United Airlines cancels Delhi-Chicago flight; passengers stranded at Delhi airport

Chicago-bound United Airlines cancelled its flight from Delhi's Indira Gandhi International Airport after a major technical snag was detected in the aircraft.

The Boeing 787-9, registration N36962, Flight UA-713 was scheduled for take-off at 1.10 AM on Friday, November 25 after being pushed back from the bay at Delhi airport as the pilot of United Airlines announced that the flight was facing some technical issues and the plane is returning to the parking bay again.

“Our team at Delhi International Airport provided assistance to customers of United flight 713 (Delhi-Chicago O'Hare) of Friday, which was canceled following a technical issue and our crew subsequently exceeding their duty hours. The aircraft is scheduled to depart Delhi for Chicago O'Hare at 3.15 am on Saturday (Nov 26, IST).”

Spokesperson, United Airlines

Around 198 United Airlines passengers are stranded at Delhi airport, accusing airline staff of not providing accommodation on time.

United Airlines has deployed Boeing aircraft for long-haul flights for Chicago operations, hundreds of passengers were stranded at the Delhi airport since the intervening night of Friday and passengers are accusing the airline staff of not providing proper arrangements.

The B787 aircraft can accommodate a total of 257 passengers in a four-class configuration – 48 in Polaris Business, 21 in Premium Plus, 39 in Economy Plus, and 149 in Economy.

United Airlines cancels Delhi-Chicago flight; passengers stranded at Delhi airport

"Airline company not giving real-time information about the next flight, no accommodation was given on time," a passenger told ANI.

According to Delhi airport officials, United Airlines staff later declared the flight as Aircraft on Ground (AOG) due to the flight duty time limit (FDTL) of crew members. The flight will take off from Delhi on Saturday, November 26 at around 3 AM. United Airlines' official statement on this incident is availed.

The daily Boeing 787-9-operated flight UA713 is scheduled to leave Delhi at 01:10 and touch down in Chicago at 07:00.

One of the world's longest flights, flight UA713, is over 7,450 miles (12,000 km) long and takes off and lands on average in about 16 hours and 30 minutes. Singapore Airlines, which flies its Airbus A350 on the 15,349 km route between Singapore and New York JFK, currently holds the record for this feat.

Air India begins flying its Boeing 777-200LR between the two tech hubs and will remain the sole operator on the route for quite some time.

The plane in question, N36962, had arrived in Delhi from Newark the evening before it was supposed to leave for Chicago in the early morning. The Dreamliner, one of 38 Boeing 787-9s in United Airlines' fleet, was delivered to the airline brand-new in December 2015.

United Airlines has a growing presence in India and currently flies from Delhi to Newark and Chicago, and from Mumbai to Newark. However, the launch of the airline’s long-awaited service between Bangalore and San Francisco has recently been pushed back once more to October 2023.

ALSO READ - SFO – BLR, United Airlines' new daily flight to start by the end of 2022

This delay means that when Air India begins flying its Boeing 777-200LR between the two tech hubs on December 2, 2022, it will remain the sole operator on the route for quite some time.

ALSO READ - Air India broadens its international footprint by launching 20 flights to US and UK

AirAsia India and Sugarbox have collaborated and announced that they will soon provide the first-ever in-flight entertainment service, called "AirFlix."

AirAsia India has recently announced a collaboration with Sugarbox, the first hyperlocal cloud platform in the world, to introduce AirFlix, the pioneering in-flight entertainment hub.

AirAsia launches "AirFlix", an in-flight entertainment service for its passengers

With the help of AirFlix, customers may stream buffer-free movies from over 6,000 hours of high-resolution content, including more than 1,500 web series episodes and more than 1,000 foreign and Indian films.

AirFlix is a cutting-edge option for digital access in the air and is accessible throughout the fleet of the airline. With over 6000 hours of high-resolution content, AirFlix offers a value proposition exclusive to Indian skies. 

