Month: June 2019

IAF’s Jaguar fighter jet suffers bird hit; jettisons fuel tanks before landing safely at Ambala Air Base

June 29, 2019

Ambala: An Indian Air Force Jaguar pilot jettisoned fuel tanks of his aircraft after one of the engines of the fighter jet failed after being hit by a bird. However, the pilot managed to land the plane safely at the Ambala Air Base. Small practice bombs jettisoned by the aircraft have also been recovered, news […]

E-mail says bomb in bags, but Air India left most behind

June 28, 2019

Early on Thursday morning, Mumbai airport’s feedback mailbox received a bomb threat. Air India’s flight 191 from Mumbai to Newark, in the US, would be blown up by an explosive that had been stowed away in one of the luggages, according to the threat sent by email. Moments later, pilots on board flight AI191 – […]

Air India total debt is Rs 58,351 crore: Civil Aviation Minister

June 27, 2019

The Civil Aviation Minister Hardeep Singh Puri told the Rajya Sabha on Wednesday that the National carrier Air India has a total debt of Rs 58,351 crore as on March 31 this year. Last year, the Centre had invited Expression of Interest (EoI) for strategic disinvestment of Air India, including its shareholding in Air India […]

Air India flight in emergency landing at London Stansted after bomb threat

June 27, 2019

London: Air India said one of its planes landed at London Stansted Airport on Thursday following a bomb threat. The airline said the affected plane, flight AI 191 from the Indian city of Mumbai to Newark Airport in the United States, “made a precautionary landing” in the United Kingdom due to the incident. Royal Air […]

India needs 10k pilots by 2030, AirAsia nurtures cadets

June 11, 2019

Despite the current slump in the domestic aviation market, India will require up to 10,000 new pilots by 2030. Acknowledging this, AirAsia India on Tuesday launched the country’s first cadet-pilot programme, ready to send its first batch of 15 cadets to New Zealand for flight training. By passenger volumes, India was ranked second globally among […]

3 hours on Air India flight, no AC

June 9, 2019

Passengers on board an Air India flight to Calcutta from Delhi on Saturday went without the AC for more than three hours, several passengers have tweeted. The Air India flight, AI 20, which was scheduled to take off at 2pm on Saturday, took off at 3.45pm, according to passengers. Airline officials said the flight had […]

Indian Air Force announces Rs 5 lakh reward for information on missing AN-32 aircraft

June 9, 2019

The Indian Air Force on Saturday announced a reward of Rs 5 lakh to anyone providing information about location of the AN-32 transport aircraft which went missing six days ago around remote Mechuka in Arunachal Pradesh. Officer Commanding-in-Chief of Eastern Air Command Air Marshal R D Mathur made the announcement of the cash reward as […]

Is this the worst time to be an aviation professional in India?

June 1, 2019

Once synonymous with glamour and generous perks, jobs in Indian aviation are now giving nightmares to its thousands of employees. The sector’s recent turmoil has left thousands of professionals in a financial lurch. While staff of the temporarily-grounded Jet Airways haven’t been paid their dues for months, debt-laden national carrier Air India, too, has been […]

Can the Indian Air Force solve aviation companies’ pilot crunch?

June 1, 2019

The Indian government has finally stepped in to help the country’s struggling aviation industry. Last week, Usha Padhee, the joint secretary in the ministry of civil aviation, discussed with defence personnel the viability of fighter pilots switching over to commercial flying. The plan, if implemented, could help tackle the acute pilot shortage that has been […]