Air India launches Delhi-Madrid from 01Dec16

Air India in this week’s schedule update has filed operational schedule for Delhi – Madrid route, as the airline plans 3 weekly operation. Using Boeing 787-8 aircraft, this route will commence on 01DEC16.

AI135 DEL1425 – 2020MAD 788 246
AI136 MAD2150 – 1110+1DEL 788 246

Routesonline

India's DGCA has given the green light to Air India to begin flights over the Pacific Ocean

India's Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) has given the greenlight to Indian carriers to begin transpacific flights provided they meet all regulatory and operational requirements.

Air India  has hailed the move which, it says, will help it improve flying times on its Delhi Int'l-San Francisco, CA route.

Quoting members of the airline's pilots corps, India's Deccan Chronicle said transiting the Pacific, while further than flying over the Arctic as it presently does, will actually result in a shorter flight given the presence of strong Jet Stream tailwinds.

"Reducing the flying time to SFO from an hour in summer to three hours in winter (due to high tailwinds then) will mean huge fuel saving. So it will be a win-win for fliers and the airline as passengers will reach San Francisco faster while the airline will burn less fuel," a senior pilot told the paper.

Air India currently serves San Francisco 3x weekly using its B777-200(LR)s.

ch-aviation.com

Air India will soon fly over Pacific Ocean to San Francisco - Saving fuel costs & time

Saving significant fuel costs and time, Air India will soon start flying over the Pacific Ocean region for its lucrative direct services to San Francisco from here with aviation regulator DGCA approving the new route.

The regulatory nod comes as a boost for the national carrier, which would be doubling the frequency of its Delhi-San Francisco direct flights to six per week from November.

Air India would also be the first Indian carrier to operate on the Pacific region route where weather conditions and speed of winds would help the airline in reducing fuel burn and the overall journey time.

Officials said the route would be a "win-win situation" for the carrier as well as passengers as it would save crores of rupees worth of fuel costs and also reduce the flying time by up to three hours.

Approving the request from Air India for services through the new route, the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) has issued a detailed operational circular.

Some years ago, Jet Airways used to have Mumbai-Shanghai- San Francisco connection service which was stopped.

A senior DGCA official said using the new route would help in saving a lot of fuel as well as time.

In the new route, Air India would fly eastwards to reach San Francisco by crossing the vast Pacific Ocean.

Even though the route would be almost 1,400 km more compared to the current trajectory where the flight flies over the Atlantic, there would be significant saving on fuel and journey time due to powerful tailwinds.

"The Boeing 777-200 LR aircraft, used on the Delhi-San Francisco route by Air India will get only strong tailwinds on its eastward journey and cut flying time by up to three hours," a senior pilot said.

According to the pilot, the plane, on an average, burns 9,600 litres fuel for each hour of flying.

"Reducing the flying time to SFO from an hour in summer to three hours in winter (due to high tailwinds then) will mean huge fuel saving. So it will be a win-win for fliers and the airline as passengers will reach San Francisco faster while the airline will burn less fuel," he said.

Explaining how the aircraft would fly faster, the pilot said earth rotates from west to east and winds also flow in that direction.

So, flying west means facing strong headwinds (that decreases an aircraft's actual ground speed and more fuel is spent), while flying east means getting strong tailwinds which raises the speed and lessens fuel consumption, he added.

Business Standard

Air India AI191 B773 diverted to Aktobe, cargo smoke indication

An Air India Boeing 777-300, registration VT-ALP performing flight AI-191 from Mumbai (India) to Newark,NJ (USA), was enroute at FL320 about 80nm east of Aktobe (Kazakhstan) when the crew received a cargo smoke indication and the cargo fire suppression activated. The crew decided to divert to Aktobe for a safe landing about 25 minutes later.

The airline reported the aircraft diverted for technical reasons, an alarm went off, engineers are inspecting the aircraft.

A relief Boeing 777-300 registration VT-ALK was dispatched to Aktobe to return the passengers to Mumbai, where they embarked on the next day's flight AI-191 to reach Newark with a delay of 24 hours.

