Aircraft

Parliament passes 'Bharatiya Vayuyan Vidheyak', replacing 90-yr-old Act

Parliament on Thursday passed a bill to replace the 90-year-old Aircraft Act to further improve the ease of doing business in the fast-growing aviation sector. The Bharatiya Vayuyan Vidheyak 2024 was passed in the Rajya Sabha by a voice vote. It was earlier cleared by the Lok Sabha on August 9. The bill seeks to remove redundancies and replace the Aircraft Act, 1934, which has been amended 21 times. Replying to the debate on the bill in the Upper House, Civil Aviation Minister K Rammohan Naidu said the change in title of the bill from English to Hindi, to which many members raised objections, was done to "showcase the India's heritage and culture", and "there was no violation of Constitutional rule". It will be difficult to pronounce the name of the bill in Hindi initially but one will get used to it, he added. The bill focuses on enhancing safety, regulatory oversight, and consumer protection while aligning with international standards. The bill also promotes self-reliance in ...

Air India to offer integrated aircraft maintenance engineering programme

Air India on Friday said it will set up a Basic Maintenance Training Organisation (BMTO) that will offer an integrated aircraft maintenance engineering programme and the facility will be operational in mid-2026. The BMTO will be housed close to Air India's new 12-bay Maintenance, Repair and Overhaul (MRO) facility in Bengaluru that will be operational in early 2026. The Tata Group-owned airline has inked an agreement with Bengaluru Airport City Ltd (BACL), a subsidiary of Bangalore International Airport Ltd (BIAL), to develop a build-to-suit facility for the programme. "The purpose-built campus, spread over 86,000 square feet at Bengaluru Airport City, is expected to be operational by mid-2026," a release said. The programme will include two years of in-classroom academic course work followed by two years of practical on the job training at the MRO. According to the release, the programme is designed to meet Air India's growing fleet maintenance requirements and provides specialis

PM Modi's aircraft hit by technical snag, delays return to New Delhi

Prime Minister Narendra Modi was visiting Jharkhand today to mark the state's foundation day

Taiwan detects 24 Chinese military aircraft, 6 PLA navy vessels around it

The Taiwanese MND stated that fifteen of the aircraft crossed the median line and entered Taiwan's northern, central southwestern and eastern Air Defense Identification Zone

Air India cancels 60 India-US flights in Nov-Dec citing aircraft shortage

Non-availability of aircraft due to maintenance issues has forced Tata Group-owned Air India to cancel some 60 flights on the India-US routes between November and December this year, according to an airline source. The flights, which have been cancelled during the peak travel period, include services to San Francisco and Chicago, among others, the source said. Air India, in a statement, said it has cancelled a "small" number of flights between November and December on account of delayed return of some aircraft from heavy maintenance and supply chain constraints, without naming the destinations. It also said that affected customers have been "informed" and offered flights on other Air India group services operating on the same or adjacent days. "Air India has cancelled some 60 flights to and from San Francisco, Washington, Chicago, Newark and New York between November 15 and December 31, as it does not have adequate wide-body aircraft to operate some of the flights to these ...

Aircraft grounding crisis has peaked, says IndiGo CEO Pieter Elbers

"We've turned the corner," Chief Executive Officer Pieter Elbers said in an interview with Bloomberg Television on Tuesday

After Boeing, Airbus to slash 2,500 jobs amid ongoing financial losses

These job cuts at Airbus, which represent around 7 per cent of its defence and space division's workforce, are expected to be implemented by mid-2026

Grounded planes will be back in service within 24 months: SpiceJet to DGCA

Company to spend Rs 400 crore on 36 grounded aircraft; says planning to bring 7 of them back in service by Nov 15

As fighter aircraft fleet dips below 1965 level, Air Chief vows measures

The Indian Air Force is currently operating with 31 squadrons, the lowest count since 1965, when India was engaged in war with Pakistan

Open for opportunities to source components from India: Aircraft maker ATR

India is the main market that offers a lot of potential and ATR is open for opportunities in terms of sourcing components from the country, according to a senior official of the European aircraft maker. ATR, a joint venture between European aeronautics players Airbus and Leonardo, manufactures turboprops with up to 78 seats as well as freighters. IndiGo and two regional carriers -- Alliance Air and FLY91 -- operate ATR planes that are used for regional flight operations. ATR's Chief Commercial Officer Alexis Vidal told PTI in a recent interview that the company is looking at India as the main market and the country's regional air connectivity is very promising. Currently, nearly 70 ATR planes are in operation in India and worldwide, the company has delivered around 1,700 aircraft. "We believe there is a potential in India for another 200 aircraft in the coming decade... All this, I believe very well supported by policy making... will drive additional aircraft into the country," he

