Cruisingheights

Special on Airports Authority of India

Pg 47

Cruising heights www.cruisingheights.in

february 2013 I `90

aero india

showtime!

2013

Bizjets look for big business

The presence of a growing number of high net worth individuals in the country is reason enough for aircraft-makers to be optimistic.

Reaching for the skies

With opportunities aplenty amidst a booming economy, the civil helicopter sector is all set for big-time growth.

Go Where Others Can’t.

INTRODUCING THE FALCON 2000LXS It is the ultimate combination of nonstop range, airfield agility and widebody cabin.

No other 4,000 nm aircraft can deliver so many airports in such quiet comfort.

Thank optimized aerodynamics, new inboard slats and highly advanced acoustics.

Thank Falcon DNA. And go where others can’t.

DNA. It Matters.

Find out why. Scan the code.

Or visit falconjet.com/2000LXS

editor-in-chief's note

Time to move forward

I

t is a bit of an irony that just about eleven months back when India Aviation 2012 was held at Hyderabad in March K Srinivasan last year, the Civil Aviation Minister Ajit Singh arrived in the Andhra Pradesh capital aboard the 787 Dreamliner that made a special sortie for the air show. Eleven months later, the Dreamliner stands grounded worldwide as engineers work overtime to find a solution to a battery glitch that’s done some damage to the aircraft’s reputation — at least in the short term.

Overall, however, both Airbus and Boeing have plenty to be cheerful about the Indian market. As a company they have not just carved out the civil aviation market in this country; they are right on top of the game in the defence business as well. Boeing has won big ticket orders for transporters and choppers and Airbus has just recently won the multibillion dollar tanker deal, based on the A330 platform.

If the last show was all about the Medium Multi-Role Combat Aircraft (MMRCA) deal, this edition of Aero India at Bengaluru is really one that will focus on choppers, general aviation, helicopters and all the possibilities beyond the MMRCA. The fact that the shopping list for defence and internal security is so huge and vast continues to make India a hugely alluring market.

If there is any disappointment, it is in the fact that India has failed to capitalise on its purchasing power and its shopping list to create a viable and productive domestic manufacturing base: an exciting matrix to absorb the huge offset inflow or even simple collaborative efforts.

In real terms if you look at the pluses and minuses since 2011, it is as if we are going around in a circle without really any definite plan.

Even China who we are so fond of comparing ourselves with, has gone ahead and leaps and bounds in these past few years. They are working on new helicopters, a stealth fighter and the Airbus plant in that country is working with top efficiency and they’ve announced their determination to have a world class aircraft

Cruising Heights February 2013

manufacturing template ready in the next decade-and-a-half.

It’s the same with the show at Hyderabad.

Big ticket deals had been announced, but nothing really has come of it. Those who have moved ahead with their JVs — be it Sikorsky or AgustaWestland (both with the Tatas) have really not happened because of the show. Ditto for Bengaluru. The innovation and knowledge

ALL FOR NOUGHT: A file photo from Aero India 2011 showing a flypast and enthusiastic crowds

centres are more a salute to the country’s IT prowess, but in manufacturing terms it is still tit-bits really compared to Japan, Taiwan or China.

Nonetheless, welcome to Aero India 2013!

One is sanguine, but optimistic. Hopefully this will be the show that will see us move to the next level.

srini@newsline.in

3

Off the cuff

cover story

‘Virtual‘ tower for airports Loveland Airport in Colorado, US has taken a leap forward in with a major breakthrough in air traffic control.

The airport is in the process of installing a ‘virtual’ tower that would make control towers unnecessary. Loveland Airport Manager Jason Licon said he hoped that the airport would play a key role in revolutionising a system that will be embraced throughout the world. “Control towers are lowtech,” Licon said, “they date from the 1920s, when it was a man with a pair of binoculars. This is breakthrough technology.”

The project known as “blended airspace” traffic management system is the result of a system that monitors aircraft around three Colorado mountain resort areas, where terrain and remote locations make air traffic control a challenge. The technology depends upon small, remote sensors that collect information from aircraft, fix their exact positions and pass on the information to controllers in a central location. The improved system would also track movement of vehicles, and even animals, on the ground near airport runways. “I think we can help, with this new technology that is the next generation of air traffic control,” said Dave Gordon, Colorado Aeronautics Division Director and former Loveland Airport Manager. “We can provide an alternative to traditional construction of a control tower.”

William Payne, a Denver-based consultant said, “It's a whole new generation of technology, and Colorado will be the pilot project. Technology is not the limiting factor with this.

The limiting factor is archaic thinking. There's a lot of inactivity behind doing things the way they've always been done.”

While Jason Licon said he expected that his airport would play the key role in initiating a system that will be embraced throughout the world. “Control towers are low-tech,” Licon said. “They date from the 1920s, when it was a man with a pair of binoculars. This is breakthrough technology.”

4

contents

PLANES, DRONES AND MORE p26 Aero India 2013 is all set to exhibit fighters and business aircraft.

Cruising Heights takes a look at the upcoming airshow and what it means to the industry and stakeholders. The preview takes a sneak peek at the overall scenario of the airshow while another story talks about the significance of choppers. Plus: Why business aircraft manufacturers are participating in a big way.

small digest

p12

IATA declares 2012 as the safest year for airlines even as Boeing sets a record of orders in 2012; Gulf Air unveils a restructuring plan and airBaltic becomes Europe's first airline to start green flying.

Cruising Heights February 2013

news digest

p16

The restructuring of the pay structure of both licenced and non-licenced category of Air India employees has again put Air India in the dock. Who will benefit from the Jet AirwaysEtihad Airways alliance?

contents

cover story

articles news views edits interviews clippings profiles news digest

AAI Special

Cruising Heights

p48

Volume VII n No 9

AAI charts out a new course of action in civil aviation infrastructure with the opening of new terminals at Kolkata and Chennai airports. What makes these terminals so special? Plus: An interview with AAI Chairman V P Agrawal and Minister for Civil Aviation Ajit Singh.

Editor-in-Chief

K SRINIVASAN Managing Editor

TIRTHANKAR GHOSH Group Consulting Editor

R KRISHNAN Consulting Editor

Nandu manjeshwar

Cargo

p71 snippets

DHL and Schiphol Airport have taken initiatives to boost the exports by the Indian pharma industry thereby cashing on the demand as the industry is poised to grow to $55 billion in 2020, according to a McKinsey & Company report, “India Pharma 2020: Propelling access and acceptance, realising true potential".

p80

SpiceJet posts turnaround profit while Jet Airways announces the induction of five leased ATR 72-600s into its fleet. In the international section, IndiGo launches its third route to Thailand.

Senior Sub-Editor-cum-Reporter

punit mishra Chief Visualiser

ajay negi Designers

modassar nehal, Mohit kansal nagender dubey, chanderjeet Design Consultant

artworks Picture Editor

Pradeep chandra Photo Editor

HC Tiwari Staff Photographer

hemant rawat Director (Admin & Corporate Affairs)

Rajiv Singh Director (Marketing)

Rakesh gera Manager (PR)

Ashutosh Mishra Sr. Executive (Coordination)

Alka goswami Subscription

GLOBETROTTING

p78 BACK PAGE

A man drives a vehicle on Schiphol airport's runway while an Indian manager cons an Iraqi doctor by selling him four forged airline tickets. In other story, a man wears 70 items of clothing to avoid extra baggage charges and a British Airways flight witnesses an emergency landing.

p86

The Hoteles Catalonia and Vueling Airlines join hands to create a new accommodation concept: a four-star hotel that will be aesthetically designed like the inside of a aircraft.

SPECIAL ON AIRPORTS AUTHORITY OF INDIA

Pg 47

CRUISING HEIGHTS www.cruisingheights.in

FEBRUARY 2013 I `90

AERO INDIA

SHOWTIME! 2013

BIZJETS LOOK FOR BIG BUSINESS

The presence of a growing number of high net worth individuals in the country is reason enough for aircraft-makers to be optimistic.

REACHING FOR THE SKIES

With opportunities aplenty amidst a booming economy, the civil helicopter sector is all set for big-time growth.

cover

design: artworks

The total number of pages in this issue: 84+4

6

Cruising Heights February 2013

Ashna Pandit, Charu Sharma (9650433044) Executive Director

renu mittal For advertising and sales enquiries, please contact:

+91-9810030533, 9810159332 Editorial & Marketing office: Newsline Publications Pvt. Ltd., D-11 Basement, Nizamuddin (East), New Delhi -110 013, Tel: +91-11-41033381-82 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. Owned and published by K Srinivasan 4C Pocket-IV, Mayur Vihar Phase- I, Delhi-91 and printed by him at Nutech Photolithographers, B-240, Okhla Industrial Area, Phase- I, New Delhi-110020.

“ periscope

Understanding the equation “India is one of the least penetrated aircraft markets in the world with only one commercial plane for every three million Indians.”

Aditya Ghosh, President, IndiGo, on the feasibility of low-cost carriers in India

Not another one!

“Strictly speaking, there's no space for another airline. If demand picks up, capacity could be added, but not an entire airline.”

letters to editor

I found the cover story, Getting a head-start (January 2013) interesting and sharp. Indian aviation will surely go through a litmus test in 2013 as the interviews of various personalities indicated. India — rated as fastest growing aviation market — is witnessing a boom well, NO ONe'S in traffic since 2004. However, it AFRAID OF 2013 has not been smooth sailing for the Indian aviation industry in 2012 as it saw the debacle of Kingfisher Airlines and Air India. Though the government took some policy measures like allowing foreign airlines to invest in domestic carriers, but to no avail. Overall 2012 has been the tumultuous year for Indian aviation industry.

Mohit Saraf, Chennai THeSe AIR INDIA PILOTS AND THeIR FLYING HOURS

Pg 20

Cruising heights www.cruisingheights.in

FINALLY, KeRALA HAS ITS WAY

Upset with the treatment meted out to Keralites, the state gets ready to launch its own airline

Amrit Pandurangi, Senior Director, Deloitte on the non-usefulness of starting a new airline in India

JANUARY 2013 I `90

eNGINe-MAKeRS BATTLe IT OUT Will CFM's B737Max engine prove to be more popular than the P&W engine on the A320Neo?

The year gone by was a nightmare that the country's civil aviation stakeholders wanted to end. Now that the curtain has come down, the new year brings hope and promise that a select group of India's civil aviation bigwigs are ready to share with Cruising HeigHts.

A giant leap for India, courtesy IBS (January 2013) was interesting to read. The success story of IBS software has sent a strong message to the global community that Indian software companies have the technological prowess to innovate. Kudos to the leadership team of IBS. Lufthansa which purchased the software from IBS Software will surely leverage the technology to good effect. V K Mathews has been a leader and his dream to see the Kerala-based IBS Software becoming the world’s biggest software company in the air logistics space is well in this direction.

Rahat Khan, Nasik

The story in the News Digest section, AI pilots and the question of flying time (January 2013) illustrated some very interesting insights about the Air India fiasco. The revival of the ailing Air India, also known as the Maharaja, seems difficult as the story suggested. The Maharaja would really have to do something extraordinary to come out from the mess in order to sustain its image and brand loyalty. I think Air India would have to focus on three key areas — industrial relations, customer relations and quality of service to passengers. Only then can it generate revenue and recoup.

Dayal Singh, Vadodara

Still dicey “Etihad’s investment should result in increased efficiency and strength of Jet Airways, particularly in the international market. While such result is not definite, in my opinion this is what will happen.”

Steve Forte, former Chief Executive, Jet Airways on the FDI infusion in Jet Airways by Etihad Airways

Not me “It is rather unfortunate that I am being held singularly responsible for Kingfisher Airlines' difficulties, for its financial problems.”

Vijay Mallya, Chairman, Kingfisher Airlines on being singled out for the debacle of the airline

Optimism at its best “India is a huge and potentially lucrative market. Qatar Airways will be interested once we are sure the regulations and the laws are properly liberalised.”

Akbar Al Bakr, CEO, Qatar Airlines on the potential the Indian aviation market holds for the airline

All correspondence may be addressed to Editor, Cruising Heights, D-11 Basement, Nizamuddin (East), New Delhi -13, OR mail to cruisingheights@newsline.in

8

Cruising Heights February 2013

Infusing innovation “AAI has equipped the Delhi airport with some of the modern CNS-ATM (Communication Navigation and Surveillance - Air Traffic Management) systems.”

V P Agrawal, Chairman, AAI on the innovative flight management systems installed at Delhi airport

Skyscanner recently published an interesting survey providing a picture of unusual habits followed by air passengers. The survey involved more than 700 international cabin crew members from 85 countries.

Said Skyscanner’s Sam Poullain: “This is the first time that we’ve surveyed international cabin crew and the findings give us a real insight into what they really think of passengers.”

According to the survey, the biggest complaint for a quarter of cabin crew (26 per cent) are passengers who click their fingers at them to seek their attention. Other frustrating behaviours at 30,000 ft included the rush to leave the plane before the seat belt signs were turned-off (13 per cent), passengers trying to stuff too much hand baggage in the overhead lockers (11 per cent) and one in ten said their complaint was when passengers talk through the safety display, hinting that many frequent flyers did not pay attention inspite of increasing requests by

cabin staff to do to. Stuffing junk in the seat compartments (7 per cent) also figured in the list of cabin crew gripes. The most annoying habits of air passengers were: 1. Clicking fingers to attract attention: 26 per cent 2. Leaving the seat at the end of the flight before the light goes off: 13 per cent 3. Padding too many bags into overhead lockers: 11 per cent 4. Complaining there’s no space for bags in locker: 10 per cent 5. Talking through the safety demo: 9 per cent 6. Asking for more blankets/pillows: 8 per cent 7. Stuffing rubbish in the seat pocket: 7 per cent 8. Asking for a different meal: 6 per cent 9. Ringing the bell to complain about temperature: 6 per cent 10. Asking for a specific brand of drink: 4 per cent

cold stats

Pesky habits of fliers

Looking glass

tanmaya tyagi

Zero tolerance

Ajit Singh, Civil Aviation Minister on the dues outstanding by Kingfisher Airlines

illustrations:tanmaya tyagi

“Kingfisher cannot be allowed to fly without settling its dues. DGCA has said in no uncertain terms that all stakeholders need to be satisfied before the domestic carrier is allowed to fly again.”

Take it easy!

“There are some serious negotiations going on with the investors and if they fructify, then we would settle all tax claims.”

Harish Salve, Senior Counsel justifying that dues outstanding by Kingfisher would be settled in the future

Cruising Heights February 2013

9

traffic data

Air traffic slows down

in December A

ccording to the data released by civil aviation regulator Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA), domestic airlines carried 588.19 lakh passengers in 2012 as compared to 606.63 lakh in 2011, a decline of 3.04 per cent.

While in the month of December 2012, the domestic air carriers carried 54 lakh passengers as against 56 lakh passengers flown in December 2011. Low-cost carrier IndiGo topped the chart with a marketshare of 27 per cent in December 2012, while Jet

 Marketshare of india domestic carriers in december, 2012

Airways and JetKonnect together garnered the second spot with a 25.6 per cent share — 18.9 per cent of Jet Airways and 6.7 per cent of JetKonnect.

National carrier Air India remained at third spot with a marketshare of 20.6 per cent. SpiceJet carried 19.2 per cent of the domestic passengers while Wadia Groupowned GoAir flew 7.6 per cent of the domestic fliers.

The newly-launched Mantra airlines saw the largest number of cancellations with 29 per cent of its flights being cancelled. According to DGCA data, a total of 792 passenger-related complaints were received by the domestic airlines in December 2012.

The average number of complaints per 10,000 passengers carried was 1.5, with Air India registering highest number of 2.2. “An analysis of capacity (offered seats) and demand (air traffic) on year-toyear basis indicates that the capacity was more than the demand. Further, both the capacity and demand showed declining trend,” DGCA noted. n

news digest

Star unveils new lounge

Codeshare Chinese carriers' alliance takes-off

Star Alliance opened a new lounge at Buenos Aires Ministro Pistarini International Airport, Argentina with facilities including showers, free-wifi, and hot and cold snacks. Features include seating for over 130 guests, free wi-fi and local phone calls, showers, a business centre, TVs offering news and sports channels, hot and cold snacks and soft/alcoholic drinks, and a range of newspapers and magazines.

Open 24x7, the lounge has been designed, to reflect the repose of the landscape typical in Argentina, while equipment and fittings have been acquired using local materials and artwork.

AI readies for Star According to reports, Air India in all likelihood will join the Star Alliance in a few months. The move will scale up the demand in passenger traffic of Air India. Earlier in 2011, Star Alliance had ignored Air India as it was fighting with several challenges. “With an improved performance of Air India during its turnaround plan on various parameters such as market share, on-time performance and passenger load factors, we have been able to convince members of the Star Alliance (to offer membership),” a senior civil aviation ministry official was quoted as saying.

China Eastern Airlines and three other carriers China Airlines, China Southern Airlines and Xiamen Airlines giving cross-strait services has announced big ambitions as carriers are looking to heighten marketshare on the rewarding routes.

China Eastern expects its co-operation with Taipei-based China Airlines, Guangzhou-based China Southern Airlines and its subsidiary Xiamen

Airlines will expand to code-sharing and scheduling alignment, in a bid to aid the movement of transit passengers from Europe and the United States to Taiwan via Shanghai. “We forecast that our international transit passengers in Pudong Airport will increase to 10,000 per day this year from 6,000 last year,” said Shan Chuanbo, the Senior VP of alliances for China Eastern. The transit volume will double to 20,000 in 2015, he added.

Qatar Airways-AA in codeshare pact Qatar Airways and American Airlines recently entered into an agreement to codeshare on each other’s flights allowing for new growth avenues for American in the Middle East and for Qatar in the US. The new codeshare agreement will provide customers more options by allowing the two airlines to work together to better flight schedules and connection times.

“Our extensive codeshare relation-

ship with Qatar Airways will provide our customers with easy, premium access when travelling to and from the Middle East and beyond,” said Kurt Stache, American’s Vice President-Strategic Alliances. “This new codeshare relationship with Qatar is another example of how American is focussed on building its global network through closer coordination with its alliance partners around the world.”

The agreement with Qatar will add in codesharing on no-stop flights between the US and Doha, flights connecting at the Paris and London and flights to cities in US and beyond Doha.

Airberlin and Etihad join hands Airberlin and Etihad Airways entered into codeshare pact for five additional destinations in East Asia via Abu Dhabi. The Chinese cities of Chengdu, Beijing and Shanghai are being added, in addition to the Tokyo and Nagoya in Japan.

Wolfgang Prock-Schauer

Cruising Heights February 2013

Airberlin flies daily from Berlin and Düsseldorf to Etihad’s Abu Dhabi hub, and in total, the two carriers proffers 42 non-stop return flights per week from Berlin, Düsseldorf, Frankfurt and Munich to Abu Dhabi. Wolfgang ProckSchauer, Chief Strategy and Network Planning Officer, Airberlin, said, “Since January this year, Airberlin and Etihad Airways have been successfully working together on the reciprocal marketing of our respective partner route networks.

The codeshare is proving to be extremely positive for both airline partners.”

11

news digest

Gulf Air unveils restructuring plan Gulf Air will set in motion a major cost-cutting plan while focussing more and more on regional services. The carrier stated that it expects to beef up its Middle East and North African (MENA) services, target 24 per cent in cost savings by year end and simplify its fleet structure. The restructuring was foretold by October's announcement of a $494 million government cash infusion in the loss-making national carrier. However, the carrier said the network's realignment would result in it moving away from low-yield transit traffic and focussing on highdemand and high-yield, point-topoint routes to connect Bahraini businesses with regional markets.

This strengthening of its core network would be accompanied by fleet optimisation and shake-up of its organisational structure. The fleet would retain both twin and single-aisle equipment.

airBaltic: Europe's first to start green flying airBaltic together with its partners Quovadis and Latvijas Gaisa Satiksme introduced a new project under the Atlantic Interoperability Initiative to Reduce Emissions (AIRE) to operate Europe’s first green flights for turboprop aircraft. The AMBER project will lay down new arrival procedures for Riga Airport that will reduce the distances flown, perk up flights to avoid residential areas and reduce people’s

Now, art gallery in the sky Virgin Atlantic is gearing up to launch a commercial art gallery at 35,000 ft, giving Upper Class passengers the opportunity to buy works by British artists. Taking place on the London-New York route between February 1 and February 28, the ‘Gallery in the Air’ is the first of its kind and part of efforts to enhance passengers’ inflight shopping and entertainment experience.

The airline said passengers would be able to buy the pieces, priced between $3,332 and $19,994, exactly the same

Boeing sets record performance Boeing booked 1,203 net commercial airplane orders in 2012, the second-largest number in company history. The company also delivered 601 airplanes, the most since 1999. Boeing’s unfilled commercial airplane orders at the end of the year stood at 4,373, the most in company history. ‘‘Our employees rose to the challenge of executing several production rate increases in 2012 — a truly remarkable performance,’’ said Ray Conner, President and CEO, Boeing Commercial Airplanes. “Increasing our deliveries by 26 per cent allowed us to put more airplanes into the hands of our customers and grow our customer base by offering the best products and services. As we look ahead to 2013, we’re focussed on meeting our customer commitments by increasing production rates and delivering high-quality, reliable products and services.”

The 737 programme broke the record for orders for any Boeing model in a single year, accumulating 1,124 net orders.

Ray Conner

12

exposure to noise, as well as cut fuel consumption and emissions. Martin Gauss, CEO, airBaltic, said, “We are delighted to take a lead and introduce satellite-based approach procedures at Riga Airport for our state-of-the art Bombardier Q400 Next Gen turboprop aircraft and thus practice greener flying. Our partners are key in this project — Quovadis, LGS, Latvian Civil Aviation Agency, and Riga airport.”

Cruising Heights February 2013

way as they would a duty-free shopping purchase. The initiative is the first in a planned series of on-board collaborations with notable artists. Each piece, in Eine’s trademark typography style, is inspired by the adventurous and modern spirit of Virgin Atlantic, its enterprising owner and founder Richard Branson.

