeing 737s and Q-400s and the same will be deployed on these new routes.

spicejet q400

Bookings are now open on www.spicejet.com  SpiceJet’s mobile app and through online travel portals and travel agents. Confirm with the airline before making any plans.