Ch december 2005 by Newsline

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DECEMBER 2005 Vol II No. 9

Rs 60

The Dubai airshow gets bigger and better

IA is now simply Indian! Plus VIJAY MALLYA at the Dubai Airshow

•Reverse swing from Air Deccan •Renuka in London •Winter traffic snarl

and all our regular features

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PUBLISHER’S NOTE

Flying in the blind!

S THE GREAT fog envelops Northern India, flights over most cities in this part of the country will pile up, get rescheduled, clubbed together or quite simply cancelled. Foreign airlines that simply can’t pull out a flight take the simple way of rescheduling their operations to the ‘sunny hours’, between late morning and early evening. It reminds one of the J&K Durbar when the sarkar moves from Srinagar to Jammu because of the biting cold. As we move into modernisation mode at a faster and faster rate and Civil Aviation Minister Praful Patel waves the flag of infrastructure upgradation at every corner, one wonders what he has to say to this great traffic jam in the sky each winter. And the portents so far seem to indicate that this year is going to be awful, if not worse. For starters, how will they cope with the shortened hours of operation? What it means is more flights per hour for take-off and landing. An already overburdened ATC and Airport Authority will not know how to perform the samba to rejig the schedule and how everything goes off without a hitch. And this would mean both domestic and international routes. If this is not enough, the real mess is going to be on the ground. One has only to visit Mumbai and Delhi terminals to realise what a delayed flight or rush-hour traffic really means. There is absolute chaos both inside and outside. The domestic terminal in the Capital has a parking lot that can, at best, accommodate vehicles for just about six to eight flights. With close to triple that number moving one way or the other to avoid the fog one can image the havoc it is likely to cause. One saw a trailer of the havoc a fortnight back while dropping a friend off at the domestic terminal. There was no parking space and there was complete chaos and free for all amongst people desperate to get

CRUISING HEIGHTS December 2005

in and an equal number desperate to get out. Inside the terminal it was no different. At least terminal 1B was choc a block, with virtually no space to stand or move about. And this is the position when flights are not being rejigged. It doesn’t help. Of course, the Airport Authority has been asked not to spend any money because privatisation process is on in full swing. Barring unavoidable expenses, AAI has limited itself to a mute spectator, watching the unions pelt it from one side and the Ministry tie its arms from the other. Praful Patel once commented that there are two ways to push the modernisation plan forward. One would be the China model, where infrastructure comes in first and the development of the rest of the process is dovetailed with this forward movement. The other would be the Indian model, where expansion and liberalisation come in first and the infrastructure is per force put in place as quickly as possible because there is no other way out. When he said this, he clearly meant that India couldn’t wait for infrastructure to be in place to modernise. That’s all very well, Mr Patel, but there are some things that you directly control. Why don’t you act in these areas? Restrict the open skies in the winter months, for example. Or tell airlines that additional flights are a no-no, but bigger capacity aircraft are welcome—at least in the big metros. Do not allow new flights for a couple of months till you can get the system in place. And most important, make life easy with better parking for departing and arriving passengers. Lastly, travel to the airport like an ordinary citizen early one chilly December morning and see the scene for yourself. One is sure things will move once you taste the experience.

Off the cuff

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A home away from home The family sitting next to me at the Dubai airport business class lounge helped me temporarily forget my longing for home. They were clearly from Punjab, in this case Punjab from the other side of the divide. And one guessed they were from Lahore, Faisalabad or Multan, not from their Punjabi, but from the mention of Gulberg and Liberty (popular shopping areas in Lahore) that sprinkled their conversation and the Khuda Hafiz at the end of each mobile chat. Like everyone else in the lounge they were having dinner, waiting for their aircraft to disgorge a bellyful of passengers and take a full flight back home. In their case it was plenty of more numbers, considering that the PIA shuttle into Dubai is on a wide bodied Airbus 330. Indian Airlines was chock a block full as well. But the numbers were considerably less— it was an A320. And as you waited and munched at the food (Chinese, Indian, Arabic and Italian, if you please) or sipped the wine (or the whiskey or the vodka) it was clear that the subcontinent was one big, big clearing ground for the UAE. Take away the traffic from India and Pakistan and the figures for Dubai will change dramatically. Outside on the tarmac, the IA and PIA (Pakistan International Airline) Airbus were parked side by side. And in the terminal, the large number of Economy Class passengers crowded around the boarding gate. No surprise that there was plenty of cross-border conversation, with the most popular words being Shah Rukh Khan, DVDs, walima and dawat. But there is no doubt that more flights and cheaper fares have perked the traffic, too, and from both countries. After all, if you can go home to a walima at half the price of what it cost two years back, then why not? And that’s what’s happening: there is more traffic, more homecoming and Emirates and Dubai International Airport are delighted. South Asia can boost the volumes like none other!

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contents GAZING AT THE SKIES

p24

The Dubai Air Show is fast acquiring the reputation of a top quality aviation event, where all the big boys are present. In fact, the show is getting bigger and better with each edition. An exclusive on-the-spot report.

IA BECOMES INDIAN!

p14

After 53 years, Indian Airlines has decided it is time to get some new clothes. The airline goes for a complete makeover with the arrival of the first Airbus A319.

STAR OF ASIA p42 Naresh Goyal, of Jet Airways, is Star of Asia. But there are other stars as well: Salman Khan, Perizad Zorabian and Katrina Kaif, to name a few, who were in the news. CRUISING HEIGHTS December 2005

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ARTICLES NEWS VIEWS EDITS INTERVIEWS CLIPPINGS TRAVEL & TOURISM PROFILES NEWS DIGEST

TOURISM BLUEPRINT p33 Tourism Minister Renuka Choudhary has announced a slew of new projects. A report.

DECCAN’S REVERSE SWING p22 As the country’s first LCC gets ready for its IPO, comes news that it has decided that a bit of reverse swing will do it no harm. Deccan Lanka plans foray into India from the emerald islands. Southern despatch.

CRUISING HEIGHTS RENU MITTAL Editor

R. KRISHNAN Consulting Editor

ANAMIKA VERMA Editorial Coordinator

DUSHYANT PARASHAR Creative Director

BHART BHARDWAJ

PAT FOR PRAFUL p6

Art Director

The Civil Aviation Minister was the Number One backroom boy for his boss Sharad Pawar in the cricket elections.

Aviation Digest

p20

CLOUDING THE SKIES p10

RAJESH KUMAR BHOLA

As winter sets in, Open Skies begin. However, this time around, the options may be limited. News digest.

Gen. Manager (Admn.)

India is ‘hot’

Tourism Digest Boom time for ‘gay’ travel.

p38

Last page

p48 What is Diana Hayden doing with an aeroplane in her hand?

CRUISING HEIGHTS December 2005

Designer

RAJIV KUMAR SINGH Editorial & Marketing office: D-11, Nizamuddin (East) New Delhi-110 014 Tel.: 51825251/50, Fax: 51825250 All information in CRUISING HEIGHTS is derived from sources we consider reliable. It is passed on to our readers without any responsibility on our part. Opinions/views expressed by third parties in abstract or in interviews are not necessarily shared by us. Material appearing in the magazine cannot be reproduced in whole or in part(s) without prior permission. The publisher assumes no responsibility for material lost or damaged in transit. The publisher reserves the right to refuse, withdraw or otherwise deal with all advertisements without explanation. All advertisements must comply with the Indian Advertisements Code. The publisher will not be liable for any loss caused by any delay in publication, error or failure of advertisement to appear. Published and edited by Renu Mittal for and on behalf of Newsline Publications Pvt Ltd. D-11 (basement), Nizamuddin East, New Delhi-110 014 and printed by Bhart Bhardwaj at Kaveri Print Process, 114, Patparganj Industrial Area, Delhi.

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PERISCOPE

Way of life “We

have to live with terrorism and beat it. Within 48 hours of the Delhi bombings, the three markets were all up and running again.” LALIT SURI former WTTC chairman

Spreading wings “The

aircraft will open up many nonstop routes for AI, including DelhiLos Angeles and Mumbai-Houston. These are just some of the various opportunities that will unfold.”

LETTERS TO EDITOR

Giovanni Bisignani is dead right. India needs to get its act together. But with the Ministry of Civil Aviation being the regulator and arbitrator and framer of policy, all rolled into one, what can you expect? It is high time the government appointed a regulator for the civil aviation sector. After all, billions of dollars are likely to be invested. How can a single window framework ever succeed? Sudhir Sharma, Bhopal It’s all very well for IATA to say that India must get its act together, but when was aviation a priority in the country. Till the other day it was viewed as a mode of transportation for the rich and the elite. After all, it’s the drop in fares and the coming of the LCCs that has completely changed the equations and brought the middle class into the frame. Now, as the country wakes up to the joys of speedy, cheap travel by planes, there will be a period of uncertainty as our infrastructure wobbles under the pressure. While IATA’s comment may be a warning signal for the authorities, one doesn’t see any easy way out of the tunnel. Puneet Goyal, On email

As we come to the end of 2005 one still isn’t sure if Indian Airlines will get a new CEO soon enough. As we expand, having a whole-time chairman and managing director clearly isn’t a priority for Praful Patel. At least that’s the message. Vikram Sethi, Delhi

DR DINESH KESKAR Senior Vice-President, Boeing On the magic of the 777

Striking rich “The

investment in this sector is going to be one of the highest in the country. We will see investments of more than $30 billion by 2012 and $50 billion in 10 years.” MINISTER PRAFUL PATEL On the boom in civil aviation

Good going “When

you see 30 per cent year-on-year growth, the party is certainly not over. Yes, some full service carriers will suffer as LCCs grow, which is what is happening in India.” AJAY SINGH Director, SpiceJet

Up above the sky “Each

Your back page is excellent. Give us more aviation and tourism people and inside stories of their exploits. Soman Nair, Thiruvananthapuram All correspondence may be addressed to Editor, D-11, Nizamuddin East (basement) New Delhi - 110 014 OR mail at newslinepublications@rediffmail.com

spaceship will have eight seats and space travel will cost two million dollars per seat.” RICHARD BRANSON Chairman, Virgin Atlantic On the space odyssey in the offing

CRUISING HEIGHTS December 2005

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COLD STATISTICS

Hot and Spicy Funds will be raised from multilateral institutions, such as Exim Bank, and through a bond issue of $80 million. z The five aircraft being used at present are leased. Eight new aircraft will be added in 2006, followed by another eight in 2007. z Operations have been expanded to 11 Indian cities, with the number of daily flights being 35. Seating capacity, too, has been expanded to 7,000 per day. z The seating capacity of each aircraft is 189, out of which 40 come under the promotional fare. z SpiceJet has the highest load factor among all domestic carriers in the country— at 90 per cent. z If the price of aviation turbine fuel goes down to Rs 31,000 per kilolitre, from the current Rs 35,000 per kilolitre, the airline may consider even removing the fuel surcharge. z

Sahara numbers Air Sahara expects to end this financial year with passenger revenue of Rs 2,228.3 crore, cargo revenue of Rs 88.3 crore and a net loss of Rs 17.5 crore. It made a profit of Rs 31.7 crore last year when the net margin stood at two per cent, compared with zero in the previous year and -4 in the year before.

LOOKING GLASS

More on the tray “Our

flights to the UAE have been popular with business and leisure travellers from Mumbai. Winter is peak travel time, with people travelling between the UAE and India to visit family and friends, and we are pleased to be able to offer them more flight choices at an affordable fare. We also offer increased opportunities for Mumbaikars to travel to the UAE for the Dubai shopping festival.” ROHIT RAMACHANDRAN Country Manager, Air Arabia On the reason for an additional daily flight between Mumbai and Sharjah during December 1 to January 31.

CRUISING HEIGHTS December 2005

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OFF THE RECORD

Desi designs DARLING, PIERRE CARDIN is out, Ritu Kumar is in. Sorry for meowing like the cat in Mumbai, but that’s how she would have exclaimed on hearing what’s happened to Air India’s original desire to get the high priest of the haute couture world to dress up the ladies of the Maharaja. Well, it seems that the powers that be have decided that there is no need to get Messers Cardin and company to work on a new version of the AI churidar and that it is best left to the fashion fraternity in India to dress up AI’s cabin crew. If reports are correct, then AI will soon be issuing a letter of intent asking the country’s top designers to submit their proposals for a complete makeover of the Maharaja’s ladies. Commenting on the issues, one insider said, “Cardin is Cardin, no question about that. But an Indian will give you a better Dal Makhani than a phirang can ever.” What he meant was that the colours and the style that would suit AI can be interpreted best by the Ritu Kumars and the Ritu Beris.

How to handle him? NARESH GOYAL tried and failed. After some bluster he wanted to co-opt him, but failed. It took plenty of time for him to get his parking bays. But he pushed and pushed till he succeeded. Then he went on a national binge, opening up destination after destination, setting up a network that now tops the charts. And now he is getting ready to launch his IPO. Capt Gopinath raises hackles each time his name is mentioned in Rajiv Gandhi Bhawan. But the Captain is unfazed. Chief ministers are courting him and want him to open up their states. The latest to fall for him is J&K CM Ghulam Nabi Azad. No surprise; his predecessor Mufti Mohd Sayeed adored him. A rare coincidence. Air Deccan is one issue on which the two see eye to eye!

KAMAL NAIN CHOUBEY is the man for the moment. The dapper Indian Police Service (IPS) officer from Jharkhand just had his duties doubled with the exit of Civil Aviation Minister Praful Patel’s private secretary, Deepak Kapoor, back to his home cadre of Maharashtra. Kapoor has taken over as the Joint Managing Director of the Maharashtra State Industrial Development Corporation (MSIDC) and Choubey, already with his hands full, will now have even more on his plate. Kapoor left because of an exciting opportunity and greater career prospects. But for Choubey, who is virtually by the Minister’s side at most times, it will be like flying to land in the fog. And when you are by the Minister, you can’t even say you aren’t trained in Cat III. But Choubey gives the impression of a man who loves his job. He knows the ways of Delhi, enjoys the responsibility, gets along well with other officers and, most important, has an even temper.

