Page 2 - Air India Express

Tata aviation cuts losses by Rs 9,077 cr in FY24, Air India revenue up 24%

Air India, which was privatised in 2022, achieved its highest consolidated revenue of Rs 51,365 crore for FY24, marking a 24 per cent rise from the prior year

Air India's low-cost airline Air India Express posts Rs 163 cr loss in FY24

While the company's total income increased by 33 per cent year-on-year (Y-o-Y) to Rs 7,600 crore in FY24, its total expenditure grew by 38.3 per cent to Rs 7,763 crore in the same period

DGCA fines Air India Express for non-compliance with compensation rules

The civil aviation ministry introduced a charter of passenger rights in 2019, mandating airlines to inform passengers of any flight cancellation at least two weeks prior to the scheduled departure

DGCA slaps Rs 10 lakh fine on Air India Express for not paying compensation

Aviation regulator DGCA on Thursday imposed a penalty of Rs 10 lakh on Air India Express for non-payment of compensation to passengers for cancelled flights. The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) carried out an inspection as per Annual Surveillance Programme (ASP) 2024 of scheduled domestic operators in June. This was in respect of norms pertaining to facilities and compensation that are to be provided to passengers. "During the surveillance inspection of the airlines, it was observed that Air India Express was not complying with the provisions of CAR Section-3, Series M, Part IV," DGCA said in a release. Subsequently, a show cause notice was issued to Air India Express. The regulator said the airline's reply revealed that it had not complied with the provisions for providing compensation to passengers affected due to cancellation of flights. For the violations, DGCA has imposed a fine of Rs 10 lakh on Air India Express. Specific details about the violations could not

Indian carriers almost catch up with Emirates on the Dubai route

According to Cirium, between April and July this year Emirates controlled more than half the seat capacity of 2.3 million and 36 per cent of the 9,410 flights

Air India Express freedom sale: Get fares starting at Rs 1947 from today

Book your flights between now and August 5th for travel until September 30th, 2024.

Air India unveils voluntary retirement, separation schemes before merger

The Tata Group-owned airline introduced voluntary retirement scheme for employees with at least five years of service, and voluntary separation scheme for those with less than five years of service

Tata Group to retain Air India's top management post-Vistara merger

Campbell Wilson will continue as the chief executive officer, with Nipun Aggarwal and Sanjay Sharma remaining as the chief commercial and transformation officer, and chief financial officer

Air India likely to offer voluntary separation scheme for 600 employees

Air India will introduce a Voluntary Separation Scheme (VSS) for around 600 employees whose roles may become redundant due to the merger with Vistara

Tata group airlines complete harmonising operating manual ahead of merger

The harmonisation of operating manuals across all Tata group airlines has been completed in the run-up to the Vistara-Air India merger and amalgamation of AIX Connect with Air India Express, a statement said on Monday. At present, the steel-to-software conglomerate fully owns three airlines -- Air India, Air India Express and AIX Connect (formerly AirAsia India) -- while it holds a majority of 51 per cent in Vistara. Singapore Airlines holds the remaining 49 per cent in Vistara. Following the completion of the harmonisation of the operating manuals, Air India said there will be two separate manuals, one for the full-service carrier Air India and the other for the low-cost cost-carrier Air India Express. Before this, all four airlines had separate operating manuals. Over the last 18 months, a team of more than 100 members have worked to align on the best practices and adopt common operating procedures, Air India noted. "This is an important milestone in the merger of the Tata Grou

A-I Express to defer inquiries against cabin crew; next meeting on Aug 8

Air India Express on Tuesday decided to defer the inquiry process initiated against nearly 200 cabin crew members for reporting sick in May when the airline faced significant operational disruptions, according to sources. The decision was taken at the meeting convened by the Central Labour Commissioner (Central) in the national capital as part of the ongoing conciliation proceedings. At the meeting, representatives of the Air India Express Employees Union (AIXEU) mentioned about the issuance of charge sheets to around 200 cabin crew members in June and sought the withdrawal, the sources said. They added that on the advice of the conciliation officer, the representatives of the airline's management agreed to defer the inquiry process related to the charge sheets. AIXEU, which represents a section of the cabin crew at the airline, had filed a complaint before the labour department last year. Following the complaint, a conciliation process is happening under the Industrial Disputes Ac

A-I Express union alleges unfair labour practices; seeks govt intervention

Air India Express' cabin crew union has alleged unfair labour practices by the airline, including in issuance of charge sheets to its members, and sought the intervention of the labour commissioner to resolve the issues. The Air India Express Employees Union (AIXEU), which is affiliated with the Bharatiya Mazdoor Sangh, has written a letter to the Chief Labour Commissioner (Central) in this regard. The communication also comes at a time when conciliation proceedings are going on before the CLC (C) on the disputes between the cabin crew members and the airline management. The union has alleged that the management is adopting various measures that are not conducive to creating good industrial relations. "... their actions are spoiling the industrial relations already affected by their unfair labour practices and violations of labour legislation," it claimed in the letter dated June 28. There was no comment from Air India Express. Among other issues, the union has claimed that charg

Fares as low as Rs 883: Air India Express launches splash sale till 28 June

The sale applies to bookings made till June 28th, 2024, for travel valid until September 30th, 2024. Here's what passengers can expect