Aircraft engine part found outside Delhi airport; DGCA orders probe

Aviation regulator DGCA has ordered a probe into the incident of an aircraft engine part found outside the Delhi airport, sources said on Wednesday. While they mentioned that the metal part might be of an Air India Express aircraft that made an emergency landing at the airport on Monday, the airline said that it could not confirm yet if the metal pieces were from its aircraft. The sources in the know said the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) has ordered a probe into the incident. One of the sources said the parts are probably of a broken blade of an aircraft engine. When contacted, an Air India Express spokesperson said its flight IX 145 encountered an engine issue after takeoff from Delhi on September 2. The flight was bound for Bahrain. "The failure was managed in accordance with laid-down procedures, and a precautionary landing was conducted at Delhi," the spokesperson said in a statement. Further, the spokesperson said the matter has been reported to the regulator

Govt implements uniform 5% tax for all aircraft, airplane engine parts

"This new policy eliminates... disparities, simplifies the tax structure, and fosters growth in the MRO sector," the minister said

From fighters to copters, how R&D powers HAL's Himalayan-altitude flight

In the first of a two-part series on India's indigenous aerospace industry, Business Standard traces HAL's pioneering research and development

Airbus unveils concept of unmanned wingman protecting manned fighter jets

It answers increasing need to augment capabilities of manned aircraft with unmanned platforms

FAA to probe Boeing after workers in US falsified 787 inspection records

The Federal Aviation Administration said Monday it has opened an investigation into Boeing after the beleaguered company reported that workers at a South Carolina plant falsified inspection records on certain 787 planes. Boeing said its engineers have determined that misconduct did not create "an immediate safety of flight issue". In an email to Boeing's South Carolina employees on April 29, Scott Stocker, who leads the 787 program, said a worker observed an irregularity in a required test of the wing-to-body join and reported it to his manager. After receiving the report, we quickly reviewed the matter and learned that several people had been violating Company policies by not performing a required test, but recording the work as having been completed, Stocker wrote. Boeing notified the FAA and is taking swift and serious corrective action with multiple teammates, Stocker said. No planes have been taken out of service, but having to perform the test out of order on planes will slow

Go First won't move against Delhi High Court order, set for liquidation

Go First filed for bankruptcy in May 2023. Since then, the lessors of these aircraft have been locked in a battle with the former owner of the airline and others to take control of their aircraft

NCLT seeks MCA views on aircraft lessor moratorium exemption in IBC

The Civil Aviation ministry's interpretation of the MCA notification, might be a deterrent for the airlines which end up in insolvency but give a leg up to lessors business

EC asks political parties to share details of aircrafts used in campaigning

The Election Commission of India (ECI) has asked parties to furnish details about aircraft and helicopters being used for political campaigning, including their origin and destination and details of people ferried in them. A letter by Tejas Samel, Deputy Election Officer of Mumbai Suburban district, dated April 12, said such information has to be furnished three days before the journey to the District Election Office, but that duration has now been reduced to 24 hours. "We are sending a revised letter tomorrow (April 17). Instead of three days, they have to inform us 24 hours in advance," Samel told PTI on Tuesday night. The details should also include the make of the aircraft/helicopter and people travelling in them. The letter said this information has to be furnished under the Model Code of Conduct in force for the upcoming Lok Sabha polls, which has to be sent to the ECI. Lok Sabha elections in Maharashtra, which has 48 seats, will be held in five phases between April 19 and .

Indian carriers' focus is now on international market to boost revenues

According to Joshi of Network Thoughts, during next few years share of Indian carriers in itn'l traffic will rise, because Air India will induct more capacity and so will IndiGo, with XLR aircraft

Air India Express to operate non-stop flights to Kochi, Imphal from Kolkata

Air India Express, a subsidiary of Air India, is all set to begin non-stop flights to Imphal and Kochi from Kolkata this April, an airline official said. "The flights to Imphal will operate daily, while those to Kochi will fly six days a week," he said. The flight from Kolkata to Imphal will depart at 7 am and will reach in Manipur capital at 8.05 am. The return flight will depart at 8.35 am and arrive in Kolkata at 10.20 am, he said. The Kolkata-Kochi flight will take off at 11.25am and reach the destination at 2.35pm, while the return flight will leave at 3.05pm and land here at 6.10pm. The airline through route integration will be operating more flights on various domestic routes, sources said. Meanwhile, the airline has recently announced introduction of four fare products - Xpress Lite (cabin baggage only fares), Xpress Value (15 kg check-in bag fares), Xpress Flex (unlimited changes with no change fees), and Xpress Biz (business class seating with complimentary Gourmair meal