Page 2 - Aviation Sector

Boeing fine-tunes job reductions as major buyer slams 777X jet delay

The planemaker plans a series of internal meetings this week to lay out the jobs plan

Boeing to lay off 10% employees as workers' strike cripples production

Boeing plans to lay off about 10% of its workers in the coming months as it continues to lose money and tries to deal with a strike that is crippling production of the company's best-selling airline planes. New CEO Kelly Ortberg told staff in a memo Friday that the job cuts will include executives, managers and employees. The company had already imposed rolling temporary furloughs, but Ortberg said those will be suspended because of the impending layoffs. The company will delay the rollout of a new plane, the 777X, to 2026 instead of 2025. It will also stop building the cargo version of its 767 jet in 2027 after finishing current orders. Boeing has lost more than $25 billion since the start of 2019. Union machinists have been on strike since Sept. 14. Two days of talks this week failed to produce a deal.

Boeing files unfair labour practice charge with NLRB against striking union

In a filing with NLRB, Boeing also accused the union's leaders of misrepresenting the terms of Boeing's offer to its members and of not bringing negotiators to the table with authority to make a deal

Relatives of passengers who died in Boeing crashes to face firm in court

Relatives of some of the 346 people who died in two crashes involving Boeing 737 Max planes are expected in court on Friday, where their lawyers will ask a federal judge to throw out a plea agreement that the aircraft manufacturer struck with federal prosecutors. The family members want the government to put Boeing on trial, where the company could face tougher punishment. In July, Boeing agreed to plead guilty to a single felony count of conspiracy to commit fraud in connection with winning regulatory approval of the Max. The settlement between Boeing and the Justice Department calls for Boeing - a big government contractor - to pay a fine and be placed on probation. Passengers' relatives call it a sweetheart deal that fails to consider the lives lost. The families who lost loved ones in the 737 Max crashes deserve far more than the inadequate, superficial deal struck between Boeing and the Department of Justice," said Erin Applebaum, a lawyer whose firm represents some of the ...

From setbacks to success: Ratan Tata's legacy in aviation industry

With its combined airlines, the Tata Group is now the second-largest player in the Indian market, commanding nearly 30 per cent of the domestic market share

Boeing workers in for 'long haul' after pay talks collapse: Union leader

Reaching an accepted deal is critical for Boeing, ratings agency S&P estimates the strike is costing it $1 billion a month and it is at risk of losing its prized investment grade credit rating

Lufthansa aims to revive 'problem child' airline by 2026: CEO Carsten Spohr

Lufthansa has struggled with competition on its transatlantic and Asian routes, recently cancelling its Frankfurt to Beijing flights as Chinese carriers increased capacity

Air India derosters 3 cabin members for lapses in opening aircraft door

Air India has derostered three cabin crew members for an erroneous approach in opening the door of a Boeing 777 aircraft that led to the auto-deployment of the emergency slides, according to sources. The incident happened with the Boeing 777 plane at the Bangalore airport after it landed from San Francisco on September 15, they said. When contacted, an Air India spokesperson said a technical issue was reported with one of the doors not opening appropriately upon landing and the matter was attended to promptly. "In a serious safety violation, the door of Air India's Boeing 777 aircraft that operated the flight AI 176 from San Francisco to Bangalore on September 15, was opened in armed mode when the aircraft arrived at the Bangalore airport. "As a result of this, the emergency slides automatically got deployed," a sources told PTI. Another source said three cabin crew members have been derostered for the lapse and an internal probe has been ordered. However, Air India did not comme

Indian carriers soar on international routes but foreign rivals lead

On the popular India-Singapore route, Singapore Airlines and its subsidiary Scoot remain dominant despite competition from IndiGo, Air India (A-I), A-I Express, and Vistara

SpiceJet gets good response for Rs 3k cr worth share sale, oversubscribed

SpiceJet, which has statutory dues of more than Rs 601 crore, has received a good response for its Rs 3,000 crore-worth sale of shares to qualified institutional buyers. Operating with a reduced fleet as well as facing financial and legal headwinds, the carrier is looking to raise funds. Sources in the know on Wednesday said the qualified institutional placement has been oversubscribed, with participation from various investors, including family offices and institutional funds. Some of the investors include family offices of Madhu Kela, Akash Bhanshali, Sanjay Dangi, Rohit Kothari, and Bandhan Bank, the sources said. There was no official comment from the airline. "Due to our financial constraints, our company has not been able to fulfil the statutory liabilities accruing on us on a month to month basis," the airline said in the preliminary placement document related to raising Rs 3,000 crore. As per the document, the airline has not made provident fund payments to the tune of ov