2012, the safest year for airlines IATA announced that in 2012, the airline industry scored a record safety performance. It noted that Africa’s accident rate was 57 per cent worse than the previous year at 12.69 per cent, emphasising that no African IATA Operational Safety Audit carriers had accidents. IATA also placed a major emphasis on improving safety in Africa, introducing a plan known as the Abuja Declaration to the Civil Aviation Authorities in Africa in July that prioritises runway safety, loss-of-control prevention training and other standards. The Senior VP, Safety, Operations and Infrastructure, Günter Matching, IATA said that it was extraordinary feat, with one accident per 5.3 million flights across the entire industry.

TSA says 'no' to controversial X-ray scanners

Unpaid leave for senior pilots

Transportation Security Administration (TSA) soon will be doing away with airport X-ray scanners. The TSA said the scanners that used a low-dose X-ray will be forced out by June because the company that makes them can’t fix the privacy issues. The other airport body scanners, which produce a generic outline instead of a naked image, have been put on the hold. The government rapidly stepped up its use of body scanners

after a man snuck explosives on to a flight duty-bound for Detroit. At first, both types of scanners depicted travellers unclothed.

The idea was that security workers could spot both such as guns as well as plastic explosives. The TSA shielded the scanners, saying the images couldn’t be stored and were seen only by a security worker who didn't intermingle with the passenger. But the scans still raised privacy concerns.

A380 programme on track: Airbus CEO

and a long-term outlook, but the market right now for this aircraft is too soft.

The economic crisis, combined with the aircraft’s price tag, have made customers more cautious. We got nine new (A380) orders last year. We are not proud with nine orders, but the (weak) market is a reality.” Brégier said the A380’s wing split issue has had some impact. “We had very unhappy customers. At the beginning of 2012, some airlines were forced to inspect the wings and had to ground the aircraft,” he said. The European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) is moving closer to certifying proposed permanent repairs and newly designed wings for the A380.

The A380 programme is well poised to breakeven in 2015, said Airbus CEO. However, he said the market remains weak for the aircraft. “We are confident (we will) get additional customers, because year-on-year we have met our targets,” he said.

Brégier stated, “The A380 has Fabrice Brégier a huge market

Doha Airport to open in April

Singapore Airlines made an offer to its most senior pilots and option of taking unpaid leave to contain costs amid dull demand for long-haul travel. The voluntary plan, introduced in December, lets captains at the carrier to take up short-term employment with other airlines. Singapore Airlines said, at present it has an excess of cockpit crews as a result of reduced travel demand because of the continuing global economic downtrend. The lull is hitting premium airlines more significantly because of fewer business travellers on long-haul routes, which are availing their most lucrative services. “While 2013 shouldn’t be as bad as 2012 for airlines the industry really isn’t forecasting a sharp recovery and has become more conservative to control costs,” said Kelvin Lau, a Hong Kong-based analyst at Daiwa Research.

Incheon: ‘Airport with the Best Duty Free’ Business Traveller recently adjudged Incheon International Airport as the ‘Airport with the Best Duty Free’ for the third consecutive year. The award acclaimed the overall excellence of Incheon’s Airstar Avenue duty free shopping complex.

Incheon International Airport is the world's biggest single duty free sales location, generating $1.53 billion in revenue in 2011.

Business Traveller every year surveys its readers on four categories such as airport, airlines, hotel, and city and ranks them.

Incheon International Airport Corporation President-CEO Lee Chae-wook said, “We owe the honourable award to the ceaseless efforts of management and employees of the airport and duty free shops. We will continue to do our best to offer the bestquality shopping facilities and services and retain the top status year after year.”

The State of Qatar recently unveiled that Doha’s new $15.5 billion Hamad International Airport — previously known as New Doha International Airport (NDIA) — will start operations in April. To be managed by the national carrier Qatar Airways, the first phase of the project entails 12 international passenger airlines getting the launch carriers of the new facility from April. Qatar Airways will move its entire operations to Hamad International Airport in the second half of the year. As a result, with the phased approach, Doha will have a dual airport operation until full operations begin at Hamad International in the second half of 2013.

Cruising Heights February 2013

13

news digest

10

B777s for China Airlines

uthep ing

d Ad

rs

China Airlines (CAL) recently unveiled plans to take delivery of 10 Boeing 777 aircraft. China Airlines (CAL) will let out four new B777-300ER passenger aircraft from GE Capital Aviation Services (GECAS), while purchasing six B777-300ERs direct from Boeing. “The introduction of the 777-300ER into our fleet

is another important step toward growing our global operations and enhancing our product offering,” said CAL’s President, Huang-Hsiang Sun. “China Airlines has been a Boeing customer for more than 50 years and we are honoured the airline has chosen the 777-300ER to expand its long-haul fleet,” said Ray Conner, President and CEO of Boeing’s commercial unit. “The introduction of the new 777-300ERs will provide China Airlines with new state-of-the-art cabin interiors, while adding improved airplane performance and economics to its long-haul fleet.”

e mb

nu

1,500

guns detected

1500 guns were discovered by airport screeners in 2012 in US. It was recently unveiled by the Transportation Security Administration (TSA).

Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport in Atlanta led the nation with 80 guns. “We do suppose that the vast majority of weapons that come through are (from) people who didn't know they couldn't carry them or were not aware they were in the bag,” TSA Spokesman Castelveter said. The top five airports also included Fort Worth International, Texas with a total of 75 firearms, Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport in Atlanta with 50, George Bush Intercontinental Airport in Houston with 48 and Denver International Airport in Denver with 36.

$600

3

billion fliers in 2012

Three billion fliers were reported in 2012 as per data from ICAO (International Civil Aviation Organisation). ICAO released initial figures on global scheduled air transport services and highlighted that total annual passenger traffic had increased 5 per cent from 2011, led by the Asia-Pacific region, which carried about 30 per cent of passengers in 2012. ICAO also observed that domestic air traffic in Europe worsened due to the deteriorating national and regional economic environment that caused a significant decline in demand for many European carriers.

million in compensation

A $600 million legal claim against German-Emirati joint venture construction company Lindner Depa Interiors (LDI) has been filed by Qatar Airways. Qatar Airways CEO Akbar Al Baker mentioned extreme poor performance and lack of ability to accomplish the work within the time required for the project as the reasons for LDI’s contract being ended, resulting in the legal action.

“We are extremely disappointed by the poor performance of LDI which

Akbar Al Baker

14

Cruising Heights February 2013

has failed to carry out the contract in a timely manner which in turn has forced a delay of the opening of the New Doha International Airport by nearly a year,” said Al Baker. “We have been badly affected as an airline with the delay impacting Qatar Airways’ expansion plans, that include new aircraft deliveries and opening up new routes at the rate we want to, and more importantly causing a lot of inconvenience to our passengers in addition to the revenue losses to the airline and its subsidiaries.”

Al Baker observed, “The current airport we are operating from (Doha International Airport) is already full to capacity with virtually no room to grow. We relied on moving to our new home, the New Doha International Airport this month, but this has not happened.”

45 22,000

cases of laser spotting reported Liverpool Airport recently reported 45 cases by pilots having the laser pointed at them during take-off or landing as compared to 66 pilots in 2011.

Robin Tudor from Liverpool John Lennon Airport said “if an aircraft is taking off or landing a pilot has to concentrate on the job at hand; so, to have any distraction can be a danger.

If we are notified by a pilot we immediately inform the police and they immediately investigate. There have been some high profile cases where individuals have been caught and sentenced because this is now a criminal offence.”

applications for 300 jobs If you think that becoming a Flight Attendant is easy, then sample this: a whopping 22,000 people applied for 300-odd Flight Attendant jobs. Delta Air Lines, the world's second-largest carrier, received as many as 22,000 applications for the job. Applicants will be interviewed in January and those hired will begin flying in June, for the peak travel season.

Said Chief Executive Officer of Delta Air Lines, Richard Anderson, “We're hunting for foreign-language speakers as we continue to expand to all points around the globe. We are experiencing a phenomenal response to the job posting. Applications arrived at a rate of two per minute.” Betsy Talton, Spokeswoman of Delta Air Lines said that as many as 30 per cent will speak languages including Japanese, Hindi, Mandarin and Portuguese.

$1.6

bn in sales

Dubai Duty Free (DDF) posted record annual sales of $1.6 billion in 2012, a jump of 10 per cent compared to 2011. The company announced its year-end results as its latest retail operation opened for business, in Concourse A at Dubai International Airport.

50

Dubai Duty Free Executive ViceChairman Colm McLoughlin said, “We are thrilled to announce such a positive year in 2012. The entire team at Dubai Duty Free has worked hard to continue to drive sales, while focussing on the expansion of our business in Concourse A. We have recruited a total of 1,600 new staff in 2012, bringing our staffing levels up to 5,200, all in preparation for our growth plans which are very exciting.”

million passenger movements

A whopping 50-million passenger movements was recorded at Singapore’s Changi Airport in 2012. Changi Airport Group Chief Executive Officer Lee Seow Hiang said that “despite a sluggish global economy and an uncertain outlook for air travel, Changi airport has risen against the challenges to deliver another record breaking year in 2012. This is the outcome of our strong partnerships with airlines like Garuda and concerted proactive efforts with them to grow links and increase flight frequencies”. He went on to say that CAG would continue to invest in infrastructure at Changi Airport to ensure that it kept pace with future growth and that it provides passengers with a first class Changi Experience.

Cruising Heights February 2013

15

news digest

Pilot conundrum T

he fact that Air India has been doling out huge pay packets to its employees — be they in the category of licenced personnel who include the pilots, engineers, cabin crew and technicians or non-licenced employees like those from the commercial department covering marketing and sales besides the rest falling under the over-arching administration section — has begun to hurt the Maharaja. To deal with this situation, an inter-ministerial consultation has been initiated to discuss a draft note on restructuring the pay structure of both licenced and non-licenced category of Air India employees. On completion of the consultation by this committee, the draft note will be taken up for consideration

and approval by the Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs.

The draft note has suggested that if its recommendations are accepted then Air India will be able to save `320 crore annually on the wage bill. The draft note is based on the recommendation of the Justice D M Dharmadhikari Committee that went into the issue relating to pay scales and career progression to bring about parity and integration of the employees of the two airlines, Air India and Indian Airlines, that were merged into Air India in August 2007. The pay scales of the non-licenced employees was fixed earlier in accordance with DPE guidelines, those for licenced category like pilots, engineers, cabin crew,

A QUEST FOR DEMANDS: File picture shows Air India pilots during the recent strike

16

Cruising Heights February 2013

technicians was based on industry norms.

However, the licenced category employees’ pay scales-cum-allowances fell outside the DPE guidelines, an approval from Union Cabinet has become mandatory. Of the annual wage bill of Air India of `3200 crore, nearly `1750 crore is spent on wages and allowances of licenced category staff.

The draft note has apparently suggested ways and means by which the restructuring of pay and allowances of licenced category employees could result in a saving of `200 crore annually while that for the non-licenced category the savings could be `120 crore. In pursuant of this approach, the Air India management abolished the Productivity Linked Incentive (PLI) to its non-

h c tiwari

licenced category employees in July 2012.

It may be pointed out here that neither the pre-merged Air India nor Indian Airlines had ever entered into legally negotiated pay scales for its employees since the early 1990s. Though a National Industrial Tribunal was set up in the nineties to sort out the wage issues, it never took off and never reached its logical conclusion. So, in the mid-1990s, the then Air India management bought peace with its often striking pilots by first agreeing to a preposterous deal by which it ensured that all its senior pilots would not get less than its junior pilots even if they flew less and, therefore, entitled to lesser flying allowances.

This became a joke of all times when Air India was criticized for introducing new norms in the aviation industry by adopting a policy of Fly Less Earn More (FLEM).

Obviously, the Indian Airlines pilots did not want to be idle spectators and soon they also got some variants of this formula.

With the licenced category employees getMIND OVER MATTER: Pilots in one of Air India's Dreamliners

ting their pound of flesh, the non-licenced category also wanted their share as their salaries and allowances were not revised.

It was then Air India and Indian Airlines introduced the PLI which had nothing to do whatsoever with employees’ productivity. Obviously, the then management could not enter into any wage deal that was outside the DPE guidelines and by introducing PLI they effectively circumvented the DPE guidelines. The fact that it has taken nearly 18 years to break this system — when Air India and Indian Airlines have become virtually brain dead — speaks volumes of the manner in which the carriers were run.

After abolishing the PLI, the government or the Ministry of Civil Aviation (actually a hands-on manager of the state-owned Air India) decided to take up the nagging issue of the vastly-different wage and allowances regime governing the licenced category staff in Air India and Indian despite five years of merged existence. The Dharmadhikari Committee had recommended replacement of PLI (which earlier was known as short-fall allowance) by Profit/Productivity Related Pay (PRP) to encourage efficient working. But it had indicated that

PRP would be given only after Air India started making profits and would be determined on the basis of achieving some key performance indicators like Yield, Aircraft Utilisation, Plane Load Factor or Seat Factor, On-time Performance and Revenue Earned. According to the Ministry of Civil Aviation, the aim was to provide a uniform flying allowance for all categories of pilots (Commanders, Captains and Co-Pilots) of both erstwhile Air India and Indian Airlines. This proposal envisaged paying a flying allowance which was uniform to all pilots for a guaranteed 70 hours a month as per the practice of many airlines. Indian Airlines (now called Air India Domestic) pilots at present are given flying allowance ranging between `2064 and `5270 per hour guaranteed for 72 hours with extra flying allowance at the rate of 150 per cent of the applicable rate.

Air India International pilots flying on international routes get the same allowance for a higher minimum guaranteed 80 hours. The new draft proposal among other things aims to cut layover allowance for pilots who are paid anything between $1600 and $2050 per day for stay at international destination (hotel) between

Though a National Industrial Tribunal was set up in the nineties to sort out the wage issues, it never took off to reach its logical conclusion.

hemant rawat

Cruising Heights February 2013

17

news digest

ABOVE GROUND LEVEL  `171.90 cr dividend, courtesy AAI

Airports Authority of India (AAI) paid a dividend of `171.90 crore to Civil Aviation Minister Ajit Singh.

During the last fiscal (2011-12), AAI had paid a dividend of `169.30 crore and earned a revenue of `5,879 crore against `5,139 crore in 2010-11. AAI earned profit before tax of `1,364 crore against previous year’s `1,346 crore. The dividend paid by the AAI to the government has gone up from `169.40 crore in 2010-11 to `171.90 crore in 2011-12. The AAI spent `2,095 crore on modernising airport terminals, passenger facilities and air traffic and navigational aids in the fiscal year 2011-12 as against `2,503 crore in 2010-11.

Kochi airport unveils AC bus services

Kerala State Road Transport Corporation (KSRTC) will start low-floor AC bus service from Cochin airport. Cochin International Airport Ltd had asked KSRTC to start low-floor bus services

MORE TEETH: A view of Kochi airport

to destinations like Thrissur during the monthly co-ordination committee meeting. According to the sources, a feasibility report has been prepared and sent to the headquarters. We’re positive about starting the service.

The airport has asked for AC low-floor buses. Currently there is no bus we can spare. We’re waiting for delivery of two new buses (AC low-floor) under the JnNURM scheme.

`4-crore revamp for Saifai airport

The Saifai airport in Etawah is geared up for major revamp. Big plans are underway to upgrade and renovate the airport. According to sources, the Public Works Department (PWD) has put a plan to beef-up Saifai airport's runway and lights at an estimated cost of about `4 crore. The renovation is projected to be finished by March. The

18

SALARY TO PILOTS AS ON APRIL 1, 2012 All figures in ` Allowances Minimum Maximum Co-Pilot Total Grade 32 Flying Total Allowances

Allowances Minimum

Maximum

92729

1174424

addl gm GRADE 38

Total

106808

132976

135592

389401

Flying Allowances

Total

718467

832261

Allowances Minimum

Maximum

Allowances Minimum Maximum SR CAPT Total GRADE 36

105114

131576

GM GRADE 39

Total

108870

135627

Flying Total Allowances

525402

797130

Flying Allowances

Total

852509

862633

Allowances Minimum

Maximum

Allowances Minimum Maximum JT. GM Total GRADE 36

105998

132018

Flying Total Allowances

570555

797130

two flights. The Ministry has now suggested that this allowance be scaled down to the applicable rate being given to Central Government employees when on foreign tour. As for the cabin crew, the proposal is to give a flying allowance of `250 to `1000 per hour for a minimum of 70 hours a month. Such a restructuring of allowances for pilots, engineers and cabin crew will save around `200 crore while the reduction in allowances to the non-licenced category will save annually `100 crore.

The draft note containing these suggestions has been referred to the inter-ministerial committee as stated before. Once the consultation process is over it will be put before the CCEA for consideration and approval. It remains to be seen if the pilots will accept a scaled-down version of their allowances in these days of rising costs of living where many competing carriers worldwide are keen to poach and coach Indian pilots at their own cost to operate their fleet. It was around December 31, 2012 when an Air India flight to Riyadh from Mumbai was delayed by 16 hours as the cockpit crew was unavailable. Sources told us that while Air India increased and expanded its network and frequency of flights over the past four to five years there was no corresponding increase in crew induction. It has been stated

that there may be just enough cockpit crew members but not enough for back up.

Air India has 430 pilots flying wide bodies on international routes who include 120 commanders, 150 executive pilots and 160 co-pilots. Thirteen of the captains are still under suspension following their role in May 2012 strike that lasted 58 days and caused Air India a loss of `300 crore. Gulf carriers are luring away Air India pilots — mainly captains and commanders — with heavy pay packets which is at least 40 per cent more than what they are getting now.

While some commanders of Boeing 777 have already left Air India and moved to Qatar, Emirates and Etihad, it is rumoured that another 35 captains are like to quit over the next few months.

The Boeing 777 operation require a set of 7 to 8 pilots and for ultra-long haul flights, like the India-USA non-stop the requirement is as high as 10 pilots per aircraft that includes back-ups. As per current estimates, Air India requires 60 more pilots for this category of aircraft.

Gulf carriers are offering free education to three children of pilots up to 21 years of age, free medical and housing as part of the deal. How will Air India deal with this situation and go about retaining pilots even as it tries to reduce allowances as part of the cost-cut plan. n

Air India has 430 pilots flying wide bodies on international routes who include 120 commanders, 150 executive pilots and 160 co-pilots.

Cruising Heights February 2013

ABOVE GROUND LEVEL 

Who will be the

winner?

I

ndia’s Jet Airways and Abu Dhabibased Etihad Airways, will be shortly entering into an alliance that will allow the latter to pick up 24 per cent stake in the former for a consideration which has been variously estimated at between `1600 crore and `1900 crore. (The deal could be finalized as this issue of the magazine is in the press.)

It may be recalled that Jet Airways wanted to raise $400 million for the last two years but without success as the share prices of India’s leading domestic carrier was too low for any issue of convertible bonds or shares attractive. Further, there was also no enabling policy provision by which even if Jet Airways wanted, it could not rope in a foreign airline as partner in return for issue of either convertible bonds or share issue from either the existing stock or by expanding equity. Everything fell in place after the Indian government relaxed FDI (Foreign Direct Investment) norms in September 2012 when it allowed foreign carriers to pick up equity in Indian domestic carriers subject to the same capacity of 49 per cent which was allowed under FDI norms to other non-airline entities from abroad. US based investor Wilbur Ross, for instance, had invested nearly 30 per cent in SpiceJet before he sold his stake to the airline’s new promoters Kalanithi Maran and his Kal Airways.

Interestingly, even when Jet Airways was unable to raise money through foreign airline partners, it continued to object the changes in FDI that would allow foreign carriers to invest in Indian carriers. But that was, perhaps, due to its skewed view

of how foreign investment in the aviation sector could be attracted to India as Jet Airways never wanted its main rival in full service carrier Vijay Mallya’s Kingfisher Airlines to succeed in policy changes that would allow foreign carriers to pick up stake in Indian carriers. By the time the policy was approved by the government, Kingfisher Airlines was already dead under its own weight of heavy debts and thus left the field clear for Jet Airways.

It is necessary to present this perspective in order to assess the new deal between Jet and Etihad. As if in preparation for such an alliance, Jet Airways had earlier entered into a codeshare agreement with Etihad and target the foreign market share of Air India as well as that of Emirates which dominates the India-West Asia market. This was one of the reasons why Jet had also not bothered much by its reduction in the domestic market share after Air India (Domestic) displaced Jet to the number three slot.

There were other reasons too for Jet’s share coming down. Sources informed that quite a few of Jet Airways’s Boeing 737 family planes which largely included the 800 series had been sent back to lessors and also sold off awaiting arrival of new replacements. Second, in order to further deepen and widen its international forays Jet Airways deployed more of its narrow body Boeing 737-800s in the Gulf and South East Asian markets resulting in the share of revenues from foreign business rising to 59 per cent compared to 41 per cent from domestic operations. About three years ago this was, perhaps, 50-50 Cruising Heights February 2013

SP government had apportioned `1 crore for repair of the airport's boundary and `20 lakh for an inspection house. PWD sources said the work on the airport airstrip would be carried out on a war-footing to meet the March deadline.

Earlier, Civil Aviation Minister Ajit Singh had charged the UP government of not responding to ministry's call to develop Jhansi, Agra and Meerut airports. Ajit Singh had asked the state government to pass on Jhansi airport to Airports Authority of India (AAI) for its development to cater to ATR type of aircraft operations for overall development of the region.

Andhra plans 7 greenfield airports

According to Minister for Infrastructure, Ports and Airports, Ganta Srinivasa Rao of Andhra, the government is proposing to develop seven greenfield airports in a Public-private Partnership (PPP) mode.

“The Administrative Staff College of India (ASCI) has already submitted its draft report to the government, which will be made available to the public and other Ganta Srinivasa stakeholders like air Rao travellers associations, travel agents, CII (Confederation of Indian Industry) and Ficci (Federation of Indian Chamber of Commerce and Industry), within a month for suggestions,” he said.

Warangal, Kothagudem, Tadepalligudem, Vizainagaram, Srikakulam, Ongole and Nellore will have new airports, in which the state government will hold some equity. In addition, the government is also have in mind to upgrade the existing airport at Kadapa.

ISO 27000 certification for Nagpur airport

Nagpur airport is gearing up to achieve ISO 27000 certification. Airports Authority of India has taken up the task to improve upon the certification of the airport which is currently a 9001-2000 certified airport.

