Air India is an enigma. It was the first airline in the world with an all jet fleet, ahead of the Americans and Europeans. From being the epitome of luxury, grace and hospitality, the palace in the skies, the airline is, today, a bottomless pit swallowing crores of tax-payer rupees. This despite having one of the most modern wide-body fleets …
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Forgetful Jet Airways pilots lose contact with European ATC, Indian media melodrama
March 13, 2014, the entire aviation world was generally concerned due the recent disappearance of Malaysia Airlines flight MH370 a mere five days earlier. In this mix, add two very absent minded pilots of Jet Airways who were flying the airline’s flagship, the Boeing 777-300ER, registration VT-JEG, performing flight 9W 117 from London Heathrow to the airline’s main hub in …
Read More »As Competition Commision clears Jet-Etihad merger, it is goodbye Jet and hello Jetihad
by Devesh Agarwal On Tuesday, beleaguered Indian carrier, Jet Airways cleared its final hurdle in its $397 million quest to sell a 24% stake to Abu Dhabi based Etihad Airways PJSC, when the Competition Commission of India (CCI), cleared the deal paving the way for the Naresh Goyal promoted Jet to receive desperately needed cash from the deal. The Union …
Read More »Opinion: Approving AirAsia-Tata airline will derail goals of FDI in aviation policy
The announcement that AirAsia is joining hands with the Tatas and Bhatias with the intention to start a new airline in India will put the a significant policy dilemma in front of the Government of India related to foreign direct investment (FDI) in civil aviation by foreign airlines, and might just land-up derailing the goals of the fledging policy. While …
Read More »Government’s Air India bailout can feed ALL hungry Indians for a year
I recently came across an article by noted Indian journalist T.N. Ninan, titled “Do-gooder economics and the Lokpal“. It got me thinking; by most economic logic, national carrier Air India should have been wound up ages ago. The carrier has annual losses crossing $1.4 billion (Rs.7,000 Crore) and accumulated debt now approaching $10 billion. Now, the government wants to inject …
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