Not paid GST, TDS, and PF dues of Rs 427 crore since 2020: SpiceJet

Legal experts told Business Standard that evasion of GST is a serious offence since it is a tax already collected from the customer but not paid

Delhi, Mumbai airports emerge as key international hubs for LCCs

At both Indian airports, IndiGo reigns supreme. In Delhi, it accounts for 31 per cent of the 21,781 international connections, covering over 156 destinations

Boeing, union negotiators to resume talks as striking workers dig in

The top negotiators at Boeing and the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers (IAM) will meet with federal mediators in Seattle on Tuesday for preliminary talks, as per reports

Increase in airfare not linked to rise in airport charges, says ACI

Airport charges are an important element of the commercial aviation ecosystem for infrastructure development and increase in airfares is not linked to a rise in the charges, according to the Airports Council International (ACI). Against the backdrop of the International Air Transportation Association (IATA) flagging concerns over a steep rise in airport charges, ACI also said that the charges will remain a critical source of revenue for airports. "Airport charges are an important element of the commercial aviation ecosystem for infrastructure development. Failing to address the capital expenditure requirements to accommodate the projected growth could have serious socio-economic consequences," Stefano Baronci, Director General, ACI Asia Pacific & Middle East, said. In a statement to PTI, he noted that airports are highly infrastructure-intensive businesses, with their cost structures dominated by significant fixed costs for the operation and upkeep of essential infrastructure such

Boeing considers temporary layoffs to save cash during strike by machinists

The company said moves, which include reduced spending on suppliers, were necessary because our business is in a difficult period

Boeing strike could drag on as workers push for higher wages: Union leader

Boeing and negotiators are due to return to bargaining table next week, in talks overseen by US federal mediators, after more than 94 per cent of workers voted to reject the endorsed contract offer

Boeing workers vote on whether to strike, shut down aircraft production

Boeing waited to learn Thursday whether 33,000 aircraft assembly workers, most of them in the Seattle area, are going on strike and shutting down production of the company's best-selling planes. Members of the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers were voting on whether to approve a contract offer that includes 25% pay raises over four years. If the factory workers reject the contract and two-thirds of them vote to strike, a work stoppage would begin Friday at 12:01 a.m. PDT. A walkout would not cause flight cancellations or directly affect airline passengers, but it would be another blow to Boeing's reputation and finances in a year marked by problems in its airplane, defense and space operations. New CEO Kelly Ortberg made a last-ditch effort to avert a strike, telling machinists Wednesday that no one wins in a walkout. For Boeing, it is no secret that our business is in a difficult period, in part due to our own mistakes in the past, he said. Working ...

Efforts on to make India global aviation hub, build aircraft: KR Naidu

Highlighting the aviation sector's growth potential, Union minister K Rammohan Naidu on Wednesday said efforts are on to make India a global aviation hub as well as to start manufacturing aircraft in the country. With Asia-Pacific region poised to lead global aviation growth, Naidu said strategic investments in infrastructure and collaboration amongst the regional stakeholders is critical to achieving sustainable growth across the sector. Speaking at the second Asia Pacific Ministerial Conference on Civil Aviation in the national capital, Naidu emphasised on three elements -- infrastructure, integration and innovation -- for the sector's growth. "My ministry is working with the vision of establishing a seamless aviation landscape in the country, integrating helicopters and seaplane operations alongside wide-body aircraft under the regional connectivity scheme UDAN," he noted. India is one of the world's fastest growing civil aviation markets and the fleet size of domestic carriers

Delhi airport climbs to 24th in megahub rankings, Mumbai falls to 44th

Globally, the top five megahubs are London Heathrow, Kuala Lumpur International, Tokyo-Haneda, Amsterdam Schiphol, and Seoul's Incheon Airport

GMR Airports buys Fraport's shares, raises stake in Delhi airport to 74%

The deal comes just over a month after heavy rainfall caused the airport's roof to collapse killing one person and shutting down a busy domestic terminal