“No other airport in the country is an ISO 27000 certified one. When we complete all the phases we will be the first airport to have ISO 27000 Information Security Management System,” said

19

news digest

ABOVE GROUND LEVEL 

QUALITY THRUST: Nagpur airport will be the first airport to be ISO 27000 compliant

A K Verma, Airport Director.

The certification involves three phases. The first phase of the programme includes training of internal auditors. For the second phase, consultants from Ahmedabad will be coming over to Nagpur to lead the course of action for certification and preparing manuals for certification. While in the third phase, an internal mock audit will be carried out.

Bhubaneswar's operational efficiency increased

The Airports Authority of India (AAI) has extended Bhubaneswar airport’s communication access control from 70 nautical miles to 175 nautical miles thereby giving a major boost to Biju Patnaik airport’s operational efficiency.

“Considering increased air traffic, especially after starting of international operations, we are going to update the communication mechanism. After extension of the jurisdiction, we will continue to have direct communication with the aircraft at all levels,’’ said Airport Director Sharad Kumar.

In order to set off the expansion, the ATC will have Remote Control Air Ground (RCAG) aids, which will help add to the frequency of VHF radio sets.

“The RCAG will be installed at the ATC. It will ensure seamless communication with aircraft, even after crossing 70 nautical miles,” said Sunil Kumar, Joint General Manager (ATC), Bhubaneswar airport.

BETTER MANAGEMENT: Airport will have greater communication access control Airport

20

BOOSTING THE MORALE: The stake in Jet Airways by Etihad Airways might spell good fortunes for the Indian carrier

with foreign business becoming the mainstay of Jet Airways. Another reason for this was the yield Jet was getting from foreign destinations was even higher than the domestic especially after a serious fall in business in the executive class travel in India and where the real money/yield was. It was very important for Jet to make more money as the lack of it was constraining both its domestic and international expansions on the one hand and also service its debt of over `12,000 crore.

This is the main reason for the deal with Etihad Airways.

On January 3, 2013, Jet Airways informed the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) that it was in talks with Etihad Airways regarding potential investment by the Abu Dhabi-based airline in the Indian carrier. “Discussions have commenced recently in pursuant to the liberalised FDI policy which permitted foreign investment

in shares of Indian carrier by foreign carriers. The discussions are in progress but no terms have been firmed up at present.

Various structures are being explored by the legal and commercial teams and care is being taken to ensure that all the Indian regulatory requirements are fully complied with” Jet said in its filing with BSE. Jet also made a public pronouncement that “since no agreement has been reached with Etihad as yet, no regulatory approvals have been sought at present and appropriate announcement shall be made upon finalisation of the terms of the investment with Etihad according to legal and regulatory requirements”.

Aviation industry sources told Cruising Heights that the process of sale would involve transfer of shares from Tail Winds, an Isle of Man registered company, that holds nearly 80 per cent of promoter Na-

On January 3, 2013, Jet Airways informed the Bombay Stock Exchange that it was in talks with Etihad Airways regarding potential investment in the Indian carrier.

Cruising Heights February 2013

winter schedule of 2012, resh Goyal’s shares in Jet Airways had 400 less Jet Airways. The process departures compared to would mean transferring 2011 even as Jet Konshares from Tail Winds nect schedules remained to Naresh Goyal who as the same at 850 weekly an NRI holding an Inflights. Jet had clubbed dian passport will then flights in some of its metsubmit his request for ro flights and the capacity approval with the Indian “Most airlines in was between 10 government for sale and India had severe trouble reduction per cent and 12 per cent. transfer of shares to Etiin raising cash except, The airline has begun to had to the extent of 24 per cent of the equity in perhaps, Air India that focus on route profitabiland flight reduction is Jet Airways. What is not was getting full support ity the major reason for Air known is whether Naresh of the Indian governIndia increasing its marGoyal would unload his stocks straightaway or he ment. Private airlines ket share.

Jet, which was known would expand the equity including Jet Airways earlier for its premier serof the company further required funds to cover vice class, has also found before Etihad gets its 24 per cent. Jet would have a lot of the additional no significant growth in business class travel with to approach the Foreign expenses they were leisure segment flyers Investment Promotion incurring. ” opting for budget travel.

Board (FIPB) to seek Jet CEO Nikos Kardiassis change in its shareholdstated that traffic across ing pattern. Perhaps Saroj Datta domestic sectors had fallthese are the issues that Former ED of Jet Airways en sharply primarily due his legal and commercial to high fares that had impacted not just Jet teams are at present seized with. but every other airline. Jet, he pointed out, Meanwhile, Etihad without denying was more concerned with the revenue its its interest in the Indian carrier had earlier flights earned than mere carriage of passenissued a statement that said: “We have not gers and number of aircraft deployed. received details from our UAE and Indian As pointed out earlier it was all a play offices. But the Indian aviation industry ofof yields and if Jet found it better to fly out fers tremendous potential with significant of India it did precisely that. It is in this passenger movement of domestic and intercontext that the deal with Etihad Airways national sectors. Etihad Airways will invest assumes importance. According to Saroj where commercial prospects are strong.”

Datta, the Indian aviation scene will unAccording to media reports, the fordergo a drastic change after Etihad makes mer Executive Director of Jet Airways its entry into India through Jet Airways. who was instrumental in building what Jet While it will be difficult to assess the synAirways is today — Saroj Datta — said in ergies between both the carriers, the fact an interview to an electronic channel that remains that it will be crucial for them to most airlines in India had severe trouble in prevent passenger cannibalisation. Yet anraising cash except, perhaps, Air India that other question that has popped up is: Will was getting full support of the Indian govJet shift its international hub from Brussels ernment. Private airlines including Jet Airto Abu Dhabi as that would mean the carways required funds to cover a lot of the rier spending less on fuel? There are also additional expenses they were incurring. some questions like who will run the airline To meet expenses which often included post-stake pickup by Etihad that is the comworking capital loan for day-to-day manmercial part of airline business. Will it also agement, the airlines had to take loans from mean that Jet will no longer pursue Star Albanks and elsewhere at very high rates of liance? interest. Subsequently, servicing such debt For Etihad, the alliance will help it became even more difficult than the loans counter the dominance of Dubai’s Emirtaken for funding aircraft acquisition. Even ates in this air space. Abu Dhabi has 119 here things had become very difficult after flights into and from India while Emirates the fall in rupee vis-à-vis the dollar and the has 352 flights a week. About 35 per cent euro. It may be recalled that a lot of the of the traffic between India and Dubai/Abu airline expenses were dollar-determined Dhabi is origin-destination traffic and rest and hence the need for foreign exchange. onward or beyond traffic. Etihad has been This line of thinking also explains why Jet busy expanding its reach for months now.

Airways has preferred to fly more overIn December 2011, it raised its stake in Air seas than domestic. For instance, in the Cruising Heights February 2013

ABOVE GROUND LEVEL  New BIA terminal well on course

Bengaluru International Airport is well on its path to expand Terminal 1 while hoping to make it operational by the middle of this year.

Sanjay Reddy T1 will finally handle 18 million passengers per annum as against its old capacity of 12.5 million, and will spread across 1,34,000 sq m.

G V Sanjay Reddy, MD of Bengaluru International Airport said the group is also working on the second terminal (T2) to position Bengaluru airport as the gateway of South India. Depending on the traffic growth in 2013, the construction of T2 will start.

“Last year we offered the region’s coffee to our passengers at the airport, and the response surpassed our expectation. We promised to work on a concept wherein the passengers could physically go and experience the coffee growing regions of South India,” Reddy said.

Delhi airport gets Metro push

The Delhi Metro will spread out its network to domestic terminal on the Indira Gandhi International Airport in Phase-III. The new Metro link will connect to Terminal 1, both arrival and departure sections, once completed.

GREATER CONNECTIVITY: Delhi Metro will ensure greater connectivity to Delhi airport

“We are creating a provision for a reversal facility after the IGD Airport station. This arrangement will help us reduce headway (time taken and distance covered in a journey). In case of heavy traffic, a train, instead of travelling till the last Metro station, can be reversed after IGD Airport station,” a DMRC official said.

The authorities are also setting up a grand entrance to the Metro station. “The special architecture for the

21

news digest

ABOVE GROUND LEVEL  entrance of the Metro station is being worked out. The entrance aesthetics would be designed to complement the airport. The details are being finalised to give the facility a state-of-the-art look,” DMRC Spokesperson said.

Indore airport heralds aerobridge facility

FLYING HIGH: An exterior view of Indore Airport

Devi Ahilyabai Holkar Airport of Indore will soon boast of aerobridge facility.

The facility will allow passengers to board a bus or walk up to the terminal building to collect their luggage.

Airport Director R N Shinde said, "Civil works on aerobridge is complete and global tender has been called for electronic works. It is expected to complete in next six months." New terminal of Indore airport constructed has a good deal of facilities like escalators and modern baggage handling system. At present, Jet Konnect, Indigo and SpiceJet carry out operations from Indore airport besides the Air India.

One lakh milestone for Visakhapatnam Airport

Visakhapatnam Airport witnessed over one lakh air passengers in December, 2012. The number of air travellers, both domestic and international, stood at 1,01,216 in December.

Visakhapatnam Airport Director K Srinivasa Rao said, “As compared to a year-on-year data, the airport has witnessed a growth of more than 13 per cent in April to December last year.”

Visakhapatnam Air Travellers Association (Vata) President Cheruvu Ramakotaiah said, “It's high time the navy took measures to operate the airport 24 hours. Many people would like to arrive and depart the same day owing to their tight schedules. But they are being forced to stay for an extra day only because there are no flights at night.”

22

Berlin to 29 per cent thus makfrom Etihad? For instance, the ing it the largest shareholder. In Etihad-Air Berlin alliance alMay 2012, Etihad acquired 2.9 lows the two carriers to deliver per cent stake in Aer Lingus and more than 300,000 passengers in September 2012 it increased into each other’s network and its stake in Virgin Australia to collectively generate more than 10 per cent. From the deal Eti100 million euros in additional had had entered into Air Berlin, revenues. In the last one year it appears a similar deal with Jet the partners have begun impleAirways would mean not only a menting a detailed procurement James Hogan financial tie-up but also technolstrategy which has already had ogy partnership in a number of areas. In an impact on international fuel purchase, October 2012, Etihad CEO James Logan ground handling and ground services to stated that “we are very clear that India and bring multi-million or multi-billion dollar Asia represent an opportunity and we will savings for both carriers. Through revenues get a number of options from Indian carrigenerated and cost saving initiatives, Etiers”. After this statement, Etihad’s choice had Airways has already recouped its initial of Jet became public. investment of $105 million in Air Berlin’s Etihad, a 9-year-old carrier set up by 29 per cent stake. a royal decree of the Emir of Abu Dhabi, Etihad and Air Berlin have also anmade its profits for the first time last year as nounced that they will integrate their Boeper the revised understanding between the ing 787 Dreamliner programmes. The Etihad management and Abu Dhabi govmove which involves 56 aircraft will save ernment. The carrier has followed an oilmillions of dollars for both the airlines. The hedging policy which is unique in the sense order for B 787s by the two airlines togeththat it buys fuel in bulk several years ahead er represents the largest ever for Dreamlinof time that helped it cushion any adverse ers. Within the programme, the two airlines impact of fuel price rise. It has a fleet of will share infrastructure, pool maintenance, nearly 70 aircraft comprising both Airbus develop joint training programmes and and Boeing of which streamline purchasing the latter are mainly activity for engines, widebodies and freightavionics, in-flight sysers. As for Airbus, the tems including those reversions include A320, lating to entertainment A321, A330 and A340. and also jointly work on The A340s are being product development replaced with more for new aircraft types.

A330s, A350s, B777s In addition to and B787s. the Boeing 787 proDuring the Farngramme, Etihad will borough Air Show in offer Air Berlin a range 2008, Etihad which of benefits from its $1 was barely five years billion deal with travel old, placed the mother technology partner Saof all aircraft purchase bre Airline Solutions. orders when it signed As part of the Sabre deals to buy 205 airagreement, Etihad craft, of which 100 will implement cutwere firm, 55 were ting edge, integrated options and 55 carsoftware across its ried purchase rights. In reservations, inven2012, Etihad carried 10.29 million passentory, marketing, planning, e-commerce, ger compared to 8.41 million passengers it distribution and departure control operacarried in 2011. What is of interest to know tions. The benefits to Air Berlin by sharing is that India is not among the first ten of Etithese items would be significant reduction had’s busiest routes. Etihad’s busiest route to its technology costs, streamlining of its in 2012 was Bangkok with the airline caroperations, increasing revenues and accelrying 691,000 passengers to the Thai capierating its growth around the world. There tal. This was closely followed by Manila, is also a provision for training and develHeathrow and Jeddah. The other top ten inopment of Air Berlin pilots at Etihad’s cluded Sydney, Paris, Frankfurt, Manchesworld-renowned pilot training facility in ter, Doha and Dublin.

Abu Dhabi which is slated to start anytime Will the deal with Jet have the same soon. Will Jet get such a deal or is it all attractive features which Air Berlin got looking at such a deal? n

In 2012, Etihad carried 10.29 mn passengers compared to 8.41 mn passengers it carried in 2011. What is of interest to know is that India is not among the first ten of Etihad’s busiest routes.

Cruising Heights February 2013

aero india special

aero india special

The best and brightest

ON Show Over the years the biennial Aero India show at Bengaluru has attained a status comparable to the Farnborough and Paris Air Shows in this part of the world. This year — the ninth edition — being held as the world steps out of economic recession, promises to be bigger than the past shows. A report.

T

he biennial Aero India show in Bengaluru has firmly established itself on the airshow map of the world within a decade.

The geographical location and importance of littoral countries around India, and their economic development, gives currency to the Aero India show.

Aero shows were not too long ago identified with the developed and the Western world. Naturally, these nations were ahead in innovations, experiments, developments and above all marketing of their products.

In such a scenario, India’s emergence as a premier aero show destination indicates

geopolitical reality.

The first edition of the Bengaluru air show was held in 1996 and ever since the count of manufacturers, service providers, aerospace and aviation has increased steadily. In its fourth edition in 2003, about 176 exhibitors from 22 countries from all over the world participated. In the next edition in 2005, the number jumped up to 380 participants with many military and civil aircraft as well as aerospace products being displayed. The major attractions of that edition were leading fighters, advanced jet trainers and unmanned aerial vehicles from Russia, the USA, France, the UK, Israel and India.

Among the aircrafts that were on display — static as well as flying — were the American F-15E, C130 J Super Hercules and P-3C Orion aircraft, the French Mirage 2000 and Falcon 2000, the British Hawk 100, Jaguar and Sea Harriers, the Russian MiG 29K, Su-30 MK1 and tanker Il-78, the Indian Dhruv (Advanced Light Helicopter — ALH) and Intermediate Jet Trainer (IJT) and Swedish SAAB JAS 39 Gripen. Israel’s Orbiter and SkyLite mini UAV were impressive and the lightweight Orbiter, weighing just 4.50 kg featured an advanced data link system transmitting all the data and video in real time. The SkyLite mini was capable

of making vertical flights from the canister and could be launched even from narrow alley. The colourful aerobatic performance

by Indian Air Force’s Sarang left everyone spell bound during the inaugural function.

The seventh edition held in February 2009 included 592 exhibitors from 25 countries.

In recent years, Aero India has emerged as one of the world’s most important and largest military aviation exhibitions.

The eighth edition Aero India 2011 was full of pomp unlike the previous editions. The highlight of the inaugural was the flight display in which several aircraft performed intricate manoeuvres. The showstealer was the HAL Tejas that flew in formation in public view, for the first time, did vertical climb and then did a belly-turn right in front of the podium.

The foreign aircraft manufacturers were not far behind in performing aerobatics.

Five Jaguars flew in V-formation, the Russian Sukhoi Su-30 Mk 1 flew in a trident formation, Boeing’s F/A-18 Super Hornet, the SAAB Gripen and Dassault Rafale also performed loops, rolls and somersaults in the air. The aerobatic Surya Kirans did their last show with their Kiran aircrafts (the Kirans will ultimately give way to new trainers for IAF pilots). Another first in that edition was an aerobatic team from Czech Republic, popularly known as the Flying Bulls (or Red Bulls).

Aerospace and aviation related industries — once the preserve of governments agencies and departments had been opened for private companies — and this was seen in the participants in the show. Indian Aerospace companies like Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL), National Aerospace Laboratories, Mahindra Aerospace, Taneja Aerospace (TAAL) and Tata Aerospace also

participated in the event.

T

he ninth edition of Aero India is slated to bigger in terms of exhibitors and participants. “I hope it will be a bigger show compared to earlier editions. We are getting support from various stakeholders,” said R K Mathur, Secretary Defence Production.

He further added, that the “show has its own merits for development of defence industry in the country.” The Aero India shows are organised by the Department of Defence.

The growing list of participants emphasises the sentiments of the Secretary Defence Production. Spread over 1,25,000 sq m compared to the previous edition of Aero India, which covered an area of 75 sq m, the present show will see 78 foreign delegations against the 47 of 2011. The largest overseas participation is expected from the US, followed by Israel and Russia.

aero india special

Rudra to show its power Rudra, fully designed and manufactured by the Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL), is an Advanced Light Helicopter (ALH). HAL is planning to unveil an armed variant of Rudra at Aero India 2013 for the first time. This version features an array of new weapon systems such as 20 mm turret gun, 70 mm rocket pods and air-to-air combat missiles. The helicopter’s combat capability has been augmented through integration of an electronic warfare suite and countermeasure devices such as flares and chaffs dispensers. Another feature is the sighting systems such as electrooptical pod and helmet-pointing systems have been integrated to augment target aiming capabilities. The helicopter has already proven its performance and firing capabilities during extensive flight trials and is currently awaiting initial operational clearance.

Initial deliveries of Rudra to the Army are planned this fiscal year. Due to the advanced self-defence and protection suite, this ALH is expected to be used for several armed and unarmed missions including heliborne assault,

26

logistic support, reconnaissance, casualty evacuation, anti-tank warfare, close air support and anti-submarine warfare and anti-surface vessels operations.

Rudra is powered by two Shakti engines, and is an armed variant of Dhruv ALH. It is designed to carry out both utility and attack missions in the battlefield. The multi-mission helicopter is equipped with forward looking infrared and thermal imaging sights interface, integrated defensive aids suite with electronic warfare selfprotection, anti-tank guided missiles and automatic flight control system to enhance Army’s aerial firepower capabilities.

A trainer for India

Pilatus, basic trainer for the Indian Air Force (IAF), will be making its debut at Aero India 2013. The Pilatus (IAF PC-7 Mk II), a single engine turboprop aircraft will be used to train the IAF’s rookie pilots. In the past, several of the IAF’s trainee pilots Continued on Pg 27

Cruising Heights February 2013

More than 600 companies are expected to participate in the event with the largest overseas participation from the USA, followed by Israel and Russia. Other major participants will be Australia, Austria, Belarus, Belgium, Brazil, Bulgaria, Canada, Czech Republic, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the Netherlands, Norway, Romania, Singapore, Spain, South Africa, Sweden, South Africa, UAE, the UK and Ukraine.

The country’s demand for military, as well as civilian, hardware and software in the aviation and aerospace sectors, has to be met from overseas manufacturers. It is equally known that the defence capital budget in the 12th Five Year Plan is estimated to be `4,45,500 crore, of which the capital acquisition budget ranges up to 85 per cent on an average. If the budget is an indicator, then India is projected to become the third largest defence spender after the US and China. In this scenario there will not be any dearth of major combat fixed-wing and rotor-wing aircraft manufacturers in the show. That, however, does not mean that the Aero India show is all about military.

As per the organisers, the civilian component in the show exceeds that of military components. One of the most important facets of the show are the dedicated seminars. Organised by the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO), Ministry of Defence in association with the Aeronautical Society of India, these

seminars are a prelude to the biennial shows and have now become a permanent fixture in the Indian Aerospace calendar.

The seminars provide the most beneficial exposure to the participants by bringing together the best from all over the world.

Several path-breaking and innovative ideas are exchanged for the benefit of all participating institutions. The seminars also provide an excellent opportunity to explore the possibilities to establish collaborative programmes for research as well as technology partnerships.

As Dr D K Saraswat, Scientific Advisor to the Defence Minister and Chairman of the Seminar Advisory Committee at the Aero India Seminar 2011, pointed out: “Aero India seminar is aimed at providing the scientists, industry players, academia and operators of platform to explore and exploit current technologies, examine future trends and prepare the roadmap for the next decade. Synergistic interaction amongst various stakeholders during the seminar would make this a reality.”

A few of the notable themes in the previous editions have been: Aerospace Technologies: Challenges and Opportunities (2007), Aerospace — Perspectives and trends in technologies (2009), and Aero and Space Technologies: Success through global cooperation (2011). The theme for Aero India 2013 is Aerospace Products: Challenges in Design to Developments. n

Continued from Pg 26

were trained on the HPT-32 Deepak in the IAF academies. HPT-32 Deepak was, however, grounded after a crash in 2009 and in its place cadets were trained on Kiran Mk II aircraft. The arrangement did not meet the full potential to train the trainee pilots and India signed a contract with Switzerlandbased Pilatus Aircraft Limited for the delivery of 75 basic trainer aircrafts for the IAF. A fast-tracked programme is well on schedule and the first batch of IAF instructor-pilots has already completed their aircraft conversion course in Switzerland. The delivery of the first PC-7 Mk II will commence during the first quarter of 2013.

Eurojet's EJ 200 on show

The Eurojet EJ 200 engine is used in Eurofighter Typhoon. It is used as power-plant of the aircraft and is largely based on the Rolls Royce XG40 technology developed in the 1980s.

EJ 200 is built by the Eurojet Turbo GmbH consortium formed in 1986 to coordinate and manage the project based on XG-40 technology.

In common with the XG-40, the EJ

Cruising Heights February 2013

200 has a three stage fan with a high pressure ratio, five-stage low aspect-ratio high pressure compressor with active tip-clearance, a combustor using advanced cooling and thermal protection, and single-stage high pressure and low pressure turbines with PM discs and low density single crystal blades. A reheat system provides thrust augmentation. The variable area final nozzle is convergent-divergent design. Unusually for an advanced military turbofan, the fan lacks variable stagger inlet guide vanes.

In 2009, Eurojet entered a bid, in competition with General Electric’s (GE) F 414, to supply thrust vectoring variant of the EJ 200 to power Hindustan Aeronautic Limited Tejas.

