Vertiports - the key to UAM/AAM infrastructure | How are they different from heliports?

A recent study by NASA stated that there could be as many as 500 million drone delivery flights and nearly 750 million air taxi flights annually by 2030.

2021 had been a significant year for the AAM industry as we saw record millions being poured in as investments - just this year, Wisk Aero received $450 million from Boeing to develop eVTOL aircraft and Lockheed Martin Ventures invested in Electra.aero - a pioneer in the development of hybrid-electric ultra-short takeoff and landing aircraft. These are just to name a few.

Representative | eVTOL

While all these sound great, keeping the aspect of safety aside, do we really have the appropriate infrastructure to handle these vehicles and their operations?

A lot of other variables need to be factored in with regards to air management systems, security protocols, emergency services, and regulatory frameworks as well, that would support safe, affordable, sustainable flights.

Business leaders, engineers, designers, regulators, and all other concerned parties will have to collaborate to ensure the safe and seamless integration of AAM with existing infrastructure.

Bringing the public and private sectors together is crucial  “because the public sector, in the end, is going to want to use these systems. New corridors are emerging, whether it’s for a 55-pound drone carrying medical supplies or cargo-carrying type aircraft that are heavier.Said Lisa Peterson, VP of Business Development at Airspace Link at a recent Commercial UAV News webinar

Vertiports are the basic enablers of Urban and Advanced Air Mobility (UAM/AAM), facilitating the movement of people and goods more rapidly and efficiently than traditional transport infrastructures.

Air One Vertiport- World's first Vertiport in Coventry, UK | Representative | FLYING Magazine

"Vertistops" is yet another term coined and they would serve only for drop-off and pickups, while vertiports would be somewhere where the aircraft could recharge (electric aircraft), refuel (hydrogen aircraft), and pass through maintenance.

How are they different from heliports?

A heliport is a small airport suitable for helicopter use and some other vertical lift aircraft. Designated heliports typically contain one or more touchdown and liftoff areas and may also have limited facilities such as fuel or hangars.

EASA issues the world's first design specifications for vertiports

The European Union Aviation Safety Agency has published the world’s first guidance for the design of vertiports and the ground infrastructure needed for the safe operation of Urban Air Mobility services such as air taxis in locations across Europe, including in urban areas.

Urban air mobility is a completely new field of aviation and we therefore have a unique opportunity to develop a set of infrastructure requirements from scratch. With the world’s first guidance for safe vertiport operations, EASA’s ambition is to provide our stakeholders with the ‘gold standard’ when it comes to safe vertiport design and operational frameworks. By harmonising design and operational standards for vertiports we will support European industry, who are already starting to embark on exciting projects in Europe and around the world to make new urban air mobility a realityPatrick Ky, Executive Director of EASA said

Representative | easa.europe

One notable innovation is the concept of a funnel-shaped area above the vertiport, designated as an “obstacle-free volume”. This concept is tailored to the operational capabilities of the new VTOL aircraft, which can perform landing and take-off with a significant vertical segment.

Depending on the urban environment and on the performance of certain VTOL-capable aircraft, omnidirectional trajectories to vertiports will be also possible. Such approaches can more easily take account of environmental and noise restrictions and are more suitable for an urban environment than conventional heliport operations.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e_fsxgWIENI&list=PLTfS24aKkJn63dwU2mF0nX4kjUtr9QFeU&index=6

EASA | Youtube

Heliports-how are they any different?

Regulators calculate the size of a heliport by using the rotor diameter to calculate the Touch-Down and Lift-Off area (TLOF), the Final Approach and Take-Off area (FATO), and the safety area—a defined area surrounding the FATO intended to reduce the risk of damage to aircraft accidentally diverging from the FATO.

Canadianaam

 AAM VTOL aircraft, being different from helicopters, regulators will probably use the maximum dimension of the VTOL rather than the rotor diameter to calculate the size of the vertiports.

Representative | eVTOL

A lot goes into the designing of vertiports because of their dynamic operations. Vertiports would require charging ports and hence one key consideration is access to electricity. Handling multiple eVTOLS would require vertiports to have their substation. That said, building substations could be trickier and harder than ‘gas stations'.

