04 Nov 2019

India Aviation Industry Newsletter 4 November

American Airlines uses IBS Platform for cargo management American Airlines Cargo has taken a giant leap forward in the modernization of its cargo operations by deploying IBS Software’s iCargo air cargo management platform across its entire global network. In doing so, American consolidated a complex IT back-end comprising 90+ legacy systems, built incrementally over the past 40 years, into a lean, next generation cargo management environment with just ten core business applications, Ashok Rajan, Head of Cargo and Logistics Solutions, IBS Software, said in a press release. India to become third largest air passenger market by 2040 India is set to become the third largest aviation passenger market by 2040 with a total of 1.3 billion passengers, according to 2019 World Traffic Forecasts, released by the Airport Council International (ACI) World.

IndiGo becomes member of global airlines body IATA

IndiGo announced that it has become a member of International Air Transport Association (IATA) which represents around 290 airlines across the world, comprising 82% of global air traffic. The announcement came after IndiGo's expansion of international flight operations this year wherein it connected India with countries such as Turkey, Vietnam, Myanmar and China. IndiGo launches brand campaign to boost its international flights To boost load factor at its recently launched international flights, low-cost carrier IndiGo on Sunday launched a brand campaign called ' IndiGo Abroad: Happy to be your first.' Earlier this year, the airline launched flights to Turkey, China, Vietnam, Myanmar and Saudi Arabia. "The campaign aims to introduce Indian travelers new and unexplored 6E destinations to encourage first-time international travelers and experiential travelers to look beyond the regular international destinations, for their next trip abroad with IndiGo," the airline said in a statement. Virgin Atlantic launches daily London Heathrow to Mumbai service Virgin Atlantic on 27 October celebrated the launch of Heathrow to Mumbai services, coinciding with this year’s Diwali festival. The carrier announced the route following the collapse of Jet Airways back in April 2019. Total capacity on the route in W19 is 359,000 seats, down 35% on W18 as last winter reported anna.aero. Vistara Expands Fleet and Network by Over 50% Each, Set to Nearly Double Fleet Size by Fiscal End Vistara has expanded its fleet and network by close to 50% each and has flown around 4.5 million passengers in the last seven months. The airline is set to almost double its fleet size by the end of the current financial year ending March 2020, when compared to the fleet size at the start of FY19-20. Last year, Vistara ordered 50 aircraft from the Airbus A320neo family, including the A321neo, to be delivered until 2023 in its plan of densifying domestic operations and embarking on short/medium haul international routes. The deliveries from the said order have begun already, as Vistara inducted three new Airbus A320neo aircraft with enhanced operational performance and cabin features such as in-seat power outlets, USB charging ports and PED holders. The airline will induct six more A320neo aircraft by December 2019, following which Vistara will get two of the six wide-body aircraft it ordered last year, the Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner, and one Airbus A321neo between January and March 2020. With this, from 22 aircraft in March 2019, the airline will take the fleet size to 42 by March 2020. Leslie Thng, Vistara’s Chief Executive Officer, says, “Network expansion is one of our top business priorities at present and we are proud to have recorded significant progress on this front by adding 11 new destinations in India and abroad in the current financial year so far. With our fleet expansion, we will continue to grow our domestic and international network, including the commencement of medium and long haul international flights in 2020.” Vistara receives new Airbus A320neo aircraft with enhanced cabin features Vistara has received three new Airbus A320neos with enhanced cabin features. All Business Class seats now offer in-seat AC power, an USB charging port, height-adjustable armrests, a cocktail table extension to the meal tray and an additional literature pocket. In Premium Economy and Economy Class cabins, all seats get USB charging ports, PED holders and an additional literature pocket. The new seats also offer more space and comfort with better ergonomics in all three cabins. According to Leslie Thng, chief executive officer, Vistara: “The cabins of our new A320neo aircraft have been designed with even greater thought to passenger comfort and convenience. The charging ports and PED holders are simple, yet very useful conveniences that we are happy to provide to our customers on all our new A320neo aircraft that will be deployed on domestic as well as international routes. This will also help our customers to use our wireless in-flight entertainment streaming service, ‘Vistara World’, to access their favourite movies, TV shows, music, etc. conveniently without having to worry about their phone battery strengths. The new seats will further complement the comfort and joy of flying India’s only five-star airline for our customers.” Acumen Aviation © 4 November 2019 All Rights Reserved.