After evaluation and acceptance of the technical offer provided by both GE Aviation and Eurojet, the commercial quotes were compared in detail and GE Aviation was declared as the lower bidder. The deal will cover purchase of 99 GE F 414 engines. The initial batch will be supplied by GE and the remainder will be manufactured in India under transfer of technology arrangement.

27

aero india special

Reaching for the skies

Though still in its nascent stages, civil helicopter operations have grown by leaps and bounds since its inception in India. The country offers huge potential for the burgeoning civil helicopter operations as the demand for the sector is at an all-time high. A report.

F

rom the time the first civil helicopter took to the skies in India in November 1953 up to l986, commercial employment of helicopters in India was limited to small aviation companies such as Cambata Aviation and Bharat Air. These were basically involved in communications and crop spraying. The growth of the civil helicopter fleet in the early years was modest. The first real impetus to the civil helicopter industry was provided in 1986 by the formation of the Helicopter Corporation of India, which later came to be known as Pawan Hans Helicopters Limited (PHHL)

28

and today holds and operates the largest fleet of helicopters in the country. The yearly growth in the industry upto 2006 remained in single digits — main contributory factor was high cost of operations and economic viability. However despite these factors, the vibrant economic growth saw the industry record a double digit growth after 2006.Today, there are approximately 290 civil registered helicopters in the country, with about 70 commercial operators and 36 maintenance organisations. However, this number is woefully inadequate when compared to the number of civil Cruising Heights February 2013

helicopters seen worldwide. Also among the commercial operators there are only 4-5 big names the rest being private or small time players. As per the data available, helicopters in India account for less than one per cent of the global civil helicopters (34,000).

A small country like New Zealand has one helicopter per 7000 people whereas in India we have a ratio of 46 lakh people per helicopter. In comparison in Brazil, a developing country like ours, the city of Sao Paulo (similar to Bombay and Delhi) itself has about 750 helicopters. The United States a leader in the civil helicopter market has

TOUCHING NEW SPHERES:

(Left) Indian Air Force (IAF) helicopters displaying aerobatic skills; (bottom) rescue operations being done by a chopper deployed by IAF

approximately 14000 helicopters, while our neighbour China is reported to have about 1200 helicopters.

Global statistics on civil helicopter operations world over indicate that 40 per cent of the civil helicopter fleet is used for corporate aviation, 29 per cent for emergency medical services and law enforcement, 16 per cent in the energy sector for onshore/ offshore operations, and the remaining for operations in heli-tourism, adventure sports and aerial surveys. A point worth noting is that while 29 per cent of helicopters worldwide are employed for law enforcement and Emergency Medical Services (EMS), these roles are practically non-existent in India. Currently, a majority of the civil helicopters in India are used in the energy sector, both onshore and offshore, with the remaining being employed for communications, corporate use, heli/religious tourism, elections and surveys.

Energy Sector/Offshore Operations: Driven by the burgeoning demand for energy and the ever-increasing price of crude oil, there has been a hectic increase in offshore oil exploration in recent times. Stake holders are today prepared to commit large investments in offshore exploration and production pushing into deep sea areas so far untouched. Helicopters are an integral

part of and critical to such operations as they are the umbilical cords to offshore platforms. In fact, helicopters employed in offshore operations worldwide account for a million flying hours a year. In India, currently there are about 40 helicopters employed in the offshore sector both on the Western and Eastern coasts. These account for over 75 per cent of the total flying hours logged by the civil helicopter fleet in the country. As oil exploration moves further off-shore, the demand for modern helicopters with better range and advanced safety features is bound to witness a marked increase.

Heli-Tourism: India's diverse culture and geographic spread coupled with a rich flora, fauna and wildlife, make it one of

Cruising Heights February 2013

the top heli-tourism destinations in the world. The use of helicopters is convenient and saves time for people travelling to remote and far flung destinations especially in the mountains. This has led to an increase in demand for civil helicopters in this sector. Helicopter operators such as Deccan Aviation, Global Vectra and PHHL are already providing heli-tourism packages in the North, South and Eastern parts of the country. Although the tourism sector offers further scope for growth of helicopters, their numbers have not increased proportionately. The main reason seems to be that presently most of the commercial helicopter fleet is located at metro airports and when chartered for heli-tourism, incurs heavy positioning and maintenance costs. This combined with lack of suitable infrastructure in terms of proper helipads/ comn facilities/safety devices further act as a dampener. More than any other aviation component helicopter operations in this sector are driven by economic viability.

Similarly, India is a destination of great interest to religious tourists. Journey to Badrinath, Kedarnath, Katra-Vaishno Devi and Amarnath which was difficult and time consuming earlier has now been made easier through heli-pilgrimage services. On account of the emerging popularity of religious tourism, the Ministries of Civil Aviation and Tourism held a national seminar on heli-tourism in October 2008, the first of its kind to deliberate on steps to boost heli-tourism in India. The main emphasis was on encouraging heli-tourism and providing necessary support to all operators by clearing the bottlenecks, identifying profitable circuits and creating suitable

29

aero india special

infrastructure in the areas identified. This was followed by another National seminar on heli-tourism held in Kerala on February 15, 2011 at Cochin International airport.

The aim of this seminar was to promote heli-tourism and heli travel in Kerala and neighbouring states. Yet another seminar is being conducted on this subject by the Rotary Wing Society of India (RWSI) at Trivandrum in Kerala on January 30, 2013 on behalf of the Tourism Ministry of Kerala Government with active participation of the Ministry of Civil Aviation. Tourism is going to be a huge business in India and this is one area the civil helicopter Industry needs to focus on with due support from the State/ Central governments.

Shuttle Services: The requirement for helicopters for shuttle services is also growing especially in the Northeast due to the nature of terrain and the rigorous road journeys involved. A number of commercial operators are already providing services on contractual basis in the North-Eastern states such as Arunachal Pradesh, Sikkim, Meghalaya, Tripura and Nagaland. In fact, helicopters are also providing inter-island transportation for Andaman & Nicobar and Lakshadweep for administration as well as tourism promotion. With a number of international airports located far away from the centre in cities like Bangalore, Hyderabad, Chennai and Shimla, heli-shuttle requirements are bound to see a rapid increase.

However suitable infrastructure and regulatory issues will have to be put in place to make it possible for helicopters to operate smoothly without any bottlenecks.

30

Helicopter Emergency Medical Services Medical attention within the golden hour increases the chances of a patient’s survival and recovery. A helicopter equipped with emergency medical equipment along with a qualified medic can play a crucial role in these operations. While this concept is widely prevalent in the West, in India it is yet to take-off. The HEMS concept is a necessity and needs to be implemented at the earliest — the lead needs to be taken by the Government. The ONGC is the only organisation in India which has converted its Dauphin helicopter for HEMS role in Bombay High. After a seminar held in Bangalore in November 2010, it was decided to introduce the HEMS concept first in remote and mountainous areas with the support of the concerned state governments. To encourage this concept, there is a requirement by the government to offer subsidies in order to reduce the cost of operations.

Disaster Management: Since the early 1960s, armed forces helicopters have rendered yeoman service in the management of disasters such as floods and earthquakes.

In September 2011, the earthquake in Sikkim saw for the first time civil helicopters taking part in the relief and rescue operations alongside the armed forces helicopters. In the integrated effort for disaster management, civil helicopters available in the particular state should be included in the planning process for relief operations.

These helicopters suitably equipped/modified can effectively supplement the efforts undertaken by the armed forces.

Law Enforcement: Present day law Cruising Heights February 2013

enforcement is varied and intricate and needs more than routine policing to deter unlawful activity. Aerial law enforcement is a force multiplier and plays a dominant role in augmenting the strength of the law agencies. The helicopter due to its inherent characteristics and ability to perform a wide range of missions is ideally suited for this role. The New York City Police Department Aviation Bureau became the first law enforcement agency in the world to operate a helicopter in1948. Public acceptance of law enforcement helicopter operations grew from then on as technology developments made them safer and more efficient.

Today the US has over 3000 helicopters operated by more than 400 law enforcement agencies covering 46 States. In India the concept of aerial law enforcement by the police and allied agencies is still naive and has not taken a serious shape. However a beginning has been made with the Parliament Standing Committee on transport, tourism and culture in their latest report recommending the expansion of existing helicopter roles to disaster management and law and order, thus accepting the need at the highest level of the Government.

The use of civil registered helicopters being used in anti naxal operations in the red corridor is a nascent step in this direction though riddled with many problems. The helicopters being employed belong to companies holding non-scheduled operations

NO HOLDS BARRED: (L-R) A chopper in action of New York Police Department; Pawan Hans helicopter in action during hotline washing of insulators of transmission lines; and a patient being airlifted at a medical emergency by IAF chopper

permit like the Pawan Hans and Global Vectra. Even helicopters belonging to the Border Security Force are being flown with operational and maintenance services provided by Pawan Hans. However these are adhoc measures and need to be streamlined along with the regulatory nuances.

Police being a state subject the states would have to play a key role in establishing ALE agencies/police aviation wings.

This needs to be first implemented in major metros like Bombay, Delhi, Bangalore, Chennai, etc and thereafter gradually expand to other areas. However the states on their own may be reluctant to implement this programme due to costs involved. The centre will have to play a major role in terms of providing monetary, logistical and operational support to the states for establishing police aviation wings.

Future Trends As per reports, the rotorcraft industry in India is poised to grow at the rate of 10 to 12 per cent annually. The usage of helicopters in the energy sector, especially in the onshore sector, is likely to double in the coming years. Major helicopter operators are expanding their fleets to meet the increased demand for corporate and leisure travel.

Development of infrastructure in metros for helicopter operations is likely to see a boost in terms of heliports, roof-top helipads

and heli-corridors. The government is considering inviting 100 per cent foreign direct investment (FDI) in setting up helicopter services in India. This will be a positive step to enhance commercial employment of helicopters. The use of helicopters for public good is likely to increase substantially especially in respect of HEMS, airborne law enforcement, disaster management as well as transportation in remote areas. The use of civil helicopters for law enforcement in anti-naxal operations is already a reality and Iis only likely to increase. There is also a vast scope for using suitably equipped helicopters for fire-fighting especially in high-rise buildings in metros. Power line washing, another area where helicopters can play a vital role, can pay rich dividends by way of reduction in transmission losses.

The concept has already been tried out in India by the Power Grid Corporation with PHHL, and is likely to pick up in the future.

Sensing this growth a number of major helicopter manufacturers are establishing base in India by establishing joint ventures with Indian companies. These include Agusta Westland, Sikorsky, Eurocopter and Bell.

Operational and Fiscal Bottlenecks The rising costs of Aviation Turbine Fuel (ATF), customs duty for import of helicopters/spares and application of fixed-wing air traffic rules to helicopters have stymied the growth of civil helicopter industry to a large extent. Lack of suitable infrastructure is another major problem. While the scope of operations and utilisation for commercial helicopters is vast, the requisite infraCruising Heights February 2013

structure is almost non-existent both in the metros and remote areas. We have to look at a network of Heliports and Roof top helipads if the full potential of civil helicopter operations in India is to be realized.

With the civil helicopter industry expanding, the demand for pilots is increasing.

While 80 per cent of pilots flying in the civil sector are erstwhile officers from the armed forces, there is a need to enhance training facilities to get pilots from among civilians. Simulator training on helicopters is woefully inadequate with only a single facility in Bangalore as a result of a joint venture of HAL with CAE of Canada, catering to Bell412, Dauphin and Dhruv helicopters. Similar facilities need to come in the Northern and Eastern regions of the country.

The biggest bottleneck appears to be the applicability of fixed-wing regulations to helicopter operations. Fortunately, based on the recommendations of the Parliamentary Committee on Aviation, the requirement for looking into helicopter operations in a holistic manner is being pursued on fast track. There is a need for clearing regulatory bottlenecks faced by the industry to enhance growth and facilitate operations. As a first step, it has been decided to have separate corridors for operation of helicopters in Delhi and Mumbai airspace — this aspect has already been put into practice. This will enhance safety as well as efficiency and capacity for helicopter operations. However despite these impediments, on account of its terrain and size, India offers phenomenal potential for usage of civil helicopters for public good. n

31

cargoINDIA SPECIAL AERO

FOCUS ON THE FUTURE

need for

speed

R

otorcraft development hasn’t kept pace with leaps that fighter jets or UAV’s have undergone over the past decade. But Sikorsky’s X2 and Eurcopter’s X3 may just be the ‘transformational fillip’ to take helicopters into a completely different level.

The US Defence Department has put forth a FVL (Future Vertical Lift), or JFVL (Joint Future Vertical Lift) initiative to build and demonstrate critical technologies that would support the development of a next-generation helicopter. The wish list includes choppers with vastly improved avionics, electronics, range, speed, propulsion, survivability, operating density altitudes and payload capacity. The project is looking at four classes of future aircraft, • light helicopters • Medium and heavy lift variants • An ultra-class category designed to build a new fleet of super-heavy lift aircraft The wish list for the future includes • Sensors that are integrated into the airframe • High-speed targeting capabilities • Optionally automated/autonomous flight • A human machine interface for on-board navigation, sensing and threat detection • Teaming of manned and unmanned aircraft, including remote control from inside the manned craft • Automatic avoidance of obstacles using sensors • Hovering and pivoting with tilt-rotor aircraft technology • Diagnostic sensors to streamline repairs And it’s all driven by the need for speed for the military although companies prefer to talk of SAR (search and rescue), medical evacuation, border patrol and coast guard duties. The catch is whether the speed and the costs match. We should know in a few years as prototypes are trusted. For the record the only significantly faster rotorcraft put into production since the 1980s is the Bell Boeing V-22 Osprey tiltrotor troop transport, which can cruise at 240 knots or better. Meanwhile Sikorsky and Boeing have signed a teaming agreement on Jan. 13, to submit a joint proposal for the US Army’s Joint Multi-Role (JMR) Technology Demonstrator (TD) Phase 1 programme. The JMR TD supports the Department of Defence’s Future Vertical Lift programme to deliver the next generation of vertical lift aircraft with greater performance, reliability and affordability. The team will compete to build and fly one or more demonstrator aircraft in 2017 to be evaluated for next-generation vertical lift performance in a medium-lift-sized aircraft.

34

Cruising Heights February 2013

Eurocopter X3 The exercise began in January 2008 and Eurocopter wanted it to be fast, but they also wanted it to operate in a manner familiar to most pilots. The result: a helicopter based on X3 technology that will cost just 25 per cent more to produce than Eurocopter’s conventional helicopters of the same size, such as the `55 crore EC155.

Eurocopter began X3 flight testing last September in a programme that combines the excellent vertical takeoff and landing capabilities of a helicopter

Sikorsky X2 The product of five years of research the Sikorsky X2 achieved a true air speed of 250 knots during a 1.1-hour flight. That’s 287.7 miles per hour or 463 km/h. The X2 also reached 260 knots in a shallow dive during the flight. The X2 combines an integrated suite of technologies intended to advance the state-of-the-art, counter-rotating coaxial rotor helicopter. Now Sikorsky is offering an X2 configuration called the S-97 Raider for the Army’s Armed Aerial Scout.

AW609 AgustaWestland AW609 is a tiltrotor aircraft with the ability to land in areas traditional fixedwing aircraft are unable to, such as heliports or very small airports.

It is capable of reaching twice the speed and the range of any helicopter currently in service.

An improvement upon the V-22 Osprey, the AW609 features a pressurised cabin

Piasecki Aircraft Corp a small company near Philadelphia has modified a Sikorsky SH-60 Seahawk by adding a Vectored Thrust Ducted Propeller to its tail and a wing to its mid-fuselage, which provide the thrust and lift needed to exceed normal rotor speed limits

AVX Concept AVX Aircraft Company has come up with a concept for an Armed Aerial Scout as replacement for the OH-58D in order to meet the US defence department’s parameter of larger number of less expensive platforms for manned reconnaissance. The design uses the basic Kiowa fuselage and adds a counter-rotating coaxial rotor and two ducted fans

Cruising Heights February 2013

35

aero india special

Great

expectations

Call it the best of times or call it the worst of times, but in the midst of the effects of the recession of the past few years, and a booming Indian economy that is ripe for growth of business aviation like never before, the Aero India 2013 show holds lot of curiosity and expectations, as aircraft manufacturers and stakeholders tell Cruising Heights.

I

t is time again for the ninth edition of the biggest aerospace extravaganza of the country — Aero India 2013 — an event that will be inaugurated by Defence Minister A K Antony at the Yelahanka Air Force Base near Bangalore on February 6.

Although military aircraft are the highlight of the show, business aircraft do make a small but relevant part of it. And, as India happens to be one of the most promising markets in the field of business aviation, it will be of great interest to learn what different aircraft makers and stakeholders expect from an event that has the potential to provide a push to business aviation in the country.

In a scenario where the economic slowdown around the world, has affected the growth momentum, we have a mixed bag of reactions where the widely-held prediction is that this year’s show might be lacklustre in comparison to other years. Sharan Lillaney, Research Analyst at Angel Broking,

34

“India enjoys one of the highest economic growth rates in the world and, since aviation is driven by this, it is an important market for both corporate jets and airliners. Airbus’ strength is in having the most modern and comprehensive aircraft family. ” David Velupillai

Marketing Director, Airbus Cruising Heights February 2013

said: “There is a slowdown and companies are thinking twice before splurging.”

Speaking to Cruising Heights magazine about the preparations and expectations from Aero India 2013, David Velupillai, Marketing Director, Airbus, said, “This year, Airbus will have a pavilion highlighting some of the military aircraft in its family. Airbus did exhibit an ACJ319 at Aero India last year, which gave visitors the chance to experience the widest and tallest cabin of any business jet.”

“While our highlight this year is on Airbus’ military aircraft, we do see an important and growing market for corporate jets in India,” commented Velupillai. “Our previous presence has shown potential customers that Airbus corporate jets can offer more comfort, space and freedom of movement than traditional business jets.”

While the market has been challenging for all business jets in recent years, the benefits that they deliver, such as helping

The business makers: (Left) An Embraer Legacy 650, (bottom) Air Works India Engineering Pvt. Ltd MD Vivek Gour in a business aircraft cabin

business and government leaders to make more productive use of their time, are still valid.

India enjoys one of the highest economic growth rates in the world and, since aviation is driven by this, it is an important market for both corporate jets and airliners. Airbus’ strength is in having the most modern and comprehensive aircraft family, which means that it can satisfy most airline and corporate jet needs.

At Aero India 2013, Swiss aircraft manufacturer Pilatus will also have the turbine-powered business aircraft Pilatus PC-12 NG on static display. Pilatus has sold more PC-12 NG 1200 aircraft across the world than any other manufacturer and is used for executive transport, cargo, air ambulance, airline and government special mission applications.

Todd Hattaway, Regional Sales Director, Hawker Beechcraft Corporation, informed Cruising Heights, “As you are aware, the focus of this event is around defence and keeping in mind the profile of the event, we will be displaying the Beechcraft King Air 350i. With class-leading capabilities and high efficiency, the King Air 350i is the responsible, sustainable aircraft. It’s the greenest aircraft in its segment. The

King Air can be custom modified to fulfil a wide variety of long-distance, highly technical missions. The versatility and comfort of the King Air 350i is the reason why flight departments and governments in 125 countries have trusted more than 1600 King Air special mission aircraft across the globe.”

Aero India has already carved a niche for itself globally as a premier aerospace exhibition, Hattaway pointed, “and provides us a platform to explore additional

Cruising Heights February 2013

business opportunities in this sector.

This will give us an opportunity to showcase our strength as a player that can fulfil the aviation need of a growing global economy such as India.”

Hattaway, however, emphasised that as a country with a focus on defence preparedness, “India has opened up defence production and purchasing to the private sector and we would like to be at the right place to showcase our strength in being the right platform for the right price. We are looking forward to this event to highlight our offerings in the special mission segment, especially Beechcraft King 350i which is one of the proven products around the globe as a special mission aircraft. We also believe that the Beechcraft series is the aircraft that India needs.”

As for the recession and its effects, Hawker Beechcraft’s Regional Sales Director, was of the opinion that there will be no effect of the recession on the business aviation industry. “We are positive about the market and betting on it,” said Hattaway, and continued, “the overall economic signals in Asia are strong and we would expect this to fuel demand for business aviation. A recent study has revealed that rising affluence in Southeast Asia, China and India amid a boom in mining and property projects is boosting demand for business aviation to increase the flexibility and cut the travel times of the business aviation enthusiast. Aero India 2011 had featured 63 aircraft and of the aircraft that were participating, 55 per cent were civilian. While the show will speak for itself in terms of numbers, we feel that this show is shaping up to be one of higher value in terms of meeting with qualified and

35

aero india special

in luxury's lap: (Left) Inside an Acropolis Airbus ACJ319 Lounge; (Right) A Hawker Beechcraft King 350i

informed personnel who wish to enter into the world of business aviation.”

Hattaway also mentioned, “Our latest research completed for the Asia market has revealed increasing demand throughout the region and also within India. The growth could be more for India specifically if a review of the import processes and duties for non-commercial aircraft was conducted with the focus being how to support an industry that helps businesses and countries grow. The unique features would be that India has a high growth rate of economy and high networth individuals seem to be fast moving up the ladder. We expect this to continue to grow, reflecting the increasing influence and economic development of emerging markets like India. Asian and even Indian customers are looking for a range of features depending on their usage. Given their requirements, we believe that range, comfort and safety would be of prime importance to them. We are committed to providing these features with our range of aircrafts to choose from depending on the need for their business.”

For Dhiraj Chhabra, Associate Vice President Marketing, Air Works India Engineering Pvt. Ltd, one of the leading independent providers of Aviation Maintenance for general aviation, aircraft parts and avionics in India, Aero India 2013 will provide the perfect venue for networking as far as business aircraft are concerned: “We expect to be able to interact with our customers and OEM partners and showcase the capability additions which we have made in our MRO services and discuss future business opportunities. Our senior executives from Empire Aviation Group, Steve Hartley and Paras Dhamecha will be available at the show

36

“A recent study has revealed that rising affluence in Southeast Asia, China and India amid a boom in mining and property projects is boosting demand for business aviation to increase the flexibility and cut the travel times of the business aviation enthusiast. ” Todd Hattaway

Regional Sales Director, Hawker Beechcraft Cruising Heights February 2013

to discuss Aircraft Management Services for aircraft owners. Also, Nick White, Vice President, General Aviation MRO, will be meeting customers and prospects to discuss their requirements for heavy maintenance and refurbishment of their aircraft.”

