Air India's Kochi-Delhi flight makes emergency landing

An Air India Kochi-Delhi flight carrying 151 passengers including Kerala Chief Minister V S Achuthanandan on Friday made an emergency landing at the Nagpur airport following a technical problem, airport sources said. The flight IC 466 landed around 1000 hours and a relief aircraft has been asked to take the passengers, Area Marketing Manager of the Airlines, I A Dhas said. The flight developed an engine trouble and made emergency landing. There are 151 passengers and six crew members in the aircraft, the source said. The Kerala Chief Minister was among the passengers along with two of his colleague, state Home Minister Kodiyari Balakrishnan and Water Resources Minister M K Premchandran. The VVIP's were accommodated in the lounge while passengers were shifted to a nearby hotel, Dhas said, adding the relief aircraft has already left for Nagpur from Delhi.

Air Arabia flight makes emergency landing

An Air Arabia flight from Chittagong to Sharjah made an emergency landing at the Kolkata airport on Thursday night when one of the two engines of the Airbus 320 stopped functioning mid-air. The flight, with 159 passengers and eight crew members on board, landed at the city airport at 10.20 pm. "The aircraft was under our jurisdiction and flying over Jamshedpur when the pilot sought emergency landing permission from us," said an air traffic controller. As the plane prepared to land, airport officials stood by with all emergency facilities such as fire-tenders and ambulances. "The flight, G9 522, landed safely and was grounded. All passengers were disembarked and were taken to the transit lounge for refreshments," said R Srinivasan, the airport director. Air India's ground security staff are looking after the passengers and engineers of the same airlines are rectifying the snag.

Jet Airways-Kingfisher pact finally takes off

After an eight-month delay, the alliance between the country’s two largest private carriers, Jet Airways and Kingfisher Airlines, finally took off on July 1. “To start with, both the airlines have started sharing infrastructure at the domestic airports that include Delhi and Mumbai,” a senior Kingfisher Airlines said. Apart from infrastructure sharing at airports, the code sharing between the two airlines will start this month. “The infrastructure and code sharing will reduce Kingfisher’s operational costs by 20-30%,” added the official. According to an official at Jet, code sharing on domestic and international flights will start soon, apart from joint fuel management and network rationalisation. Last October, Vijay Mallya and Naresh Goyal signed an agreement to significantly rationalise capacity and reduce costs at a time when prices of jetfuel had hit record highs. Landing and parking charges are high in India. Besides, jetfuel prices have moved upwards in the last two months.

SpiceJet may merge with JetLite

Consolidation is in the air, and there is buzz that SpiceJet may fly together with JetLite. However, SpiceJet said a consolidation is not the only option to strengthen the industry. Analysts point out that since the industry is bleeding profusely, acquisitions will also mean a transfer of huge liabilities. The aviation sector could soon see a third round of consolidation. Experts believe that among low cost carriers, SpiceJet is most likely to go in for a merger or an acquisition. That's mainly because the airline's financial condition has improved thanks to funding by Wilbur Ross. JetLite, experts say, may be in SpiceJet's crosshairs. Something SpiceJet does not seem opposed to, in principle.

Ajay Singh, Director, SpiceJet said, “We do not comment on market rumours. But in concept, it is a good thing.” Sources say some low cost carriers are already in advanced merger and acquisition talks and JetLite might play a crucial role in this consolidation. We learn SpiceJet may look at taking over JetLite, as both airlines operate with Boeing aircraft, a factor that could make synergies easier. However, SpiceJet says consolidation is not the only option to strengthen the industry. Ajay Singh added, “As a concept we believe that consolidation is a good thing. Just as capacity rationalisation is a good thing and there are several other steps that can be taken by the government and the industry to make sure that it is a healthy industry.

Air India employees on strike

About 13,000 employees at state run Air India walked off the job for two hours Friday after the airline failed to pay their monthly wage. The strike was the last resort for some employees who say management failed to keep a promise to pay them Friday, said J.B. Kadian, the general secretary of the Air Corporation Employees Union. There have been strained talks between management and three unions that includes everyone from the cabin crew to sweepers after Air India told the bulk of its employees their pay would be delayed by two weeks. The unions said 13,000 employees participated in the strike but Air India did not provide a number.

The walkout comes after management did not follow through on its latest verbal agreement to pay the lowest paid employees by July 3, employees say. Employees normally get paid on the last day of the month. The lowest paid unionized employees make less than $100 a week. Employees said they were angered that their pay was delayed at a time when the airline has continued to buy new planes. Air India is in deep financial trouble. It lost about a billion dollars last year alone. It says it is in a fight for survival due to lower volumes of passengers, the high cost of employing about 31,000 employees as well as the current world financial downturn.