Man at hand

CRUISING HEIGHTS December 2005

Not interested Election over, Praful flew to Delhi on a special flight. As he said, “I didn’t have a vote here, but I’ve got to vote in the Rajya Sabha this evening.” That was on the day his mentor and neta Sharad Pawar defeated Ranbir Singh Mahindra at the BCCI elections in Kolkata. He was the key behind the scenes, twelfth man for netaji. But the Volcker vote in the Upper House was crucial and so off he flew once the win was certain. But he did use the occasion to score a few more points: “No... No... I’ve got nothing to do with cricket. Everybody knows Mr Pawar’s reputation as an administrator, and there’s no need for me to get involved.” Thank God for that, there are so many politicians in cricket that they number more than the players.

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OFF THE RECORD

Tripura tales NO, WE don’t know if this is true or not. But this is too juicy not to share it with you. So here goes the tale, as we got it. Apparently Air India Chairman Vasudevan Thulasidas was co-opted by Praful Patel to help with the BCCI elections. Not wanting to let go off the Tripura vote, Patel apparently dispatched AI’s Number One officer to Agartala to use his good offices and make sure the vote remained with the Pawar camp. Did he deliver? Well, those in the know say that Thulasidas usually delivers when he takes on a responsibility. And if he did indeed go to Agartala he must have made sure the vote got into the right box. Meanwhile his son ‘Joy’ is getting married later this month in the temple town of Guruvayur. It’s a happy occasion and we wish them the best.

Ready, steady, byte…

he TV guys simply can’t have enough of them. Perhaps they can have them for breakfast, lunch and dinner. The other day at the FAST (Forum for Aviation and Sustainable Tourism) conference, Secretary (Civil Aviation) Ajay Prasad spent nearly two hours answering a diverse range of questions, from LCCs to privatisation of airports. Finally, he had had enough and decided it was time to leave. But the news channels were still hungry. They followed him down the aisle all the way to the porch and the poor guy could get into his car only after

Besieged chairman AIRPORTS AUTHORITY OF INDIA Chairman S. Ramalingam is a man besieged. He has to contend with the constant pinpricks of the AAI Union, which is hell bent on stopping the privatisation process. He has to deal with the Ministry as well that is tearing down the runway to take off with the process. And in between he has to contend with Messers Kalra and Company who are handling it directly with the bosses at Rajiv Gandhi Bhawan. Talk to him and he gives you an enigmatic smile: “Are, baba, I have a job to do and I am trying to do it to the best of my abilities. The Ministry handles some issues and I don’t want to comment on them.” It’s a bit of a pity that a loyal officer like Ramalingam is getting the wrong end of the stick. His detractors are going around telling everyone that he is behind the ‘leaking sieve’ that AAI has

CRUISING HEIGHTS December 2005

become. But his supporters are quick to point out that there has not been a single initiative that Mantriji wanted taken by AAI that hasn’t been honoured. Would that be possible without the cooperation of Chairman Saab, they ask?

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In the frame

he had offered the summary byte to the cameras. Saying the same thing in an exclusive byte into whichever mike was thrust in his face first. Days later, his boss Praful Patel was besieged by the byte brigade after he had welcomed the first ‘Indian’ in the ceremonial area of the Indira Gandhi International Airport. Media savvy Praful decided to give a bucketful of nuggets and all out in the open with the A319 in the background. When someone suggested they move into the lounge for more comfort, he said it was better on the tarmac. Only goes to show that you need two to tango. And, mind you, this was just the beginning. Byte over, he went into the lounge and promptly waded into an officially organised news conference. And to no one’s surprise, the bytewallas had more questions to ask.

The greatest

Renuka’s agenda

WELL, IF you wish to know who are the country’s top five tourism experts, look no further than Subhash Goyal. The President of IATO recently put out a press release telling us the five ‘top’ guys who had been nominated to the Uttaranchal Tourism Board. They are, apart from Goyal and Balbir Mayal (the former President of TAAI), S.K. Mishra, of INTACH, former Tourism Secretary M.P. Bezbaruah and FHRAI President Manbeer Choudhary. Mr Goyal also has a prediction to make: “With the nomination of these five noted experts, tourism in the state, which has already made its mark within the short span of the state’s existence (sic) is expected to make further growth and development and compete successfully with the states like Kerala…”

IN THE last one fortnight, Renuka Chowdhary has run away with the honours. That she travels the country indefatigable goes without question. But what really sets her apart is the desire to get our neighbours on the same track as ours. She was in Afghanistan in the first week of the month to give a fillip to the tourism industry in that country. And if reports are to be believed she said yes to everything her hosts asked of her. Back home she flagged off the campaign Priyadarshani, which is part of the ambitious Atithi Devo Bhava project. Meanwhile her Joint Secretary, another indefatigable traveller, Amitabh Kant, returned from Africa, where he was attending a World Tourism Meet in Somalia. CRUISING HEIGHTS December 2005

ACTING CHAIRMAN and Managing Director Sushma Chawla was there by the side of Praful Patel all afternoon at the arrival function of the first ‘Indian’ A319 from Hamburg. And rightly so. Acting or not, she is the CEO of the airline and clearly needed to be in the spotlight. But what really took the cake was Patel making sure that the other senior guy, Anil Goel, who is the airline’s CD and also heads Alliance Air, wasn’t left out in the cold. So, he was there at every turn—when Mantriji went up the stairs into the aircraft, at the lunch table and generally part of most photo frames. One other guy, too, figured in most photo opportunities— Dr Kiran Rao. The good doctor, who is Airbus face in the subcontinent is generally a low-profile, unobtrusive personality. But there was nothing he could do at this event. It was an Airbus aircraft—the first new one that the national carrier was receiving in a long, long time—and he had to be there. Anyway, it did him plenty of good. He clearly managed a good chat with Mantriji. Event over, Kiran rushed off to Mumbai to party with Vijay Mallya. The Kingfisher boss was celebrating a CAPA award, as the Best Start-up of the Year, and naturally Airbus had to be represented. After all, it’s its A320 that Mallya chose to fulfill his aviation dreams.

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NEWS DIGEST

Air Deccan overtakes IA AIR DECCAN is now the Number One airline, connecting more airports in the country than any other airline. Jet Airways connects 43 airports, while Indian Airlines flies to 53 cities and towns in India. Other airlines in rapid-expansion mode are Kingfisher and SpiceJet. The ever-enthusiastic Capt Gopinath, Air Deccan head, says, “New linkages are being made, with commercial and social considerations never seen before.” One good thing that has happened with the airline’s foray is the huge infrastructure improvement in the smaller airports.

A fifty billion war chest

Indian aviation sector could witness a massive rise in investment, estimated at US $50 billion, in the next ten years, mainly in the form of airport infrastructure upgrade and new fleet acquisition by private and state-owned carriers. In the next five years the aviation sector will receive about US $30 billion investment from both the private and public sectors. As part of this, both the state-owned carriers, Indian Airlines and Air India, will enter the capital market with their maiden IPOs besides Airports Authority of India for upgrading non-metro airports. Speaking to newsmen at the recently concluded Economic Editors conference, Union Civil Aviation Minister Praful Patel said both IA and AI will unload 20 per cent of their equity, while their public-sector character will be fully retained. In the current calendar year the domestic aviation sector grew by 25 to 30 per cent and it is likely to grow by 20 per cent in each of the next five years.

SINGAPORE AIRLINES Cargo, the wholly owned subsidiary of Singapore Airlines, is planning to increase its services to key destinations in India and the US. This follows the delivery of an additional 'Mega Ark'-a Boeing 747-400 freighter, to the carrier's fleet, bringing the total number of this type of freighters in the fleet to 15. The carrier has launched a bi-weekly service from Singapore to New Delhi, Copenhagen and Chicago from October 29. The routings for return services, however, are Chicago-Copenhagen-Bangalore-Singapore and Chicago-Copenhagen-New Delhi-Singapore. The overall frequency between Singapore and Chicago increases to seven times a week, from five times. The freighter frequency between Singapore and India is now ten times in the westbound direction, with all services continuing directly to Europe (Amsterdam, Brussels and Copenhagen) and six times to the US (New York and Chicago). The eastbound freighter services from Europe (Amsterdam and Brussels) and the US (Los Angeles, New York, Dallas and Chicago) to Singapore via India (Mumbai, New Delhi, Kolkata, Chennai and Bangalore) will be nine times a week. Singapore Airlines Cargo will take delivery of one more Mega Ark in the first quarter of 2006. Further, three more 747-400 passenger carriers are to be converted into freighters, which will be delivered between 2007 and 2009, taking its fleet strength to 19, provided the older ones are not retired, as is the usual SIA policy for its passenger aircraft.

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Airport of the future

S DUBAI International Airport getting cramped and congested? At least those who run civil aviation in this tiny, but booming, Emirate seem to think that this gargantuan airport won’t do! They have announced the construction of the world’s largest airport that may combine the capacities of London’s Heathrow and Chicago’s O Hare. Announcing the project at the Dubai Air Show 2005, Dubai Civil Aviation Director for Engineering and Projects Khalifa Al Zaffin said the project is designed to serve Dubai’s passenger and cargo transportation needs until 2050 and beyond. To be built at a cost of nearly US $10 billion, the airport will be able to handle 120 million passengers a year. It will have at least six parallel runways and as many concourses capable of handling 12 million tonnes of cargo as well per year. The Jebel Ali International Airport project will be completed in phases and the first aircraft will land at this new site (about 40 kilometres from Dubai city) in the first quarter of 2007 on the completion of the first phase. The project’s design is being finalised and the tender process has already started. Once completed Jebel Ali International Airport will be ten times bigger than the present Dubai International Airport, including its expansion currently under execution. It will be able to handle every type of aircraft. Grading work for the first 4.5-kilometre long runway is already in advanced stage and when completed it will cater to an important portion of cargo transported through Dubai. Along with the construction of Jebel Ali International Airport, the Department of Civil Aviation of Dubai Government has also launched the construction of Jebel Ali Airport City (JAAC) spread over 140 square kilometres. JAAC has been conceived as mixed-use urban environment, comprising of aviation, logistics, commercial, residential, technology and entertainment components. At the centre of the project is the launch of operations of Dubai Logistics City, a

free trade zone for business, etc. It will connect to other member nations of GCC, India, Middle East, Southeast Europe, CIS, Africa, etc. Besides there will also be a residential city, science and technology park and golf resort. About 1.4 million square metres of leased land in Phase One has already been reserved by about 30 companies, which will begin constructing their individual premises from the second half of 2006. The plans also include integrated road and rail transportation network to support the Dubai Logistics City and the rest of JAAC. There will be a special motorway to connect Dubai City. However, the larger question is who will get to use the existing Dubai International Airport? Or will it be reserved exclusively for the Emirate. Already other mega carriers have raised this issue and the unfair advantage it will confer on those allowed exclusive use of the existing Dubai airport. Interestingly here are some rough stats on the present Dubai airport: Passenger numbers climbed 13.7 per cent in the first nine months of the 2005, compared with the same period of 2004—it touched 18.5 million. It is on track to handle 25 million passengers this year. Cargo movements also were up during the same timeframe, at 9,67,806 tonnes, compared with 8,10,726 tonnes in the same period of 2004. This represents a growth of 19.4 per cent. Meanwhile, Executive Fight Services in Dubai, or its business jet handling arm, achieved a 60 per cent growth in the first nine months, compared with the same period of 2004, with 4,242 flight landings in Dubai. With private jets increasing their frequency, Dubai International Airport has decided to station two latest versions of Lexus cars for easy transportation of the VVIPs who use the private jets. Dubai airport authorities have promised that they will change the Lexus model each year with new ones. Just for your information, they said the Lexus will be given for pick-up and drop free of charge.

Happy birthday, Boss!

It is a different matter this time that the hop-stepand-jump flight from Mumbai to Pune and to Dubai is being launched to mark the birthday of Maratha Strongman Sharad Pawar. Jokes apart, there was a need for such a flight for a long time. Anyone familiar with MumbaiPune highway will know that each evening, nearly 400 Tata Sumos and Qualis, carrying four to five passengers along with their luggage, would trundle to Mumbai’s Sahar airport to catch flights to various international destinations. With Air India inducting its terminator flights to Dubai, it will mean more passengers for the Emirates, which has been thriving on the Indian outbound traffic. Besides carrying passengers from India, we now have even Air India depositing more Indians at Dubai airport to enable them to catch Emirates’ flights to various European and American destinations.

IT IS a great way to say Happy Birthday to your political boss. At the instance of the Union Ministry of Civil Aviation, Air India is launching a non-stop flight between Pune and Dubai. The new flight, AI 718/719, will operate on the MumbaiPune-Dubai route with an A310 aircraft carrying 201 passengers in a two-class configuration (Business and Economy) on Mondays, Thursdays and Fridays. Nearly three years ago the then Civil Aviation Minister Shah Nawaz Hussein, in the NDA government, started the Jaipur-Delhi-Dubai flight.