Chhabra was confident about “business sentiment to pick up this year for business aircraft and hence the involvement of OEMs and prospective buyers will pick up this year”. However, speaking about the Indian market from the perspective of business aviation, Air Works’ Associate Vice President Marketing, pointed out that “the Indian market for business aviation is very small compared to its global peers. Given the current inadequate state of road, rail and air connectivity to important business growth engines of our country, it is imperative that more and more organisations and individuals will look towards adopting business aircraft as a means of transport for goods, people and themselves to their areas of operation”.

Vineet Phatak of Invision Air, India's first charter operator with a large fleet of brand new light jets, said that it was not quite clear which aircraft will actually be on display at the show as this did not seem to be presented by the organisers on their website. “However, we know that our aircraft, the Embraer Phenom 100, will certainly be on display along with a Lineage 1000 from Embraer. I believe Bombardier

and Dassault will also be displaying their aircraft, but I am uncertain if Gulfstream, Hawker Beechcraft and Cessna will be having any aircraft present,” said Phatak. “For business aircraft, I am not expecting any major announcements of sales or deals. As this is generally a more defence focussed show, business aviation is really on the sidelines here.”

Phatak was of the opinon that the “recession of the past two-three years will have its impact on business aviation at the show. You can expect a much more subdued participation from the Business Aircraft OEMs this year. Everyone seems to be focussed on China as the big saviour of the business aviation OEMs market. A couple of years ago India was also being given almost as much of an importance as China by the OEMs. However, after the continued recession, the poor number of aircraft sales in the last two years, and continued negativity from the government policies, India seems to have been completely sidelined by the OEMs.” However, he was optimistic about the growth of the business aviation sector. “I believe,” he said, “that the inherent demand for business aircraft and related services is actually growing. The difficulties involved in fulfilling this demand is what is keeping the actual market from growing at the same pace of the demand growth. The customs duties, the complex and unclear

“The inherent demand for business aircraft and related services is actually growing. The difficulties involved in fulfilling this demand is what is keeping the actual market from growing at the same pace of the demand growth. ” Vineet Phatak

Managing Director, Invision Air Cruising Heights February 2013

regulations, the long time taken for various permissions and approvals and the poor airport infrastructure are some of the hurdles that makes it exceedingly challenging to give the customers what they want. But the customers are certainly there and growing.”

Brazilian executive jets company, Embraer, foresees a significant expansion in the Indian private jets market, with the country accounting for about 90 per cent of the demand in South Asia till 2021. India currently has 130-140 private jets in operations including 14 Embraers. So, the company is a key player in the business aviation market of India and its performance will also be keenly watched at the Aero India 2013. Said Jose Eduardo Costas, Embraer’s Vice-President, Marketing and Sales, Asia Pacific, “Even in the projected numbers for the next 10 years, we hope to maintain our market share at over 10 per cent.”

In order to meet the demands of the market, Embraer is expanding its field presence by setting up a second field support office after Mumbai by the first quarter of 2013.

In addition, it is entering into an agreement with Airworks for deployment of onsite stock of parts in the country. The company is also hopeful of securing fresh orders for its new Legacy 650 aircraft, which has recently secured an approval from the Director General of Civil Aviation. n — Nidhi Sharma

37

aero india special

“Business aviation growth can be India’s economic booster” Rohit Kapur, President of the Business Aircraft Operators’ Association (BAOA), spoke to Nidhi Sharma about expectations from this year’s Aero India show and how the government’s support and motivation can push business aviation to become a tool for the country’s economic growth The Aero India 2013 show is here — an event that is eagerly looked forward to by the entire aviation industry. What are your expectations from the show?

Although we are positive about the event and are hoping for the show to be a great success, there is realisation that the economic slowdown of the past few years has reduced the growth momentum. So we might witness that this year the air show may not have the same zing to it as previous years — whether in terms of aircraft display or business/revenue generation.

What are the major stumbling blocks in the development of business aviation in India and what role is the government playing?

The Indian government does have a formal policy on aviation but it focuses mostly on commercial aviation and does not hold too much for business aviation. In this scenario, BAOA is trying to play the role of an educator.

Most airlines are bleeding. There is realisation in the government that measures need to be taken to stop treating business aviation as a rich man’s toy and look at the larger picture of it being a booster to the economy. We would like to mention that the government was swift in its move to reducing certain taxes — on our request — that it had increased.

However, the frustration lies in its lackadaisical attitude towards providing the right infrastructure for the development of business aviation. Be it insane airport duties, taxes, airport royalty, duty on aircraft.

We have no dedicated general aviation airports like abroad. New York has LaGuardia, London has Biggin Hill, Singapore has Seletar. Then, there are limited parking facilities for these jets. Taxation is also killing this market. There are duties for planes and spares that aren’t charged from commercial aviation. The government has to understand that about 72 per cent passengers in business jets are non-executives...

The policies are detrimental to our interest. If we have to import a plane, there are 10 different agencies to get clearances from — the Ministry of Civil Aviation (MoCA), the Home Ministry, DGCA, Airports Authority of India (AAI), the Defence Ministry, airports… it takes almost six months to process this. If a foreign-registered plane has to land at an airport here, it takes a week for clearances. If it’s a civilmilitary airport, it takes 30 working days.

We all know that one of the biggest stumbling blocks in aviation are the exorbitant ATF prices. What can be done to deal with this?

I think that it is an issue where we have expressed our frustration again and again.

What I fail to understand is that why does the government not apply the universal rate of four per cent tax that is prevalent in most countries and why it can’t do away with such heavy taxation. Domestic airlines are paying 50 per cent more for aviation turbine fuel here than the price in West Asian and the European markets.

Even flights on foreign routes pay more when they refill in India. This has to be controlled if we want to progress in the field of aviation.

What has been in the news is the unique development: for the purchase of any aircraft, the minister’s approval would be required. What would you like to say about this?

I would not like to comment much about the government’s policies, but as far as business aircraft is concerned, it does not make much sense for a minister to be personally finalising the purchase of planes. hi-flying business: Business aircraft lined up at an air show in India. With growing number of high net worth individuals and disposable income, the country happens to be one of the most promising markets for business aircraft

38

Cruising Heights February 2013

Business aviation is not being driven by Europe or the US but by India, China, some African countries and Brazil.

About 60 to 70 per cent of orders for business jets come from these countries.

The Middle East is an emerging giant.

What is India’s position?

As far as growth potential is concerned, I would say that in India, there is easily scope of a 25 per cent growth year on year in the business aviation sector. This sector has the capability to be a tool for the economy’s growth if the right support system is provided. We had peaked to a growth rate of 22 per cent in 2008. However, the recession that followed put a brake on the momentum and we are now left with what is a meagre growth rate.

In terms of infrastructure, China and Middle East are way ahead of us and that is their biggest asset, even though India does not lack potential. China builds 15 new airports every year.

“BAOA’s frustration lies in the government’s lackadaisical attitude towards providing the right infrastructure for the development of business aviation.

Be it insane airport duties, taxes, airport royalty or duty on aircraft. ” Rohit Kapur

President, Business Aircraft Operators’ Association

I also wish the government would seriously look into the matter of having special airports for business aviation, because at the commercial airports.

Otherwise the Central Government has to intervene to get us our due share if we want business aviation to take-off in our country as a booster to the economy and the nation’s overall growth.

There are no doubts about India’s potential as a hub for business aviation.

We have expectations from this year's budget. We are waiting to see what it has to offer to us.

Despite the recession of the last few years, the positive side of the picture is that there has been growth of high net worth individuals and disposable incomes in India. If that is the case, the growth of business jets in India should not have been affected…

It is a fact that high net worth individuals in the market are growing at a commendable pace in India and so are disposable incomes. However, despite this, the recession has resulted in a cautious atmosphere where companies have put on hold purchases and use of business jets presently.

The sentiments of companies are not very strong.

They are in the ‘wait and watch’ mode and waiting for the economic situation to move back on a fast pace track. Moreover, elections will be happening in the not too distant future. So that is one more reason that companies are waiting for new governments to come in.

How do you view the future of business jets in India?

Business jets are not being put to optimum use in India and are very restricted for a few. Abroad the utility of private jets is not confined as the tool of the rich and the famous.

In fact, their purpose expands much more, comprising reporting, helping the society in times of natural calamity, medical emergencies, etc. Business jets can be a great boon to society if their value is realised and exploited fully in our country.

Cruising Heights February 2013

39

cargoINDIA SPECIAL AERO

FOCUS ON THE FUTURE

War on terror Euro Hawk UAV Developed through a partnership between Northrop Grumman and Cassidian for the German Ministry of Defence, the Euro Hawk it slated to be the continent’s first military UAV that has combined both long flight durations with high altitude. Its purpose will be gather strategic intelligence from up to 60,000 feet over a period of 30 hours.

KARI UAV Aerospace Research Institute (KARI) claims to have built the fastest UAS in the world with the ability to cruise at 400 kmph and perform Vertical Take-Off and Landing (VTOL) using dual tilt rotors.

40

U

nmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) are among the most effective tools for fighting the ‘war on terror’. They are so surgically precise that ‘targeted killing’ is now a by word for drone action. Plus, UAVs are cheaper than fighter aircraft. At least for the US, UAVs define their vision of a nimble, technologically advanced and efficient armed forces capable of a warfare with ‘light footprints’. It’s a template that seems to delight the rest of the world that is keen to emulate the US at least as far as building up a UAV arsenal goes.

Future UAVs may be capable of reach-

Cruising Heights February 2013

ing heights that are over double or triple what present top quality UAVs can reach and stay in the air for months at a time.

These UAVs would resemble gliders with solar panels to maintain power and sensor arrays. Rather than rely on satellite imagery, these UAVs would give warfighters persistent situational awareness. Of course, UAVs have been trending towards other extremes as well. Tiny UAVs that can be flown through open windows are in the works.

These miniscule aircraft will stay airborne in times measured in seconds or minutes while giving valuable information to soldiers on the ground without giving away

Boeing Phantom Eye The newest Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) has a considerable edge over unmanned aircraft currently in use today.

This hydrogen-powered UAV is a propeller-driven aircraft with the capability to fly for up to 10 days during aerial surveillance and combat missions. The aircraft uses two 2.3 litre, four-cylinder engines capable of achieving 300 horsepower.

Lockheed Martin Sea Ghost is a tailless, jet-powered UAV which was conceptualised as a scaled-down version of the B-2 bomber. Its role and function will be to provide the US Navy with a carrier-based drone that can carry out reconnaissance, fire missiles, and drop bombs.

Lockheed Martin Samarai The Company began work on the Samarai in 2007 under a US Defence Department programme to produce an extremely small, ultra lightweight air vehicle system. Apart from the 30-cm version, Lockheed also has fieldtested a 17-cm version and is working now to scale down the Samarai even further. their position like a thrown ground vehicle might.

The future of UAVs is trending towards automated systems when it is expected that one person can monitor many different UAVs at once.

Enhancements and upgrades in the form of more powerful jet engines, carbon composite materials and stealth ability along state-of-the-art advanced navigation and communication systems are set to boost the functionality of UAVs even further in the near future. Further miniaturisation of important components has led to the development of unmanned aerial systems (UAS) of greater compactness and manoeuvrability. In the future, UAS are projected to employ a high capability autonomous system by using onboard Artificial Intelligence (AI).

Global Hawk Built to provide long duration surveillance, and collect information using multiple sensors, the Global Hawk is capable of much longer flight times than any manned aircraft could endure and is equipped with electro-optical, radar and infrared sensors along with planned signa intelligence.

Cruising Heights February 2013

41

focus feature

Future of Indian aviation from a global aerospace perspective A few state-of-the-art products that will be on display at Aero India Despite the emphasis on military aviation at Aero India, those in the commercial transport and business aviation sectors will find that some of the latest offerings on display at the show align nicely with their interests.

That’s because the aviation technologies in these three areas influence each other more than you might expect.

And because the business we do in India is well established and growing, we can bring an informed perspective on the future of Indian aviation.

India’s long-term goals include strategically building its aviation industry as an engine for national growth. Government-owned companies such as Hindustan Aeronautical Limited and Electronics Corporation of India Limited are components of this strategy. Rockwell Collins serves both companies, as well as other Indian entities in the aviation industry, in a collaborative role in development and manufacturing.

The products, systems and services we pro-

vide to Indian companies and militaries highlight the advantages of leveraging technology development across the commercial and defence markets. Rockwell Collins sees ample opportunities to share with Indian aviation the expertise behind these technologies, which include: Displays — supported in part through our new facilities near New Delhi, Rockwell Collins displays offer some of the world’s most advanced capabilities for commercial and military applications. For example, our advanced displays have been selected for the B787, B737Max, KC-390 and KC-46, to name just a few.

Featuring the latest graphics innovations of the gaming industry, many of our displays also can incorporate economies of scale in the production process, providing commercial and military customers alike with superior quality for less cost.

Alongside advancements in displays are underlying technologies we provide, bringing synthetic vision and enhanced vision through

head-up displays to commercial and business aircraft (fixed and rotary wing) as well as to military aircraft.

Demonstrations of the rotary-wing synthetic vision can be seen at Rockwell Collins in Hall E, stand E 1.9.1 at Aero India 2013, Bangalore.

Flight controls — among flight-safety technologies are flight controls we originally developed for unmanned aerial vehicles. Now migrating for use in optionally piloted vehicles and manned aircraft, these flight-control capabilities have reached never-before-seen degrees of sophistication. In damage-tolerance tests, for instance, our automated flight controls have demonstrated that they can recover and fly a test plane that has suffered the otherwise catastrophic loss of 80 per cent of one wing, then safely land the aircraft.

Related safety capabilities are coming for business aircraft. Our Pro Line Fusion® for turboprops and light jets will one day offer a onetouch emergency mode. This autonomous backup mode for business aircraft affords disoriented pilots extra time to recover by putting the aircraft into a safe-altitude holding pattern and also provides guidance cues to the nearest airport during engine loss.

Open systems architecture — because so many of our systems are based on standard, non-proprietary software architecture, they can allow for a high level of customization – for example, the ability to modify or extend capabilities with separately written apps.

Simulation and training solutions — handling the most complex simulation and training challenges for commercial and military customers is a proven strength for Rockwell Collins. We offer some of the world’s finest simulation and training systems and components, including our EP-8000 image generator. The EP-8000 offers Level D-approved flight-training capability. It provides unsurpassed levels of realism in lighting, atmospherics and special effects in the environments it generates for flight training scenarios.

Of course, some of our technologies have little to no crossover between the commercial and government sides of our business. These innovative offerings enhance the customer experience, often with pioneering capabilities. Examples for business aircraft include: Skybox cabin sharing — business aircraft customers now have an elegant, convenient and airworthy way to enjoy entertainment and business content, sharing it wirelessly and easily on cabin displays, iPad tablets and other devices. Skybox integrates and extends the popular capabilities of Apple’s iCloud, Home Sharing, AirPlay and mirroring to the business aircraft cabin.

Venue™ high-definition cabin management system — uniting flexibility and scalability, Venue emulates the home electronics experience, supplying high-definition and intuitive user interfaces to the business aircraft cabin.

Airshow for iPad app — THRUST ON innovaenables business-jet passengers tion: Air travellers in touch with the world to access the entertainment through Skybox screen and information features of our developed by Rockwell Airshow 3D moving map system Collins on their iPads. The app offers unique, customizable features that take full advantage of the iPad’s capabilities.

Rockwell Collins’ presence in India includes our Hyderabad engineering design centre.

Opened in 2008, our India Design Centre augments our existing engineering capabilities in a country rich in some of the world’s most talented engineering minds. With plans to grow its current workforce from 500 to 600, the India Design Center continues to expand as a local and global resource for engineering, design and programme management.

The skies are wide open to new opportunities for India’s aviation industry. At Rockwell Collins, we look forward to working together with Indian entities in a collaborative spirit. Through this relationship, we endeavour to help advance the industry in ways that benefit not just India as a nation, but also the customers that will enjoy India’s aviation innovations around the globe.

The author, RAM PRASAD is Managing Director — Rockwell Collins India

aero india special

airbus

THE RIGHT CHOICE

Mid-air Refuelling: The A330 MRTT had been designed as a dual-role airto-air refuelling and transport aircraft.

The aircraft has been selected by the IAF for air-to-air refuelling missions

The reason why India has preferred the Airbus 330 multirole tanker transport (A330 MRTT) to the Russian IL-78 MIDAS seems to be the former’s relative contemporariness and lower maintenance costs, writes Saurav Jha

A

nother long-drawn Indian Air Force (IAF) tender has finally drawn to a close with the selection of a new air-to-air refuelling system in the form of the Airbus 330 multirole tanker transport (MRTT). Emerging as the lowest bidder on the basis of lower life-cycle costs when compared to the Russian Ilyushin IL-78 MIDAS, the decision represents a growing preference in India for more contemporary offerings over upgraded legacy systems. Of course, the final deal is still subject to negotiations but it nevertheless symbolises greater appreciation of ease of maintenance and availability rates in Indian weapons procurement practices over the previous habit of favouring systems with cheaper up-front costs which may subsequently become all too difficult

44

to maintain given poor spares support. The IAF, after all, is realising that it is important to standardize on its selection given that India’s airborne refuelling need will continue to rise with increasing squadron strength as well as widening area of responsibility.

The A330 MRTT given its modularity and versatility appears a logical choice for such standardisation.

The IAF tanker bid for six units with an option for three more was actually floated for the first time way back in 2006 with responses from Airbus offering the A330 MRTT and Russia’s United Aircraft Corporation (UAC) bidding with the IL-78 MIDAS. By 2009, the IAF seemed to have made up its mind in favour of the A330 MRTT based on its projected requirements and the relative contemporariness Cruising Heights February 2013

of the competing systems. The Ministry of Finance (MoF), however, balked at the higher initial cost per unit of the A330 MRTT which was three times more than that of UAC’s bid disregarding calculations of life-cycle costs. As a result, the procurement process was re-tendered and re-issued in September 2010, nine months after the older contract for around `5,715 crore ($1.06 billion) was stopped with some talk of Boeing joining the fray as well with a KC-767 bid. That did not materialize and the IAF, as of now, has stuck to its choice of the A330 MRTT in the original bid.

Based on life-cycle costs, the A330 MRTT has emerged as the lowest bidder and the MoF seems to have gone ahead with this accounting procedure.

The A330 MRTT’s lower operating and

maintenance costs probably have nothing to do with the fact that it is a derivative of the civilian A330-200 which has competed rather successfully for the past 15 years in an extremely tight airline market that is tailored for high-tempo operations and places a premium on affordability in terms of fuel savings, turnaround times and general serviceability. The IL-78, in contrast, was basically designed in the 1970s for Soviet military use and has the limitations of an aircraft conceived in a different era both in terms of doctrine as well as environment.

Indeed, given that it already operates the IL-78, the IAF would be well aware of the type’s capabilities and pitfalls. One of the key concerns with reference to the IL-78 would, perhaps, pertain to the usual problems faced by all Russian systems from the cold war era — finding the right spares from an industrial support system that is now spread across national borders with much of it still recovering from the cataclysmic demise of the Soviet military industrial complex. The IL-78 till recently could only be built at the Tashkent Aviation Production Association plant in Uzbekistan whose poor output and spares support issues for instance, among other things, severely delayed China’s plans to purchase newly built IL-76s and 78s.

In contrast, over 800 A330-200s are in operation worldwide in the civilian domain with more still being bought. The A330200 is being produced at the fastest rate of any wide-body in the world today with production rising to a 10-month-high during 2013. Global spares support is, therefore, not much of an issue for the A330 MRTT which has a great degree of commonality with its civilian version. In fact, standard commercial A330-200s are delivered from the Airbus final assembly line in Toulouse,

France, to the Airbus military conversion centre in Getafe, Spain for the fitment of refuelling systems and military avionics that subsequently yields the A330 MRTT configuration. The A330 MRTT, therefore, follows a model whereby mass-produced civilian aircraft are quickly modified for military support roles bringing to the table vastly simplified logistics and civilian frugality in an era where operational costs are a major issue.

More than 28 units of the A330 MRTT have already been sold to the armed forces of Australia, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab

The IL-78, in contrast to the A330 MRTT, was basically designed in the 1970s for Soviet military use and has the limitations of an aircraft conceived in a different era both in terms of doctrine as well as environment.

Emirates, and the UK which have outfitted their respective units with customised refuelling configurations.

The A330 MRTT displays great modularity in the choice of refuelling systems with the ability to sport both boom (receptacle) as well as probe and drogue (basket) systems of the following types: Airbus Military Aerial Refuelling Boom System (ARBS) for receptacleequipped receiver aircraft; Cobham 905E under-wing refuelling pods for probe-equipped receiver aircraft; Cobham 805E Fuselage Refuelling Unit (FRU) for probe-equipped receiver aircraft; and Universal Aerial Refuelling Receptacle System Installation (UARRSI) for self in-flight refuelling.

Given the above, it is clear that the IAF will be able to refuel all its existing combat aircraft using the A330 MRTT. Additionally, this ability of the A330 MRTT to be used for both boom as well as basket refuelling means that it can also be flown to support the P-8I Anti-Submarine Warfare (ASW) aircraft being acquired by the Indian Navy which uses boom refuelling.

Moreover, it adds another dimension to what India brings to the table in terms of potential coalition operations in the IndoPacific where many potential partners operate combat aircraft of American origin that are outfitted for boom refuelling.

The A330 MRTT is able to carry up to 111 tonnes of fuel in its wings, which is the same as the basic fuel capacity of the A330200. This rather large holding of fuel in the wings itself obviates the need for installing any additional fuel tanks in the fuselage

wikipedia

Knocked Down: The IAF has preferred the A330 to the IL-78 air-to-air refuelling tankers referred to as Mid Air Refuelling System (MARS)

Cruising Heights February 2013

45

aero india special

COBHAM

bridging distances: Cobham’s fifth-generation 905E Air-to-Air Refuelling (AAR) pod is part of the Airbus A330 Multi Role Tanker Transport (MRTT)

which is typical of older generation refuellers such as the IL-78 for most tanking missions, thereby, avoiding any reduction in the ability of the A-330 MRTT to carry passengers or cargo. This allows for a level of versatility not seen in other airborne refuelling types when it can be rapidly switched to transport troops and cargo when it is not carrying out air-to-air refuelling operations without any need for modification.