Zoomcar collabs A-I Express to allow booking cars from airport in 19 cities

Self-drive car sharing platform Zoomcar Holdings on Thursday said it has partnered with Air India Express to allow customers to book self-drive cars directly from the airport on the airline's mobile app as well as the website in 19 cities. The collaboration also caters to the customer with varying requirements, leveraging the extensive fleet options and ensuring ample space for baggage carried through Air India Express's add-on packs such as carry-on-Xtra, international connecting baggage, and special equipment, Zoomcar said in a statement. This collaboration will offer the customer access to self-driven car rentals in Bengaluru, Bhubaneswar, Chennai, Delhi, Goa, Guwahati, Hyderabad, Indore, Jaipur, Kolkata, Kochi, Lucknow, Mangaluru, Madurai, Mumbai, Pune, Tiruchirappalli, Vijayawada and Visakhapatnam, it said. "We're focused on providing improved and personalised travel experiences for our guests at Zoomcar, and our partnership with Air India Express is another stepping stone ...

'Cabin crew issues are now well resolved', says Air India Express CCO

Airline to add 24 planes in the next 6 months, he added

Air India utilising group airlines' engineering skills for maintenance work

Tata Group-owned Air India is utilising the engineering skills available with group airlines to carry out more maintenance work of the aircraft under its own quality control amid multiple instances of its legacy planes facing operational issues, according to a senior company official. The official also said the airline is keen to lease aircraft but the market is very tight, especially for wide-body planes. After the takeover by the Tata Group in 2022, loss-making Air India has been making efforts for improvement and has embarked on a five-year transformation plan. To address the engineering issues more effectively, the official told PTI that Air India is bringing the work of line maintenance component in-house as well as using the licensing and skills of the group airlines to do some things in certain types of aircraft. Such an approach will help Air India in doing more "maintenance work under our own quality control", the official said on condition of anonymity. Air India is sett

Air India Express taps on growth, group synergies: MD Aloke Singh

As it looks to tap the growth opportunities and group synergies, Air India Express Managing Director Aloke Singh on Wednesday said the airline will focus on the cost side and transformation plans in 2024-25. Air India Express is in the process of merging AIX Connect, formerly AirAsia India. "In 2024-25, a lot of synergies will be unlocked... there will be a laser focus on the cost side," Singh said. The two airlines are part of the Tata Group, which is also in the process of merging Vistara with Air India. There will be cross feeds between Air India long haul flights and domestic short haul flights, he said and added that there is substantial growth coming in. With the network and the new fleet coming in, there will be a significant upside on the revenue and cost side, Singh said. Speaking at the CAPA India Aviation Summit 2024 in the national capital, Singh also said that for the next five years, he does not see any issue of bilateral flying rights impacting its growth.

Air India in 'good position', to retrofit over 100 planes: CEO Wilson

Air India will be retrofitting more than 100 planes, including 40 wide body planes, and has ordered around 25,000 aircraft seats as part of revamping the fleet, its chief Campbell Wilson said on Wednesday. Emphasising that "plenty of things" are going on as part of the transformation at Air India, Wilson said the focus is on integration, growth, optimisation and customer experience. As part of Tata Group consolidating its aviation business, AIX Connect, formerly AirAsia India, is getting merged with Air India Express and Vistara with Air India. There is "immense flexibility" for the group whether it is full or low cost services and "we are in a good position," the Air India CEO and MD said at the CAPA India Aviation Summit here. According to him, Air India will be retrofitting more than 100 aircraft and has also ordered around 25,000 seats as part of retrofitting the planes. About costs for the airline industry, Wilson said airfares have been underperforming overall inflation. Ai

Air India's Delhi-Vancouver flight takes off after delay of 22 hours

Air India's Vancouver flight from Delhi of June 1 finally departed at 3.15 am on Sunday after a delay of nearly 22 hours, a source said. The flight was scheduled to take off at 5.30 am on Saturday but a "technical" issue forced the airline to reschedule it. "The Delhi-Vancouver flight of Air India, which was to depart on Saturday morning, finally left at around 3.15 am on Sunday," the source said. "AI 185...was delayed because of technical issues and subsequently due to crew coming under the mandatory Flight Duty Time Limitations," an Air India spokesperson had said in a statement on Saturday. This was at least the third time in the last one week that Air India's ultra-long haul flights had to face inordinate delay for one reason or the other. Earlier, after a delay of more than 30 hours, the airline's Delhi-San Francisco flight, which was originally scheduled to depart at around 1530 hrs on Thursday, took off at 2155 hrs the next day. However, despite the passengers' plight due

AI Express cabin crew union, airline management discuss various issues

Representatives of a cabin crew union at Air India Express and airline management on Tuesday held discussions on salary and other issues during the meeting convened by the labour department as part of the ongoing conciliation proceedings, according to a source. The next meeting is scheduled for July 2, the source said. The Air India Express Employees Union (AIXEU), which represents a section of the cabin crew at the airline, had filed a complaint before the labour department last year. Following the complaint, a conciliation process is happening under the Industrial Disputes Act. Room sharing, lack of proper support, revised salary structure and alleged differential treatment of experienced crew members of Air India Express are among the issues flagged by the union. The source, on the condition of anonymity, said various issues were discussed at the meeting held on Tuesday, including those related to salary and accommodation for cabin crew during layovers. At the meeting, the ...