CRUISING HEIGHTS December 2005

Air Arabia’s magic

ompared with the last four editions of the limited Open Skies, the free for all this winter, from mid-November 2005 to mid-March 2006, has been altered. International carriers are now being allowed to operate flights with higher capacity to India during the first two months of the Open Skies in the peak season. During this period, they are not being permitted to increase their number of services, but they can mount flights to the same destinations with higher capacity aircraft. Thus if an airline was using A340 or B777, it is being allowed to use the 747, which would mean a larger number of passengers. In the second phase, beginning mid-January, foreign carriers will be allowed to operate more flights to the same destinations, as governed by the bilaterals. This is in stark comparison to the earlier policy, when foreign carriers were not only allowed to use bigger aircraft but also to any airport with prior permission. Thus an airline operating to, say, Delhi or Bangalore will be given permission to operate more number of flights while they will not be permitted to fly to new cities and towns not covered in the bilateral agreement. During the Open Sky 2004-05 international airlines added more than 2,75,000 additional seats on their flights in and out of India. The one exception is Air Arabia, which has already mounted an additional A320 to Mumbai—the country’s most troubled airport. Surely this Sharjahbased LCC has plenty of magic. How else would you describe its ability to get a waiver? Considering that it has only A320s, Air Arabia had no option but to ask for more flights. It was ‘yes’ to them and ‘no’ to others.

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NEWS DIGEST

Plumping for V2500 Big order JET AIRWAYS has finally confirmed the type of wide body jets it is going to buy to fly various international routes. During the June 2005 Paris Air Show, Jet Airways had announced its intention to buy Airbus A330 and Boeing 777 aircraft. Now confirming that order, Jet Airways has announced that it will take ten A330s and an option for ten more, with deliveries starting in the first quarter of 2007. Jet had also ordered six B777-200 LR and four 777-300 ER. But it has now changed this order to ten firm and ten optional all for Boeing 777-300 ER alone and has dropped its earlier plan of acquiring Boeing 777-200 LR, the Worldliner that Boeing recently testified as the longest range aircraft in the world (see cover story). The contract is valued at US $2.53 billion at list prices, with deliveries commencing in early 2007. The aircraft will be used to expand the airlines’ international operations in the Asian, European and US markets. With the US market still not being open to Jet Airways, perhaps the airline must have thought it makes no sense to buy Boeing 777-200 LR Dreamliner that can fly nonstop from India to the US. When you cannot realise your dream, what is the point in buying the Dreamliner?

INDIGO, THE much-awaited private scheduled domestic carrier from the house of InterGlobe, owned by Rahul Bhatia, has selected V2500 engines to power its fleet of 100 Airbus A320s. It is a different matter that not one of the fancied A320 has yet arrived in India. The Indian LCC’s US $1.7 billion deal with International Aero Engine is the single largest firm order the company has received till date. IndiGo also becomes the launch customer for IAE’s V2500 Select type of engine. The new type of engine is more fuel efficient, stated IndiGo’s President and CEO, Bruce Ashby. The 22,000 to 33,000 lbs thrust V2500-A5 is available in seven different thrust settings to power Airbus A319, A320 and A321 family of aircraft, as well as the A319 Airbus corporate jet. IAE is a multi-national aeroengine consortium and its shareholders comprise Pratt & Whitney, Rolls Royce and the Japanese Aero Engines Corporation and MTU Aero Engines.

Transiting business BOTH EU and the Americans may be wanting to prevent the Iranians from developing their own nuclear facilities, supposedly meant for generating electricity. Others in the Gulf and the Middle East may also be wary of the Iranians’ growing nuclear prowess, despite that country’s status as a leading light of the Organisation of Islamic Countries (OIC). But when it comes to business, Iranians realise that the best way to remain afloat is to be competitive. The transit flights through Iranian air space have risen by 13.5 per cent in the first half of Iran’s calendar year (from March 21 to September 22) compared with the same period in 2004. Iran is competing seriously with Saudi Arabia and Iraq to win transit flight business (over-flight rights) particularly for services to and from the Gulf. Iran currently offers 30 per cent discount to aircraft weighing over 150 tonnes that transit through its air space.

Abu Dhabi, too, in the fray IF DUBAI has decided to go in for yet another new international airport at Jebel Ali which is being billed to be the biggest in the world, the richest Emirate in UAE, Abu Dhabi, is soon going to open its Mid-field Terminal Complex at its international airport. Four international design consultants have already submitted their plans. This facility will be part of US $5.7 billion redevelopment of Abu Dhabi International Airport (ADIA), which will result in 20 million passengers’ annual handling capacity. The multi-phase redevelopment will double the existing airport land area, to 3,400 hectares. A second runway will be built, 2,000 metres north of the currently used runway. Cargo, maintenance facility, catering and other commercial developments will be built between the two runways. By 2010, Etihad Airways, the Abu Dhabi headquartered national carrier of

CRUISING HEIGHTS December 2005

UAE and ADIA’s home airline will have a fleet of 50 wide bodied aircraft. Etihad, in all probability, may get delivery of the first of its four A380s before others in the Gulf.

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SPECIAL REPORT

It took exactly two-and-ahalf months for Indian Airlines to become Indian. The project began in mid-September, soon after the government cleared the IA acquisition. Praful Patel was unequivocal that if IA wanted to capture the imagination of the travelling public it needed some freshness. Has this been achieved with Indian? K. Srinivasan investigates.

n the early part of this year, Indian Airlines tendered to empanel a group of advertising agents for its marketing and advertising needs. Amongst those that applied was RK Swamy-BBDO. As part of its submission was a proposal for complete image makeover of the half-century-old brand. “A lot of other airlines had entered the market, there was new vigour in aviation and we felt that it was the right time for Indian Airlines to seriously contemplate a change of image,” said Ajit Shah, Executive Director at the agency and the man who had submitted the original proposal. Not surprisingly, he was the man on the spot when the makeover did indeed happen. RK Swamy was empanelled and, as luck would have it, it was selected from a huge pile of submissions to pilot the rebranding exercise. As Indian Airlines moved to a peppier, vigorous and a more in the face Indian (Though, to be fair, there are mixed feelings on the new name-Indian. What Indian? is the most common of the questions being asked.), it was RK Swamy’s design that was finally chosen as the livery for the brand new A319 that joined the fleet of the country’s national carrier on December 7 this year. It’s another matter that the mint-fresh, all-economy-class aircraft comes on lease straight from the Airbus factory at Hamburg. As and when it is replaced, it will be by another brand new A319 wholly owned by IA (The 43-aircraft deal with Airbus is likely to be signed anytime now). Internally, within the company, talk of an image makeover had been on for sometime. When it was clear that it would get a new fleet, there was general chatter amongst the airline’s senior directors on the pros and

WAITING FOR THE

INDIAN

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INDIAN ARRIVES: Minister Praful Patel waits in the ceremonial receiving area at India Gandhi International Airport waiting for the first A319 to arrive.

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SPECIAL REPORT cons of a rebranding exercise. After all, just a year and a half back, IA had been voted the country’s seventh best-loved brand in an ETAC Neilson national survey. “I must confess that this talk had begun during the time Mr Sunil Arora was at the helm, but nothing concrete had emerged, since the acquisition of aircraft was still to be completed,” said Deepak Brara, IA’s Director (PR), who oversaw the rebranding exercise from scratch to finish. But once Arora left in June even the loud thinking ebbed away. One of the key drivers for setting off the internal debate on rebranding, as many IA directors privately concede, was the launch of four new airlines in this fiscal year: SpiceJet, Kingfisher, Paramount and Go. These were the airlines that represented the new India-youthful, peppy and vigorous. How did one take them on? All of them-at least SpiceJet and Kingfisher, because they came before the other two-had caught the imagination of the travelling public with their fancy fares, glitzy marketing and sales promos and the brand new planes that looked loud, brash and inviting. Paramount and Go, too, are creating waves, but they are still too new to the business. In a real sense, though, the entire project to rebrand IA took on some urgency some two-and-a-half months back when the government finally cleared the long pending board decision to buy 43 Airbus 319s, 320s and 321s. With the A319s coming straight off the assembly line, the entire exercise took a momentum of its own. “Aircraft acquisition was going through, our leased aircraft were brand new and we were asked by the Ministry to appoint an advisor for our IPO. There was real momentum as far as IA was concerned and we felt it was time to build on it. I would say the real work began around September-end and since then the effort has been to conceptualise and get the design right,” said Brara. Not surprisingly, Civil Aviation Minister Praful Patel took keen interest in the rebranding saga-from the evolution of the concept from drawing board to the final package. Months back he had surprised everyone,

THE KEY PLAYERS: Acting CMD Sushma Chawla and Director (PR) Deepak Brara played a key role in the rebranding exercise.

THE EVOLUTION: An exclusive look at the drawings that explains how the concept was fleshed out and finally became Indian.

CRUISING HEIGHTS December 2005

including the top brass at IA, by announcing suo moto the possibility of renaming the IA subsidiary-Alliance Air-as India Shuttle and giving it a brand new image to compete with the Johnny come lately LCCs, which were not only poaching pilots, but giving the airline stiff competition as well. When he was quizzed hard on his announcement, he said, at that point of time, that it was nothing but “loud thinking”. Actually, it was nothing of that sort. India Shuttle was neither off the cuff nor was it loud thinking. It was India Shuttle that Praful wanted. At least until the middle of October it was Indian Shuttle. Naturally, the first few designs made were Indian Shuttle ones-it was in a way a desire to honour mantriji’s commitment and to give IA the time to convince the Minister that if there had to be change of colours and a break from the past, it had to start with the parent company. And their reason was really simple and practical. It had to do with Operations. IA had decided long back that the A319s would join the parent fleet, and not be part of the Alliance fleet. One reason was that the parent company had a strong pool of A320 commanders and co-pilots that could easily be trained to seamlessly take over operations of the A319s and the A321s. It required just a week’s training for it to take charge of these planes. The Alliance fleet was all Boeing, and getting their pilots to fly the modern fly-bywire A319s would mean a long and complicated conversion procedure. Moreover, the airline could hardly afford to have two sets of Airbus pilots without the pilots’ union getting into the act. So the A319s had to stay with IA. It had to be content with the Boeings and the ATRs as far as Alliance was concerned. That the subsidiary will now become a turbo-prop operator (the Boeings will go to the cargo division), with IA or Indian taking over most other routes, is a reality. But the future of Alliance is really a separate issue. Patel, who had set his heart on India Shuttle, went along with the argument and finally decided to forego Shuttle. To be fair to him, he enthusiastically agreed that if indeed the makeover had to happen it first had to begin

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The peacock series

GETTING IT HOME: Captain Chandiok, Director (Operations) commanded the first flight into Delhi.

Civil Aviation Minister Praful Patel participated and presided over in several meetings of the team at his home as he fast tracked the final design.

CRUISING HEIGHTS December 2005

SO WHAT should be the motif that would adorn Indian Airlines? This was the first question. And it produced the usual answers-tiger, peacock, national flag, Ashok Chakra. The classic motifs were the ones that were first discussed and then discarded. Not that they did not make it to the drawing board. They did and Praful Patel pored over many of them. In fact, some of them evolved and a complete series was produced on how the aircraft would look. The peacock series, which for some strange reason, ended up being compared to the swan, went the farthest, before being finally dropped. One reason for the animal motifs being dropped, according to a Ministry insider, was because they were being used by Air India for its LCC operations at Air India Express. Finally, they decided to go for the classic Konark Wheel design for the logo. “It’s a classic design that can’t get any better. As a wheel, it symbolised movement and we simply built on it,” said Ajit Shah. Patel added his bit to the concept, “Apart from movement, it reflected an ancient civilisation; in the case of IA, a classic airline; and continuity, in that the wheel moves forever. It also reflects the sun, warmth and growth.” The continuity is also reflected in the swaths of orange that is used in the new livery. But before the final purple-and-orange combination was finalised, the creative team tried a whole host of combinations: orangeorange, orange-yellow, yellow-orange, to name just a few. The Wheel also went through a whole gamut of creative expression before they finally decided to not tinker too much with an all-time classic design. “Let me put it this way. You look at Indian and you know immediately that it isn’t African or European or Chinese or Japanese. It is distinctly South Asian,” said Brara.

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SPECIAL REPORT with the parent company. Therefore, instead of Alliance, IA went on the drawing board. “I was keen that IA, which has such a long and wonderful history of service to the nation, was given a younger and fresher image to take on the competition. They have the resilience and the capability, but image is such a key factor. My focus was simple: bring energy back to the airline,” said Praful Patel. But he is quick to add that a peppy design that is the talking point, with a hundred different views, is really just the starting point. “The candy,” as one of his associates suggested, “has to match the wrapper.” To keep an element of surprise, which is a rarity in the public sector, the entire process was reduced to just a group of five peoplePraful Patel, Sushma Chawla, Deepak Brara, Ajit Shah and the design team at RK Swamy. In fact Praful participated and presided over in several meetings of the team at his home as he fast-tracked the final design. There was a sense of urgency: the leased A319s were ready for delivery and the manufacturer wanted the design so that it could release the aircraft. “I am delighted by the final product. It’s Indian and conveys so many emotions. And one must give full credit to the IA team for its effort at rebranding. We had to get it just right,” said Praful. Perhaps the decision to rechristen Indian Airlines as Indian stems, at a certain level, from Praful’s choice of Indian Shuttle for Alliance. While Shuttle was dropped, IA adopted Indian. But Indian sounds more like a hanging indent! “In a few months it will roll quite comfortably off people’s tongue,” assures Brara, and adds, “There has been Canadian, Austrian and Australian, if you wish to know of other examples.” But the jury is still out on this one. Maybe six months down the line one can make a fair assessment of what Indian has managed to achieve. Within Indian Airlines, the reaction has been, by and large, extremely positive. Outside of the airline’s headquarters, there are two points of view-the traditionalists decrying the change in logo and the younger lot liking the change. There is a caveat, though. “If the Indian product goes up, then I’ll accept that it is real change,” said a veteran airline official, who declined to be named. In fact, he cautioned that the positive impact of the change can bring with it huge expectations, which unless met could turn disastrous. When the first three A319s start flying from December 16, the real test will come for IA-its service. In the ultimate analysis that’s what will dictate passenger preferences in the cutthroat marketplace. NDTV summed it up best when it likened Indian Airlines to “the old lady of Indian aviation” getting a new set of clothes. Tradition, long years of service and a great brand image are all in place. Dollops of service can simply put Indian in a league of its own.

