16 Dec 2019

India Aviation Industry Newsletter 16 December

Air India disinvestment should improve competition within the aviation sector: IATA official "The only thing that we can say about privatization of Air India is that if it has to be done in a way that would probably maintain or improve the competitive conditions of the market,” Alexandre de Juniac, Director General, International Air Transport Association (IATA) said last week.

At 11.2%, air pax growth returns to double-digits in November

Domestic air passenger traffic has finally grown in double-digits, clipping at 11.2 percent in November to 12.94 million after growing in single-digit till October, while April saw a degrowth, show the latest DGCA data released last week. The 12 domestic carriers, including full-service carriers Air India and Vistara and budget carriers Indigo, Spicejet, Goair and AirAsia India together have flown 11.6 million passengers in November. The sectoral regulator attributed the increase in the reporting month to the onset of the tourist season. "The double-digits month-on-month growth in passenger traffic in November is a relief for the industry which was experiencing a slow growth since the past few months," said Sabina Chopra of Yatra.com. Narendra Modi gives nod to Aircraft Amendment Bill The union cabinet, headed by the prime minister of India, Narendra Modi, has given its nod to the Aircraft (Amendment) Bill, 2019. The bill aims to carry out amendments to the Indian Aircraft Act, 1934. The Indian Aircraft Act, 1934 is a government act to make better provision for the control of the manufacture, possession, use, operation, sale, import and export of aircraft. The amendments would fulfil the requirements of International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO). NEC to supply biometrics to four Indian airports for Digi Yatra as Dubai launches passport control trial NEC Technologies India has won a contract from the Airports Authority of India to implement the company’s biometric boarding platform at four different airports in the country in support of the Digi Yatra initiative. The NEC Corporation subsidiary is expected to launch its technology in a series of phases at Lal Bahadur Shastri airport in Varanasi, Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose airport in Kolkata, Pune airport and Vijayawada airport, all of which are expected to be operational by the end of 2020

Proposed airport city near Bengaluru airport awaits clearance

The proposed airport city at the Kempegowda International Airport (KIA) in Bengaluru will include three business parks which will be built over 40 acres, according to officials at the Bangalore International Airport Limited (BIAL), the operator of KIA. The city complex is planned as part of the airport's Phase 2 expansion project and is currently awaiting regulatory approvals. The entire project will be spread out over 530 acres and will have a mall, a retail dining entertainment village, live entertainment centre, luxury and business hotels, serviced apartments and 10-acre multi-level car parking facilities. The city is proposed to be located near terminal 1 of the airport, Times of India reported. A rail link from central Bengaluru is also proposed to the airport city. The plan to build a hub of commercial establishments near the airport has been in the pipeline for over 10 years. Routes under RCS double in ’19 The number of Regional Connectivity Scheme (RCS) routes that commenced this year connecting the airports in the state doubled. According to Airport Authority of India (AAI) data as on December 7, during 2019 eighteen routes were operationalized of which five routes were under RCS-UDAN 2.0 and the remaining 13 routes under RCS-UDAN 3.0. Acumen Aviation © 16 December 2019 All Rights Reserved.