In the transport role, the MRTT can be used to carry up to 300 troops, or a payload of up to 45 tonnes or even accommodate up to 130 stretchers for medical evacuation (MEDEVAC). With such payloads, the A330 MRTT has a range of up to 14,800 kms while flying at a maximum speed of Mach 0.86. These figures certainly would have attracted an IAF envisioning a more intercontinental role for itself.

The hot and high performance of the A330 MRTT as validated by high altitude trials in Leh also seems to have shaped the IAF’s opinion in its favour. An airwar over the Himalayas could after all be dominated by the side which is able to generate a greater sortie rate. Scenarios can be envisaged wherein the A-330 MRTT can take off with enough fuel to allow it to remain on station at about 1,600 kms from its home base for some four hours thirty minutes while transferring up to 50 tonnes of fuel

46

In the transport role, the MRTT can be used to carry up to 300 troops, or a payload of up to 45 tonnes or even accommodate up to 130 stretchers for medical evacuation (MEDEVAC) Cruising Heights February 2013

to all kinds of receivers. The possibly more relevant figure for an A-330 MRTT based in Leh itself is a mission wherein it carries a transferrable fuel payload of 60 tonnes while remaining on station for five hours at 930 kms from base and this would cover most of the northern sector. This would also enable roughly four medium-sized fighters to fly 6,700 kms when refuelled en-route.

At the moment commercial negotiations for six aircraft with an option for three more (reduced from the six in the original 2006 bid) are likely to commence soon.

The contract if signed includes a 30 per cent offset commitment out of a projected value of 8,000 crore ($1.55 billion). Airbus is offering the contract to be negotiated in both euros and dollars. Either way, it is important to note that there has been considerable inflation in the estimated value of the contract due to the re-bidding and delays.

This is a typical malaise afflicting Indian procurement plans whereby for one reason or the other (often allegations of corruption) the entire process gets delayed, with the buy being eventually processed at greatly increased prices. Now given that India probably needs more than treble the number of tankers it currently has, some clarity on the sequencing of more flight refuelling aircraft may well be in order. n

FEBRUARY 2013

Cruising heights AAI GOES FOR

GROWTH

With the successful completion of the new terminals in Chennai and Kolkata, Airports Authority of India is on an overdrive to develop airports in the NorthEast and Tier-2 and Tier-3 cities

Kolkata's lyrical beauty wows

Boost to airport development

CHENNAI: Pride of the south

Inspired by Rabindranath Tagore, the Gateway to the East opens amidst fanfare

AAI Chairman is upbeat about his organisation's plans to develop civil aviation infrastructure in India

The new integrated terminal at Chennai airport is comparable to any in the world

aero india special

Photos: hemant rawat

Union Civil Aviation Minister Ajit Singh has words of praise for the Airports Authority of India but feels that the Authority can do much more.

‘AAI has done a very good job’ On AAI I think the AAI has done a very good job and what has helped is that the modernisation process has brought in more money into the AAI kitty and helped them develop other airports and tide over financial constraints.

On smaller airports We said we will allow PPP (PublicPrivate Partnership) in the smaller airports. But right now the problem with AAI is different: they have built a lot of good airports to which nobody is flying. We have to come up with low cost small airports where things can be constructed quickly and isn’t so expensive. What is required is active traffic at airports in smaller cities. Tier-2 and Tier-3 cities are the ones that are showing rapid economic growth. These are the places where the

48

aviation service must improve.

Small aircraft can land on short runways and airlines must induct these planes. Only 90 runways in the country can handle jet operations and many of these are non-operational.

On the airport side, AAI has modernised several airports and barring Arunachal Pradesh where the Planning Commission is giving the money, the others — like Mopa, Kannur — are in the private sector.

On AAI’s functioning AAI’s functioning is now split into two very distinct parts: one is the Air Traffic Control (ATC) which is highly technical, and the other part is infrastructure that involves constructing airports. So they have to be separate.

AAI Board has just said that the two wings may be separated and another Cruising Heights February 2013

authority may be formed. So we are looking at it.

On GAGAN India’s GPS-Aided Geo Augmented Navigation System known as GAGAN developed by AAI with the support of ISRO at an estimated cost of `774 crore is likely to be rolled out by July, 2013. There are lots of things that the AAI can still do. With GAGAN’s implementation, issues like time between destinations will vastly improve and routes will get streamlined. I am confident that AAI will do that in the coming years.

On Chennai and Kolkata AAI has built two very fine airports.

Chennai has a lot of business. But the airport that we have made really has no room for expansion, so we are already looking for another international airport there. Kolkata should be the gateway for our North East (and the worldwide South East). But business is not coming to Kolkata as such… the kind of things people were hoping for hasn’t happened. But over time, I am hopeful, it will improve.

aero india special

ASSAM

The largest state in the north-eastern region of the country, Assam has six airports operating airports.

Guwahati: Guwahati International Airport is the busiest and largest airport in this region.

According to the 12th Five Year Plan, funds of `60 crore have been allotted for extending the runway by 550 metres and strengthening of the runway, taxiway and apron. It is also slated to receive allocations of `156 crore for the construction of an international terminal building as well as `35 crore for building hangars for A321 aircraft.

Dibrugarh: The Dibrugarh Airport will receive major upgrades in the form of runway extension at an estimated cost of `58 crore. Additional funding for the construction of a hangar for ‘C’ type aircraft for about `20 crore has also been provided.

Jorhat: Jorhat Airport supports aircraft up to A320s. A new terminal building and extension of apron and link taxiway have been planned at an estimated cost of `50 crore and `10 crore respectively.

MANIPUR

Imphal: Tulihal Airport is the only airport in Imphal, the capital city of the state.

According to the 12th Five Year Plan, the airport will undergo expansion of the existing terminal building and enhancement of passenger facilities with a grant of `20 crore. Expansion of the runway by 350 metres in Phase I and, subsequently, 410 metres in Phase II will also be undertaken at a total cost of `30 crore. Other major upgrades include construction of a boundary wall on newly acquired land and hangar for ‘C’ type aircraft with an approximate expenditure of about `15 crore and `20 crore respectively.

TRIPURA

Agartala: Agartala Airport, located in the capital of the state, is the second busiest airport in this region. As per the 12th Five Year Plan, expansion of the existing terminal building and upgradation of existing structures will be undertaken at a cost of `35 crore. Construction of a hangar for AB-321 aircraft is also planned at an estimated cost of `20 crore.

MEGHALAYA

Shillong: Barapani Airport is the only operating airport in the state of Meghalaya.

Shillong Airport

A Big Stride

Forward

As part of its development programme, Airports Authority of India has focussed on connectivity in the North-East. A brief look at the upgrades planned for the airports in the region.

It is set to receive huge fund allocations for extension of the runway on both ends, consolidation of the existing runway, taxiway and apron at a total projected cost of `75 crore. Construction of fire station, control tower, emergency medical centre and watch tower, among many other upgrades at an estimated cost of `21 crore, have also been planned.

NAGALAND

Dimapur: Dimapur airport is situated at a distance of 70 kms from the state capital, Kohima. An ambitious project has been sanctioned for the modernisation of the airport in the form of expansion of the existing terminal building and enhancement of passenger facilities at an estimated cost of `15 crore. An additional `15 crore has been allotted for the construction of new fire Cruising Heights February 2013

station, emergency medical centre and other features.

SIKKIM

Pakyong: At an estimated cost of `310 crore, the Pakyong Airport features a 1700-metre-long and 30-metre-wide runway. It also comprises of a 116-metre-long taxiway connected to an apron measuring 106 metres by 76 metres that can accommodate two ATR-72 aircraft. The new terminal building has a capacity of 100 passengers at a point of time.

ARUNACHAL PRADESH

Itanagar: Construction of a new airport will be initiated at a total cost of `500 crore.

Teju: A new airport will be built at an estimated cost of `80 crore.

49

aero india special

The sky's the limit Airports in the western region are witnessing massive development and growth under the stewardship of Airports Authority of India.

new integrated terminal building, car parking, apron, new ATC tower-cum-technical block and extension of runway at a projected cost of `151 crore.

Rajkot: Car parking and apron, among many other upgrades, have been planned at the cost of `104 crore.

MADHYA PRADESH

Bhopal: Bhopal Airport is set for construction of a new ATC tower-cum-technical block has been projected at the cost of `25 crore.

Indore: Indore Airport will receive upgrades in the form of construction of six additional parking bays and a parallel taxiway, electrical works and ATC towercum-technical block at an estimated cost of `95 crore.

Jabalpur: A new terminal building, apron, Air Traffic Control (ATC) tower and fire station will be constructed at an expenditure of `68 crore.

MAHARASHTRA

Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel International Airport, Ahmedabad

GUJARAT

Ahmedabad: Ahmedabad Airport is officially known as Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel International Airport. The construction of new control tower-cum-technical block is being built at an estimated cost of `25 crore. The airport will see the construction of a new domestic terminal building, an apron, a new cargo complex, staff quarters and consolidation and widening of the runway for A380.

Bhavnagar: Bhavnagar Airport has commissioned `104 core for the construction of a new terminal building, car parking and apron.

Surat: Construction of additional parking bays, new taxi track, residential quarters, extension of runway, cargo complex and strengthening of runway has been projected at a cost of `125 crore.

Vadodara: Vadodra Airport’s modernisation plans include construction of

Looking East

Jharsuguda: `65 crore has been leveraged for ATR operation, development of runway and apron at Jharsuguda Airport.

AAI sets the agenda for the extensive development of Eastern region airports in the country.

ORISSA

Bhubaneshwar: Bhubaneshwar Airport upgradation plans include construction of a new international terminal complex for 500 passengers with all the modern facilities like four escalators, three elevators with plinth area of 15000 sq. m. and car park for 500 cars, technical block and control tower, extension of runway, cargo complex, hangar, apron and administrative block has been estimated at `183 crore.

50

BIHAR

Gaya: `40 crore has been sanctioned for extension of runway and technical block for Gaya Airport.

Patna: Projected upgrades for Patna Airport include runway extension and diversion of railway track, new terminal building and allied works, extension of apron, construction of cargo terminal and a taxi track. The total estimated cost of the modernisation project is `252 crore.

JHARKHAND

Ranchi: The 12th Five Year Plan has laid down the construction of technical block, ATC tower and a new integrated Cruising Heights February 2013

Pune: Pune Airport is gearing up to develop terminal building modification (Central), Hangars and CIP lounge administration block and tensile fabric canopy at a cost of `85 crore.

Kolhapur: Kolhapur airport has been leased for 15 years by the state government to AAI and is geared up for major upgrade.

GOA

Goa: Goa Airport has been allocated `420 crore for the construction of a parallel taxi track, staff quarters and a new international terminal, car parking, extension of apron and allied works.

terminal building is accounted at the cost of `153 crore for Ranchi Airport.

Deoghar: `135 crore has been allotted to Deoghar Airport for the construction of the terminal building and apron and expansion of the runway. The airport will also be upgraded for ATR operation.

ANDAMAN AND NICOBAR ISLANDS

Port Blair: The construction of new integrated terminal building will be done at a cost of `374 crore at Port Blair Airport.

CHATTISGARH

Raipur: Construction of parallel taxiway, technical block and ATC tower, extension of runway and apron and construction of new expandable modular integrated terminal building has been approximated at `249 crore for Raipur Airport.

Northern Splendour As air traffic increases in the northern part of the country, connectivity has become an urgent necessity. The Airports Authority of India has planned massive expansion and modernisation projects in the region.

Punjab/haryana

Chandigarh/Mohali: Chandigarh Airport is being integrated with upcoming Chandigarh International Airport, Mohali.

Chandigarh International Airport is coming up on 306 acres of land at Jheorehri village near Mohali at a cost of `1,700 crore by the

Chandigarh International Airport

Area Development Authority.

Rajasthan

Jaisalmer: A new terminal building and car parking facility along with a new apron is being constructed at a cost of `125 crore at Jaisalmer Airport.

Kishangarh: Kishangarh airport near Ajmer is all set to have a new look soon

Southern Gateway

Recognised as one of the busiest destinations in the country, the airports in the southern region have seen a lot of investment. Here is a brief outline of the upcoming projects.

as work at the airport is in full swing and a new passenger terminal building is coming up at a cost of `418 crore.

UTTARANCHAL

Pantnagar: The airport is the nearest to the hill station of Nainital. A new runway of 2285 metres and a new apron at the airport is being constructed at a cost of `50 crore along with a new car parking facility.

expenditure of `4 crore.

Salem: Salem Airport is undergoing extension of the runway and allied facilities and the construction of a new terminal building at a cost of `30 crore. Other upgrades include a new control and technical blocks for an additional `7 crore.

Puducherry

Puducherry: At present new terminal is being constructed at Puducherry Airport at a cost of `30 crore, along with several projects which amount to `35 crore, are in the pipeline to give a boost to the airport.

KARNATAKA

Madurai Airport

Andhra Pradesh

Vijayawada: A new integrated terminal is planned for the airport at a cost of 90 crore along with new parking and approach road facilities. New instruments are also being installed with an additional investment of `20 crore.

Tamil Nadu

Madurai: The construction of a new terminal building for international traffic has just been completed at the Madurai Airport. A new ATC building and fire station is under construction at a cost of `30 crore and 2 aerobridges are also coming up at an Cruising Heights February 2013

Belgaum: The Airport is spread over 440 Acres and its apron can handle two aircrafts at a time, however the work on expansion of the airport is in full swing at a cost of `175 crore. The government has been able to acquire all the 298 acres around the airport required to upgrade it and is ready to hand them over to the Airports Authority of India (AAI).

Hubli: Hubli Airport, also known as Hubli Air Force Base, currently serves the twin cities of Hubli and Dharwad. Hubli Airport is spread over 369 Acres and more land is being acquired for a new terminal building and other expansions at a cost of `155 crore.

51

aero india special

“We will take airports’ developments to next level” Airports Authority of India (AAI) Chairman V P Agrawal is upbeat about his organisation’s plans to develop civil aviation infrastructure in India. Excerpts from an interview: on the aviation and airport scene in India

India is one of the fastest-growing economies globally with an average Gross Domestic Product (GDP) growth of over 8.9 per cent in the last five years. Aviation is an important part of national infrastructure and is one of the prime movers for economic growth and employment generation.

Air transport has grown at twice the rate of GDP. For the past several years, the growth has been impressive with international passengers growing at Compounded Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) of over 14 per cent and domestic at almost 22 per cent.

On personnel and training to meet the growth

As civil aviation in India is increasing at a rapid pace — almost 15 per cent per annum — there is a need to train and develop the needed manpower for various functions of aviation management. The critical areas where training is needed for people interested in taking airport business as a career are the terminal and airside operations management, facility management, civil, electrical and electronics installations, at airports, airport planning, airport commercial functions and airport cargo management, etc.

On the personnel crunch

It is a well-accepted and established fact that airports play a pivotal role in the country’s economic and industrial growth. And AAI has a well established process to attract, select, develop and retain a highly motivated professional workforce for an organisation such as AAI which is not only technically-oriented but also has to ensure highest standards of safety as there is no scope for margins of error. AAI lays great emphasis on evolving the values, ethics, work ethos and HR policies that are required to not only attract but also to ensure that they go a long way in retaining talented professionals within the fold of AAI. We have to take into consideration the core business of AAI, i.e. managing airports/ airspace which demands 100 per cent safety and thus, the need to have a highly motivated, talented and professional workforce.

It is a well-established fact that it is the knowledge, skills and competence of AAI’s employees which decide on its success in the marketplace. Therefore, what is important is how the professionals are treated and from who flow out values and objectives.

On training others

For the Indian Aviation Academy (IAA), there have been requests for training of personnel from countries such as Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, African Union, etc. We have also received requests from Bhutan, Nepal and Bangladesh.

Civil Aviation Training College (CATC): There are regular requests from foreign countries. However, CATC accommodates all the customers under bilateral agreements by Government of India.

Fire Service Training Centre (FSTC): Our international customers are Ethiopia, Surinam, Mauritius, Afghanistan, Yemen, Sri Lanka, Nepal and Bhutan.

On improved Air Traffic Management

The improvements in air traffic flow management and navigation systems had led to lesser fuel burn for aircraft and has helped airlines save lot of resources. The Indian Air Force has also come forward to

52

Cruising Heights February 2013

cooperate in the flexible use of airspace that would considerably improve air traffic flow over the Indian airspace. This will be a game-changer.

On future plans

AAI is about to complete the development 35 non-metro airports and completed upgrading of another 21 and carrying out work in six more at present. Expansion and upgradation was carried out taking into account factors like potential for traffic, tourism potential, non-aeronautical revenues boosted by exploitation of surplus land and connectivity with state capital. The government has allocated a budget of `17,000 crores to AAI for the 12th Five Year Plan for future expansion and development of airports.

On further expanding the airport network

On General Aviation

India would require 200 airports by 2020 for general aviation purposes.

The growth in general aviation would benefit the aviation industry in Tier-II and Tier-III cities as a significant part of general aviation travel is focussed on infrequently connected airports. By 2020, the Indian general aviation fleet is expected to reach 2000 from 680 today — growing at a Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) of 13 per cent. The direct and indirect economic contribution of general aviation could be close to $ four billion per annum by 2020.

On the progress in CNS

From the air traffic point, we have been rated at par with the FAA (Federal Aviation Administration). Also, air traffic with GPS-aided geo-augmented navigation (GAGAN) has a bigger footprint and thus we will explore it to be shared by neighbouring countries. Efforts are on to integrate Flight Information Regions (FIRs) and this will receive a boost when Air Traffic Flow Management (ATFM) is in place. If our neighbours want help to make travel more seamless, we will most certainly try and provide that help to them.

On future growth

photos: h c tiwari

The state governments have been asked to prepare prospective plans to develop airports or helipads in their respective regions, prepare an inventory of airstrips, helipads and airports and forward them to AAI. Depending on the traffic density forecast and possibilities of non-aeronautical revenue exploitation by using surplus land and connectivity with state capitals, we would develop airports at these Tier-2 and Tier-3 cities.

These works could be taken up either through Public-Private Partnership (PPP) mode or in collaboration between AAI and state governments or through complete privatisation.

Chandigarh Airport will be coming up on a new site and for that work is going on.

Hopefully, we will be able to complete it by mid-2014.

That will be an international airport. My first priority is to ensure that when we deliver these infrastructural facilities, we should be able to put it to use fully. And, these should be user-friendly.

My idea is to ensure that we commercialise this infrastructure because once the infrastructure is in place, more uses can be derived from it. More flights, for example, can be accepted. So, I want to take that advantage. It will be fully utilised so that the return on investment can

be gained.

Apart from this, I am also seeing the possibility of developing certain airports through the PPP route. This has been discussed with the Planning Commission and we have started work in that. And then there would be cityside development also taking place at certain airports.

We have undertaken development of a Greenfield airport at Pakyong in Sikkim with a target date of completion by June, 2013. Besides this, Greenfield airports planned at Kohima in Nagaland and Itanagar in Arunachal Pradesh are also in process. The `150-crore modernisationcum-expansion of Deoghar airport that involves setting up of a longer runway and facilities to accommodate 700 passengers at a time in the new terminal building will be in place soon. AAI aims to execute the Deoghar project in such a way that landing and take-off facilities for smaller aircraft like ATR-72 and A321 are in place.

looking at the future: AAI Chairman V P Agrawal inspecting the GAGAN setup and ready for a flight to oversee work at one of the AAI airports

Cruising Heights February 2013

Financially, we are fine but we would like the amounts pending with Air India and Kingfisher to be settled.

There is a ray of hope since the government will be giving funds to Air India and hopefully it will be settling all its dues. Once that happens, probably AAI would become a loan-free company and then we will be able to borrow much more. I also have plans for the corporatisation of AAI and we will be moving ahead in that direction.

We have gained in confidence and proved that we are capable of delivering large capital projects like Chennai and Kolkata. We are confident that we can take up other such projects in the neighbouring countries. My sight is first at the neighbouring countries and then Africa where there is a large vacuum and Indian companies are rated very well there. n

53

aero india special

GAGAN to take

India ahead Work on the GPS-Aided Geo Augmented Navigation (GAGAN) project is in the final phase. The certified GAGAN signal-in-space is targeted for the third quarter of 2013. Simply put, these signals would be capable of providing a near-precision approach service at all airports.

54

Cruising Heights February 2013

GAGAN Configuration GEO In-orbit Spare

GPS Const.

PRN 128

Bengaluru INLUS-1 SG

RF

PRN 127

Backup to INLUS 1/2

Delhi INLUS-2 SG

INLUS-3

RF

SG

RF

DATA Communication Network-1 DATA Communication Network-2

INMCC-1

NRES#1-15

Bengaluru

T

he implementation of the GPSAided Geo Augmented Navigation (GAGAN) project by the Airports Authority of India (AAI) and Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) for seamless navigation over Indian airspace is on. Once completed, India will be the fourth country in the world to have a satellite-based navigation system.

A Satellite Based Augmentation System (SBAS) is a navigation system that supplements Global Navigation Satellite Systems (GNSS) providing a more accurate and reliable navigation service than GNSS alone.

GAGAN (GPS Aided Geo Augmented Navigation) is the Indian contribution to the GNSS System that will provide and guarantee navigation signals particularly for Civil Aviation and also provide benefits to maritime and land mobile Trans-Indian network applications.

Airports Authority of India and Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO), on behalf of Government of India, are responsible for the system design, development and technical validation of GAGAN, which is on its final leg of operationalisation.

GAGAN is expected to significantly improve the accuracy, continuity, service guarantee (via Integrity signal) and availability of GPS services over the Indian region. GAGAN coverage can be extended

INMCC-2

Bengaluru

Ground —15 Indian Reference Stations (INRES)

Widely spread network of INRES track all the GPS satellites and SBAS GEO in view and forward all measurement data to Master control centre for further processing.

—Two Indian Master Control Centre (INMCC)

Master control centre uses the measurement data from the reference stations to generate differential corrections and integrity messages for the designated service volume

—Three Indian Land Uplink Stations (INLUS)

These messages are transmitted through Indian Land Uplink stations to GAGAN GEO satellites.

