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Pandemic pilots

Many of us have lost our jobs – blame it on the pandemic – but quite a few have clawed back in these difficult times. The hardest-hit aviation community has some fine examples.

SriLankan focuses on cargo

As it moves to induct its first freighter, the carrier is looking to become an active player in the island nation’s growing international trade, said cargo head Chamara Ranasinghe to Tirthankar Ghosh

Airports Up The Game For Vaccines

SOPs charted out and implemented by the airports’ cargo division for vaccine transportation from acceptance of the vaccines to dispatch at the ramp saw average processing time of only 10 minutes for domestic delivery and 25 minutes for international shipments. A report from TIRTHANKAR GHOSH.

Hurdles Dog Adani's Airport Venture

Adani has control of seven airports – six Airports Authority of India airports through privatisation and the Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport (CSMIA) at Mumbai by acquiring GVK’s stake — and almost a quarter of India’s air traffic. However, to make them profitable, Adani will have to overcome infra and other challenges that each of the airports face, writes AMEYA JOSHI.

Air France Looks To Tech To Avoid Covid-19 ‘Nightmare'

Air France looks to tech to avoid Covid-19 ‘nightmare’ Air France is moving full speed ahead on finding technology solutions to the myriad of Covid-19 travel restrictions that will likely be in place for the busy summer travel season ahead.

It's difficult being a new airline in India

Surviving as a new airline is difficult – in fact, unimaginable – in India. Witness the number of carriers that that have vanished without a trace. AMEYA JOSHI details the reasons why startup airlines are smothered by the larger entities.

The Falcon (6X) shows its wings

A few days ago, Dassault Aviation’s “ultra widebody” business jet – the cabin is wider than anything from transatlantic rivals Gulfstream and Bombardier – took its first flight. Elated at the manner in which the plane flew, the test pilots gave it a thumbs-up saying, “From a pilot’s perspective, it flies like a Falcon, which is to say with perfect precise handling in all phases of flight.” A report

SpiceJet at the top as cargo carrier

Ever since the lockdown, SpiceJet has been operating cargo flights transporting vaccines, medicines, perishable items and more to domestic and international destinations

Taiwan carefully opens, but only to this country

Taiwan, the island nation of 24 million, has only had 1,006 Covid-19 cases and 10 deaths, thanks to early, well-enforced measures.

JAL retires 777s with P&W engines

Japan Airlines has announced that it was retiring Boeing 777 planes equipped with Pratt & Whitney engines following two mid-air failures, one involving a Japan Airlines plane last December.

Rebirth pains for Jet Airways

Will Jet Airways take to the skies again? The Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (IBC) has provided some hope for the carrier but a whole lot of issues remain to be sorted out before it takes the first flight, writes AMEYA JOSHI?

787 certification now by FAA

The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) in a decisive move early March decided that they will be inspecting four Boeing Dreamliners after there were production issues for the planes.

What Awaits Indian Aviation In 2020?

We have been told that the demise of Jet Airways has not affected aviation growth and all seems to be well but 2019 was one of the worst years in Aviation Safety, writes Capt A Ranganathan. It is time we looked at passenger safety. Airlines should realise that yield is more important than load factor. Until this wisdom dawns, we will see more carriers biting the dust.

T-MINUS … TO BLAST-OFF

The countdown has started: 2020 could well be the year when Branson, Musk or Bezos-inspired inter-galactic journeys will be possible. More than the touristic bit, such travel will augur well for aviation, when a flight from New York to Shanghai or a Sydney-London/New York will be done in about 60 minutes.

Hightime to enforce rules

The Ground Handling business is time-sensitive and requires massive investment. Perhaps, what is most important, writes PREM BAJAJ, is the strict adherence to safety and security and that can only be achieved if the Ground Handling Regulations are followed in letter and spirit.

Who's jealous of Ms Ida Gomez?

Ida Gomez Llanos is angry – very angry.

Fasten seat belts – now!

Indian Aviation faces its toughest test in 2020. It has to contend with rising in operating costs from jet fuel and import of aircraft spare parts and consumables and the differential aviation fuel pricing in each state, to name just a few. MARK D MARTIN dreads the return of the 1980s scenario when air travel was an Emergency or Imperatively Urgent Travel Medium and rail the first choice for the middle class Indian.

Flying on the razor's edge in 2020

The year that has gone by – 2019 – was possibly the worst year for Indian aviation. Not only did it see the demise of Jet Airways but there was red ink on the balance sheets of domestic carriers. November 2019 brought relief to the industry as double-digit growth came back. Will that trend continue, asks AMEYA JOSHI?

Aircargo's unsung heroes will come out smiling – again!

Bharat Thakkar takes a look at the present dismal air cargo scenario but predicts that the sector’s stakeholders will be able to ride out the turbulence.

TruJet Lessons: How To Keep Flying And Counter The Competition

Barely five years old and with only five ATRs in its fleet, TruJet has managed to survive in what can be considered as difficult times for the aviation sector in the country. The regional carrier has not been able to scale up its operations and today, finds itself at a crossroad, writes Ameya Joshi. If it can sustain itself, TruJet could become a model for successful regional operations in the country.

Trade War Heavy On Cargo

Air cargo is now in its longest slump in demand since the global financial crisis in 2008. According to latest figures by IATA, the demand in global air freight market has contracted by 3.9 percent.

LCCs Find Solace In Cargo

IndiGo and SpiceJet have been focusing on boosting cargo and have witnessed success. Today, quite a large percentage of cargo – domestic and international – is being handled by the two carriers. A report.

Jaffna airport becomes operational

The first international flight to land at Jaffna airport was an Alliance Air flight from Chennai.

Drought In The Time Of Plenty

How do you explain the Indian aviation market when you have the country’s largest airline declare a huge, more than anticipated loss and just a week later make one of its biggest-ever aircraft acquisitions of 300 single-aisle Airbus planes worth more than $33 billion at list prices?

Betting Big On The ‘Profit Hunter'

Brazil’s Embraer is all set to become Boeing Brazil. And, when that does happen, Boeing could well brush away the MAX worries and look at better times.

‘Never Give Up'

Burdened by a host of taxes, business aviation in the country is yet to take off. While everyone agrees that business aviation is one of the main ingredients for the growth of an economy – more so in the case of India – the government is yet to make some policy changes to smoothen the road for the sector. NIDHI SHARMA finds out what the Business Aircraft Operators Association (BAOA) plan to do to ensure that bizjets take to the skies in a big way.

Nation's Tallest, The Most Advanced ATC Tower Is Operational

With air traffic at Delhi Airport growing every passing day, it became imperative to have an upgraded infrastructure for better functioning.

Indian MROs Long Wait For Good Times

The Indian MRO industry has been waiting for ‘achchey din’ for a long time. Given the fact that the country is inching towards the world’s third largest aviation market in a couple of years, the MRO sector has immense potential. That, however, will take a long time to fructify, writes C SANTHOSH, if the government does not take proactive steps.

Air Cargo Takes A Beating

The global slowdown impacted air freight and the tariff war between US and China only exacerbated the situation. Adding to the problems of freight forwarders were the protests in Hong Kong. So, what do the next few months bring for Indian exporters and freights forwarders?

‘Airlines Must Meet Challenges As Growth Explodes'

APAC airlines need to keep on investing in fleet modernisation and maintenance to keep aircraft downtime, operational costs, and maintenance costs to a minimum, says Paul Nef, Regional Director, Asia Pacific, Commercial Aviation, Honeywell Aerospace in this conversation with Cruising Heights. He also spoke out on the challenges faced by APAC airlines catering to exponential growth in air travel.