Helicopters, on the other hand, aren't electric and hence that eliminates the need for access to electricity/charging points. A heliport has support facilities such as fuel, "hangaring" and attendants.

Elevated rooftop helipads and heliports | Representative | Aluminium Offshore

All international standards have space requirements (both on land and in the air) for an obstacle-free area for the aircraft to land and takeoff. The standards for touchdown area sizes (the pad itself) are generally predicated on the size of the aircraft landing gear footprint or the rotor diameter.

The obstacle-clear areas surrounding the touchdown area are generally determined by a multiplier of the aircraft’s overall length or rotor system size. They can vary from an open area of 64? x 64? for a small two-seat helicopter to 109? x 109? for a medium twin-engine helicopter and up to several acres for facilities serving multiple aircraft.

How safe are heliports or vertiports?

Safety is paramount in aviation. The FAA, with its data and that of the National Transportation Safety Board, conducted a study that calculated that an accident had the frequency of occurring once every 432 years - this was done by looking at the relative risk a community had about a helicopter landing area.

Representative | eUAS News

Summarizing, it could be said that vertiports and heliports are stopping points for VTOL aircraft. Ideally, they would be located on top of buildings, open areas, or airports. Both can serve as a quick-stops-loading and unloading, or as a longer stay for recharging (electric aircraft), refuelling (hydrogen or fossil fuels aircraft) and maintenance.

SOURCE(s)

COVER: American Aerospace

SpiceJet Ltd. is planning to take delivery of at least seven Boeing Co. 737 Max jets this year, according to people familiar with the matter, amid speculation the no-frills Indian carrier may not have enough cash to make pre-delivery payments.

The airline—the only operator of Max jets in the world’s fastest-growing aviation market—will add the planes in the three months through December, the people said, asking not to be identified because the discussions are private. The carrier is also negotiating for five more 737 Max jets, the people said.

SpiceJet ordered 155 of the jets with an option for 50 more in a USD 22 billion deal with Boeing back in 2017 and has 13 of the aircraft in its fleet currently.

Cash-strapped SpiceJet plans to take delivery of 7 Boeing 737 Max

While it’s unclear why the airline didn’t restart deliveries for close to a year after Indian regulators allowed the Max to fly again in August 2021 following two deadly crashes, people familiar said the relationship between the US planemaker and SpiceJet has soured.

Any transaction that would see SpiceJet begin taking deliveries again would therefore potentially be good news for Boeing in India, given its only customers with orders are SpiceJet and startup Akasa, which isn’t flying yet.

Clawing back market share is crucial to break Airbus SE’s stronghold, fortified by the nation’s top airline, IndiGo, being the biggest buyer of its best-selling A320neo jets.

SpiceJet ordered 155 of the jets with an option for 50 more in a USD 22 billion deal with Boeing back in 2017 and has 13 of the aircraft in its fleet currently.

A representative for SpiceJet said the airline will receive new 737 Max jets based on “mutually agreed” timelines from Boeing.

SpiceJet is in “advanced” discussions with lessors to induct additional Max aircraft to strengthen its “operational efficiencies and product performance,” the airline said in a statement. It added that Boeing will support active progress toward securing financing and deliveries through various lessors.

In a statement, a representative for Boeing said the planemaker continues to partner closely with its current and potential customers to support their fleet and operational requirements.

The debt-laden carrier in 2021 resorted to paying employees based on their hours worked and deferred salaries for some.

Taking deliveries of new planes would also be a coup for cash-strapped SpiceJet, which has lost money for the last three fiscal years. The debt-laden carrier in 2021 resorted to paying employees based on their hours worked and deferred salaries for some.

SpiceJet was trimming some of its losses by booking other income on the amount it expected to get in compensation from Boeing for not being able to fly the Max planes.

SpiceJet Chairman Ajay Singh said in November that Boeing agreed to compensate “in cash and in-kind” for the losses the airline incurred due to the grounding of 737 Max jets, without disclosing any amount.

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

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Earlier in November 2021, the CMD of the low-cost airline, Ajay Singh said that SpiceJet plans to induct 50 ‘737 Max’ planes of Boeing into its fleet by December 2023. He had expected that the company would receive its 14th MAX by December 10 last year.

