Thai “Ladyboy” airline takes to the skies

PC AIR decided to set itself apart from its competitors by hiring “katoeys” – as transsexuals are known in Thailand – when it received more than 100 applicants from “ladyboys” for the jobs. Thailand has one of the world’s largest populations of “ladyboys”...

January 20th, 2012 | Aviation, Default | Read More

Civil Aviation Ministry in favour of higher FDI cap

The Civil Aviation Ministry is likely to drop its opposition to higher investment by foreign airlines in the sector and agree to let them hold up to 49% in domestic carriers, the Economic Times reported on Saturday, citing an unidentified ministry official. The country’s new civil aviation minister,...

January 20th, 2012 | Aviation, Default | Read More

Boeing receives record-breaking orders

Boeing booked 805 net commercial airplane orders in 2011, fueled by a late flurry of record-breaking deals. The company also delivered 477 airplanes, ending the year with a strong backlog of 3,771 unfilled commercial orders. “This past year was one of the most exciting and important years in Boeing’s...

January 19th, 2012 | Aviation, Default | Read More

DGFT allows Indian carriers to import ATF

To help the loss making Indian carriers save on fuel cost, the Directorate General of Foreign Trade (DGFT) has agreed to allow domestic airlines to directly import jet fuel for their own use. However, a formal notification on the same is still awaited. Almost all domestic airlines are bleeding due to...

January 19th, 2012 | Aviation, Default | Read More

Air India to issue $ 1.4 bn shares to banks

Air India’s banks will own a chunk of the loss-making state carrier after its board approved issuing preference shares worth Rs 75 billion to lenders led by State Bank of India as part of a financial restructuring. A consortium of Air India’s lenders last month gave broad approval to its...

January 19th, 2012 | Aviation, Default | Read More

Mangalore Crash: Apex court issues notice to Govt. of India and Air India

The Supreme Court has issued notices to the Centre and Air India on a plea seeking a minimum compensation of Rs 75 lakh to the families of each of the 158 victims of the May 2010 Mangalore air crash. A Bench headed by Mr Justice Dalveer Bhandari asked the Centre and the national carrier to file their...

January 19th, 2012 | Aviation, Default | Read More

Safety neglected by Airlines due to financial distress- DGCA Report

Among the airlines which faced the wrath of the regulator are Kingfisher Airlines and Air India Express, but all other carriers, barring Air India, have also faced severe rap. An official financial audit of all Indian carriers has found that safety issues were being neglected by some of them due to serious...

January 19th, 2012 | Aviation, Default | Read More

Air India, Kingfisher accounts frozen by service tax dept

The service tax department has frozen the bank accounts of Air India and Kingfisher Airlines for n o n – p a y m e n t o f d u e s . While the state-run carrier has dues of Rs 170 crore, the Vijay Mallyapromoted airline has to pay 100 crore as service tax liability. Air India chairman and managing...

December 20th, 2011 | Aviation, Default | Read More

Stressed Airlines under DGCA lens

Aircrafts of financially-strained airlines are set to come under the scanner to ensure that the crippling cash crunch does not lead to compromises with safety. The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA)’s “financial surveillance from safety perspective” is in final stages after...

December 20th, 2011 | Aviation, Default | Read More

Govt working on a new system for civil aviation industry

The government informed that it may introduce a Bill in Parliament to improve the functioning of the civil aviation sector. The UN’s International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) has made a Govt working on a new system for civil aviation industry recommendation to “look at the whole functioning...

December 20th, 2011 | Aviation, Default | Read More