Andhra Pradesh CM dies in helicopter crash

The helicopter carrying Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Y.S. Rajasekhara Reddy and four others appeared to have exploded after hitting a hillock, said a senior official on Thursday. The bodies of all five people were charred due to the fire which engulfed the chopper after the crash and explosion. The bodies, found Thursday morning, were in a state of decomposition while the chopper was in pieces. "It appears that because of inclement weather and to avoid cloud formation, the pilot had taken a detour and in the process deviated from the regular flight path. From preliminary inquiry, it appears the chopper hit the cliff of a hillock, crashed into it and perhaps exploded," said Chief Secretary P. Ramakant Reddy.

The chopper had deviated 18 km to the east from the regular flight path. "On first examination we were communicated that the bodies were charred and getting into decomposition. The chopper was in bits and pieces, strewn all over on the peak of hillock, about 40 nautical miles from Kurnool town," he said, giving the first official account of the crash. He said five helicopters resumed search operations at 6.25 am on Thursday and a chopper sighted the crash site around 8.30 am. Since it was not possible for any of the search helicopters to land near the hillock due to trees, bushes and other obstructions there, commandos were air-dropped near the site.

Etihad Airways starts flying to Chicago

Abu Dhabi carrier Etihad Airways began flying to Chicago yesterday, its second route to the US. The 14 hour flight to Chicago O'Hare International Airport uses Airbus A340-600 aircraft. Etihad now has 55 destinations, including New York. James Hogan, Etihad Airways' Chief Executive, said Chicago was set to become a key part of its global flight programme.

Gulf Air to sell its Airbus A340 aircrafts

Loss making Bahrain's Gulf Air has commissioned Monaco headquartered Avinco, an aircraft trading, remarketing and sourcing firm, to sell or lease five of its A340-300s aircraft. The airline also has a further four A340-300s on lease. The decision marks the first major fleet decision since former Royal Jordanian CEO Samer Majali took over at the airline.

Travco to launch budget airline

Egyptian travel group Travco is in talks with a UAE firm to launch a new budget airline. 'Its going to be a joint venture with another UAE based budget airline and we will soon announce its launch,' Travco Chief Operating Officer Osama Bushra said. The airline venture is part of the company's continuing expansion in the hospitality business. Last month Travco bought Germany's Steigenberger Hotels.

Air Arabia receives IOSA registration

Sharjah based low-cost carrier, Air Arabia has announced it has successfully completed the IATA Operational Safety Audit (IOSA), an internationally recognized evaluation system designed to assess the operational management and control systems of an airline. The 5-day audit covered Air Arabia's corporate organisation and management structure, flight operations, flight dispatch, aircraft engineering and maintenance, ground handling, cargo operations and airline security.

Nas Air starts flights to Sana'a

Saudi Arabia's budget airline, Nas Air, has added the Yemeni capital, Sana'a to its network of international destinations. The first of 4 weekly flights will take-off from Jeddah to Sana'a on September 2, 2009. The Jeddah-Sana'a-Jeddah route will start with three weekly flights until September 19, 2009, after which it will increase to four flights per week taking off to Sana'a each Saturday, Monday, Wednesday and Friday.

flyDubai to start flights to Djibouti

Dubai based low-cost airline flyDubai has added a second African destination to its network with the launch of service to Djibouti Ambouli International Airport. The new service will operate three times per week, on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Sundays, departing Dubai at 0800hrs arriving at 1015hrs local time. The return flight will leave 45 minutes later at 1100hrs and arrive back in Dubai at 1515hrs local time.

Emirates to restart A380 flights to New York

Emirates expects its Airbus 380 flights will return to New York in the first six months of 2010, as passenger demand is anticipated to recover by then. The Dubai-based carrier is also eyeing expansion to other US cities including Washington, Seattle, Boston and Chicago, Emirates CEO, Tim Clark said. The airline had started New York service with the double-deck aircraft in April of last year, but had pulled it two months later and replaced it with the smaller Boeing 777.

EgyptAir signs deal with Rockwell Collins

EgyptAir has signed an agreement with US based Rockwell Collins to install an advanced detection system in five A330 aircraft with an option for three additional aircraft. The agreement includes Rockwell Collins' Multiscan Hazard Detection System, which analyzes and determines actual weather hazards, TTR-2100 Traffic Collision Avoidance System, as well as a full communications, navigation and surveillance suite including the GLU-925 Multi-Mode Receiver.

Qatar Airways signs maintenance deal with Lufthansa Technik

Qatar Airways has appointed Lufthansa Technik to perform C4-Checks on its Airbus A320 Family and A330 aircraft. A total of 24 C4-Checks programme will be carried out by Lufthansa Technik over two and a half years. The maintenance checks will be performed on nine Airbus A320-family narrow-bodied and 15 Airbus A330 wide-bodied planes.

Jazeera Airways to start flights to Abu Dhabi

Kuwait-based Jazeera Airways will fly direct to Abu Dhabi from October 25. Jazeera will be the first low-budget airline to operate non-stop flights to the UAE's capital. It currently operates non-stop flights to Dubai six times a week.