VT-ALP was able to depart Aktobe about 21 hours after landing and is currently positioning back to Mumbai to resume service.

The Aviation Herald

Air India AI191 diverted to Aktobe Airport due technical problem with the 777-300

A New Jersey-bound Air India flight from Mumbai was on Thursday diverted to Kazakhstan due to technical problem.

Taking to micro-blogging site, Air India tweeted, "AI191 Mumbai - Newark has been diverted to Kazakhstan due to operational reasons. All pax are being taken care of."

The Boeing 777-300 ER plane landed at an international airport in Kazakhstan at around 0800 hours after "some alarm went off".

Air India is dispatching a relief aircraft from New Delhi to ferry the stranded passengers from Kazakhstan to Newark.

An airline spokesperson said the flight was diverted due to technical reasons. There was some alarm that went off and the engineers are inspecting the flight, he added.

In a tweet, the airline said the flight has been diverted on account of operational reasons and that all passengers are being taken care of.​

DNA

Air India: Safety Record since 1932

Operator info
name: Air India
country:  India
ICAO code: AIC
IATA code: AI
Founded: 1932
until 2005 known as "Air-India"

 Air India passed the IATA Operational Safety Audit (IOSA) benchmark for global safety management
Related airlines:
» Air-India hyphen removed to become Air India in 2005

Air India- Accident & incidents:

Aviation Safety Network

Four pilots suspended for flying drunk in India

Two pilots of Jet Airways and Air India were suspended on Thursday after they were found drunk on arrival of their overseas flights in India.

The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) has asked the respective airlines to file police complaints against them.

HT had first reported on Thursday that an Air India pilot and one from a pilot airline had failed the post flight medical test for alcohol.

A Jet Airways spokesperson confirmed that the airline had sacked the pilot. Both pilots were repeat offenders.

The two pilots have been suspended for four years while a cabin crew of Air India has been suspended for one year after failing the post flight medical check.

On August 10, the pilot of Air India’s Sharjah-Kozhikode flight tested positive for alcohol during post flight examination, while the pilot of Jet Airways’ Abu Dhabi-Chennai flight was found drunk on August 3.

Till July this year, there have 26 cases of pilots having tested positive for alcohol during preflight medical tests. In 2015, there were 43 such cases.

Hindustan Times

Air India is expanding to San Francisco in daily basis

NEW DELHI: Air India (AI) is doubling its direct non-stop flights between Delhi and San Francisco (SFO) from tri-weekly to daily in the winter schedule.

Air India, which launched this flight last December, is the only airline that flies direct on this route.

"This flight has clearly proved that it does not take years to develop a route. We are flying planes with average 88 per cent loads and are also meeting the total cost of the flight. We are going to make it a daily flight most likely from November," said a senior Air India official.

He added that this was the first international flight that was launched under the new CMD Ashwani Lohani.

The Ecomics Times

Air India to launch flight between Ahmedabad and Newark via London from August

Air India announced the launch of its flight between Ahmedabad and Newark via London from August 15, 2016.

Flight AI171 will be operated three times a week with Boeing 787 aircraft. The new service will depart from Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel International Airport at 0530 hrs on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays  and will arrive in London at 1015 hrs. For its onward journey to Newark, the flight will depart from London at 1230 hrs and land in Newark at 1500 hrs.

On the return leg, Air India’s flight AI172 will depart from Newark at 2230 hrs, arrive at London at 1015 hrs (+1) and depart from London at 1230 hrs to land at Ahmedabad at 0200 hrs (+2).

The introduction of this flight will bridge the demand of 600,000 Indians in Ahmedabad, who have been looking for seamless connections for work and leisure purpose to Newark and London.

Air India is the flag carrier airline of India and the third largest airline in India in terms of passengers carried, after IndiGo and Jet Airways. It is owned by Air India Limited, a Government of India enterprise and operates a fleet of Airbus and Boeing aircraft serving 84 domestic and international destinations. It is headquartered in New Delhi.