ALSO READ - SpiceJet aims to have 50 Boeing 737 MAX jets by 2023

SpiceJet plans to induct 50 ‘737 Max’ planes of Boeing into its fleet by December 2023.

The airline is also looking at expanding its international operations using the 737 MAX. Possible destinations on the cards include Saudi Arabia and Hong Kong. Additionally, the airline is exploring scheduled long-haul services, including Canadian and European destinations, using widebody aircraft.

Earlier this year, SpiceJet posted a surprise profit, despite struggling in the previous months. But close inspection of its finances revealed that it was aided massively by its lodging of ‘other income’ for the value of USD 55.2 million – money attributed to the compensation from Boeing for the MAX delays.

(With Inputs from Bloomberg)

Barclays Bank, Aditya Birla Finance and a fund owned by National Investment and Infrastructure Fund (NIIF) have provided an INR 1,000-crore debt facility to Delhi Airport (Delhi International Airport Limited - DIAL), people aware of the transaction said.

The trio invested in five-year bonds of the GMR Group-promoted company wherein a 9.52% coupon would be paid for the first three years and 9.98% for the remaining two years, they said.

Barclays Bank invested INR 500 crore, Aditya Birla Finance invested INR 150 crore, and Aseem Infrastructure Finance, a NIIF fund, invested INR 350 crore, they said. Barclays confirmed the development.

Barclays, Aditya Birla Finance, and NIIF Fund provide INR 1,000-crore debt to Delhi Airport

ICRA Ratings had assigned an A+ rating to the INR 1,000-crore bonds on May 27. According to the information memorandum, DIAL must pay a 25 basis point higher coupon if the credit rating is downgraded below 'A'. However, there is no step up if the rating is lowered by one notch from 'A+' to 'A'.

DIAL had raised INR 3,257 crore in rupee bonds at 10.96% by the end of March 2021 due to a significant decline in the internal accruals caused by the Covid-related disruptions.

Proceeds from the latest debt facility would be used to finance the increase in interest payments during construction, resulting from revised Capex timelines and one-time drawdown estimated at INR 950-1,000 crore of the bond raised in March 2021, ICRA said.

GMR Infrastructure in a statement on Monday, June 27 had said the proceeds of the bonds would be used to part-finance phase 3A expansion programme of the airport.

GMR Infrastructure's latest annual report for FY21 stated that Phase 3A expansion includes expansion of Terminal 1 and Terminal 3, construction of a fourth runway along with enhancement of airfields, and construction of taxiways, which will expand the capacity of Indira Gandhi International (IGI) Airport to 100 million passengers annually.

GMR Infrastructure holds a 51% stake in GMR Airports, which in turn holds a 64% stake in DIAL. Airports Authority India has a 26% stake in the airport while Fraport AG Frankfurt Airport Services Worldwide (Fraport) holds the remaining 10%.

ICRA had stated that DIAL is exposed to high refinancing risk given that it has a large bullet repayment of INR 3,257 crore falling due in 2025-26, INR 3,494 crore due in FY27 INR 1,000 crore in FY28, and INR 3,500 crore in FY30.

ALSO READ - Delhi Airport becomes the first airport in India to run entirely on hydro and solar power

(With Inputs from The Economic Times)

Tata Group-owned international budget airline Air India Express may add four Boeing 737 planes to its fleet of 24 aircraft by this year-end to meet the increased demand for international travel, airline sources privy to the information have said.

Following the removal of various pandemic-related curbs, aviation is picking up and demand has bounced back and dry leasing is an option to enhance capacity in the short-term, they said.

Air India Express currently has 24 Boeing 737 planes in the fleet. It lost one plane in the Kozhikode plane crash in August 2020.

Air India Express plans to add 4 Boeing 737 to keep up with the rising demand

"Demand for international travel has bounced back after the removal of most of the pandemic-related restrictions on travel. Loads (passenger on aircraft) are good and all the routes are doing well. Of course, there are some seasonal variations, which have been factored in," a source told PTI.

“In the short-term, the airline might take four aircraft on dry lease to increase capacity for the interim period,” the source said, adding that the new aircraft will be utilized to enhance frequency on certain routes.

"You can't open new routes with four additional aircraft. These planes will only be used for increasing frequency and consolidation of the existing routes," a source said.

