Air Arabia to start flight to Samara, Russia

Sharjah based low-cost carrier, Air Arabia will launch regular flights to the Russian city of Samara on October 26, 2009. The twice weekly service will take off from Sharjah on Mondays and Fridays and the route will be served by Airbus A320 aircraft in economy-class configuration.

Leela Hotels to provide inflight meals to Lufthansa

One of India’s most renowned luxury hotel groups is partnering with another industry leader. The Leela Palaces, Hotels and Resorts has joined forces with Lufthansa, the European airline offering the most flights to India, to provide authentic Indian cuisine to travelers. For the next two years, First and Business Class passengers on Lufthansa flights to and from India can enjoy royal Indian cuisine prepared by two chefs of the award-winning Leela group as part of the airline’s Star Chefs program. Lufthansa passengers can dine on prawn curry masala with thalimpu sadam or lal mans, a Rajasthani meat dish, or Alleppy fish curry.

For vegetarians the menus offer an appetizer of moong dal pakoda chat with Imli Chutney, followed by khade masale ka paneer (cottage cheese) with jeera rice and dal tadka, and for dessert kacha golla. With over 36 years as a chef at some of India’s finest luxury properties, Corporate Master Chef Farman Ali has distinguished himself as a pioneer in preparing fine Indian cuisine and presides over the kitchens at the group’s flagship Leela Palace Kempinski Bangalore. His culinary mastery ranges from Hyderabadi, Marwari, Kashmiri and Awadhi cuisines to those of Gujarat and the northwest frontier.

Jet Airways starts daily New Delhi-Hong Kong flight

Jet Airways, India’s premier international airline, launched its New Delhi-Hong Kong service, its second daily flight to Hong Kong from India, aboard a state-of-the-art wide-body Airbus 330-200 aircraft. The airline marked the occasion with a small inaugural ceremony at the Indira Gandhi International Airport, Delhi, in the presence of senior company officials. Jet Airways will also flag off its inaugural flight to Delhi from Hong Kong on October 1, 2009, China National Day, the anniversary of the founding of the People's Republic of China in 1949. The new daily flights will facilitate business and leisure travel between the Indian capital and the commercial hub of the East, Hong Kong, and complement the airline’s existing Mumbai-Hong Kong services.

From September 30, 2009 to October 24, 2009 and from March 28, 2010 to October 30, 2010, flight 9W 72 departs Delhi at 2250 hrs, arriving in Hong Kong at 0655 hrs. Flight 9W 71 will then depart Hong Kong at 1330 hrs, arriving in Delhi at 1650 hrs. From October 25, 2009 to March 27, 2010, flight 9W 72 will depart Delhi at 2245 hrs, arriving in Hong Kong at 0620 hrs. Flight 9W 71 will then depart Hong Kong at 1335 hrs, arriving in Delhi at 1720 hrs. Jet Airways' Première (Business Class) guests enjoy 180 degree lie-flat beds in a unique herringbone configuration that ensures easy aisle access from every seat, an oversized table, laptop power, telephony, SMS, Email and live text news, providing guests who want to work with a 'flying office'.

Première guests may also choose from a delectable menu of Indian and non-Indian cuisine, and an extensive wine list. Economy guests enjoy advanced, ergonomically-designed seats to minimise muscular and sinew tension, personal reading lights and on-demand In-flight Entertainment, among other amenities. According to Mr. Wolfgang Prock-Schauer, CEO, Jet Airways, "We are delighted to connect Delhi and Hong Kong with daily services, and launch our inaugural flight from Hong Kong to Delhi on the occasion of China National Day. There continues to remain a strong demand for quality services on the Delhi-Hong Kong sector, on account of the latter’s popularity as a leading global business and leisure destination."

Air India cuts fares after pilots strike ends

After the five-day Air India strike, the Maharaja is out to woo back its fliers. On Thursday, Air India announced that it had increased the quantum of cheap ticket inventory on all its flights. It has also introduced savings in its frequent flyer programme as well as air-ticket purchase scheme. "Our flights have started operating according to the normal schedule. By noon, the on-time performance of our flights was 89.7%," said an airline spokesperson, adding that the airline had started taking bookings. "The number of seats on special fares has been increased."

The official however could not furnish statistics on the percentage of the rise in cheap tickets as it depended on the demand. The number will vary from route to route and also on the flight timings. The airline expects the number of passengers to return to the pre-agitation level in the next four to five days. Prior to the strike, Air India ferried about 22,000-24,000 passengers per day. During the strike, it fell to half. Under the super-saving scheme, the airline offers a four coupon economy class ticket for Rs 41,316 instead of the earlier Rs 49,000.

Indian Air Force plans to induct more Sukhoi Su30 fighter aircraft

With both China and Pakistan bolstering their air combat fleets, IAF is now seeking another 50 Sukhoi-30MKI multi-role "air dominance" fighters to cater for any contingency on both the eastern and western fronts. These 50 new Sukhois will in addition to the 230 of these twin-seater fighters already contracted from Russia in three deals worth upwards of $8.5 billion. Having inducted 105 of the 230 Sukhois till now, IAF has already begun to base these jets in the North-East in a clear move to counter China's rapid modernisation of its armed forces. Incidentally, Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd has been directed to complete the manufacture of 140 of the 230 Sukhois under transfer of technology by 2015 at all costs.

India's "dissuasive deterrence" military posture against China, after all, revolves around the Sukhois as well as the 3,500km nuclear-capable Agni-III missile, which will be ready for operational deployment by 2011, and the 5,000km range Agni-V missile in the pipeline. IAF chief Air Chief Marshal P V Naik said that his force was indeed "interested" in acquiring more Sukhois, which will be the mainstay of India's fighter fleet for the forseeable future, to further enhance its combat potential. Bombarded by a spate of questions on the military equation vis-a-vis China on day the People's Liberation Army showcased its staggering military might to mark 60 years of communism, ACM Naik said IAF's acquisition of combat capabilities was not "country or adversary-specific".

While exuding "confidence" that a repeat of the 1962 conflict was simply "not possible", the IAF chief said, "We need to develop certain capabilities which are required or will be required in the future in tune with India's aspirations." IAF, after all, needs to project power as well as have "strategic reach" from Hormuz Strait near Persian Gulf right down to Malacca Strait, which India visualises as its primary area of geopolitical interest. In its quest to emerge as a "strategic aerospace force", IAF has embarked on a major modernisation drive, which ranges from Israeli AWACS and aerostat radars to American C-130J 'Super Hercules' aircraft.

Jet Airways' Chennai-Coimbatore aircraft returns due to technical problems

A Coimbatore-bound Jet Airways plane with Union Home Minister P Chidambaram onboard returned to the Chennai airport on Friday due to a technical problem that developed mid-air. The problem was detected while the flight was mid-air, following which it flew back to Chennai, airport officials said. Later, the passengers including Chidambaram were put on another Jet Airways flight which left for Coimbatore, they said.