Aviation Tribune

Air India route AI111/112 Delhi-London Heathrow will be operate with 787

Air India later this week is adjusting planned operational aircraft, which sees Delhi – London Heathrow service moving to all-Boeing 787 operation for the rest of summer season. From 29JUL16 to 29OCT16, AI111/112 service will be operated by Boeing 787-8, instead of 777-200LR aircraft. First Class service will no longer be offered during this period, however reservation was closed for a number of weeks prior to this aircraft changes.

AI161 DEL0230 – 0730LHR 788 D
AI111 DEL1400 – 1900LHR 788 D

AI162 LHR0945 – 2250DEL 788 D
AI112 LHR2130 – 1040+1DEL 788 D

Air India currently also operates AI115/116, the 3rd daily flight, which will be discontinued from 15AUG16.

Routesonline

Air India A319 at Kolkata, engine #2 shut down in flight

An Air India Airbus A319-100, registration VT-SCV performing flight AI-247 from Kolkata (India) to Kathmandu (Nepal) with 56 passengers and 7 crew, was climbing out of Kolkata when the crew needed to shut the right hand engine (CFM56) down, stopped the climb at 5500 feet and returned to Kolkata for a safe landing on runway 19L about 15 minutes after departure.

A replacement A319-100 registration VT-SCB reached Kathmandu with a delay of 5:20 hours.

The airline confirmed a right hand engine problem.

The Aviation Herald

Air India Offering Round-Trip Flights between United States and India for only $787

For travelers looking to book a flight between the United States and India, Air India is offering discounted fares of $787 round trip to celebrate the new direct 787 Dreamliner service.

Tickets for the Air India flights from Newark Liberty International Airport in New Jersey to Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel International Airport in Ahmedabad must be purchased by July 31, and the discounted price includes all taxes and fees.

Air India’s 787 Dreamliner service will begin operating three flights a week—Monday, Thursday and Friday—on August 15. The journeys will feature a mid-flight stop in London, though stopovers are not permitted.

The deal applies to flights from Newark to Ahmedabad between Aug. 15 and Sept. 30, but there are some caveats. In addition to a $25.00 weekend surcharge for return travel on Fridays, travelers must stay through the first Sunday, with a maximum stay of three months.

The 787 Dreamliner planes used for the new service will feature best-in-class Economy class service and Business Class service with 180-degree reclining flat beds. All Air India flights will also feature Indian and Continental cuisine available for both cabins.

For more information on the discounted fares, check out Air India’s official website.

TravelPulse

India B788 near Baku on Jul 10th 2016, dreamliner turns into steamliner

An Air India Boeing 787-800, registration VT-ANL performing flight AI-130 from London Heathrow,EN (UK) to Mumbai (India) with 229 people on board, was enroute at FL340 over the Caspian Sea about 140nm south of Baku (Azerbaijan) when the crew decided to divert to Baku for medical reasons to take care of suffering passengers. The aircraft landed safely on Baku's runway 34 about 30 minutes later.

The aircraft remained on the ground for about 39.5 hours, then continued the flight to Mumbai and reached the destination with a delay of 41 hours.

The airline, who had initially stated the aircraft diverted due to operational reasons as result of a minor technical issue, reported on Jul 12th that the cabin got very hot due to the failure of the recirculation fans of the air conditioning systems, which prevented the cooled air to get to the cabin.

The Aviation Herald

AirLive.net: BREAKING Air India worker is killed instantly after being sucked into a jet engine at Mumbai airport

   

A member of Air India's ground staff has been sucked into an aircraft jet engine and was killed instantly. This incident occurred today at Mumbai airport in India while the aircraft was preparing to depart to Hyderabad.

The technician was killed after being sucked into the engine during push back at 9pm local time.

The airline, Air India, says it is 'deeply saddened' by what has happened and is described as a 'mishap' and a 'tragic incident'.

Flight AI619 was preparing to depart for Hyderabad.