The AI Story IN THE late Eighties, Air India decided that it was time to give the country’s international carrier a complete image overhaul. Naturally, the first point of attention was the livery. It had to change. Initially there was uproar that the Maharaja was being dumped. But the then managing director Rajan Jaitley, who was the architect of that project, quickly assured the public that Bobby Kooka’s beloved Maharaja will continue to be the heart of Air India’s campaign. What had to go was the red Centaur logo on the tail and the blobs of red all around. So Jaitley hired Landor Associates, a top design company in Los Angeles, to do up the Air India livery. It was an expensive change. It cost the airline close to three million dollars for the makeover-it had a rising sun on its tail to signify purity, strength and tradition. The chairman at the time was Ratan Tata, nephew of the man who founded Air India-JRD Tata. But in 1991 when the late Madhavrao Scindia took over the Union Civil Aviation Ministry, one of the first changes he wrought was to revert to the old, traditional Air India, including the design. Scindia loved the intricate windows of CRUISING HEIGHTS December 2005

AI, something that was eliminated in the new-look design. He wanted them back at all cost, and directed AI to go back to its roots. Fortunately, the airline hadn’t painted its entire fleet. Just six of its planes had got the new logo and design, and it was easy for them to return to their earlier avatar. “It would be entirely inappropriate to say that money was wasted or it was a money making exercise. Landor was a world leader in design and several top airlines had sought their services. Naturally, we decided to go for the best. But please remember they were paid for their designing services, not for a paint job. That is carried out when the airlines go in for their major checks and the whole aircraft gets a fresh coat of paint,” said one senior AI official, who declined to be named. But it speaks volumes for the independence of our public-sector companies that Ministers, with a wave of hand, can order for money to be spent, with virtually no answerability. As the largest shareholders, they perpetually have AI and IA by the throat. Praful Patel, of course, vociferously disagrees with the argument.

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AVIATION DIGEST

Continental Airlines is top carrier CONTINENTAL AIRLINES bested all US network carriers in Zagat’s 2005 US Airline Survey and 2005 International Airline Survey, outscoring its network competitors in every category, both premium and economy-class service. To obtain results for the 2005 survey, Zagat Survey, provider of consumer survey-based travel and leisure content, asked more than 5,000 regular travellers and travel professionals for information on their air travel during the past year. The ratings and reviews cover 22 domestic and 55 international carriers. For the second consecutive year, Fortune magazine named Continental the No. 1 Most Admired Global Airline on its 2005 list of Most Admired Global Companies. It was also included in the publication’s annual Top 50 list, which ranks all companies, across a wide variety of industries, that appear in the Global Most Admired Companies issue. Continental, again, won major awards at the 2005 OAG Airline of the Year Awards, including Airline of the Year and Best Airline Based in North America for the second consecutive year, and Best Executive/Business Class for the third consecutive year.

Qatar Airways scoops five travel awards in London

Low cost dictates LOW-COST airlines are now the major factor dictating how European countries perform as tourist destinations. This is one of the key findings from World Travel Market’s UK & European Travel Report. More than half of the 30 European Travel Commission member nations have admitted getting or maintaining no-frills services is central to their future success. The findings mark a significant shift in the way countries attract visitors. In the past, traditional package tour operators were seen as the best way of bringing in tourists. Figures showing visitor numbers across Europe for the first nine months of 2005 seem to bear out the importance of low-cost airlines. The UK is by far the most important market in Europe, whether in terms of total flight trips (more than 45 million in 2004), low-fare air trips (18 million) or the share of low-fare trips in total air trip volume (over 40). Countries that have had low-cost services for a number of years, for example, the Czech Republic, Germany and France, admitted to the European Travel Commission that tourism performance would be severely damaged should the carriers ever pull out. The change in the way holidaymakers travel hasn’t been great news for all. Destinations such as Cyprus and Malta—both without a no-frills service—believe they will suffer in the future.

Changi right on top MORE PASSENGER and air cargo traffic is expected at Singapore’s Changi Airport, as the airport receives a record of some 4,000 weekly scheduled flights for the new Northern Winter Season, which spans from 30 October 2005 to 25 March 2006. This is an increase of about a hundred flights from some 3,900 weekly scheduled flights in the Northern Summer 2005 season (27 March 2005 to 29 October 2005). Today, there are 83 airlines in Singapore, setting yet another record high for Changi Airport. These increases, by both foreign and local carriers, reaffirm Changi Airport’s status as a vibrant international air hub. Two new airlines, AdamAir and Yangtze River Express, have joined Changi’s family. AdamAir, which began operations from Jakarta on 28 October 2005, is Changi Airport’s fifth Indonesian airline, after Garuda, Merpati, Lion Air and Republic Express. It is set to cater to the expected strong passenger traffic demand between Indonesia and Singapore. On 1 November 2005, Changi Airport welcomed its first cargo airline from China—Yangtze River Express. Serving Singapore from both Shanghai and Nanning, with six flights a week, its operations have resulted in a new city link in Nanning for Changi and increased Changi’s city links with China to 18. Singapore is the carrier’s first scheduled destination in Southeast Asia. These two airlines join Jet Airways, Air Sahara and Pakistan International Airlines as new airlines that began operations to Changi Airport in 2005. In addition, a third new airline, LOT Polish, has started serving the Singapore-Warsaw market on 30 October 2005 on a code-sharing basis with Singapore Airlines. Warsaw, capital of Poland, is a new city link for Changi. Another new addition on Changi’s network is Wilmington, in Ohio, USA, connected by Northwest Airlines’ cargo services. CRUISING HEIGHTS December 2005

AWARD-WINNING Qatar Airways boosted its tally of international honours by grabbing four key accolades at the 12th World Travel Awards during a ceremony in London. Qatar Airways Chief Executive Officer Akbar Al Baker was honoured with the 2005 Airline Personality of the Year award. The airline also picked up awards for World’s Leading Flat Bed Seat, Best In-flight Meal Service and Leading Airline in the Middle East. The Doha-based carrier added a fifth accolade at the opening of World Travel Market (WTM) in London by winning a World Travel Global award. As one of the youngest and fastest growing airlines, the achievements are seen as remarkable in the short few years since Qatar Airways’ relaunch in 1997 from a small regional carrier with a handful of routes to a global airline covering 66 destinations. Al Baker has been instrumental in guiding Qatar Airways into a powerful airline in Middle East aviation and a leading global carrier since being appointed CEO in 1997. He has single-handedly shaped the airline into an award-winning regional and international carrier from its operational hub of Doha, capital of the State of Qatar.

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Fraport launches “Airport City” website REFLECTING FRANKFURT AIRPORT’S (FRA) development as a vibrant city, Fraport AG recently launched a newly designed website to present expanded information and features not only for passengers and visitors, but also for various business partners. The new website for Germany’s air transportation hub now offers details about FRA’s strategic business advantages. Frankfurt airport serves more than 51 million passengers per year. With more than 68,000 employees, FRA is Germany's biggest employment complex at a single location. The Frankfurt Airport City site features three channels: Travel, Experience and Business. A three-dimension model of Frankfurt Airport City is one of the many interactive features of the site.

India is ‘hot’ A REPORT commissioned by the European Tour Operators Association (ETOA) reinforces the view that India is an exciting new origin market for visitors to Europe. Many fundamentals of this market are promising. The population is young. The stock market is booming. The software industry is flourishing, as are call centres and other branches of the service economy. English is the standard language in almost every field. The UK, Switzerland and Italy are the most popular destinations for Indian tourists. In 2004, Britain received 2,56,000 visits from India, an increase of nearly 60,000 (31 per cent) on 2003.

Slow upswing SEATS SOLD on select Asia Pacific airlines in the first half increased by 6.5 per cent on average. There were declines, too. For Thai—understandably, because of the tsunami last December. For Qantas— most likely the winds of competition. And

Royal Brunei— which is cutting capacity, albeit at 12 per cent, compared with its 14 per cent fall in traffic. Growth at Singapore Airlines, the regional leader in seat sales, was below its preferred seven per cent

Flight news forum launched

CHEAPFLIGHTS, the UK’s travel price comparison website, launched Flight News—a new online news community providing practical, up-to-date travel information to today’s busy and price-savvy traveller. Users are encouraged to give feedback by adding comments to help fellow travellers make the most out of breaking news. Stories and comments are updated on a daily basis. This totally non-commercial section is designed to provide practical travel information that is not provided elsewhere on the Internet in one comprehensive site.

to eight per cent. The big performer was Cathay Pacific, up a very fast 15 per cent. Part of this is traffic growth caused by some fare wars, and part from the airline’s relatively recent (re)entry into the China market, particularly on routes to Beijing and Shanghai. The other surprise is growth at Malaysia Airlines, which is prompted in part by competition-prompted fare discounting. Some of the region’s ‘secondaries’—relatively new airlines challenging incumbents in their home

Las Vegas top gay, lesbian destination

LAS VEGAS is among the leading US travel destinations for gays and lesbians, according to a recent study by Community Marketing, Inc., a San Francisco-based market research lab. Twenty-five per cent of the 4,000 gays and lesbians surveyed travelled to Las Vegas in 2005, ranking second only to New York, which 30 per cent had visited. San Francisco ranked third, with 24 per cent. The findings help bolster Las Vegas’ evolution into one of the world’s most exciting

destinations with world-class dining and shopping, unparalleled entertainment and top golf courses and spas. Las Vegas hosted 37.4 million visitors in 2004 and that number is estimated to increase to a record-breaking 38 million in 2005. In upcoming campaigns, the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority (LVCVA) plans to punctuate its marketing programmes with the launch of a multi-faceted campaign, specifically targeting the gay and lesbian travellers. The American gay and lesbian community represents a $65 billion travel market in the United States, amounting to about five per cent of the annual $1.3 trillion US travel industry, according to the Travel Industry Association of America. Recent studies by Community Marketing, Inc., however, indicate that gay and lesbian travel and tourism represents a far larger percentage of the overall travel market.

CRUISING HEIGHTS December 2005

markets-are already quite large. Largest is Korea’s Asiana, followed by Taiwan’s Eva and Hong Kong’s Dragonair. All are bigger, for instance, than the established Philippine Airlines, and a still-downsizing Garuda. Air Macau, also relatively new, is growing fast, and seems likely to become larger than Garuda shortly.

Record profits for Ryanair THE LOW-FARE airline has announced record half-year profits in spite of high fuel prices and intense competition in the European market. Ryanair made a profit of 237 million euros after tax in the six months ending September 30 and saw traffic grow by 29 per cent, from 14 million to 18 million passengers. Total revenues were up by one third in the same period in 2004 and reached 946.2 million euros. The first half of the year is always the best for Ryanair, as it covers the summer leisure travel season, and financial performance is lower over the winter by comparison.

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SOUTHERN DESPATCHES

Air Deccan has gone in for a joint venture-Deccan Lanka-that will fly into India from Colombo. This new carrier is the first international LCC from the region and brings in its wake innumerable possibilities, as well as plenty of questions that the regulators will be forced to contend with. An exclusive report.

he past year or two has ushered in a new wave of liberalisation in the Indian skies. Some of the changes have spurred a paradigm shift in the way airlines operate, both in the domestic space and in the international market. From the customers’ perspective, it has opened new opportunities for travel at more accessible fare levels and from the interiors of the country. India’s first and largest low-cost carrier, Air Deccan, in joint venture with two local partners in Sri Lanka, has floated a private airline—Deccan Lanka—licence for which has been issued by the Civil Aviation Authority in Sri Lanka. This development augurs well for the travellers in the region, and takes the industry to the next stage of evolution. It also opens doors for another international budget airline in the region, and with strong India connections.

The budget carriers in the domestic skies, though still start-ups, have shaken the legacy airlines out of their comfort zone.

