CATEGORIES

Madness @ Mumbai

If airline operators were asked for their wish list every year, topping the chart would be ‘Slots in Mumbai’. Costlier, perhaps many times more than the real estate in India’s maximum city, the Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport (CSMIA) – along with the other metro airports – is crying out for desperately-needed infrastructure that will enhance capacity.

The Rise And Fall Of Bombardier

Not long ago, Canadian aircraft manufacturer, Bombardier, was ruling the skies. It had the inimitable C Series that was itching to give Boeing and Airbus a run. But all that is now over…

Jet Creates A Cargo Record

The financial troubles notwithstanding, the Naresh Goyal-led carrier managed to haul a whopping 45 tonnes of cargo on its Mumbai-London route.

EU Wants More Indian Cargo

The European Union would like to strengthen trade ties with India in preparation for a hard Brexit.

Loo(k) For A View

This is only for those who love to look at the rolling clouds at 30,000 ft from aircraft.

MROs: In Dire Need Of Maintenance, Repair, Overhaul

The potential of the MRO business to flourish in India continues to remain on paper. While on the one hand, we do not miss any opportunity to tom-tom the rapid growth of the aviation sector and how the country will be in the top three in the next five years in the world, the MRO industry – one could refer to it as the backbone of the aviation sector — has been totally forgotten by the government. The size of industry in 2015 was ₹5 billion. Today, is the size remains at the same ₹5 billion and as C Santhosh found out, most of the MROs would have to down shutters by March 2019 if the situation does not improve.

Tough Landings For Seaplanes

Even before Prime Minister Narendra Modi capped his Gujarat campaign with an eye-catching takeoff from the Sabarmati river to a touchdown in the Dharoi dam, seaplane services were being discussed by the government. But are the conditions conducive enough for air journeys via water?

Exports Slowdown: GST Effect Or international Phenomena?

While some international airports have shown a dip in cargo volumes in the first year of the Goods and Services Tax, others have seen a rise. Tirthankar Ghosh talked to freight forwarders and airport cargo heads to find out what a year of GST has thrown up for the air cargo trade.

North-East Focus On Asean Connectivity

India is keen to increase trade with its immediate ASEAN neighbours and air links will provide the answer.

IATA Boss Delivers A Warning

It is clear that the demand for air travel is growing very fast – IATA expects it to double in the next 20 years – but it will come after a lot of struggle by airlines. The recent IATA AGM in Seoul, resounded with a warning about the trade war waged by the USA. A close look at the takeaways.

Showtime @ Paris!

The 53rd edition of the Paris Air Show would have gone down in history as possibly the first one where US aerospace giant Boeing entered as a 'loser' but emerged as a 'winner'courtesy Willie Walsh and his 200-B737 MAX order. There were, however, other innovations to look forward to at the show: electric, supersonic and autonomous aircraft. A show of shows!

Pakyong Airport: Only Visuals, No Action

Nestled amidst the clouds at 1400 meters above sea level, with a breath-taking view of the beautiful Pakyong valley amidst the Himalayas, is Pakyong Airport in Sikkim.

A Scorcher Of A Show

The 2018 edition of the Farnborough Airshow once again delivered in terms of record deals for jetliners. It once again underlined the fact that the commercial aircraft industry remains in good health.

India Spiced Up

Ajay Singh has had a dream run with SpiceJet. The low-cost carrier has become a showpiece for the world: on its way to higher skies with improved performance on all fronts. K SRINIVASAN pieces the SpiceJet saga.

Ability Of Q400 To Carry More Passengers Is A Big Advantage

Speaking to Cruising HeigHts on the sidelines of the Farnborough Airshow, Francois Cognard, Vice President, Sales, Asia-Pacific, Bombardier Commercial Aircraft pointed out that the Q400 was the best suited for India’s aviation needs.

Saab Sees A Huge Potential For Its Remote ATCs In India

As the country invests substantially in upgrading its infrastructure in all domains – with the focus on smaller, regional airports – Saab’s remote tower concept is being widely discussed by both the Airports Authority of India (AAI) and the Directorate-General of Civil Aviation (DGCA). Saab believes its technology will provide the perfect solution that can help AAI operationalise airports in far-flung areas. JOHAN LANDIN, Vice President, Marketing & Sales, Saab Digital Air Traffic Solutions and VARUN VIJAY SINGH, Marketing Director, Air Defence and ATM from India Office talked to Cruising HeigHts. Excerpts from the conversation:

GA Wishlist: Pit Stops And More

Business jet operators clearly want smaller airports to stay open longer and be better equipped in terms of refuelling facilities and parking bays. But are we ready?

Will Slower Growth Be The Norm Now?

IATA data for air cargo in May showed that the growth trend had come down and cited three reasons for that.

Acquisition Season

It can be a major jolt to Airbus! Carriers are opting Boeing for their long haul plans. Vistara is eyeing to buy B787 Max whereas IndiGo, an Airbus dominated airline is ready to induct B777s, 787s for its expansion plans.

Fewer Indian Bizjet Fliers in 2018

Unlike the world over, the business jet market saw its best quarter since 2015 with aircraft deliveries increasing 1.5 per cent. In India, however, business was slow with little use of general aviation aircraft.

Ready For The Future

The recent International Air Transport Association (IATA) Annual General Meeting (AGM) and World Air Transport Summit could not have been in a more perfect location than Sydney. With the city preparing to become the hub for ultra-long haul flights in Qantas’ CEO ‘Project Sunrise’ programme, it also saw some candid assessments about the future of the industry and active debates on gender equality in the aviation business. Highlights:

Down, down, down…

That is the way airline stocks have been going over the last few months. Most of these aviation stocks have been in the spotlight after global brokerage firm HSBC initiated coverage on major stocks.

Is Udan Ready For International Skies?

The UDAN or regional connectivity scheme remains virtually on paper. Regular operation of regional flights continue to lag behind due to a variety of reasons. And even as these issues continue to trouble the scheme, the government has unveiled a draft scheme to extend the ‘affordable’ UDAN air travel programme to international destinations.

First Dedicated Cargo Airport No Longer A Dream

Andhra Pradesh ties up with SCL-Turbo Consortium to set up a dedicated cargo airport at Nellore.

IATA Prescribes Three-pronged Approach

Countering the gloomy future, the IATA chief outlined three priorities that would help air cargo to gain some growth: Modernisation, enforcing Global Standards and opening borders for trade. A report

A Bird, A Tiger, A Shark? No, It's A Plane

Spanning the three worlds – Earth, Water and Sky – Embraer’s ‘Profit Hunters’ fly around looking for new markets.

Boeing Has Plenty On Its Plate

2018 has been a tough year for Boeing. The trade war with China, the cancelled Iran deal, the regulatory woes over the Embraer deal and the Lion Air Max crash have all come back to back. A special report on the issues.

GMR's CSR arm pledges to create tomorrow together

The GMR Varalakshmi Foundation ends its Silver Jubilee year with promises to continue its services for the under-served communities of India.

Network Planning Team Size

However, having an aircraft is not cheap and an airline cannot afford multiple types of planes. Over a period of time, as airlines have moved to dual categories of planes, they have started adjusting the flights. Take the case of indigo.

Will Trump's tariffs affect Indian pharma?

As the international pharma market grows at a steady pace, Indian suppliers could be affected if US imposes tariffs on air cargo.