It is not yet clear how the worker came to be so close to the engine.

Air India bosses are yet to say how many people were on board the plane and whether passengers had witnessed the incident.

Flight AI619 departed 3 and a half hours later then planned on replacement A319 aircraft. The flight arrived at Hyderabad just under 3 hours late.


AirLive.net: BREAKING Air India worker is killed instantly after being sucked into a jet engine at Mumbai airport

Air India S16 Moscow Service Changes as of 09DEC15 | Airline Route

                                    

Air India on Tuesday (08DEC15) revised operational schedule for Delhi – Moscow Domodedovo route in summer 2016 season, which will see the airline continues to operate 2 weekly flights, on/after 27MAR16. Previously the schedule listing was showing 4 weekly operation.

AI155 DEL1955 – 2320DME 788 15
AI156 DME0100 – 0855DEL 788 26

Air India S16 Moscow Service Changes as of 09DEC15 | Airline Route

Air India Inaugurates Nonstop Service between San Francisco and Delhi - Airchive

      



By: Ben Wang - Aiwaysnews

In the wee chilly morning hours on December 2,, Air India opened its fourth destination in the United States with the touchdown of Boeing 777-200LR registered VT-ALG at San Francisco International (SFO). The mighty long-range triple seven flew 16 hours 31 minutes nonstop from Delhi (DEL) kicking off the first (and so-far, only) nonstop flight between India and the western United States.

As one of the longest flight in the world, it was a momentous occasion for Air India. The airline celebrated with the usual pomp and ceremony in spite of an early 2:35 am departure from Delhi.

SFO welcomed the arrival with a reception and a ribbon cutting ceremony of its own. Ed Lee, mayor of San Francisco, proclaimed December 2nd as Air India Day in San Francisco. “By creating the first-ever nonstop service between San Francisco and Delhi, Air India has united two great cultural and economic centers of the world…I fully expect this new service to be a success,” exclaimed Mayor Lee.

SFO was long-time coming for Air India. Rumors of Air India starting service to SFO started around 2000 and went off-and-on for the next 15 years. It made sense. The San Francisco-Oakland-San Jose area (population of 6.1 million) is home to 237,000 Indians according to 2010 Census data compiled by data analytical firm ProxmityOne. Many are attracted to jobs in the high tech industry and start-ups located there. But rumors never materialized into reality after the .com crash and downturn of the airline industry after 9/11. In the mean time, European airlines used their established positions and became airlines of preferred for travel to India.

The popular “Bangalore Express” refers to Lufthansa’s link between tech-heavy cities of SFO and Bangalore (BLR) via a fast (less than two hour) connection in Frankfurt (FRA). Demonstrating a strong demand, SFO was an early destination for the Lufthansa A380. To further strengthen the airline’s position in the San Francisco Bay Area, Lufthansa recently set its sights 33-miles south and announced A340-300 service from San Jose (SJC) – the heart of Silicon Valley – to FRA starting in May 2016 operated by the airline’s low-cost Cityline division in hopes of capturing the leisure market.

In June 2008, Jet Airways became the first Indian airline to SFO with service from Mumbai (BOM) via Shanghai-Pudong (PVG). Despite having an excellent on-board product and a great reputation, the airline ended service at SFO short seven months later in January 2009 citing low performance on the route. The early morning 1:30 am arrival and 3:30 am departure into/out of PVG from SFO was poorly timed, scuttling any hope of attracting demand for Shanghai on either end of this flight.

Emirates started service to Dubai (DXB) from SFO in Dec 2008 using the 777-200LR. One year later, aircraft was upgraded to the 777-300ER. Emirates quickly established itself as the airline to beat by combining new airplanes, great service, attractive fares, and well-timed flights to India. It became the airline of choice for many Indians in the Bay Area. The airline further increased its capacity in late 2014 by flying the now-ubiquitous double-decker A380 to SFO.