Air India Express currently has 24 Boeing 737 planes in the fleet.

Air India Express currently operates at 11 airports in India and 13 abroad with over 100 daily flights. The induction of four more aircraft will expand the fleet to 28 planes altogether.

Even as a state carrier, Air India Express’ balance sheet remained impressive, in sharp contrast to its bigger full-service sibling Air India.

The carrier’s business model of offering budget flights on high-density point-to-point routes from tier-2 and 3 Indian cities to places like Dubai, Sharjah, and Muscat brought in steady cash every year.

Air India Express posted its highest-ever net profit in the financial year 2019-20 of around USD 52 million. Even before that, it had been in profit for five years. However, its plans for further expansion have met with roadblocks over the years.

Air India Express’ balance sheet remained impressive, in sharp contrast to its bigger full-service sibling Air India.

With new owners, Air India Express is hoping for better days ahead. Its Chief of Commercial Tara Naidu recently commented that Air India Express could connect second and third-tier cities in India with several more countries as part of a “huge” expansion plan.

Around 30 countries are being explored by the airline, including Cambodia, China, Indonesia, the Philippines, Turkey, and Vietnam.

ALSO READ - Air India Express plans massive international expansion in the next 5 years

"The airline has not been allowed to grow for a long time. Earlier, its growth was hampered on account of the disinvestment process. The competition is growing every day and we have to keep up with that,” the source said.

Stating that Air India Express is hiring both cockpit crew and the cabin crew, which is an indication itself of induction of more aircraft (in the short-term)

According to another source, the airline had drawn up a business plan in 2018, in which it had envisioned to be a 50-aircraft company by 2025 as air passenger traffic was booming at that time.

"But first the government did not give us the go-ahead at that time saying that the airline was in its disinvestment plans and then the Covid-19 happened,” said the source.

Stating that Air India Express is hiring both cockpit crew and the cabin crew, which is an indication itself of induction of more aircraft (in the short-term), the source said, “a walk-in-interview for cabin crew has been conducted at Calicut on Tuesday, June 28. Also, the airline has already completed one round of walk-in interviews at Delhi, Mumbai, Mangalore and Calicut.”

“And in the coming weeks, Air India Express plans to conduct a similar exercise at Kochi as well as Northeast,” he said.

Jet Airways has asked the aviation regulator DGCA to direct SpiceJet to remove its livery from the budget carrier's aircraft as it misleads the public about the identity of the operator and is also a safety hazard. Each airline has its livery -- a specific paint scheme comprising a logo that is applied on aircraft.

In a letter to the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) on June 21, Jet Airways stated, "After the stoppage of our operations in 2019, several aircraft were returned to the lessors and then leased out to some Indian operators such as SpiceJet."

Many of these airplanes continue to fly in full Jet Airways' colours on the fuselage and tail with Jet Airways' name blanked off and overwritten by decals (a vinyl wrap), it added. "Also, the Jet Airways logo on the tail has been painted over, but is still discernible if one looks carefully," it mentioned.

Jet Airways requests DGCA to ask SpiceJet to take down their livery from its aircraft

The letter also noted that some of these aircraft have been involved in accidents or incidents, the photographs of which have been widely circulated in media.

One such example is the runway excursion of a SpiceJet B737 aircraft in Mumbai in 2019 where Jet Airways' colour scheme and part of the logo is prominently visible in the photos still available on the internet, it mentioned.

Jet Airways received its renewed air operator certificate (AOC) from DGCA on May 20 this year and it is planning to start commercial flight operations in September.

ALSO READ - Jet Airways returning with a hybrid premium and no-frills model, first flight likely by October 2022

Many of these airplanes continue to fly in full Jet Airways' colours on the fuselage and tail with Jet Airways' name blanked off and overwritten by decals (a vinyl wrap)

SpiceJet has 90-odd planes in its fleet. Some of the B737 aircraft it has been with Jet Airways before the latter went bankrupt in 2019.

Airline liveries are fundamental statements of branding and corporate identity and all operators endeavour to make theirs as distinctive and readily recognisable as possible, Jet Airways stated in its letter.

Therefore, it is evident that an operator flying its aircraft in another airline's livery has a serious potential to mislead the public about the identity of the operator, something which cannot be taken lightly, it mentioned.

