Airlines

"The domestic aviation industry continues to witness recovery, with domestic passenger traffic for November 2022 estimated at nearly 117 lakh, about 3 per cent higher compared to nearly 114 lakh in October 2022 and about 11 per cent higher in comparison to the domestic passenger traffic in November 2021. Although, it fell short by nearly 10 per cent, compared to pre-Covid levels of November 2019," the report said.

Minister of State for Civil Aviation, Gen V.K. Singh (retd), told the Rajya Sabha, in a written reply, that there is however, a shortage of type-rated commanders/PIC (Pilot-in-command) on certain types of aircraft and the same is being managed by utilising foreign pilots by issuing Foreign Aircrew Temporary Authorisation (FATA). Presently, there are 82 FATA holders in India, he said.

A senior official of the aviation regulator on Saturday said that it is a quantum leap from its 102nd rank four years ago. With a view to check its effective implementation (EI) of critical safety elements, the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) had last month audited the Indian Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA).

SIA and Tata aim to complete the merger by March 2024, subject to regulatory approvals. Following the transaction that was announced on Tuesday, Singapore Airlines Limited (SIA) will immediately acquire a strategic stake in an entity that is four to five times larger in scale compared to Vistara.

Domestic flight bookings so far this year have driven $76 billion in online spend, 17 per cent more than the comparable period in 2019 (pre-pandemic), where $65 billion had been spent. While the $11 billion difference is partly driven by higher prices, bookings have also grown 5 per cent compared to 2019, according to data from Adobe Analytics Insights.

As per data from the Directorate General of Civil Aviation, On-time performance of Air India flights was 90.8 per cent followed by Vistara and AirAsia recording on-time performance of 89.1 per cent during October. Similarly, Indigo airline recorded an on-time performance of 87.5 per cent while Spicjet had an on-time performance of 68.9 per cent. Go First was at the bottom with on-time performance of 60.7 per cent during the month.

As per the data released by aviation regulator DGCA on Tuesday, nearly 1.14 crore passengers were carried by the domestic airlines during October in the country as against 89.85 lakh during the same period last year.

Announcing the action against the Indian flag carrier and five other airlines on Monday, Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg said: "A flight cancellation is frustrating enough, and you shouldn't also have to haggle or wait months to get your refund." If passengers don't get refunds promptly for cancelled flights, "we will act to hold airlines accountable on behalf of American travellers and get passengers their money back", he warned.

Total revenue for the reported quarter was Rs 2,104.7 crore as against Rs 1,538.7 crore in the same quarter of the previous year. For the same comparative period, operating expenses were Rs 2,942.6 crore as against Rs 2,100.4 crore. On an EBITDA basis, loss was Rs 413.59 crore for the reported quarter as against a loss of Rs 106.4 crore for the quarter ended September FY2022.

Latest data by the International Air Transport Association (IATA) showed that airlines in the region continue to be impacted by the conflict in Ukraine, labour shortages, and lower levels of trade and manufacturing activity due to Omicron-related restrictions in China. It said that available capacity in the region increased by 2.8 per cent compared to 2021.