AirFlix is a product of the patented Cloud Fragment technology created by Sugarbox, providing travellers with digital access, even without in-flight connectivity, 36,000 feet up in the air.

https://twitter.com/AirAsiaIndia/status/1594950736961757184

Also read: AirAsia India is now a fully-owned subsidiary of Air India

Over 300-gram panchayats across Uttarakhand, Maharashtra, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan, and Himachal Pradesh are powered by Sugarbox's patented technology platform, which allows native apps to run efficiently even when there is little to no internet connectivity in the area.

“We are delighted to partner with AirAsia India to launch a multi-feature in-flight experience hub - 'AirFlix'. This service will be pivotal in enhancing the in-flight experience for passengers and generating ancillary revenue for the airline, by unlocking an in-air digital economy through commerce and Ads. 'AirFlix' is available across the AirAsia India fleet of 28 aircraft.”

–Rohit Paranjpe, Sugarbox Co-founder

He declared that all passengers would have free access to AirFlix via regional in-flight wifi. Due to its connectivity with the in-flight ancillary platform of AirAsia India, it allows consumers to explore menus and place orders from their own devices.

The service, according to the release, has an initial storage capacity of 8 terabytes and will provide consumers with download speeds of up to 1 gigabit per second for content access.

The in-flight experience has already been improved by AirAsia India by integrating emerging technology. It has previously declared that it would be utilising the IBM Watson-powered chatbot “Tia” to provide its customers with seamless service in a variety of languages.

“AirAsia India will look to build on the potential of Sugrabox’s cloud technology by introducing features that will go beyond in-flight dining into entertainment, shopping, and even personalised experience offering a distinct, and differentiated flying experience.”

“We are looking forward to leveraging the potential of this platform, introducing innovative features and technological integrations even beyond in-flight dining, entertainment, and shopping, and enabling personalised experiences that provide a distinct, differentiated flying experience in a hyper-competitive market.”

–Siddhartha Butalia, Chief Marketing Officer, AirAsia India

AirAsia India's goal is to deliver individualised experiences that offer a distinctive, differentiated flying experience in a fiercely competitive market

Passengers are allowed to use Wi-Fi while in Indian airspace because the government has made a notification to that effect. The government lifted limitations on travellers by allowing airlines that operate in India to provide passengers with free in-flight Wi-Fi. In a statement, the Civil Aviation Ministry announced that passengers will have access to Wi-Fi throughout flights.

Also read: Air India to integrate AirAsia India with Air India Express by the end of 2023

The objective is to deliver individualised experiences that offer a distinctive, differentiated flying experience in a fiercely competitive market.

(With inputs from Business Standard)

The whale-shaped Airbus Beluga has attracted a lot of interest since it arrived, and made its debut on November 22 at the Mumbai airport. 

The Airbus A300-600ST dubbed a "super transporter," is one of the newest cargo aircraft offered for commercial service provided by the European company Airbus. The unusual visitor was also seen on Sunday, November 20, at Kolkata airport, where it had arrived for refuelling and crew rest.

https://twitter.com/aaikolairport/status/1594198563697086464

One of the largest freight-carrying aircraft in the world, the whale-shaped plane carries oversized goods. The Beluga, which has a height of almost 56.15 metres, is one of the biggest commercial aircraft currently in use.

Also read: Airbus Beluga spotted at Kolkata airport after 23 years

Also read: Airbus Beluga lands at Chennai Airport for the first time

The Beluga-shaped airbus at the Mumbai airport was depicted in various images on the Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport, Mumbai’s (CSMIA) official website, which stated that it left many “awestruck”.

https://twitter.com/CSMIA_Official/status/1595032891805011969?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1595032891805011969%7Ctwgr%5E90233621b5a6ddbe507ff227a24feff5c0a4d161%7Ctwcon%5Es1_&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.livemint.com%2Fnews%2Ffrenzy-among-people-as-beluga-shaped-airbus-lands-at-mumbai-airport-pics-11669210222314.html

The Beluga was initially created by Airbus to meet its own production requirements. Currently, Airbus transports big built parts of the fuselage and wings of aircraft using four or five Beluga planes. The fifth Beluga is available to fulfil transportation needs in the market outside of Airbus and acts as a backup for the company.

Airbus Industrie established the subsidiary airline company Airbus Transport International (ATI) in 1996 to serve the extra market. It is during this time that the A300-600ST, which was a development of the A300-600R, went into service. ATI is based in Toulouse in France next to the Airbus production facilities.