DECCAN’S

While this development may have taken the market by surprise, trade analysts say it’s in line with the myriad changes rolled out by authorities in the Asian region. For instance, the budget carriers in the domestic skies, though still start-ups, have shaken the legacy airlines out of their comfort zone. Similarly, while private airlines Jet Airways and Air Sahara have taken the first tentative steps on the international flight path, they have already increased the stress level on the more entrenched players in the market. The softer economy class fares are a clear reflection of the constantly evolving market dynamics. While doors have been opened to international flying by domestic carriers, the rule that mandates a five-year experience before an airline steps out, has faced some resistance from newcomers. There have been allegations that it runs contrary to the

REVERSE SWING! 22

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government’s effort to permit market forces to work freely, and allows a duopoly of a different kind to prevail. Kingfisher Airlines’ chairman, Vijay Mallya, for instance, has even threatened to float an international airline in the US led by his son who is an American citizen, if international flying norms are not revised in favour of the new incumbents. It’s a different matter that floating a brand new airline in the US will not be a cakewalk, given the considerable start-up and branding costs involved. Besides, such an airline will also be guided by the bilateral agreement between India and the US, and may not be permitted overnight by the American transport department to commence long-distance international flights. In any case, UB chief Vijay Mallya has already indicated that the plan to float a new airline in the US is only the last resort, to be executed in case the Indian aviation ministry does not relent at all. Kingfisher’s wide-body planes are not expected before 2008, by when it would have been in the air for three years. Meanwhile, Kingfisher has also shown interest in investing in Air Sahara since, along with other benefits, it will allow the start-up to fly overseas. Even Air Deccan chief Capt G.R. Gopinath has said that once airlines are given the nod to fly in the domestic skies, there should be no discrimination in allowing them to go abroad, considering the security and operational implications are more or less the same, albeit on a bigger scale. End of the day, more than the age of the airline, it’s the skills that count. If it has engaged experienced personnel to run the company, there is no reason why it should not be allowed to go international. Whether domestic airlines go overseas or not, they should have the first right of refusal, he said. Incidentally, he has also held all along that Air Deccan has no nearterm plans to fly abroad. So, while Air Deccan has not made any serious pitch for opening the international doors, it has sought the Sri Lankan government nod to kick-start an international airline. The Lankan aviation regulators have issued the necessary licence. Sri Lankan authorities have taken a step ahead of India and permitted a foreign carrier to invest in their domestic network. While India has been liberal in allowing more players into the market, breaking the monopoly of staterun Air India and Indian Airlines, it has

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Sri Lankan authorities have taken a step ahead of India by permitting a foreign carrier to invest in their domestic network. CRUISING HEIGHTS December 2005

resisted the idea of allowing international airlines to invest in India. The more liberal bilateral charter written in recent years in the SAARC belt now virtually promises an ‘open sky’ in the region with few caps on the movement. Sri Lankan Airlines has already taken advantage of this airline-friendly regime and mounted a whopping 85 weekly services from the island republic. And if officials are to be believed, Sri Lankan Airlines wants to further expand its footprint in India. Deccan Lanka, the first private airline in Sri Lanka with rights to go international, will roll out its operations six months hence with three leased Airbus 320. These planes will come in a single-cabin configuration and will unveil the first low-cost airline service from Colombo. The only international LCCs touching India at present include AI Express, Jetstar Asia, Tiger Air and Air Arabia. Incidentally, this is Deccan’s second exposure to Sri Lanka since the same company is already operating a helicopter charter at its port for some months now. The charter business has also done well enough to warrant induction of more helicopters in the near future. Deccan Lanka will be operated by another management independent of Air Deccan in India. On the cards next year are flights from Colombo to key gateways in the South, West and North India, besides connecting mid-distance destinations like Dubai, Singapore, Kuala Lumpur, Bangkok, etc. According to Capt Gopinath, while the bilateral pact between India and Sri Lanka envisages flights by more than one carrier on this route, it is yet to be seen whether the six freedom traffic rights are available to the airlines. Allowing this would mean that instead of a Deccan Lanka flight coming to Bangalore or Kochi from Colombo and returning to home station first before hitting off to an Asian or Western capital, it can land in India and pick up onward traffic. Sri Lankan Airlines, for instance, has rights to pick up onward traffic to Pakistan from India. In fact, analysts say it’s only a matter of time before the fifth and sixth freedom rights become more easily available. Carriers from Britain have this right on a reciprocal basis, having granted similar concessions to Indian flagship airline Air India, which can lift passengers from London to the US. Last year, about 1,20,000 people from India visited Sri Lanka. This year, the volume is likely to grow. Colombo’s prominence as a transit point for onward connection to South Asia and Europe is also becoming more visible. From South India, Sri Lankan Airways flights are already considered a more economical option to many international destinations. At least a fifth of its traffic from India flies beyond Colombo.

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GIANT MODEL: A majestic model of the A380 was the centrepiece of the main exhibition hall at the Air Show. The Emirates section at the show revolved around this double decker from Airbus Industrie. Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s another matter that it signed a record breaking deal with Boeing at the show.

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Dubai Showtime COVER STORY

Dubai Air Show is fast acquiring the reputation of a premier industry event. In fact, it is getting bigger and better with each edition. An exclusive report by R. Krishnan.

T WON’T BE an overstatement if one says that Dubai Air Show may soon occupy the top slot in the global aviation business. The air shows at Paris and Farnborough, near London, have till now been billed as the best and the latest. The biannual Dubai Air Show 2005, ninth since its start in 1989, is all set to catch up, considering the classy participation it attracted during the four-day event (November 20 to 24). To put it simply, it was a big show with big-time participation. The beauty of Dubai is that though it has the latest and most modern airport with huge terminals, Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed Al Maktoum, the Crown Prince, President of Dubai’s Department of Civil Aviation and Chairman of Emirates group, has initiated steps to build the world’s biggest and ultra-modern airport at Jebel Ali, 40 kilometres from the tiny Emirate, which has no oil or gas and is one of the seven that constitute the United Arab Emirates (UAE). Take a look at this. Dubai is already investing US $4.1 billion in the next expansion of the existing Dubai airport, which will be ready by January-March 2007. It will expand the existing airport’s capacity threefold, to 75 million passengers a year. The centrepiece of this expansion will be the new concourse with 20 two-level A380 gates—the lower gates will evacuate passengers on the lower floor and the upper gates

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Mallya’s dream

ou have to grant it to the man. He has plenty of chutzpah, has the moolah to back it and doesn't have to look behind his back when he orders aircraft left, right and centre. At Dubai, Mallya ordered more of the A320s and over a dozen and a half ATRs for the lesser routes that the King of Good Times hopes to soon do. And to give him company at the press conference was Civil Aviation Minister Praful Patel and Airbus’ Gustav Humbert, who were certainly relieved that they had something to announce. There is no pattern to Mallya’s grandiose dreams of having Kingfisher swarm the Indian skies. At times his reactions are off the cuff and dramatic. Dubai was no different. His COO, Nigel Harwood, was by his side all the while, but Mallya did most of the talking. Like him or hate him, you can’t ignore him. That’s Vijay Mallya for you.

MORE ORDERS: Kingfisher chief Vijay Mallya (centre) with Civil Aviation Minister Praful Patel (left) and Gustav Humbert of Airbus (right). At the Air Show, Mallya announced more purchases. But where is the space to park them?

will evacuate passengers sitting on the upper deck of the A380, which will seat 555 passengers in a three-class configuration. For comparisons, let it be known that in another year’s time, Dubai will have the wherewithal to handle more passengers than do all Indian airports put together have. Obviously to any rational thinker, it will sound odd that Dubai rulers should even think of shifting the venue of the

THE INTERIOR: This is how the double decker will look from inside—Club Class and First Class on the top deck and the Economy Class below. Visitors could get in and look at the configuration. Many were delighted with a seat in the mock plane!

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Side by side A

s always, the battle in Dubai was between the big two— Airbus and Boeing. Last summer in Paris, it was Airbus that had run away with all the headlines. Scores and scores of planes were ordered then—over 200 from India alone. But this time it was the turn of Boeing. It capped a hugely successful run with the Worldliner and the Dreamliner with a whopping multi billion-dollar order from Emirates. For Airbus, the saving grace, it must be confessed, came with Kingfisher ordering a few more of its A320s. Draw wise, though, it was the A380 that ran away with all the headlines. It featured many times each day in the newspapers and people never seemed to tire of it. On first looks it must be said that the plane doesn’t look big, but it has a huge fuselage to accommodate the two storeys. But it is the interiors that are a revelation—filled with tanks of water mixed with chemicals for the right content and to make sure that it doesn’t freeze or evaporate. The result is that the aircraft travelled half the world on test flights with its belly loaded with just the right payload. Ironically both the rivals stood side by side—the Worldliner had an equally excited number of visitors as did the A380.What fetched the Worldliner full marks was the fact that the aircraft was the same one that had just set a world record. Naturally everyone wanted to smell the paint, so to speak.

LISTENING TO MANTRIJI: Air India’s Chairman V. Thulasidas (left) was there at the show and keeping him company was Yash Sinha, India’s Counsel General in Dubai.

Jebel Ali International Airport, when ready, will be equal to Chicago and Heathrow put together. CRUISING HEIGHTS December 2005

future air shows. Yes they are going to once the Jebel Ali airport is ready. (Please read our special section on Jebel Ali airport for more details). According to Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed Al Maktoum, Dubai Air Show will be shifted in 2009 to the new Jebel Ali International Airport—the first phase of a six-runway, 137 square kilometre giant capable of handling 180 million passengers. Once ready, the new airport will be equal to two Chicago O’Hare airport or Chicago and Heathrow put together. So it will not be wrong for anyone to say that Dubai will soon acquire the wherewithal to stage the biggest air show in the world in the next three years. One doesn’t want to say anything about India’s own experience of building new airports or modernising the completely run-down airports in all the four metros. Sorry for having digressed. But such a perspective is necessary for our readers, as Indians have always planned for a shortage notwithstanding the hugely excess population. When Dubai Air Show started in 1989, it attracted just 200 exhibitors, covering 7,000 square metres at Dubai International Airport and just filled a large exhibition hall. Twenty-five aircraft were on display and 10,000 industry visitors attended. In 2003 Air Show, there were 550 exhibitors from 36 countries and it featured 13 national pavilions, of which the US’s was the

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Side by side A

LISTENING TO MANTRIJI: Air India’s Chairman V. Thulasidas (left) was there at the show and keeping him company was Yash Sinha, India’s Counsel General in Dubai.

Jebel Ali International Airport, when ready, will be equal to Chicago and Heathrow put together. CRUISING HEIGHTS December 2005

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largest. New to the show, then, was a dedicated helicopter pavilion. In all, 85 aircraft were at the show, of which 22 took part in the daily flying display. More than 350 VIP delegations from 84 countries attended. But Dubai Air Show 2005 broke all records. It brought together 730 exhibitors from 46 countries and 150 official delegations from 88 countries to the exhibition. It featured over 15 national pavilions, of which India had one and that, too, for the first time. There were 100 aircraft ranging from the Airbus A380 Super Jumbo that flew into Dubai on November 19 and Boeing 777-200LR Worldliner, which had just days before flown 21,601 kilometres nonstop for 22 hours and 42 minutes with eight pilots from Hong Kong to London Heathrow after circumnavigating the US from west to east coast before crossing the Atlantic to land in the city of the Big Ben, to Embraers, business jets from both Airbus and Boeing stables, an assortment of fighter aircraft, helicopters, etc. Two years ago when Dubai Air Show 2003 was inaugurated, Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Mak-

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During the show Kingfisher Airlines and SpiceJet signed with Emirates a multiyear contract for CAE flight training. This is significant as the two fly differentlyâ&#x20AC;&#x201D; Kingfisher flies Airbus and SpiceJet, Boeings.

toum told the organisers that there was need for one more new hall and additional space. Within two years this was done. Now, he says, they will move to an even bigger venue. There are many countries that have the money; but not many have the vision. For the first time a pavilion was dedicated to Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV), organised by the Washington-based Association for Unmanned Systems International, a leader in UAV industry. One of the major features of the Dubai Air Show was the cheek-and-jowl togetherness of the civil and military activity. The show also witnessed the global launch of ground-breaking software systems enabling airlines to accurately record fleet technical log data, compliance with aviation authoritiesâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; requirements and ways to increase asset utilisation. Sixteen Indian companies participated in the show at the initiative of Society of Indian Aerospace Technologies and Industries (SIATI). They covered a broad spectrum of fields, such as aerospace materials, composites, structures, electromechanical and electronic equipment, systems and software providers and

CLASS ACT: The exhibition was extremely well organised and well laid out in the Ceremonial Section at Dubai International Airport. This is the area of the airport used by royalty to zip in and out of the country.

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COVER STORY PLENTY OF ACTION: Each afternoon on all four days there was a breathtaking show that had a variety of fighters, commercial aircraft and choppers vying for attention from the delegates and visitors. TAKING CONTROL: A local delegate gets into the cockpit of one of the fighter aircraft on display.

WHAT A MARVEL: A model of the futuristic Jabel Ali International Airport was one of the top attractions. Once complete, it will dwarf anything that has been ever done in terms of airport planning and management.

general aviation service providers. Both ISRO and NAL took part in showcasing India’s capabilities and advances in the field of space research and development. It was aptly called Brand India Pavilion. During the show private carriers Kingfisher Airlines and SpiceJet signed with Emirates a multiyear contract for CAE flight training. This is significant as the two fly differently— Kingfisher flies Airbus and SpiceJet, Boeings. For three hours each afternoon (from 2 pm to 5 pm) on each day of the four-day show the air space over Dubai was closed to enable the smooth flight display by A380, helicopters, fighters like F-16, MiG 29, Korea’s advanced jet trainer aircraft T-50, called Golden Eagle. Dubai authorities chose this time because it was the leanest hours of operations. There were lesser flights to manage and juggling them would cause few headaches. It was a wonderful sight to see the B-2 stealth bomber, flying virtually noiseless, escorted by two F-16s from the western end across the Dubai airspace back to the US from where it had taken off many hours earlier. It is reported that B-2 stealth bomber never lands in any country other than its designated base at Montana, US. Nobody is allowed to even photograph the aircraft that can avoid any kind of radar because of the composite material used in making it. It is literally a flying bat, with no gap between the wings and the fuselage, a sort of triangle with wave-like wings. The highlight of the Air Show was the aerobatics display by Eight Alpha Jets of

RECORD FLIGHT: Boeing had the world record breaking Worldliner 777 200 LR on show at the show. It was the same aircraft that had flown 22 hours 45 minutes non-stop from Hong Kong to London via the US (coast to coast across the Atlantic).The aircraft was a huge hit.

CRUISING HEIGHTS December 2005

Patrouille de France, one of world’s most famous aerobatics teams. It was for the third time the squadron had made its appearance in Dubai. It was a brilliant, breathtaking display, especially when the jets let off stream of colours as they zoomed past the clear blue sky. After the opening of the flight show by the French, those who followed were mainly solo flyers. Another hallmark was the display by technically very sophisticated American Nighthawk F117A stealth fighter and the old warhorse— the Stratofortress B52 bomber—powered by its eight engines (same kind but more

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Growing by the day I

modern and which once used to power the Boeing 707) and has been in service for nearly four decades. The Russian MiG 29 and the French Rafael also enthralled the crowds. But the cynosure of all eyes was the A380 that made a special display in the afternoon. Another highlight of the show was the AH64-A Apache attack helicopter of the air wing of the UAE Army. Heard in the Air Show: the Air Show in Singapore, which till now was billed to be bigger than Dubai’s, will make way for another location in Asia. Perhaps Dubai has already displaced Singapore and in another three years it will perhaps even push Paris and Farnborough to the background. All this in a tiny Emirate that makes all the money from its aviation hub, airline business, tourism, financial market and tourism, coupled with regular shopping festivals. Dubai does not produce an ounce of gold but has the biggest Gold Souk (market). Soon it could be the same for the aviation business.