Not to be outdone, Etihad joined the party from Abu Dhabi (AUH) in late 2014 returning the distinctive yellow and blue 777-300ERs of Jet Airways back to SFO. In 2013, Etihad purchased 24% equity stake in struggling Jet Airways and the two airlines became strategic partners against the Emirates juggernaut in the Indian market.

With Air India joining Star Alliance in July 2014, choosing SFO to be the airlines’ forth destination in the United States was easy. Not only the San Francisco Bay Area has a large Indian population, SFO is also a Star Alliance hub. In addition to New York-JFK, Air India’s other presence in the U.S. are Newark (EWR) and Chicago-O’Hare (ORD), both Star Alliance Hubs. With feeder possibilities and a loyalty market already established at each hub city, they provide the airline the best chance for traffic and growth.

At SFO, Air India has one very important advantage over all other airlines. It flies nonstop to India. “Nonstop” was emphasized over and over again in the airline’s advertisements. Indeed, early bookings are strong. According to data released by SFO, initial flights are booked at 95% and the inaugural flight from Delhi carried a “full complement of passengers”. In addition, since Air India has a vast domestic network of 52 cities, it has the advantage of giving customers an one-stop, same-airline connection to secondary destinations and small cities within India; something non-Indian airlines can’t offer.

The SFO-DEL route is flown three times per week on Wednesdays, Fridays, and Sundays using the ultra long-range 777-200LR. Between 2007 and 2009, Air India acquired a fleet of eight LRs to fly nonstop between India and the U.S. In order to squeeze every bit of performance out of the LR, these aircraft are configured in a low-density 238 seats configuration (eight First Class, 35 Business Class, and 195 Economy). Ironically, Air India sold off five of the LRs to rival Etihad in 2014, citing high fuel prices rendering these aircraft unprofitable to operate. Having a low-density configuration also exacerbated its unprofitability. Today, only three LRs remain in Air India’s fleet in order to make this nonstop flight possible. With the airline’s board rejecting converting five of the outstanding 787-8 Dreamliners on order to the -9 model – the model capable of flying ultra long range to the U.S. more efficiently than the 777 – Air India is cautiously optimistic about the success of this route with low fuel prices and strong loads.

The Indian market is not confined to Delhi, however. When flight connections are required to other major cities, Air India’s nonstop time saving advantage can quickly be diminished when compared with other airlines. For example, from BLR to SFO, due to a long layover in DEL, there is essentially no difference in total travel time between Air India and Emirates. Further, total travel time on Lufthansa’s “Bangalore Express” is only 50 minutes slower to SFO.

Poor connections can easily be overcome with better hub scheduling. However, a not-so-good reputation cannot be fixed easily. Anecdotally, Air India is not a preferred airline with most travelers. By having a nonstop flight to India, the scale definitely gets tipped to Air India’s favor. However, the airline will have to prove itself by convincing travellers with an efficient, reliable, and on-time operation along with great service. Only time will tell whether Air India will be successful in doing so.

Air India Inaugurates Nonstop Service between San Francisco and Delhi - Airchive

Chennai flood: Airport shut till 6am on Thursday - The Times of India

   

CHENNAI: Rain-ravaged Chennai was on Wednesday crawling with air and road traffic severely hit as Army, Navy and NDRF teams stepped up rescue operations in worst-hit localities of the city that is also witnessing power outages.

The non-stop torrential rains pounding the city since last night showed some let up in the morning but the inundated streets left commuters stranded.

In view of the water logging, Chennai Airport authorities have shut operations till 6AM on . All airlines, including Air India, have cancelled their operations from Chennai airport.

The Airports Authority of India has issued a NOTAM (Notice to Airmen) to all air operators in this regard, an AAI spokesperson said in New Delhi.

The spokesperson said Chennai airport authorities had initially shut operations till this morning but due to incessant rains it has now decided to extend it till 6 AM tomorrow.

Notice to Airmen (NOTAM) is a notice containing information concerning the establishment, condition, or change in any facility, service or procedure, among others, in airspace management.


Chennai flood: Airport shut till 6am on Thursday - The Times of India