By 1998, ATI had amassed enough knowledge and experience in the day-to-day management of outsize cargo transportation in a global setting to be able to provide outsize load transport services to outside businesses.

The Beluga has been used to ferry supplies for aid missions as well as parts for helicopters, space stations, and works of art

The Beluga has been used to deliver components for space stations, helicopters, items of art, and humanitarian goods.

Recent transport missions performed by the Beluga include the delivery of the Eutelsat W3A satellite, to the launch site in Kazakhstan in February 2004 and the airlift of the vertical tail plane for the first Airbus A380 from Hamburg, Germany, to the Airbus final assembly hall in Toulouse, France.

For Airbus, governments, and businesses, ATI specialises in transporting huge, heavy goods. For Airbus, the Beluga frequently transports an A340's wings, fuselage pieces, or two A320 wings. 

The aircraft is powered by GE CF6-80C2A8 engines, which offer a 0.7 Mach cruise speed. The maximum operating altitude is 35,000ft (10,670m).

A larger engine corresponds to a larger plane. In this case, two engines. Two Rolls-Royce Trent 700 Turbofan engines, each costing roughly $40 M, propel the Beluga into the sky. Over $1 billion was spent on the entire endeavour to construct these flying giants.

Beluga is powered by GE CF6-80C2A8 engines, which offer a 0.7 Mach cruise speed. The maximum operating altitude is 35,000ft.

The Beluga doesn't need a large crew because it has no passengers to look after. It manages by a little team of only three people. Two pilots are needed to fly the aircraft, and a loadmaster is needed to oversee the cargo.

When the aircraft is empty, the weight is a staggering 86 tonnes. It can support a payload weight of 47 tonnes. These two together make up the 133 tonnes that the Beluga weighs when it is completely loaded, and this weight is successfully lifted into the air and carried to its designated locations.

Air India released a paper outlining some significant changes to uniform and personal grooming standards for its cabin crew as it begins a transformation drive.

Air India issued new grooming guidelines for its Cabin Crew

??On Thursday, November 24, Air India released a more than 40-page circular outlining the grooming standards for all of its crew members.

Also read: Air India to broaden its network in the US

Air India Women Cabin Crew Guidelines

Sarees must be worn on the natural waistline with not more than 1 inch of midriff visible.

Pearl jewellery is forbidden. Wear simply plain, unadorned circular gold and diamond studs as an alternative.

Only allowed formal court shoes are to be worn with sarees along with skin tone matching stockings.

Match nail paints with lipstick shades. If nail length is zero, it is advisable to use only nude nail paint that matches skin tone to camouflage the extremely short nails.

Hairstyles of high-top knots or low buns are not allowed. The bun must be made in the centre of the crown. A donut must be used for making a round bun. Only a thin sheer invisible net must be used with buns.

Short open hair must be blow-dried or permanent smoothening must be done.

Strict adherence to eyeshadow, lipstick, nail paint, and hair shade cards is expected, with no room for personal shades.

Only four black bobby pins can be used. Pins must be of the same size and type.

Only one bangle without design and stones is allowed.

A small bindi is allowed with a saree only (optional) and must be within 0.5 cm in size. Big-size bindi is not permitted.

New grooming standards for its male and female cabin crew have been announced by Tata Group-owned Air India, including a ban on wearing black and religious thread around the wrist, neck, and ankle

Air India Men Cabin Crew Guidelines

Black uniform jackets must be worn throughout the flight in all cabins (During boarding, service and deplaning)

Only black calf-length socks without logos are to be worn with the uniform.

Men crew with deep receding hairlines and male balding patches must keep a clean shaved head or bald look. The Head must be shaved daily. A crew cut is not permitted.

The use of hair gel is mandatory.

Personal tie pins are not allowed. Crew can wear a tie without the tie pin if not issued.

Only one Sikh Kada with a maximum width of 0.5 cm thickness in gold or silver without any design, logos or stones may be worn. No other bracelets are allowed. 

Only one ring in the wedding band design is allowed.

