21 May 2018

India Aviation Industry Newsletter 21 May

India To Take Long View Toward Airport Development The Indian government has decided to take a longer-term view toward addressing its airport infrastructure needs, as domestic traffic growth reaches 18 percent a year. Finally recognizing the shortcomings of planning in three- to five-year increments, and often on an emergency basis, India endeavors now to plan for 15 to 20 years into the future, theoretically allowing for infrastructure development to keep pace with traffic growth, said minister of state for civil aviation Jayant Sinha. The government initiative known as Next Gen Airports for India centers on upgrading technology at airports to allow for 1 billion trips per year in the next 15 years, said Airports Authority of India chairman Guruprasad Mohapatra. According to Sinha, the country will invest $15 billion in airport infrastructure over the next five years. Jet Airways Taps Indian Diaspora With Mumbai-Manchester Route Jet Airways has announced a new route from Mumbai to Manchester initially operating four times weekly from November using 254-seat Airbus A330-200s, with a daily service planned with the start of next year’s summer schedule in March. The Manchester operation will aim to tap a market of 500,000 people of Indian origin living in the north of Britain, as well as seeking to attract tourists and investors from the sub-continent to the U.K., according to the release. If the route proves successful a service to Delhi could be introduced and operations to cities including Amritsar are a possibility, Jet Chairman Naresh Goyal said. Tier-II Cities Driving Growth In Domestic Aviation Sector, Says Airports Authority Of India Tier-II cities such as Ranchi, Surat, Vijayawada, Bhubaneswar and Varanasi are driving the aviation growth story in the country, with an impressive rise in passenger traffic in the past year, according to data compiled by the Airports Authority of India. The 26% growth in the domestic aviation sector was largely because of the demand that is being generated from these Tier-II cities and the addition of new routes and services, an AAI official said. The regional connectivity scheme has also aided the rise in traffic, the official added. UDAN success: How small-town India is flying high in 13 months India had a total of 75 airports connected by scheduled commercial flights. In the 13 months since, 25 new airports and airstrips, belonging to states and privately-held, have been added to the aerial network, with airlines, both new and established ones, lapping up over 300 routes in the first two rounds of bidding under UDAN. Airlines plying on regional routes have claimed significant passenger load factor so far. “We are seeing a fantastic response on our UDAN route flights. Occupancy is over 90% on most routes,” Chairman & MD, SpiceJet, Ajay Singh had said. “Passenger response is very good. We are getting an average 70% occupancy on RCS routes,” says Senthil Raja of Turbo Megha. WOW air confirms India flights to Delhi WOW Air has confirmed the airline will offer three weekly flights into Delhi, with the frequency increasing to five times weekly from the start of 2019. WOW air will serve the Indian capital using its fleet of A330-300s, plus its A330-900s when they join the carrier.  Skúli Mogensen, CEO and founder of WOW air said “This addition expands on WOW air’s promise to connect more travelers to as many diverse and exciting cities at the best-possible prices.” Acumen Aviation © 21 May 2018 All Rights Reserved.