Space —Two operational GEOs

GEOs have common coverage

—One In-orbit-spare

GSAT-8/550 E, assigned PRN 127, Operational for Non-Safety-of-Life applications since Dec. 2011.

GSAT-10/830 E, assigned PRN 128, currently undergoing integration with ground segment.GEO satellites.

GSAT 15/93.5, yet to be launched, will work as in-orbit-spare.

User —Civil Aviation Community —Non-Civil Aviation Users

Cruising Heights February 2013

User gets benefitted positional accuracy information.

with and

improved integrity

55

aero india special

to include other regions such as Africa, Asia Pacific region and Australia. GAGAN will be the fourth SBAS in the world.

For en route navigation guidance, SBAS includes integrity as a part of its service and eliminates the need for GPS Receiver Autonomous Integrity Monitoring (RAIM) checks.

Direct routes improve airspace capacity and relieve congestion while reducing fuel use and pollution. By eliminating the need for airways to be tied to ground-based navigation aids, SBAS-equipped aircraft gain the flexibility and benefit of point-topoint operations. SBAS satisfies equipment requirements for the new, more direct en route flight options of ‘T’ and ‘Q’ routes.

• T-Route: an Area Navigation (RNAV) route used in low-altitude airspace operating below 18,000 feet.

• Q-Route: an Area Navigation (RNAV) route used in high-altitude airspace (18,000 feet – 45,000 feet).

GAGAN is operational for non-safety of life of application pending to its certification, which is expected to take place in the third quarter of 2013. Once certified, GAGAN will provide APV1 service over the Indian landmass and RNP 0.1 over the

56

FAST MOVING: File picture showing FAA Administrators’ visit to GAGAN Complex in Bengaluru. Also seen in the picture, AAI Chairman V P Agrawal

GAGAN (GPS Aided Geo Augmented Navigation) is the Indian contribution to the GNSS System that will provide and guarantee navigation signals particularly for Civil Aviation and also provide benefits to maritime and land mobile Trans-Indian network applications.

Cruising Heights February 2013

Indian FIR. The signal in space is available on PRN 127.

GAGAN Procedure Development Team is developing the LPV 250 approaches to six airports in the initial phase and plans in a phased manner to provide every runway end, where such procedure would be feasible.

SBAS around the world Wide Area Augmentation System (WAAS) • Commissioned in July 2003 (http:gps. faa.gov) • Serves North America, with benefits that extend into Central and South America and over the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans.

European Geostationary Navigation Overlay Service (EGNOS) • Available in Europe since October 2009 • Commissioned for Safety-of-Life Service in March 2011 • Serves Europe and northern portion of Africa Multi-functional Transport Satellite (MTSAT) Satellite Augmentation System

aero india special

Service Areas of SBAS

SBAS IWG objectives established to support technical interoperability and cooperation • Objective 1: Harmonize SBAS modernization plans • Objective 2: Forum for discussion on SBAS standards • Objective 3: Harmonize technical improvements from operations and users feedback • Objective 4: Research and Development (R&D) cooperation on key SBAS technologies • Objective 5: Support joint SBAS promotion

(MSAS) • Commissioned in 2007 • Serves Japan and surrounding area • Provide LNAV service System of Differential Correction and Monitoring (SDCM) • Currently under development • Augmentation of GPS and GLONASS • Will provide Horizontal and Vertical Guidance • Will serve Russia and the surrounding area Interoperability among the SBAS Systems To ensure seamless operation, each SBAS system has been developed to the same standard as defined by the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) SARPs Annex 10. The Interoperability Working Group (IWG) comprising SBAS service providers meet on a regular basis to ensure seamless operations as systems expand, are enhanced, or as new SBAS systems are implemented. SBAS Avionics are intended as interoperable as they are properly developed in accordance with ICAO SARPs thus enabling aircraft to easily transition from one SBAS system to the next.

SBAS service providers around the world met at Toulouse, France between January 23-25, 2013 to discuss the development and progress towards Dual Frequency, Multi-Constellation (DFMC) SBAS systems for catering to robust GNSS, that would eliminate the drawbacks of the single frequency SBAS.

58

SBAS service providers around the world met at Toulouse, France between January 23-25, 2013 to discuss the development and progress towards Dual Frequency, Multi-Constellation (DFMC) SBAS systems for catering to robust GNSS. Cruising Heights February 2013

SBAS in the future • Satellite navigation systems will reduce the dependence on ageing, groundbased, legacy infrastructure, allowing for more rapid decommissioning of legacy systems.

• The use of performance-based SBAS navigation will increase operational efficiencies with resulting cost savings and emission reductions.

• With the future introduction of dualfrequency SBAS, satellite navigation service availability increases during ionospheric storms.

• As more satellite navigation constellations become operational, such as Europe’s Galileo, China’s BeiDou (COMPASS), and Russia’s GLONASS which is transitioning to an interoperable GNSS format, satellite navigation will become the standard for global aviation navigation n

Chennai’s ready and willing With its lush green gardens on view throughout the terminal creating a unique dialogue between technology and nature, AAI’s showpiece airport in Chennai is complete and is capable of handling around 30 million passengers.

A report.

T

he new terminals at the Chennai Airport are now open. Vice President of India, Hamid Ansari, inaugurated the sparkling glass and steel structure on January 31, 2013 and the new facilities will be operational for flyers two months from the date.

The Airports Authority of India’s `2,300 crore project, which commenced in 2008, will see the transformation of Chennai airport into one of the top airports in the world. With a total land area of 1298.01 acres with length of perimeter wall

Cruising Heights February 2013

59

aero india special running 15-km and the perimeter road meandering 14-km. Its main runway 07/25 is 3658 metres long or over 12000 feet which is enough for a Jumbo to operate.

The secondary runway 12/30 which was 2085 metres or 6765 feet has been extended by way of a stilted bridge on the Adayar river by another 1032 metres or nearly 3400 feet to take the total length to just about 10,000 feet. The length and width of the RCC/pre-stressed concrete bridge is 200 metres by 447.50 metres to accommodate the secondary runway and parallel taxi track. The bridge will be able to take the weight of an A-380 superjumbo landing.

Chennai airport has 17 taxiways and 81 parking stands. It has five aerobridges to cater to international passengers and three for domestic. The airport falling under the 4E category has undergone a massive renovation. The domestic terminal which was commissioned in April 1985 went through periodic upgrades and today is spread over 19,250 square metres. Against an annual

60

Cruising Heights February 2013

passenger handling capacity of six millon, in fiscal 2010-11, the airport handled 7.80 million domestic passengers. The peak hour handling capacity in the departure hall is 800 while in the arrival hall it is 1200.

There are only four baggage conveyor belts in the domestic arrival hall. The domestic terminal has 48 check-in counters.

The international terminal, which was twice commissioned — once in April 1989 and later upgraded in May 2003 — is spread over 42,870 square metres with an annual passenger handling capacity of three million. The airport, however, handled 4.25 million passengers in 2010-11. During peak hours, it has a handling capacity of 1200 in the departure hall and 750 in the arrival hall and another 350 in the transit hall. It has four baggage conveyor belts and 44 checkin counters besides nine arrival counters for customs and 22 arrival immigration counters as against two departure Customs and 16 departure immigration counters.

The new domestic integrated terminal

building with its 3-level structure has an area of 72,614 square metres. It has a provision for seven gates, two hardstand hold rooms and 52 check-in counters excluding eight e-ticketing counters. The international terminal building with also a 3-level structure is of 60,528 square metres and has a provision for two gates with multiple hardstand hold rooms, 52 check-in counters excluding eight counters for e-ticketing. Besides, the international terminal has 18 immigration and four Customs counters for departure passengers.

While the capacity of the new domestic terminal building is for 10 million passengers per annum, the new international terminal building caters to four million passengers per annum. The capacity of Chennai airport is 23 million passengers per annum against the 12.05 million handled in 2010-11 (the designated capacity of both the terminals was nine million only).

The expanded and upgraded Chennai airport will be able to handle nearly 30 mil-

lion passengers though the actual handling capacity will be 16 million in domestic and seven million in the international terminal with peak hour passenger handling capacity of 3300 for domestic and 2300 for the international terminal.

In the revamped Chennai airport, the new international and domestic terminals are connected with an elevated road (flyover) of a kilometre. The massive steel and glass structure is defined by dramatic, twin wing-like hovering roofs providing a 300 metre-long column-free space. The straightforward planning and super-efficient organisation of the programme, security and circulation, according to the Airports Authority of India (AAI), formed the basis of the innovative design that incorporates vibrant sustainable gardens. Unlike

MAKING A STATEMENT: Views of the Chennai airport

Cruising Heights February 2013

61

aero india special

chennai: a giant leap Domestic Capacity 10 million annually





n

International Capacity n

Chennai

4 million annually

Features

Terminal

Area Capacity Check-In-Counters Elevators Escalators Immigration Counter Customs Counter

68,000 sq.m 10 million 55 14 03 -

Salient

Domestic

Terminal

International

58,000 sq.m 4 million 57 11 2 19 10

Future Plans: • M odification of existing terminal buildings • Construction of multi-level car parks • Construction of connector tube between the two terminals • India’s greenest airport with ultra modern facilities and super-efficient organisation of security and circulation • Largest cantilevered roof of 24 metres at cityside of terminals, made up of tubular space frame of approx. 48-metre span • Photovoltaic cells on atrium roof reduce heat gain and provide renewable power

Tamil Nadu

any other airport in the world, Chennai airport will have lush green gardens on view throughout the terminal creating a unique dialogue between engineering and nature.

The building volume is clearly divided between the landside and airside and the spaces connected with a central security checkpoint for departure as well as two glass bridges on either side for arriving passengers. The circulation has been so organised that departing and arriving passengers will never mingle at any point in the terminal. Special energy-efficient technologies have been incorporated in the design besides various water management techniques like water-efficient landscaping, rain water harvesting, water efficient

62

fixtures, use of treated grey water for the airconditioning cooling system and innovative effluent treatment plant. These will help in re-using waste water.

Both the terminals are equipped with a sophisticated in-line baggage handling system that is capable of Level-4 security screening system. The system consists of five departure conveyors including rejected baggage conveyor. There are four arrival carousels in the domestic section and three in the international terminal. The total length of the conveyor is 3500 metres and the system can handle 1250 pieces of baggage per hour.

There is a connector between the international and domestic terminals at the Cruising Heights February 2013

BIG AND BOLD: (Clockwise from above) Inside the terminal, a display board makes it easy for flyers where they are going; Aircraft at their stands; Flyers checking in; the ATC in operation at Chennai airport and, car parking

mezzanine level on the city side. This facilitates the passengers to move from the domestic terminal to the international terminal and vice-versa. There are two walkalators each of one metre width. There is also a proposal to connect the airport to a metro station. Work will be initiated on the proposed metro rail station inside the airport premises with a total area of 20,000 Cruising Heights February 2013

square metres with four level terminal having concourse, platform, two wheeler parking for metro users and car park for airport users. The AAI will execute the work of the metro station within the airport premises.

In terms of passenger traffic, Chennai airport is the third busiest in the country.

The airport had also undertaken a major revamp of its cargo facilities. An automatic storage and retrieval system has been installed at the cargo complex which will improve efficiency of cargo handling substantially. The cargo complex at Chennai will be much bigger than what is available in Hyderabad or Bengaluru and once all the work is completed, it will be the most modern airport cargo complex in India. n

63

aero india special

Glimpses of CHANGE: (Scenes from the inauguration) President Pranab Mukherjee lighting the lamp to inaugurate the new terminal at Kolkata airport. The Governor of West Bengal, M K Narayanan, Union Minister for Civil Aviation Ajit Singh, Chief Minister of West Bengal, Mamata Banerjee, and K N Shrivastava, Civil Aviation Secretary are also seen

Kolkata terminal wows

The new integrated terminal building at the Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose International Airport in Kolkata prides itself for its world-class passenger facilities, and an architectural design inspired by Nobel Laureate Rabindranath Tagore, reports R Krishnan

T

he new modernised and upgraded Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose International Airport (NSCBIA) at Kolkata, India’s gateway to the East, was inaugurated by the President of India, Pranab Mukherjee, on January 20, 2013. Speaking on the occasion, the President said the new Kolkata Airport Terminal was an example of how the public sector in India could also create a world-class facility. Since Kolkata is the gateway to the east, the airport, said the President, could play an important role in India’s ‘Look East’ policy, especially in view of the directional change in international trade from the west to the east.

Since the existing terminal was saturated, the government decided in 2008 to undertake a massive modernisation-cum-expansion of Kolkata airport. The job of executing the expansion projection was given to the state-owned Airports Authority of India (AAI) which literally raced against time to complete it. Once totally completed — the recent inauguration was only the first phase of the project — the brand new steel and glass terminal will be the pride of the East.

The second phase of the project is slated to begin in 2015-16. Since the city is the gateway to East (India) as also to the rest of South-East Asia and Asia-Pacific, it is expected that Kolkata will become an ideal stopover for many flights originating from Europe or the US bound for the Far East. Not only will it become an important destination point but also a transit point. Keeping all this in mind the AAI has already begun planning for the second phase and will acquire additional land that will see the construction of a brand new third runway as the existing airport already has two parallel runways which can be used only for parallel operation but not simultaneously.

aero india special

Once known as Dum Dum airport, the Kolkata airport has undergone several changes and modifications over the last several decades to meet traffic requirements.

The annual compounded growth rate of the passenger traffic at NSCBIA, Kolkata (registered between 1972-73 and 2004-05) was 4 per cent. However, of late, passenger traffic growth has more than doubled. The trends show an annual growth rate of 12 per cent for international passengers and 20 per cent for domestic passengers.

There was a time when many international airlines withdrew from Kolkata for various reasons which had nothing to do with the airport or AAI but due to lack of visible economic activity in the state.

Much of it has changed over time though not much compared to other states in India.

Nevertheless, the construction and modernisation of the airport to world-class standards has enthused many foreign carriers to once again look at Kolkata with renewed interest. Dragonair has already made its presence felt while Japan Airlines, Turkish Airlines and FlyDubai have spoken to AAI

66

about starting operations to Kolkata.

AAI Chairman V P Agrawal was confident when he said the new terminal at Kolkata airport will be as good as Delhi airport’s T3. According to the ChairmanEastern Region, Travel Agents Federation of India, Anil Punjabi, West Bengal needs industrial activity to attract and sustain foreign carriers. There has been some growth in international traffic. Kolkata airport, Punjabi said, at present handles 4.5 million passengers of which about 30 per cent are international passengers. The growth in traffic in the last two years for international passengers was 12 per cent while that for domestic was 20 per cent.

The annual traffic anticipated — once fully operational at its rated capacity — is 20 million of which the international terminal will be saturated by 2023-24 and domestic passenger traffic in 2019-20. But considering the present passenger traffic handled of 9 million against the designed capacity of 5 million, it looks like Kolkata airport will be able to handle much more than the 20 million capacity as the existing domestic Cruising Heights February 2013

terminal will remain functional for some more time in addition to the new one.

On the departure side of the new terminal, there will be 128 check in counters based on the concept of CUTE or Common User Terminal Equipment covering both domestic and international terminals, respectively. There will be 28 immigration counters in the international terminal besides 21 security gates with frisking booths and 33 such security gates with frisking booths in the domestic terminal. On the arrival side, there will be 40 immigration counters. Further, there will be three and six conveyor belts, on the international departure and arrival side, respectively. On the domestic side, there will be five conveyor belts on the departure side and 10 on the arrival side. In addition to the 18 aerobridges, on the international side, there will be 13 elevators, 8 escalators and 6 travelators. On the domestic side there will be 14 elevators, 8 escalators and 7 travellators.

The landscape concept and under roofing designs for the airport terminal is rooted in the rich cultural heritage of Kolkata

STATE-OF-THE-ART: (Left)

Unique pattern on the ceiling inside the new integrated terminal building at the airport and a view of the terminal from the cityside

and Bengal. It has been conceived as one the biggest pieces of land art inspired by the works of literary giant Rabindranath Tagore. The land art connects the building with its environment, the outside with the inside and creates a unique landscape.

It also offers two disparate spatial experiences — the vastness of the grand central garden and the intimacy of the internal courtyards. The grand central garden is a canvas inspired by the paintings and poems from Tagore’s famous poem, ‘Gitanjali’.

The new terminal is a five-tier building with the bottom floor being the arrivals and upper arrival area and the top being departures and upper departure areas with basement for MEP (Mechanical, Electrical and Plumbing) services. The environmentally responsive canopy design consists of the setback of the double wall system of the canopy which is an effective measurement for controlling the solar heat gained.

The results of the thermal dynamics studies showing the combination of the natural buoyancy driven and mechanically driven ventilation cavities are an effective strategy

for energy efficiency design. The northfacing roof lights and a central courtyard floods the interior with natural light. The roof is designed to harvest rainwater which is stored and reused for both irrigation and washrooms.

The passenger terminal will have an apron for parking aircraft on its northern and north-eastern sides. Eighteen aircraft are proposed to be parked in in-contact configuration. These stands will supplement to other 53 aircraft parking bays. Passengers will be able to embark or disembark from any aircraft stand and be able to proceed to either domestic or international sides.

The structural design of the airport comprises five levels and a basement. The basement will accommodate baggage handling and other MEP services, the ground level, the arrival lounge for passenger arrival and baggage claim, while the level above that will be for operational offices and passenger facilities. The third floor will house the check-in and departures and the top will level will have airline lounges and passenger facilities. The roof is a three dimensional steel-trussed space structure varying in height and configuration from level +21.5 metres to a maximum of +31.65 metres. The foundation for the new glass and steel terminal building is bored cast insitu piles of diametre 600 mm to 1000 mm with depth varying from 16 metres to 40 metres. The length roof trusses have trapezium cross section with a maximum depth of 4.5 metres at its mid-span.

The present Kolkata airport is spread over 1670 acres and unlike some other brownfield airports (Mumbai and Chennai, for example) which have seen substantial Cruising Heights February 2013

or serious encroachment, the airport does not face any such serious encroachment issues. There is a very small isolated area of encroachment. As part of modernisation project, it is proposed to build two bays which can accommodate two A380 super jumbos or smaller jumbos near the terminal where two boarding bridges are being installed to facilitate passenger boarding or de-boarding. These two bridges will have both an upper deck and a lower deck.

The integrated airport terminal building is designed to have a swing operation which means the building has been technically designed to inter-change domestic and international passenger use. This is because in India, we have the phenomenon of domestic traffic moving by the day and international traffic by night so the actual passenger arrival/departure can be adjusted

by Swing Operation. At present, the airport can handle 25 to 30 flights per hour which is equal to nearly 18 million passengers annually. By providing additional taxiways, it will be possible to increase aircraft movement. The present main runway has one parallel taxiway and six link taxiways. It is proposed to create three more taxiways.

When the second phase of modernisationcum-expansion is taken up, AAI will consider constructing another parallel taxiway.

This will free up the runways and, therefore, allow greater aircraft movement. AAI has identified 1200 acres of land near and adjacent to the present airport and would soon request the state government for this land. When the land is allotted it will be possible to build a parallel runway which will truly allow simultaneous operation.

Of the 1,200 acres, 500 acres belong to the

67

aero india special Government of West Bengal and the balance land will have to be acquired.

Another highlight of Kolkata airport modernisation is that in the new integrated terminal complex, a budget hotel is being incorporated where the rooms look into arrival hall. The 30-odd room budget hotel is meant for transit passengers and will have all facilities. And just outside the airport complex it is proposed to set up a five star hotel. Besides, the airport project also envisages an 18 acre piece of land where the operator will undertake commercial development either through Build-OperateTransfer (BOT) or Build-Own-OperateTransfer (BOOT) or any of its variants.

The commercial complex will have a huge convention centre, shopping malls, etc. As for car parking, apart from 1,250 car underground parking, there will be provision to park another 2,000 cars over ground.

A new ATC tower is a few years away from completion but it has been decided to start the automation of an ATC facility soon that would ensure installation of advanced technology which would reduce the actual separation between flying aircraft and thereby increase airspace use as well as efficient utilisation of the runway. At the moment, the Kolkata airport runway has a capacity to allow 24 aircraft movements. This can be increased to 32 or even more with automation by creating additional infrastructure capacity. Similar automation has been initiated at Patna, Gaya, Raipur and Bhubaneshwar that come under the Eastern region with Kolkata as the headquarters. In the Phase II modernisaton plan, the present ATC tower will be demolished and a brand new tower built.

The secondary runway project has been completed and a new Instrument Landing System (ILS) established. The system is even newer than what is available in Delhi.

As for the eastern region covered under

NSCBIA: fUTURE READY Passengers movements April 2011 to March 2012 n 10 million

Aircraft movements April 2011 to March 2012 n 99,843

Cargo tonnage

April 2011 to March 2012 n 125,593 tonnes

Facilities

Terminal

Annual Traffic Handling capacity Peak hour capacity Area of the Building Escalators Lifts Travelators

20.06 Million

4.0 Million

6520 1,54,074 sqm.

13 16 03 (D) 04 (A )

2630 51,240 sqm.

08 13 03 (D) 03 (A )

Category

Domestic

Terminal

International

West Bengal kolkata

Category / Facilities

Domestic Terminal

Departure

Check-in Counters Immigration Counters Custom Counters Security Gates with Frisking Booths No. of Baggage Conveyors

International Terminal

104 16 07

44 16 08 07 03

14 78 m

30 16 06 78 m

11

10

Arrival Immigration Counters Custom Counters Baggage Claim Conveyor Baggage Claim Length Passenger Boarding Bridges (Aerobridges)

READY FOR THE SHOW: (Left) Check-in counters inside the new integrated terminal

Kolkata, Monopulse Secondary Surveillance Radars (MSSR) are being installed at Jharsuguda in Orissa, Katihar in Bihar and Badu near Kolkata. Once completed, there will be complete coverage of Indian airspace. There are nearly 700 aircraft overflying Kolkata and the airport handles 300 aircraft movements per day which besides scheduled carriers also includes defence and general aviation. As per International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), Kolkata, in terms of airspace management is among the first five busiest sectors globally. n

68

Cruising Heights February 2013

A i r

C a r g o

&

L o g is t ics

Cruising heights www.cruisingheights.in | February 2013

COLD IS HOT BUSINESS

Schiphol Airport and DHL are geared up to satisfy the Indian pharma industry Road logistics gets a head-on With the basic infrastructure in place, Abhik Mitra and Spoton hit a new high

DTDC is now on the world stage The courier and cargo company enters Australia and Kuwait and scales global footprint to 16 countries

Last in/first out

Get ready for hub India

I

ndia is expected to emerge as a major logistics hub in the next five years — never mind what critics may be saying. And, if the manner in which the privately-promoted Hyderabad and Bengaluru airports have been performing, there can be little doubt that the country could indeed become a major logistics hub. However, India will be behind China but ahead of Brazil, Saudi Arabia, Indonesia, UAE and Russia, according to the 2013 Agility Emerging Markets Logistics Index list brought out by Ti that has now become the leading provider of market research solutions to the global logistics industry. Strangely, the UAE — with the Dubai hub — featured at number nine, while Saudi Arabia, Egypt and

Qatar were the only other Arab countries in the top 20. This, despite the fact that the UAE and Oman, are well connected and are integrated in the global trading network.