Also read: Air India hits with Pilot & Cabin Crew shortage as it plans to expand internationally

Additionally, both male and female flight attendants must conceal their grey hair with a natural-looking colour. Henna or fashion colours are prohibited, according to the rules. Black or religious threads on the wrist, neck, and ankle are also forbidden.

The grey hair of both male and female flight attendants must be covered with a natural-looking colour

According to the rules, crew members should avoid wearing sunglasses inside airports or on aircraft. The crew members are not allowed to discuss political, religious, or company topics on social media. Also, the Cabin Crew members who are on leave must travel in smart casual clothing and proper attire on Air India flights.

Also read: Air India becomes the most punctual airline in October in 8 years

Disapproval rumblings about these rules have also been heard.

“Details such as hair colour, shaving the head, wearing tie-pins, these were never enforced. Enforcement will happen with the newer lot of flight attendants first.”

–An Air India Cabin Crew told TOI

The guidelines, according to an Air India official who talked on the record and on the condition of anonymity, are overly rigid and are not going down well with the crew.

“..some think it is required for building the image of the airline, but others see it to be a little too much.”

IndiGo, on Wednesday, November 23, under its codeshare agreement with Turkish Airlines, began offering flights to Portugal and Switzerland via Turkey.

A Codeshare Agreement is an agreement between two or more airlines to publish and market the same flight using their own airline designator and flight number as part of their published itinerary or schedule. The codeshare agreement enables Turkish Airlines and IndiGo to promote the same flight using their respective identifying codes.

With the help of the codeshare arrangement, Turkish Airlines and IndiGo will be allowed to promote the same flight under their individual identification codes

Also read: DGCA allows IndiGo to wet lease Turkish Airlines planes

According to IndiGo, the new routes would provide passengers looking to fly between India and Europe over the forthcoming holiday season with new options and more capacity. According to the airline, both business and leisure travellers will be catered to. 

Also read: IndiGo to debut with widebody aircraft for international expansion

“We have witnessed a huge demand for travel from India to Turkey, Switzerland, and Portugal. Keeping customer demand in mind, we now offer 19 connecting flights through Istanbul to destinations like Geneva, Lisbon, Porto, and Basel. This will not only enhance international connectivity but also add capacity to these routes and make travel more affordable. We will strive to stay true to our promise of affordable fares, on-time performance, and courteous and hassle-free service.”

–Vinay Malhotra, Head of Global Sales at IndiGo

These places are well-known for having breathtakingly beautiful tourist locations all year round.

Portugal has some of the cleanest beaches in Europe, with a blue sea with sandstone cliffs and oddly shaped rock formations all around. Major tourist attractions are the capital Lisbon, the city of Porto, Odemira, Faro and the city of Sintra.

Switzerland, known as "Paradise on Earth," is a stunning, popular travel destination. It is stunning all year round, despite the fact that during the winter it is most well-known for its ski resorts. Switzerland is the ideal place to go skiing because the Alpine Alps extend all the way through the Balkans to France.

Christmas markets, winter festivals, stunning beaches, rich culture, architectural wonders, and of course, New Year's celebrations will make Europe spectacular and more alluring to tourists.

IndiGo has witnessed a huge demand for travel from India to Turkey, Switzerland, and Portugal

According to the airline, these flights would not only advance global tourism, trade, and commerce but also lower the cost of travel to these locations thanks to direct links and increased capacity. 

IndiGo's passenger operations are not the only ones expanding internationally; the airline's freight division, known as IndiGo CarGo, is also expanding. Airbus A321 P2F aircraft are now in service with the airline, and a second one will be added in December.

Also read: IndiGo to bolster cargo operations by adding another freighter aircraft by year-end

On Tuesday, November 22, it completed its maiden international mission between Kolkata and Yangon in Myanmar, transporting general cargo with a payload of more than 19,000 lbs.

“We are thrilled to expand IndiGo CarGo operations to international shores with its flight between Kolkata-Yangon. Both cities are major commercial hubs, and freighter service between them will bolster the supply chain between India and Myanmar. We anticipate that the business will expand over the next few months as we expand our freighter fleet and add new destinations to our CarGo network.”