Sindbad Frequent Flyer teams up with Oman Air Holidays

Oman Air's Sindbad Frequent Flyer Programme has teamed up with Oman Air Holidays to offer a range of holiday packages with the benefit of earning Sindbad Miles. Packages combine flights on Oman Air with selected hotels, tours and excursions at destinations including the Egypt, Jordan, India, Thailand, and London. Sindbad members will not only earn miles on the flight segment but will receive an equal number of miles from Oman Air Holidays, the firm said.

Flydubai announces Indian routes

Flydubai, Dubai's first low cost airline, is all set for take off to the Indian sub-continent with the announcement of a trio of routes to the region. Flydubai will begin its Indian adventure with flights to the north eastern city of Lucknow on July 13. This will be closely followed by Coimbatore in the south of the country on July 14. The trio of destinations will be completed on July 23 when flights to the north western city of Chandigarh begin. FZ449 will depart Dubai for Lucknow on July 13 and will operate four times per week. Prices will include all taxes and one piece of hand baggage weighing up to 10kg. The thrice-weekly Coimbatore service, FZ413, will take off from Dubai on July 14. FZ431 will become the first international flight to touch down at Chandigarh airport on July 23.

The flydubai model is simple, with customers paying only for the services they want to receive. The ticket price includes all taxes and one piece of hand baggage, weighing up to 10kg, per passenger. Passengers have the option to purchase checked-in baggage in advance, weighing up to 32kgs, subject to availability. Checked baggage at the airport is also strictly subject to availability and passengers are advised to book online early to secure the space, as only pre-purchased baggage can be guaranteed. A nominal payment allows customers to select their seat and secures the extra legroom positions. Bookings can be changed for a small fee, plus any difference in the fare, and food and drink can be purchased on board. Flydubai operates from a modernized and enhanced Terminal 2 on the north side of Dubai International Airport.

Oman seeks to tap its tourism potential

Oman is spending billions to boost tourism as part of a strategy to diversify its economy. But while the Sultanate is keen to attract more visitors, it is also determined to protect its culture and traditions. Oman recently unveiled a new scheme that places great importance on tourism as a way to diversify the country's economy away from oil. Under the new strategy, called 'Vision 2020', the government is teaming up with the private sector to invest more than $10bn in several major tourism projects. The country hopes that the new initiative will enable it to attract 12 million tourists annually by 2020, as compared to 3.2 million per annum at present. One of the key projects that has been launched is a major expansion of Muscat International Airport, which includes a new terminal building, an additional runway, and an upgrade to the existing runway that will enable it to handle the Airbus A380. When finished in 2011 the airport will be able to accommodate more than 12 million annual visitor arrivals.

Three smaller airports are also to be built in Nizwa, Salalah and Duqm to help promote these relatively new areas. The blueprint for Vision 2020 also entails the development of 10 new resorts over the next five years, including the newly opened Muscat Hills Golf and Country Club, the $7bn Blue City complex, and the Wave, a beachfront resort costing $4bn. Oman Air is also doing its part by rolling out new service to Frankfurt, Munich, and Paris starting in September. The carrier will fly seven times a week to Germany and four times a week to Paris. Last but not least, Oman is building a venue for the 2010 Asian Beach Games, which it will host in Wudum Al Sahil near Muscat in December next year. In addition to building new resorts and infrastructure, Oman recently eased its visa policies to make it possible for nationals of up to 60 countries to receive entry visas on arrival at the airport.

New international flights begin landing at Salalah

New flights announced for the Khareef season by GCC countries have begun landing at Salalah airport, officials said. Its first direct flight from Riyadh, Saudi Arabian Airlines’ special aircraft flew in tourists to Salalah. The airline is operating five flights a week between Riyadh and Salalah to catch in on the tourist rush from that country during Khareef. The airport also welcomed a group of journalists and tourists aboard Gulf Air’s first flight to Salalah this season from the Kingdom of Bahrain. Gulf Air has announced that it is operating three flights a week from Manama to Salalah. The flights will operate till mid September, officials said. Among other regional airlines, Jazeera Airways had started operating flights between Salalah Airport and Kuwait last month. The airline is operating two flights a week from Kuwait, in addition to Al Saeedah Airline, which was recently added to its flights programme between Aden and Salalah.