It was a wonderful sight to see the B-2 stealth bomber, flying virtually noiseless, escorted by two F-16s from the western end across the Dubai airspace back to the US... CRUISING HEIGHTS December 2005

t’s no surprise that Dubai is all about Emirates. It’s also about constant innovation and a philosophy with the core component: always stay ahead of the pack. That’s why the Jabel Ali Airport or the Jumiera Beach resort. When Praful Patel wanted to stay on his own and not be a guest of the Dubai authorities, it was a real job finding him a couple of rooms. There are over 150 top quality hotels in Dubai and another 80 are scheduled to come up next year. This is apart from the fifty-odd apartment hotels that are already operating. Yet finding a room in this city is a nightmare. “Touch wood, our flights depart on time. I shudder to think of a situation when one of them is cancelled and I have to accommodate a hundred-odd passengers in hotels. It can be a nightmare,” said Shrivastava, IA’s regional manager for the Gulf. Apart from the large floating population touching down and taking off from Dubai, there are the great exhibitions and convention bazaars that have a prime position in this tiny Emirate’s vision for its evolution. Virtually some exhibition or convention is scheduled each fortnight and the idea is to, like Singapore, build on this strength. And if all this is not enough they are also thinking of creating their own events. When it lost the Formula One to Singapore, it decided to devise its own event where nations compete with each other. The motto is simple: pull in the crowds, strategise, devise and move ahead.

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SPECIAL REPORT

Tourism initiatives

The tourism figure for 2005 have been astounding and Renuka Chowdhary is gung ho about 2006. The Ministry has been at the forefront of several notable initiatives in the past four weeks. A special report.

ourism Minister Renuka Chowdhary is on a blitz these days. In the last one month she has been virtually on overdrive traveling across the globe to sell Indian tourism and promoting events that are close to her heart. She was in London for a highly successful intervention at the World Tourism Meet. Back home she has formally launched a slew of initiatives including a night bazaar in her home state, Andhra Pradesh and project Priyadarshini aimed at bringing women into the Incredible India and Atithi Devo Bhava campaign. And if that was not enough she made a quick trip to Afghanistan to sign a comprehensive tourism agreement with that country. Its speaks volumes for the booming Indian tourism sector that the Indian sec-

Apart from a host of other issues that she spoke about at the event, Renuka Chowdhary had a special mention of the Tsunami and its impact. CRUISING HEIGHTS December 2005

tion was the third largest in this year’s WTM. Apart from Renuka Chowdhary, the Indian delegation included Secretary A K Mishra, Joint Secretary Amitabh Kant, and several state tourism Ministers and a large group of officials from the states. Apart from a host of other issues that she spoke about at the event, Renuka Chowdhary had a special mention of the Tsunami and its impact. This was at a press conference hosted b y the WTM. “Fortunately we were not impacted much by the Tsunami in tourism terms and we have such a huge coastline that there are so many great alternatives available to the tourist,” said Renuka. But she did agree that natural disasters can affect tourism as the Tsunami did and it was upto countries to get together to act on this issue. It is unfair to single out one particular country and advisories across the globe need tobe looked at,” she added.

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SPECIAL REPORT

She was also categorical that poor advisories risked playing into thehands of terrorists. “There is a danger of terrorists using tourism as an instrument of terrorism,but governments should encourage their citizens to stand upto such attacks.” Using the opportunity, she interacted with top tour operators in the United Kingdom during an exclusive breakfast meeting. There was also a presentation on the Indian tourism scene and new products by Amitabh Kant. “The WTM has been a great

WITH THE DOYEN: Tourism Industry doyen Ram Kohli greets Renuka Chowdhary at the WTM in London.

opportunity for us to extract further mileage for Indian tourism and having the Minister during such an event can be invaluable,” said one industry expert who was at the show. Renuka herself is quite candid and believes that tourism in India can only benefit from such interaction. Meanwhile her home state of Andhra Pradesh is delighted that her brainchild, the night bazaar will soon be inaugurated in Hyderabad.The state capital is gearing for the opening up of one of the country’s

The Kabul Connection Renuka Chowdhary’s trip to Afghanistan was a great success according to Ministry officials. She has signed a comprehensive agreement with the Tourism Ministry of that country to help them upgrade their facilities and slowly get their tourism back into gear. The country’s first five star hotel recently opened its door to guests and they are keen to expand air services and help more people travel in and out of Afghanistan. Picture (right) shows the Minister signing the comprehensive agreement with her Afghan countertpart. The other picture (left) is a prominent street being named after Mahatma Gandhi. Why is the ‘h’ missing?

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Operation Priyadarshini

biggest convention centers this January and the bazaar is likely to give a fillip to the entire concept of work cum pleasure. But it is 2006 that Renuka Chowdhary is most excited about. She has several plans up her sleeve that is likely to be announced in the coming few weeks. The industry has witnessed unprecedented growth in these 12 months and the Ministry is determined to maintain the momentum. “I want to take Tourism to the next level. That’s the objective for 2006,” she said.

OTHER SCENES FROM THE WTM: The tourism Minister spent a lot of time interacting with state representatives and visiting all the stalls in the India section.

The industry has witnessed unprecedented growth in these 12 months and the Ministry is determined to maintain the momentum. CRUISING HEIGHTS December 2005

THE NEXT time you hail a cab, don’t be surprised to find Shewta or Aaina or Rajni instead of a sardarji. They are there as part of Project Priyadarshani, the brainchild of the none other than Renuka Chowdhury, Minister of State for Tourism. The name Priyadarshini seems to be have been carefully chosen, after Indira Gandhi, who in her younger days was called Indira Priyadarshini. Part of the ambitious campaign Incredible India, the project is also in line with the Ministry’s Atithi Devo Bhava programme. And the ladies are the Capital’s first to be trained women cab-service providers and tourist guides. This first batch will be imparted three-month training in commercial driving, vehicle repairing, and, understandably, selfdefence. They will be provided financial aid as well. The project aims to train women from different economic backgrounds to become self-dependent. Initially, the womendriven taxis will run in the Capital, and will later be extended to other cities as well. All the nine women understand that this is a challenging and pathbreaking profession, but are confident that they will do a good job. And in a chorus they assert they have not acted on impulse. Quite understandable—they are graduates. They reason that when women can fly planes, fight for the country, why can’t they drive a car and take care of tourists visiting India? Excited about the whole thing, they feel that Operation Priyadarshini will be invaluable for women and more so for single women tourists visiting India. And that they are here to ensure that the tourists feel safe and enjoy their trip. Point taken. And the Minister sums it up the best, “Indian women are second to none.”

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ACHIEVEMENT

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BALLOONING INTO HISTORY BOOKS

n 25 November 2005, industrialist and aviator Vijaypat Singhania became the first man to sail at 69,852 feet above sea level in a hot air balloon, thereby breaking the world record, of 64,997 feet, set by Per Lindstrand in June 1988 in Texas. Although he attempted to attain 70,000 feet, he terminated the journey after touching 69,000 feet. Singhania set off on the historic flight from Mumbai’s verdant Mahalaxmi Race Course at 6.40 am, before the weekend began in the country’s western metropolis. “I’m very excited, but very nervous, and confident I’ll make it,” he said, before the lift off. The balloon, called Envelope, designed by Don Cameron, was 160 feet high (approximately the height of a 22-storey building). Made of 67,250 square feet of specially made light nylon to gain altitude without much difficulty, it was inflated using portable fans. Designed to be rip-proof, the capacity of the air inside was 80,000 kilograms. There were 18 burners of different capacity and design. The capsule was equipped with three fuel tanks, two filled with kerosene and one with propane. The weight of the balloon, including the CRUISING HEIGHTS December 2005

gondola, 18 burners and other apparatus, was around 1,820 kilograms. The capsule was also equipped with state-of-the-art instrumentation and control systems for navigation. As part of his extensive planning, Singhania began learning ballooning in January 2005 in Mondovi, Italy. After passing the CAA licence examinations for all ground subjects and flying, he set about gaining experience and acquiring specialised knowledge from the best in the sport. He also undertook practice flying sessions in Palghar, near Mumbai, followed by another series of flights in Jalgaon and Mount Abu before the monsoon set in. Recently, he tested intensively at Sinnar district, near Shirdi. In the interim, on 13 June 2005, he established an Indian altitude record of flying in a hot air balloon to a height of 28,200 ft from a village west of Ahmedabad. Rising to new heights isn’t a new thing for Singhania, who has been an aviator for four decades, with flying experience of over 5,000 hours. “I have been adventurous all my life,” he admits, “And have always wanted to do something to contribute to the glory of India. It has been like baptism through fire all the while, where a small dream turned into a wish, then a craving, and now, with the blessings of God, has turned into reality.”

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AT A GLANCE

Shanghai’s visitor numbers continue to grow VISITORS in 2004 increased an extraordinary 50 per cent, to 3.85 million, including some 6,58,000 Chinese visitors from Hong Kong, Macau and Taiwan. And they spent 50 per cent more as well. The largest overseas market is Japan (1.1 million visitors), then the US (3,53,000), Korea (2,99,000) and Germany (1,53,000). The UK comes further down the list with a little under 90,000 visits. Already Shanghai has nearly 50,000 hotel rooms. Opening September this year was the extension to the Shangri-La Pudong. Another fifty hotels are planned to open in Shanghai before 2010, when the city is due to host World Expo. Forecasts are that it could count eight million visitors that year.

Far East countries winning their fight in tourist figures

Gay honeymoons boom as partnerships become law

ext year will see a massive boom in honeymoons, according to a major new study of the gay and lesbian market. As the new Civil Partnership Bill for gays and lesbians became law on December 5, the report reveals that there will be an explosion of happy couples fleeing to romantic spots. The report by Out Now Consulting, a marketing agency specialising in developing marketing strategies and analyses of the lesbian and gay market, is based on independent research with more than 1,000 readers of the highest circulation UK titles in the market, Diva and Gay Times. Out Now Consulting has been relied upon for more than 15 years

to develop the gay market for leading travel companies like Qantas, Visit Britain, German National Tourist Office and South African Tourism. Many of those questioned travel regularly, with France and Spain being top favourites. But long-haul honeymoons are also on the cards, with Australia and South Africa being frequently mentioned. The report says that the age of respondents from Gay Times was between 25 and 44 and the average income, £28,481. The average age of lesbians who took part in the research was 34, with an average income of £21,593.

THEY’RE confident that tourism figures and financial stability are coming back. This joint mood emerged from World Travel Market as Sri Lanka, Thailand, Indonesia, the Maldives and India charted their progress and stood firm after tsunami and terrorism. There is increasing optimism that numbers will be back up and beyond the norm. PATA chief executive Peter De Jong revealed that his members would attract 330 million international visitors this year. This is eight to nine per cent growth on 2004. Figures up to August could be interpreted as negative, but the momentum is now positive.Airlines are expected to put on more flights to meet demands from overseas markets this winter.

More travellers plan and book trips online

CRUISING HEIGHTS December 2005

WHILE the number of Americans using the Internet appears to have reached a plateau, those who plan and book trips or vacations online continues to climb rapidly, according to the Travellers’ Use of the Internet, 2005 edition, released by the Travel Industry Association of America (TIA). The annual report, this year issued jointly with TIA co-sponsor and contributor USDM, shows that the Internet continues to grow as a dominant channel for both reaching and transacting with today’s travel consumers. In fact, while growth in the number of

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Honest Travel Campaign in China

Australia awarded ‘Best Worldwide Country’ at WTM AUSTRALIA has been awarded the title of Best Worldwide Country by readers of the Sunday Times Travel Magazine in the UK. Sydney was also voted runnerup in the World’s Favourite City category, re-enforcing the popularity of Australia as a tourism destination. The award was presented at the World Travel Market, in London. It has also been voted The World’s Friendliest Nation, according to the latest Anholt-GMI Nation Brands Index (NBI). This Index looks at how nations ranked each other. A poll of 10,000 people from around the world found that Aussies were seen as the friendliest people across the board. Both Japan and the US ranked Australians highest (after themselves). Australia shares a strong affinity with the UK and Canada, with each of these three countries ranking the other two first and second in terms of overall nation brand.

TOURISM AUSTRALIA and China National Tourism Administration (CNTA) met in Beijing to reaffirm their commitment to ‘Honest Travel’ between China and Australia. At the meeting, dedicated Aussie specialist agents from Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou and Shenzhen agreed to continue promoting quality Australian holiday experiences. The campaign aims to improve the transparency and quality of outbound tour packages and encourages travel agents to operate within a legal and ethical framework, focusing on the protection of consumers’ rights.

Unicef launches online booking system

Casino projects finally get back on track in Singapore

UNICEF has launched online booking system with American Express Business Travel, world’s largest travel management company, as its travel programme includes thousands of travellers. With the new system, UNICEF anticipates it will save its travellers an average of thirty minutes of total processing time for each transaction. The rollout will begin with its New York office, with plans to expand to the agency’s eight regional offices and 160 locations around the world.