–Mahesh Malik, Chief Commercial Officer, IndiGo CarGo

https://twitter.com/JetPhotos/status/1575566581400305668?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1575566581400305668%7Ctwgr%5E1fd0eb6bced23991390b5539bde769293419af9d%7Ctwcon%5Es1_&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fsimpleflying.com%2Findigo-codeshare-flights-to-europe%2F

The airline will benefit financially from having a dedicated cargo fleet from IndiGo, which will also enable it to serve markets like China, Vietnam, the Middle East, and some CIS (Commonwealth of Independent States) nations.

Aviation regulator DGCA has put in place various measures to enhance the monitoring of flying training organisations, including the installation of high-resolution cameras in their premises to keep track of the training activities.

Besides, the watchdog has directed that the Flying Training Organisations (FTOs) should monitor and record data of training flights, and at least 25% of the flight data should be analysed daily. The move also comes against the backdrop of incidents involving training flights and instances of certain individuals not following the authorised flight plan during training. There were 35 FTOs at the end of August this year.

In a circular, the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) said the objective is to enhance oversight over flying and ground training activities of FTOs for improving the safety of operations as well as the training quality.

DGCA boosts monitoring of Flying Training Organisations to increase safety

ALSO READ - DGCA reviews 30 flying training organisations; suspends certified flight instructors

All the FTOs should install cameras of high resolution on their premises to ensure proper visibility of flying training activities. The cameras should cover the apron area, hangar, taxiway and runway, classrooms, examination room and areas where the flights are authorised in the flight authorisation register, as per the circular issued on November 22.

FTOs have to ensure that the cameras are operational within 90 days. Concerning flight data monitoring in a training aircraft, DGCA said the safety manager concerned should "carry out flight data analysis of at least 25% of the FTO on daily basis and maintain a record of analysis".

Many planes available for flying training are equipped with a glass cockpit that has a provision for recording flight and/or fitted with ADS (B), which can also monitor the path followed by the aircraft.

"FTOs operating with aircraft equipped with glass cockpit or ADS (B) shall monitor, analyse and maintain the data…," the circular said. ADS (B) refers to Automatic Dependent Surveillance-Broadcast.

Many planes available for flying training are equipped with a glass cockpit that has a provision for recording flight and/or fitted with ADS (B), which can also monitor the path followed by the aircraft.

The regulator noted that FTOs operating with planes that are not pre-equipped with glass cockpits or ADS (B) should devise a method within 90 days for recording and monitoring the flights to check if the flight path taken by the trainee pilots and instructors is by the flight authorisation.

FTOs have been asked to install/carry equipment which automatically records at least parameters such as engine start/stop time (as feasible), flight path followed, and height and speed of aircraft at all times.

According to the regulator, FTOs should ensure that surveillance cameras are functional during flying activities. The camera feed must be displayed in the CFI, Deputy CFI and flying instructor rooms. CFI refers to Certified Flight Instructor.

The circular said that the recording of cameras should be preserved for at least 30 days and the flight data of all the devices for a minimum of 6 months.

n 2021, after a competitive bidding process, AAI awarded nine FTO slots at five airports

ALSO READ - DGCA suspends operations of 2 flying training schools due to serious safety concerns

The circular also advised that the Student Pilot License (SPL) and Flight Radio Telephony Operators License (FRTOL) (R) exams be monitored directly under live feed by the Directorate of Flying Training (DFT) of DGCA.

ALSO READ - Northeast India’s first commercial pilot training academy set to begin at Lilabari airport

In 2021, after a competitive bidding process, AAI awarded nine FTO slots at five airports at Belagavi (Karnataka), Jalgaon (Maharashtra), Kalaburagi (Karnataka), Khajuraho (Madhya Pradesh) and Lilabari (Assam). As on 30th June 2022, four of these FTOs are operational: one each at Jalgaon and Lilabari and two at Kalaburagi.

In June 2022, after a competitive bidding process, six more FTO slots were awarded by AAI at five airports namely: Bhavnagar (Gujarat), Hubballi (Karnataka), Kadapa (Andhra Pradesh), Kishangarh (Rajasthan) and Salem (Tamil Nadu).