SpiceJet has 90-odd planes in its fleet. Some of the B737 aircraft it has been with Jet Airways before the latter went bankrupt in 2019.

"This is also a safety hazard as it can confuse ground staff and crew operating other aircraft about the identity of the aircraft in question, for example when following ATC (air traffic controller) directions," it stated.

This problem becomes even more egregious when such aircraft are involved in undesirable situations like accidents, incidents, or interception in foreign airspace, it mentioned.

"May we request your office to issue necessary directions to all operators to use only their authorised livery as filed with the DGCA compulsorily, and to remove all vestiges of other airline liveries from their aircraft. As we plan to begin operations in September and expect to have aircraft in our livery delivered to us in July this year, an early action from your good office to ensure all such unauthorised liveries are removed by July would be highly appreciated."Jet Airways

Commenting on the matter, a SpiceJet spokesperson told PTI in a statement, "We have not received any communication from the DGCA. The older planes are being phased out and many have already left the fleet. They are being replaced by the 737MAX."

Jet Airways, in its old avatar, was owned by Naresh Goyal and had operated its last flight on April 17, 2019. The Jalan-Kalrock Consortium is currently the promoter of Jet Airways.

ALSO READ - Jet Airways places Airbus in the lead for USD 5.5 billion aircraft order

Airbus is the favourite to win a USD 5.5 billion order from Jet Airways for A320 and A220 aircraft. The airline is in talks with plane manufacturers, and a spokesperson said final negotiations were on with lessors and plane manufacturers for its fleet.

The recent suspension orders issued by the civil aviation regulator to flight instructors of five flying training organisations (FTOs) will in no way slow down the training of cadets or cause problems for Commercial Pilot License (CPL) holders wanting to keep their licenses valid, clarified the director-general, civil aviation on Monday, June 27.

In all the five cases, other instructors have taken on the job responsibilities, earlier handled by the suspended instructors.

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

"The Chief Flight Instructor (CFI) and deputy CFI of Pioneer, Aligarh have been suspended for one year. The FTO continues to be functional as a new CFI has been appointed," said Arun Kumar, director general, civil aviation.

Flying training activities won't slow down due to the suspension of FTOs - DGCA

Similarly the CFI of Madhya Pradesh Flying Club, Indore has been suspended. "They already have 3 more CFI/Dy. CFI," he said. The Dy. CFI and CFI of TSAA, Telangana has been suspended. But the school has one more CFI, he said.

The FTO approval of SVKM, Shirpur has been suspended for 21 days. It's a small FTO with only 3 aircraft.

Chimes aviation academy's FTO has been suspended till its runway in Dhana is re-carpeted, which is routine work which needs to be carried out after years of wear and tear.

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

The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) had suspended the FTO approval of Chimes following an inspection which revealed the runway had loose gravel and uneven surface and was unsafe for flying.

Chimes aviation academy's FTO has been suspended till its runway in Dhana is re-carpeted, which is routine work which needs to be carried out after years of wear and tear.

In the case of Shirpur FTO, three of its aircraft were found to have a dysfunctional fuel gauge indicator. Despite that, these planes were being operated.

“The flying operations at this school have been stopped for three weeks. It will be allowed to operate only when things are in order,” said Kumar.

Following a spate of accidents and incidents involving FTOs in India, the director general ordered a special safety audit of all FTOs, which began on March 21.

The audit had found that in some schools, student pilots were not appropriately briefed and trained on emergencies and essential exercises before being released for solo flights or cross-country flights.

Similarly the CFI of Madhya Pradesh Flying Club, Indore has been suspended.

In some FTOs, the instructors, student pilots and aircraft maintenance engineers were found to have skipped the mandatory breath-analyzer test (BA) test, while in others the BA equipment was not in compliance with the requirements, said the official.

Another violation was false logging. In a few cases, the dual flight was found to be logged as a solo flight, in other cases, the taxi time was calculated towards the instrument flying time of the student pilot, the audit found.

Some FTOs were found operating aircraft with faulty fuel gauges, stall warnings etc; others had poor emergency response plans with obsolete contact details.

ALSO READ - DGCA lays down roles and responsibilities to improve flight safety

(With Inputs from The Times of India)