Dubai tour operators report staggering growth

US adult travellers using the Internet for any purpose has slowed, the number of online travellers who used the Internet to actually plan and book trips grew significantly this year. Survey results indicate a majority of online travellers (78 per cent, or 79 million Americans) turned to the Internet for travel or destination information in 2005—much higher than the 65 per cent of online travellers in 2004. Survey findings also indicate that 82 per cent of travellers, who plan their trips online now, also book reservations online. This indicates more than 64 million Americans bought or reserved an airline ticket, hotel room, rental car or package tour online this past year—up from 70 per cent in 2004.

RECORD business to Dubai has been reported by the UK travel industry in the last 12 months, with several tour operators experiencing doubled passenger numbers since World Travel Market 2004. Much of this growth has been made possible by increased flight access, with 115 direct flights every week now available to Dubai. Emirates expanded from four to five direct weekly flights from London Heathrow in August 2005. Further expansion plans include Virgin Atlantic’s firstever Middle Eastern route with four direct weekly flights between London Heathrow and Dubai from 27 March 2006 and daily flights from 1 June 2006. Dubai’s GDP increased by a staggering 263 per cent, from US $7,896 million in 1990 to US $20,833 million in 2003. The diversification and growth of Dubai’s economy over this period has been reflected in the increased visitor figures for leisure, business or group travel, exhibitions or investment. CRUISING HEIGHTS December 2005

SINGAPORE has invited, on November 15, casino operators to submit formal detailed proposals for its first casino resort. The submission deadline is 29 March 2006. The government also fixed the price of the 20.6 hectare waterfront site at US $705 million, a price recommended by independent valuers. The successful bidder for the Marina Bay casino resort will be selected by the middle of next year, and resorts expected to be operational in the next four to five years, the government said. As per the information available, 12 consortiums are in the running to build the casinos, including groups led by big international names like Harrah’s Entertainment, MGM Mirage, Wynn Resorts, and Las Vegas Sands Corp.

Global code of Ethics keeps growing in importance THE WTO Global Code of Ethics for Tourism has been translated into 35 different languages and has already been adopted by several countries as part of their tourism legislation or regulations, WTO Deputy Secretary-General Dawid de Villiers told the Second Committee of the General Assembly of the UN in New York on November 2. He said, “Opportunistic and unguided tourist development can have a profound negative impact on the natural and cultural environment as well as on the social lives of people in receiving destinations, particularly in developing countries, and offend traditional cultural values and customs.”

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Restructuring hits

air pocket

THE HUB: The control tower at Indira Gandhi International Airport. Today the ATC and airport work together seamlessly. What happens after privatisation?

Will the restructuring of Delhi and Mumbai airports go through as planned or is it the beginning of a long drawn out battle of attrition between warring bidders. With the Planning Commission questioning the very process of evaluation, the whole issue seems mired in controversy. R. Krishnan reports.

HE UPA government’s much-publicised plan to restructure and modernise two of the country’s busiest airport hubs— Delhi and Mumbai—has hit an air pocket. After the Inter-Ministerial Group (IMG) submitted its view following an inconclusive meet on December 3, the Empowered Group of Ministers (eGoM), headed by

The technical bids of only Reliance and GMR qualified. CRUISING HEIGHTS December 2005

Defence Minister Pranab Mukherjee lobbed the ball again in IMG’s court by seeking yet another detailed scrutiny of the already examined technical bids of the six and five bidders for Delhi and Mumbai airport projects, respectively. After submission of the bids (both technical and financial) in September 2005, examination of technical bids by AirPlan, Global Technical Advisor to the modernisation projects of Delhi and Mumbai airports, the technical bids of only Reliance and

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GMR qualified, recording more than the prescribed 80 per cent marks. However, Essel World, a company owned by Subhash Chandra Goyal’s Zee, wrote to Pranab Mukherjee stating that the very process of technical evaluation was flawed. Meanwhile, Mr Gajendra Haldia, advisor to the Planning Commission’s Deputy Chairman Montek Singh Ahluwalia and a member of the IMG, submitted a dissenting note stating that the technical evaluation was flawed and reiterated the need to reevaluate the technical bids. Otherwise the path would have been to open the financial bids of only the two companies, the technical bids of which had been approved by the GTA. What is being feared is that should one of the losing technical bidder offer higher financial terms to the government and should its bid remain unopened, then it

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NO SPENDING: The AAI has stopped major spending on both Mumbai and Delhi airports. This has only compounded the restructuring issue.

THE SCENE IN MUMBAI: Mumbai is cramped and badly requires a Greenfield venture.

CRUISING HEIGHTS December 2005

will open the doors to fresh allegation that the government would lose money. Further, if the winning technical bidder is told to match the financial offer of the technical bid loser then the reverse will also have to done in that the losing technical bidder with higher financial offer be allowed to match the technical specifications of what has been offered by the winning technical bidder. Thus, it will become a never-ending battle and in the process Delhi and Mumbai would be left with just the dream of having world-class airports. Haldia has stated that a fresh technical evaluation should be done by the IMG and only those who are nonresponsive in terms of the mandatory conditions should be disqualified; further, this should be done before the opening of the financial bids. One of the mandatory conditions relates to the absorption of AAI employees after mandatorily retaining them for a period of three years. It has been rumoured that one of the bidders with a European connection did not agree to this. By implication, Haldia wants the rebid to include those who left the race even before it started—Bharti—Changi and Piramal-Hochtief. Civil Aviation Minister Praful Patel, however, seems unmoved. He is of the view that there should be no dilution of the standards and the whole process should be completed before the announcement date, which is end-December. This is precisely what he told the press after the inconclusive eGoM meeting on December 5, held in the office of Defence Minister Pranab Mukherjee. Others who attended this meet included Finance Minister P. Chidambaram, Law Minister H.R. Bhardwaj, Commerce and Industry Minister Kamal Nath and Deputy Chairman of Planning Commission Montek Singh Ahluwalia. It may be mentioned here that even before the terms and conditions for the bids were being finalised in AprilMay 2005, the Planning Commission Secretary Rajiv Ratan Shah had written a letter to Civil Aviation Secretary Ajay Prasad, raising some contentious points. The focus of Planning Commission was that there should be one more layer between the IMG and eGoM to make the process even more transparent. But Civil Aviation Ministry felt it would only delay the bidding process, as is happening now.

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Jet news

FLIGHT OF FANCY

UNIQUE Jet Airways’ Flight of Fantasy was operated for the underprivileged children, in association with GE Elfun volunteers that sponsored the children from Magic Bus organisation and Cancer Patients Aid Association (CPAA). Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Limited (HPCL) and Oberoi Flight Services were also partners for this event. In

addition to this, children from the Tata Memorial Centre were also invited for Jet Airways’ Flight of Fantasy to celebrate Children’s Day, on November 14. The wonderful experience began when the children were checked-in at the airport. The group was then escorted to the Club Premier Lounge at the airport, where light snacks and beverages were served, courtesy Oberoi Flight Services.

Naresh Goyal Is ‘STAR OF ASIA’

THE CHAIRMAN of Jet Airways has bagged the Star of Asia award, instituted by Business Week, a leading magazine published from the United States of America, Europe and Asia. Other Indians who won the award are ICICI Bank Chief Executive K.V. Kamath, Director General R. Mashelkar, Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR), and Petroleum Minister Mani Shankar Aiyar. The Indians are among the 25 Asians

who were presented the award in a glittering function in Beijing, Republic of China, on November 16 by Mr George Bush, former President of the United States. Naresh Goyal said, “It is truly rewarding to be recognised in the category of global managers, with so many Asian business houses emerging as global conglomerates. I owe this to each and every member of our staff and colleagues in junior, middle and senior management levels, whose dedication, hard work, focus on the customer and passion for service excellence have given life to our vision.”

Kingfisher Times!

in a simple form and get their reward of Rs 1,000 in cash then and there.

ower Flyer Offer: Kingfisher Airlines has introduced a powerful offer for frequent air travellers—The Power Flyer Offer. A unique consumer incentive offer, Power Flyer is targeted at corporate travellers who like to maximise their time and usually return on the same day. Under this offer, all a guest has to do is take a same-day return flight between Mumbai, Bangalore, Delhi or Kolkata with Kingfisher Airlines and can carry home Rs 1,000 in cash! Straight, simple and no questions asked. A detailed market research showed that corporate fliers account for a sig-

The Jet Airways’ personnel conducted an orientation of the airport building for the children. The sight of airplanes taking off and landing excited the young guests, who were explained the many facets of airline operations. This was among several similar Flights of Fantasy that Jet Airways has operated since commencing operations in 1993, in support of these children.

nificant chunk of India’s air travel. Kingfisher Airlines decided to tap this market by launching this offer. And like all other offers of Kingfisher Airlines, this one, too, is simple to avail. All a guest needs to do is produce their two boarding passes post check-in for the return flight at the special ‘Power Flyer’ counter, fill CRUISING HEIGHTS December 2005

Kingfisher to train at CAE: Kingfisher Airlines has signed a five-year agreement with Emirates-CAE Flight Training (ECFT) for pilot training on Airbus A320 aircraft. The training programme includes both instruction and simulator time for initial and recurrent training for pilots and will be conducted at ECFT in Dubai, which is jointly operated by Emirates and CAE under a long-term teaming agreement. “The inking of this memorandum is a significant milestone for us and marks yet another step in our journey to partner with the best in class,” said Nigel Harwood, Chief Operating Officer, Kingfisher Airlines Limited.

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Wildflower Hall voted the Leading Spa Resort in India TRAVEL PROFESSIONALS from across the world have voted Wildflower Hall in the Himalayas, an Oberoi resort, as India’s Leading Spa Resort. This was announced at the World Travel Awards’ 12th annual ceremony, held at the Royal Opera House, London. This premier global awards’ event aims at promoting excellence in travel and tourism industry. World Travel Awards, which have come to be regarded as one of the best endorsements that any travel product can receive, also announced The Oberoi Rajvilas, Jaipur, as India’s Leading Resort and Trident Hilton, Gurgaon, as India’s Leading Business Hotel. The World Travel Awards were established in 1993 to acknowledge, reward and celebrate achievements in all sectors of the global travel industry.

Le Passage grows and grows JUST THREE years old, India’s fastest growing tour operator, Le Passage to India Tours & Travels Pvt Ltd, announced its financial results for the year 2004-2005. The company has achieved a turnover of Rs 91 crore, as against Rs 45 crore in 2003-2004, thus showing an unprecedented growth of almost 100 per cent. During the year 2004-2005, Le Passage to India opened branch offices in Kochi, Thiruvananthapuram, Chennai and Bangalore to

add to the existing branches in Agra, Jaipur, Mumbai, Goa and Varanasi. Similarly, the company opened overseas marketing representations in Paris, London and one for New Zealand and Australia to add to the existing ones in the US and Germany. In April 2005, Le Passage to India entered into a joint venture on a 50:50 basis with TUI AG, Germany, world’s largest travel & tourism conglomerate. According to Arjun Sharma, Managing Director of Le Passage to India, “The joint venture provides huge impetus for promotion of tourism to India as a source market, as also to give further thrust to the existing inbound business of Le Passage.”

Gold Rush TOURISM MALAYSIA won four gold and one silver international awards for its advertising campaign at the prestigious Hospitality Sales and Marketing Association International (HSMAI) Adrian Awards 2004 competition in New York. The award-winning entries were among 1,350 entries from 45 countries. They form part of Tourism Malaysia’s current TV and print ‘Malaysia: Truly Asia’ campaign launched in July 2004 that has received wide recognition. These prestigious Adrian Awards, which recognise the very best of hospitality and travel advertising, marketing materials, public relations, and website design and development, make up the largest travel-related competition of its kind in the world, embracing every area of the industry, including hotels, airlines, cruise liners, car rental companies, destinations, credit card companies and more. Fashion Fiesta: Kuala Lumpur Fashion Week, supported by Ministry of Tourism and Tourism Malaysia, was held this

November end (23-27). This five-day non-stop fashion extravaganza showcased the best, creative and most versatile collections from designers from across the world. This international fashion extravaganza provided an opportunity for designers, manufacturers and traders to do business and view the latest and the best spring/summer 2006 creations under one roof. About 80 fashion designers CRUISING HEIGHTS December 2005

from 17 countries—Australia, Cambodia, China, Hong Kong, India, Indonesia, Japan, Korea, Malaysia, Myanmar, Pakistan, the Philippines, Singapore, Sri Lanka, Taiwan, Thailand and Vietnam—participated in the show. The Kuala Lumpur Asia Fashion Week is intended to provide a common platform and act as a catalyst to provide continual growth of the fashion industry in Asia.

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Sonic Mandala at Jaipur’s Jantar Mantar

E-TICKETING AT GULF AIR E-TICKETING IS the latest offer from Gulf Air to its passengers. Gulf Air eticketing is currently available for passengers travelling on any Gulf Air flight between Bahrain, London, Singapore and Sydney and will soon be extended across the entire Gulf Air network in a phased manner. However, it will be completed by the end of 2007, complying with the IATA deadline. The first day of the launch of this new service saw 11 passengers travelling on Gulf Air to Australia and the UK, using the e-ticket facility. The Gulf Air e-ticket launch has also generated interest among several travellers, who made telephone enquiries as well.

Winter Woes CHANGED SCHEDULE: Malaysia Airlines has announced temporary changes in its flight schedules with the onset of the winter season. This change would come into effect from 15 December 2005 till 31 January 2006. These temporary changes in the flight timings are announced keeping in view the poor visibility and fog conditions that develop during winter. The airline will continue operating the same schedule for its remaining six gateways of Ahmedabad, Bangalore, Chennai, Hyderabad, Kolkata and Mumbai. SOUTHERN BOSS: Meanwhile the airline announced the appointment of Mr Blasius Binjua as the new Area Manager for Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka region. He has assumed the post from November 2005. Being an aviation expert, he brings with him 32 years of experience. Blasius began his career with Malaysia Airlines in 1973 as a Customer Service Officer. He sees a lot of potential in both the Southern cities. Further, he is keen to strengthen and augment Malaysia Airlines’ network with travel agents, tour operators, hoteliers and other tourismrelated organisations. He is married and blessed with three daughters. His hobbies are gardening and home improvement.

EMINENT SWISS pianist Dominique Barthassat was in Jaipur recently on the invitation of Hotel Clarks Amer. He gave a performance in the hotel, followed by one outside the impressive Albert Hall Museum. This follows the Rajasthan G o v e r n m e n t ’s efforts to provide something new to the tourists visiting the city and its monuments. Mrs Usha Punia, Minister of State for Tourism, Art and Culture, initiated the ‘Sonic Mandala’ programme. Rajasthan Government has recently started a programme, called Adopt a Monument, wherein some important monuments will be restored and maintained by private companies and trusts. It is hoped that Hotel Clarks Amer will adopt Jaipur’s Jantar Mantar. When that happens, Sonic Mandala will be a highlight of a visit to the monu-

ment. Pianist-sound engineer Dominique Barthassat has studied the architectural structure of Jantar Mantar and created a plethora of sounds for the monument. Music will flow from speakers placed at strategic points. Dominique says he wants to enhance the beauty and mystery of the monument.

WELL DONE: Maharaja Gaj Singh of Jodhpur giving away the trophy to the Clarks Team.

CRUISING HEIGHTS December 2005

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A New Record MORE THAN 29,000 passengers travelled on Indian Airlines’ flights on a single day, the highest number for the carrier so far this year. A record 29,136 passengers flew with the national carrier on November 6. The growth in passenger travel is attributed to the carrier’s continuing attempts to upgrade and tailor its services to the demands of different market segments. The airline has made booking tickets more convenient and flexible, with online booking facility and toll-free phone lines, apart from running innovative promotional offers and schemes through the year. However, the carrier is yet to beat its own record of carrying 30,045 passengers on a single day, which it achieved on November 21 last year. Lady scientist wins car: A lady scientist from Lucknow is the proud winner of the first IA Fortune Safari-4 first prize—a Tata Safari Dicor LX car. Dr (Mrs) P. Kakkar, of Industrial Toxicology Research Centre, Lucknow, was declared winner at the lucky draw organised in Delhi on 9 November 2005. The two-second prize winners in the same category are Rohit Kundan, of Navi Mumbai, and Sunil Kandwal, from New Delhi, each of whom has won an IA Holiday Package for two. Under Fortune Safari-4, passengers were required to travel four times during a month to be eligible for the contest. The

scheme is spread over three months, with similar prizes to be given away every month. The two first prizes under the Fortune Safari-2 scheme—four return tickets each on IA international/domestic sectors—have been won by Rakesh Wadhawan, from New Delhi, and Anant Vijay Bahl, also from the Capital.

Global Equity For Hometel SAROVAR HOTELS has announced that it had raised Rs 38 crore (US $8.5 million) from two global private equity firms—Bessemer Venture Partners Trust (an affiliate of Bessemer Venture Partners) and New Vernon Private Equity Ltd. Sarovar, which currently manages 35 hotels and resorts, will use the financing to fund Hometel, its new budget hotel concept. Mr Anil Madhok, Managing Director of Sarovar Hotels, said, “This partnership and funding will allow us to expand our Hometel brand more rapidly. We now expect to open 50 Hometels in the next five years, all owned or managed by Sarovar Hotels.” Bessemer Venture Partners (BVP) and New Vernon will invest Rs 38 crore in the company. Along with internal reserves and debts, Sarovar plans to invest Rs 200 crore (US $44 million) to develop the Hometel concept across India and acquire properties for its other brands.

CII’s double initiative THE CONFEDERATION OF INDIAN INDUSTRY (CII), in partnership with the Delhi Government and Ministry of Tourism, is organising the sixth ‘India: Tourism & Heritage’ summit on December 19 and 20 in Delhi. This conference, a sequel to five successful editions, aims to bring on the same platform the national and international organisations, agencies and citizens concerned, who can play a crucial role in achieving the ultimate objective of tourism— satisfaction to the customer along with sustainable development of the national economy. As a backto-back sequel, CII will hold a national conference—The Spirit of Rajasthan: Adventure and Spiritual Tourism. The event hopes to showcase Rajasthan’s initiatives in tourism and its potential in spiritual and adventure tourism.

Bird’s IT solutions

HE BIRD GROUP, one of India’s largest conglomerates in the travel and information-technology arena, has announced its portfolio of IT solutions for the Indian travel and tourism industry. The solutions’ array comprises of seven key offerings that have been conceptualised and designed to suit the needs of airlines, travel agencies and the end traveller community. The software development of the solutions, including applications development, implementation and production support, has been done by Bird Information Systems, a fully owned division of the Bird Group, which is engaged in providing IT services, automated aviation and travel related software solutions. Elaborating on the IT offerings, Ankur Bhatia, Executive Director, The Bird Group, said, “Our focus is on designing and delivering state-of-the-art technology solutions that empower the travel community to ultimately offer a superior travel experience to end travellers. This is particularly relevant in the context of the changing market dynamics today, with increasing competitive pressures, decreasing margins and escalating costs, all of which can be managed better by successfully deployCRUISING HEIGHTS December 2005

ing IT across the travel process. Drawing from our experience in travel and our unique technology advantage we are confident that our solutions will be well received by the travel fraternity.” Amongst the offerings is AIRS—a revolutionary web-based hosting system for low-cost carriers—which assists domestic and regional airlines with limited operations to effectively market their product and economically control their inventory. AIRS customers in India include Kingfisher Airlines, Paramount Airways, Go Air, Indus Airways, Air One and Shree Raj Travels.

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Sri Lanka bounces back

ust a year after the deadly tsunami of December 2004, Sri Lanka is up and about. Tourism on the island nation—a vital contributor to its economic well-being—is bang on target and there is a sense of excitement and hope in the industry. A key indicator for them is arrivals from India, which was up by 21.5 per cent over last year. It is expected to exceed 1,00,000 this year. The tourist flow from Singapore, Malaysia and Thailand was also on the upswing, with the visitor numbers from Singapore registering a whopping 80 per cent increase. Australia and New Zealand also grew by huge numbers—in fact over 35 per cent. “I am confident that Sri Lanka tourism can only grow from this point,” said Udaya Nanayakkara, Chairman, Sri Lanka Tourism Board, is confident about the road map ahead: “We are positioning Sri Lanka strongly in several existing and new markets to consolidate our gains. Also, to tell them that there is more to my country than just sunshine and sand.” As part of this recovery plan, the government is spending close to $10 million in a slew of marketing initiatives promoting the country. This includes, apart from editorial spending, a visiting journalist programme and advertising campaigns in key publications in target countries. Nanayakkara mentioned the importance of India in all these activities, “We have a large number of flights into India. Indian visitors are Number One in numbers and we realise how important this market is. Therefore, we will be focusing on the Northern and Western markets of your country and try and further promote Sri Lanka. In fact, we are also going to do several two-destination promos. Like, say, Goa and Sri Lanka. This will be on the lines of the hugely successful campaign that we ran with Kerala.”

CRUISING HEIGHTS December 2005

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Deccan Khabar Manbeer Choudhary heads FHRAI MANBEER CHOUDHARY has assumed the charge of President, Federation of Hotel & Restaurant Association of India (FHRAI), for the year 2005-2006 after his election in the Executive Committee of FHRAI in October. He is also the President of Hotel & Restaurant Association of Northern India and President of Hotel & Restaurant Association of Haryana, a position he has held for the last nine years. Manbeer Choudhary is a first-generation entrepreneur for the hotel industry and he set up Hotel Jewel’s in Karnal (Haryana) in 1994. It is now a four-star property. It has achieved excellence in operations and services under his management and has become the hub of hospitality business in the surrounding areas and on the DelhiChandigarh highway. Choudhary has active plans for setting up another hotel in the same area. The other office bearers of FHRAI that got elected for 2005-2006 are S.K. Khullar, Sunder N. Awatramani and M.P. Purushothaman (Vice Presidents), Vivek Nair (General Secretary), K. Syama Raju (Treasurer) and Rajesh Mishra (Joint Secretary).

IR DECCAN has announced change in flight timings with effect from 31 October 2005 to 26 March 2006. The new schedules are available on Air Deccan’s website, www.airdeccan.net. The airline has also launched several daily direct flights: To Puttaparthi, in Andhra Pradesh, from Hyderabad and Chennai. The airline’s MD, Capt Gopinath, commented, “Puttaparthi sees a lot of traffic from Indian and international travellers seeking blessings from Shri Sai Baba and the demand has been high to connect Puttaparthi to various metros. It is currently not connected by any other airline. We plan to begin with Chennai and Hyderabad and later connect Puttaparthi to the other metros.” A 48-seater ATR 42-500 has been deployed on these sectors. Indore gets daily flights from Delhi, via Gwalior. According to the airline, the demand on this route is high and the load is already as high as 80 per cent. If the demand is always as high as this, we might even start another flight on this sector. Gwalior and Indore are upcoming industrial hubs with immense potential for economic and infrastructural growth. Our Gwalior-Indore flights will play an important role in augmenting growth in this region. Kolkata to Raipur, Ranchi, Silchar, Agartala and Patna. While KolkataPatna flights commenced from November 26, the rest of the sectors began

operations on November 14. Bookings for all sectors are open for travel till 31 January 2006. CAE to supply pilot training equipment: Air Deccan has selected CAE as its provider of simulation equipment, and services for its A320 and ATR-42/72 fleet. The agreement includes two full-flight simulators, a flight-training device, simulator maintenance and engineering service as well as the support of Air Deccan’s development of its pilot Type-Rating Training Organisation (TRTO). According to Air Deccan, CAE was selected for its ability to provide a total training solution, combining state-of-the-art simulation technology and pilot training expertise. The equipment and services provided by CAE will be delivered in the six-bay training centre that Air Deccan will be constructing in Bangalore and is scheduled to open in the early part of 2007. Aircraft leasing deal of the yearAsia 2005: Air Deccan has received an award for the best Aircraft Leasing Deal of the Year-Asia 2005 at the sixth Janes Annual Transport Finance Gala Awards, held at the Prestigious Merchant Taylors Hall, London, UK. The award is for innovative structuring and financing the lease of two Airbus A320s. Standard Chartered Bank and Investec Bank Mauritius Ltd financed the lease.

Spicy bookings! SPICEJET HAS announced the opening of bookings for the month of February 2006. The ‘Red Hot Special Fares’ of Rs 999 and Rs 1,999 will be available on the entire SpiceJet network spanning 36 daily flights covering 11 cities. The Red Hot Special Fares is available for booking with effect from 19 November 2005. These fares will be applicable only on purchase of a return ticket and will be available for sale through the call centre or through SpiceJet’s website, www.spicejet.com. Following the announcement, Siddhanta Sharma, CEO, SpiceJet said, “Following the philosophy of giving our customers the choice to plan their travel well in advance, we have decided to open bookings for the month of February 2006.” CRUISING HEIGHTS December 2005

Bollywood Actress Perizad Zorabian was a guest at Park Plaza Gurgaon recently

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Sir Richard parties RICHARD BRANSON was in Delhi to deliver the Madhavrao Scindia memorial lecture and he did not disappoint his legion of fans with his one-liners and his mantra for being a success in business. It is simple: passion, passion and more passion. Sir Richard, as he is sometimes referred to, then spent the evening partying with the Virgin staff in Delhi. Off he then jetted to Mumbai, to party with his team there. Clearly, Branson believes that business is all about people and a bunch of happy people are a sure recipe for a happy company, which means a happy bunch of customers. As he plainly put it, “This is the only way I know.” For more tips on taking on British Airways or running a great company, read his bestseller, Losing My Virginity.

Diana does the honours

At Sahara Ganj TENNIS SENSATION Sania Mirza was in Lucknow for the inauguration of Sahara Ganj-lucknow’s biggest and swankiest mall. A brand ambassador for Sahara, the lady, one hears, may appear in Air Sahara promotion sometime in the future. The last sportsman to appear in the Air Sahara promos was former Indian captain Saurav Ganguly. However, that was in his heydays when India nearly won the World Cup and Greg Chappell was just a ‘friend’ of Saurav Dada. But nothing of that sort with Sania. She had a blast at the launch party, chatted with Sahara Chief Subroto Roy and reaffirmed her position as the country's top pin-up girl. Good catch this for Sahara!

Passion, not fever

HEN SHE was introduced to former American President Bill Clinton, he remarked, “How can one ever forget such a beautiful face?” Well it was some months back in Lucknow when Clinton dropped by to have dinner with Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Mulayam Singh Yadav and friends. That’s Diana Hayden for you. The lady was in Delhi for the launch of the Air Sahara-American Airlines non-stop, 16-hour odyssey from Delhi to Chicago. So there she was with Air Sahara CEO Rono Dutta and AA’s Craig Kreeger to flag off the inaugural flight. Well whose mascot is she anyway? AA’s or Air Sahara’s? Anyway, how does it matter? She brought some glamour and glitz to the event. As Bill said, she sure is an unforgettable face!

CRUISING HEIGHTS December 2005

JOHN TRAVOLTA, whom we all started to love with Saturday Night Fever, has a runway in his Florida house and is a pilot certified to fly the big aircrafts, like the Boeings and the Airbus. Brand ambassador for Qantas, the gentle Hollywood star, who did a round-the-world trip with his wife and two kids some years back, was in Australia recently to promote the big bus. Travolta undoubtedly excited the crowd by waving from the cockpit. Boy, isn’t he pumped up.