The list has highlighted 45 emerging markets that weathered the global slowdown in 2012. These markets grew at an average of 4.4 per cent. Compare this to the US economy that grew at 2.2 per cent while the European Union shrunk 0.2 per cent. In 2013, trade and logistics professionals have indicated that manufacturers are grappling with tough choices on where to source and are beginning to look beyond the BRIC countries of China, Brazil, India and Russia. The Index shows the importance of emerging markets to the

“We follow several different industry forecasts and while there is no clear consensus, we concur with the IATA industry forecast issued in early December that predicts international freight volumes will grow at a compound annual growth rate of 3.0 percent per year through 2016… We’ve noted estimates from 1-2 per cent market growth to 1-2 per cent contraction, but there are so many variables that quoting specific percentages for growth or contraction in 2013 amounts to an educated guess.”

70

TRENDS

development of the global logistics industry, according to John Manners-Bell, Ti’s Chief Executive.

The Agility Emerging Markets Logistics Index, now in its fourth year, looks at the world’s most dynamic economies and the forces powering them. It ranks 45 major emerging markets and identifies the attributes that make them attractive for investment by logistics companies, air cargo carriers, shipping lines, freight forwarders and distribution property companies. Together, the Index rankings, analysis and survey of 375 industry professionals provide a basis to compare individual countries, weigh their strengths and weaknesses, and gauge their near-term prospects.



Robbie Anderson

President, United Cargo

Cruising Heights Februray 2013

Deutsche Post DHL’s recent study, “Delivering Tomorrow: Logistics 2050”, takes a far-reaching look into the future of trade, business and society. The study examines five different scenarios of life in the year 2050.

Scenario 1: Untamed Economy — Impending Collapse: In a world characterized by tumultuous growth, demand for logistics and transport services climbs sharply.

Scenario 2: Megaefficiency in megacities — ‘Megacities’ have emerged as the world’s power centres. A global supergrid with mega transporters, including trucks, ships and aircraft, as well as space transporters, has opened important trade connections between the megacities of the world.

Scenario 3: Customized Lifestyles — This scenario describes a world where individualization and personalized consumption are pervasive. This leads to a rise in regional trade streams, with only raw materials and data still flowing globally.

Scenario 4: Paralyzing Protectionism — This scenario describes a world where globalization has been reversed. Implications for the logistics industry include challenges posed by the decline in world trade and the resulting regionalization of supply chains.

Scenario 5: Global Resilience — Local Adaptation — This scenario describes a world initially characterized by a high level of consumption thanks to cheap, automated production. However, due to accelerated climate change, frequent catastrophes disrupt supply chains.

cargo

Pharma looks to the west The Indian pharma sector is on a growth path. Realising the potential, logistics majors and even airports have jumped in. Tirthankar Ghosh looks at how DHL and Schiphol Airport have taken initiatives to boost the exports of the Indian pharma industry.

T

he Indian pharma sector is being hyped as the next sunrise industry. Not without reason since the country is aiming to reach an export figure of $ 15.5 billion in 201213, a whopping 17 per cent jump from the $13.22 billion in 2011-12. The figure held out by the Ministry of Commerce and Industry will be a challenge. Indeed, with the number of orders of pharmaceutical products from Africa tapering off due to health campaigns slowing down, the target will be difficult to reach but with the European and American markets accounting for 55 per cent of the pharma exports from the country (according to ministry estimates, pharma products were being exported to 220 countries), India-made drugs are highly sought-after.

According to a recent report by Mor-

gan Stanley, the pharmaceutical industry is expected to grow at 19 per cent in 2013.

While the industry is likely to maintain a growth rate of 15-20 per cent annually in the coming decade, India’s spend on healthcare will grow from the current one per cent of the GDP and new patented drugs will be available in the country much faster. To top it all, drugs will reach a large segment of the rural population.

A McKinsey & Company report, “India Pharma 2020: Propelling access and acceptance, realising true potential", has pointed out that the pharmaceutical logistics industry will throw up huge opportunities in the next few years with the pharma market poised to grow to $55 billion in 2020. Banking on the new opportunities for growth, pharma logistics companies have started gearing up. Said Sandeep Pingle, Cruising Heights February 2013

Director-Marketing and Sales, DHL Global Forwarding (DGF), “Life Sciences and Healthcare is one of DHL’s top sector priorities for the region. With the exponential rise of the pharmaceutical industry in India, there has been a parallel demand for cold chain logistics to move large volumes of pharmaceuticals from the manufacturing site to the end-users. DHL is one of the major innovators in handling Pharmaceutical, Biologicals and high-value Active Pharmaceutical Ingredients under cold chain.” For this, DHL has set up Life Science Competence Centres across the country “to provide support to our global and Indian customers’ minimizing time and cost risks. This approach,” said Pingle “allows us to enhance our value proposition and provide true end-to-end solutions leveraging our local, regional and global network”.

71

cargo

DGF, for example, has invested in a 7,000 sq. ft. temperature-controlled facility at the Free Trade Zone in Chennai and has plans to add more facilities across India.

“All sites,” said Pingle, “will be certified with both our global internal standards and local regulatory requirements.” The Life Science Competence centre, Pingle informed, “manages temperature-sensitive freight through a robust process to ensure the integrity and quality of the products with fewer delays”. In the process, cycle time is reduced, temperature deviations are controlled and there are far fewer product damages and consequently fewer non-conformity claims than those typically experienced by shippers moving in a normal freight environment.

DHL’s first state-of-the-art Life Sciences facility is located within a newlyconstructed 56,000 sq.mt. multi-customer distribution centre in Mumbai and caters to the requirements of the rapidly growing life sciences industry. It offers a complete portfolio of innovative services to manufacturers of pharmaceutical products from order management to warehousing and distribution. The services are customized to the needs of the medical devices and pharmaceutical industry, including very specific solutions such as postponement services and clinical trials logistics.

While DHL has taken the transport of pharma cargo to a new level, Schiphol Airport has taken the initiative to foster the pharma export trade. The airport has set up Schiphol Cargo's Pharma Lifesciences Steering Group (PLSG). The group, formed as a follow up to the 2011 Dutch trade mission to India has acted as a medium for discussion and agreement between various

72

BUSY AT WORK: Workers at one of the DHL cargo warehouses

“We have gone from no freighter capacity between BOM and AMS, to three flights per week. There has been a significant increase in traffic between the two cities: it was up 43 per cent from August-December 2012, compared to a year earlier.”

Bart Pouwels

Director Business Development, Cargo, Schiphol Amsterdam Airport

Cruising Heights February 2013

parties involved in the transportation of products, and enabling the airport to consider the special needs of these sectors, and to ensure that the Schiphol community has the necessary resources and best practice in place.

According to Bart Pouwels, Director Business Development, Cargo, Schiphol Amsterdam Airport, there have been a number of specific actions resulting from the PLSG. In April 2012, a Pharma Round Table was organized in Mumbai that drew attendance from the entire pharma supply chain—the air cargo agents association, air freight forwarders, airlines, handling agents and pharmaceutical manufacturing companies. “A direct result of the discussion was the launch of a direct full freighter service by KLM between AMS and BOM — initially twice weekly from August 2012, and now three times per week from January 2013,” said Pouwels.

Schiphol Airport has identified highpriority target business segments such as pharma. “We create the conditions that encourage their development and we act as facilitators to support and encourage our community to resource for, and exploit, such opportunities. Collectively, our community offers the best resources for pharma (and the closely-related lifesciences/healthcare sectors) anywhere in Europe,” said Pouwels.

To enthuse the trade, Schiphol Airport organized a Schiphol Pharma and Lifesciences/Healthcare shippers’ conference in June 2012. This, in turn, led to the formation of a Pharma and Lifesciences/ Healthcare reference group (comprising lifesciences and healthcare European Distribution Centres operated by organisations such as Abbott, Amgen, Boston Scientific, EV3, Medtronic, Johnson & Johnson, Crucell, MSD, TEVA and Genzyme). “The objective of the reference group is to define and promote understanding of the important role of Schiphol in the lifesciences supply chain, and ensure compliance with internationally agreed standards,”Pouwels noted. In addition, the PLSG also attended the TIACA Air Cargo Forum at Atlanta that resulted in “valuable exposure” along with networking and matchmaking opportunities.

Such networking opportunities along with the hard work put in by the Schiphol authorities have paid off. Pouwels pointed out that Schiphol Cargo has attracted a vibrant community of logistics companies, which have invested in state-of-theart facilities for pharma and lifesciences/ healthcare. KLM for instance, operates a pharma handling centre, and independent handling companies such as Menzies World

Cargo, Aviapartner, Swissport and WFS have also invested in pharma handling at Schiphol. Perhaps, what is important is that “uniquely, Schiphol has enabled logistics providers to have direct ramp access”, commented Pouwels and pointed out Panalpina’s GDP warehouse and the recentlyopened Kuehne and Nagel facility of which the latter is GXP compliant.

Transport of pharma products requires specialized handling. The infrastructure at Indian airports — or rather the lack of it — can seriously hamper the growth of the sector. DHL’s Pingle, for example, was optimistic. He said that the country was increasing outlays on airports and roads, with more tangible economic reforms.

“Expediting the construction of improved airports and road infrastructure would allow the industry to take advantage of opportunities,” he said but also cautioned, “As infrastructure development projects have a long gestation period, there is a huge gap between demand and supply.

While we see gaps in the infrastructure, India also provides pockets of excellence, often setting standards.” He mentioned that DHL had recently conducted a detailed study ‘Transforming Life Sciences Logistics in India’ that examines the strengths and weaknesses of India’s Life Sciences logistics set-up.

Pouwels, meanwhile, was forthright about the kind of infrastructure available in Mumbai. “It was,” he said, “inadequate for this type of traffic.” But he too was quick to point out that major changes were in progress that will see “tremendous improvement”. He mentioned that handling companies were establishing state-of-theart facilities that were on a par with the best

THRUST ON PHARMA: Kuehne + Nagel GXP compliant facility at Schiphol airport

“As infrastructure development projects have a long gestation period, there is a huge gap between demand and supply. While we see gaps in the infrastructure, India also provides pockets of excellence, often setting standards.”

Sandeep Pingle

Sr. Director-Marketing & Sales, DHL Global Forwarding, India

Cruising Heights February 2013

to be found anywhere, and that the Mumbai International Airport was developing dedicated pharma handling facilities that would accommodate the needs of lifesciences and healthcare shipments.

Schiphol has benefitted from the India connection. As Bart Pouwels puts it: “We have gone from no freighter capacity between BOM and AMS, to three flights per week. There has been a significant increase in traffic between the two cities: it was up 43 per cent from August-December 2012, compared to a year earlier.” The earlier drawback was the limited airfreight capacity, which was belly hold only, and therefore insufficient for the volumes of business needed to attract from the sector.

The high demand of pharma products from India led Lufthansa Cargo to establish a pharma hub at Hyderabad International Airport. Was Schiphol Airport interested in creating a similar kind of hub in one of the Indian airports? Pouwels said that Schiphol Cargo had demonstrated how an airport could be a strategic partner when it came to facilitating supply chain solutions to exploit opportunities. “That is why Amsterdam Airport Schiphol has a highly-qualified business unit dedicated to working for its cargo community,” he emphasized.

As an airport authority, Schiphol is constantly on the lookout for business opportunities to support the community and encourage the development of logistics activity on and around the airport. Additionally, it also works with other like-minded airports such as Seoul Incheon and Singapore Changi to benchmark, and examine trade-lane opportunities. ‘That,’ he said “was an approach to developing business that is unique among airports, but typically Dutch’. n

73

cargo

G

et the basics right and the business will be on the right track.

And few know the logistics and air cargo business better than Abhik Mitra. The former TNT Express Managing Director, India, Mitra was responsible for building a logistics network across the country and establishing infrastructure facilities. He quit TNT in June 2010 to head Startrek Logistics, the company that acquired the domestic road express business of TNT India in December 2011.

Startrek was a part of India Equity Partners, a private equity firm based in Mauritius.

Sometime ago, Startrek changed its name to Spoton and on October 2 last year, it was launched as an independent business.

In a market that has seen a number of dedicated air cargo carriers rise and fall— pioneer of low-cost carriers in India, Capt G R Gopinath’s Deccan 360 and Capt Mukut Pathak’s ACE, for example—Spoton has decided to start domestic air cargo services. The air service will be launched in the first quarter of next year, said Abhik Mitra.

Even as it goes into fast forward mode, Spoton will compete with the likes of FedEx —that has gone in for domestic services— and the home-grown DTDC among others that have tie-ups with domestic carriers for cargo transport. The organized road express industry in the country is huge (it is worth $450 million) and there is enough potential for growth. Around 70-80 per cent of the industry is with companies like Safex and GATI. On its part, Spoton and Mitra have guaranteed to deliver parcels in a day. In the first phase, Spoton services will be available in 30 cities and hopes to increase its revenue by 10 to 15 per cent or `220 crores.

When he was in TNT, Mitra had built the infrastructure and is now using it to his advantage. At that time, as the head of the international giant in India, he had pointed out about the competition to Cruising Heights. 'Competition,' he had said, “has been there all the time — whether it’s been in the form of GATI and FedEx.” As for DHL and Blue Dart, Blue Dart was clearly in the lead on the airside, Mitra had said.

So, he had concentrated on improving the quality of the infrastructure and the quality of the network — with “the end result that all of this will provide better service to the customer. And that’s the only thing that will ensure that customer stays with us or walks away to any one of the other players that we talked about,” he had said.

The organised road express industry is presently worth about `2,500 crores.

The market that the road express players serve is the fastest growing segment in

74

Spot on target

Having created the basic infrastructure, Abhik Mitra and his Spoton is ready to take road express services to a new level.

“We believe the core value of our brand is ‘The System is the Service’, where the system is our network of people, processes, infrastructure and technology all baked into one identity.”

Abhik Mitra

Managing Director, Spoton

Cruising Heights February 2013

the Indian logistics sector: it saw a growth of more than 20 per cent in 2011. Of this, about 70-80 per cent is the grip of a handful of players like Gati and Safex and Spoton could well be the new entrant.

Spoton has gone about setting its priorities for growth. When TNT’s road business was acquired, the company inherited around 900 employees, vendors and business associates along with 4,000 customers. The position remains virtually the same today. Armed with all this, Mitra hopes to take a shot at the Indian express sector from which TNT had retreated.

As Managing Director of Spoton, Mitra is a stickler for delivering quality to the customer. Speaking about Spoton, he said: “We believe the core value of our brand is ‘The System is the Service’, where the system is our network of people, processes, infrastructure and technology all baked into one identity.” n

cargo jottings Surat airport might get cargo push

Surat airport might get a strong room facility for valuable cargo like diamonds, gems and jewellery. Airports Authority of India (AAI) is planning to set up the facility.

LONG-PENDING DEMAND: The trading community of Surat has been demanding cargo facility for long time

“Surat has the potential to become the diamond trading hub provided Surat airport is equipped with international air connectivity and cargo handling facilities. We are happy that AAI wants to set up a strong room facility for handling valuable goods. This would help the diamantaires to have direct access to polished and rough diamonds at their doorsteps,” said Dinesh Navadia, President, Surat Diamond Association (SDA).

“Despite the fact our industry processes 90 per cent of the diamonds mined across the world, we do not have international air connectivity and cargo terminal here. This is the reason we have to depend on angadias for the delivery of precious stones and Mumbai airport for exports and imports,” said Pravin Nanavaty, Joint Secretary, Gujarat Heera Bourse (GHB).

In addition to Sydney and Melbourne as principal centre for service, DTDC will gradually extend their services to Brisbane, Auckland and Perth through further master franchisees recruited under DTDC Fast World Express Pty Ltd. Currently they are operational with a core management team of about 5-10 professionals mainly looking into sales. The entity will progressively offer same day delivery, pick-up and return services for vital shipments, ‘Bullet Service’ within 4 hours, pre-paid services.

The principle office for Kuwait is located in Farwaniya in Kuwait City. Other branches are planned in Al Ardya, Sabah, Al Salmiya, Al-Almadi and further expansion to Iraq. By June, Kuwait will be connected with all the 16 countries where DTDC has offices and rest of the 225 countries through their associates. ”The main objective of the Joint Venture is to provide service to the Indian diaspora in Australia as well as provide delivery and distribution services for shipments from India whereas the master franchisee in Kuwait has strengthened DTDC’s presence all over the Middle East including GCC and MENA area,” said Abhishek Chakraborthy, Executive Director of DTDC.

Kale Logistics signs partnership agreement

Kale Logistics Solutions recently announced that Techno Brain limited, an ISO 9001:2008 certified and CMMI Level 3 Company, and Africa’s leading Custom Software application provider and Systems Integrator, is now Kale Logistics’ Partner in the African region. Under this agreement Techno Brain and Kale Logistics will synergise and leverage their combined strengths in the areas of sales, implementation and support of Kale’s IT solutions and services.

DTDC scales its global presence

DTDC Courier and Cargo Ltd recently expanded its presence in the APAC and Middle-East regions by entering into Australia and Kuwait. The Australian venture will be handled jointly by DTDC and Fast World Express Pty Ltd wherein DTDC has 34 per cent of holdings. The Kuwait venture will be handled by Kuwait Bayarek General Trading & Contracting Co. W.I.I. who is the master franchise. With this DTDC’s global footprint goes up to 16 countries providing services to over 240 international locations.

JOINING HANDS: Vineet Malhotra (centre), SVP, Kale Logistics and Manoj Shanker (2nd from left), Group-CEO signing the partnership agreement for the Africa Territory

Khanna wins ‘Outstanding Entrepreneur Award’ Anil Khanna, Managing Director, Blue Dart Express Ltd, was honoured with the ‘Outstanding Entrepreneurship Award’ at the Asia Pacific Entrepreneurship Awards (APEA). The award was conferred on him in a glittering ceremony held at the Taj Palace Hotel, New Delhi. Apart from Anil, Blue Dart too was conferred with the ‘Green Leadership Award’ for its GOGREEN Carbon Neutral Service at the Asia Responsible Entrepreneurship Awards (AREA)South Asia.

The awards organised by Enterprise Asia and supported by Indian Chamber

76

of Commerce (ICC) were presented by Rajeev Shukla, Minister of State for Parliamentary Affairs, Government of India and Dr. Balram Jakhar, Former Union Minister for Agriculture.

Commenting on the awards, Anil Khanna said, “It is a matter of great pride for Blue Dart and me to be recognized

by Enterprise Asia. It is my good fortune to be at the helm of a company that is driven by passionate Blue Darters and respected by its peers and stakeholders.

I am overwhelmed at this recognition and remain committed to raising the bar WELL-DESERVED: (L) Anil Khanna, Managing Director, in setting new benchmarks in delivery Blue Dart Express Ltd receiving the Outstanding Entrepreexcellence and corporate citizenship for neurship Award from Rajeev Shukla, Minister of State for the industry.”

Parliamentary Affairs Cruising Heights February 2013

Lufthansa Cargo reports high utilisation

Lufthansa Cargo is still pursuing a successful course. Although tonnage dipped last year, Germany’s biggest cargo carrier kept utilisation of its aircraft capacities on a stable level. During the year, Lufthansa Cargo transported slightly more than 1.7 million tonnes of freight and mail, about 8.5 per cent below the year-earlier figure. The decrease is attributable to restrained demand in all traffic regions, to which the company reacted by sharply scaling back capacity. All in all, the Lufthansa airfreight subsidiary trimmed capacity by more than eight per cent. The cuts enabled the cargo airline to hold utilisation at a very high level over the full twelvemonth term: In comparison with the previous year, the cargo load factor even rose marginally to 69.6 per cent. “We had to contend with an extremely difficult market environment in 2012. So we focussed firmly on capacity utilisation and the profitability of our freighter routes,” emphasised Lufthansa Cargo Chairman and CEO Karl Ulrich Garnadt. “Despite the necessary capacity cuts, we further developed our customer services and brought new destinations, such as Detroit, Montevideo or Tel Aviv, into the route network.”

SHIPPING GOODS: UPS is looking to leverage its services globally for its customers

of the UPS Worldwide Express package portfolio and offers customers a seamless experience between shipping express package and express freight.

Customers now can ship pallets over 70 kg as easily as packages exclusively within UPS’s global air network from 37 origins to 41 destination countries and territories. This guaranteed, daydefinite, door-to-door service features some of the fastest times in transit in the industry, with delivery typically within one to three business days, depending on the destination.

UPS Worldwide Express Freight service offers many of the same features as UPS’s Worldwide Express package service, including automated shipment preparation, online tracking and proactive notification technology. In addition, both express freight and package shipments are consolidated into one bill.

Finnair Cargo expands freighter services

OPERATIONAL EFFICIENCY: A cargo container being loaded in a Lufthansa freighter

The Cargo chief is looking with assurance to the future, “We can see green shoots of economic recovery in key airfreight markets. Our flexible approach will allow us to respond fast and purposefully to emergent market opportunities and quickly increase capacity again to accommodate stronger demand.”

UPS Worldwide Express ushers new service

UPS announced a new express air freight service, UPS Worldwide Express FreightSM, for urgent, time-sensitive and high-value international heavyweight shipments. This new service is an extension

In March 2013, Finnair Cargo will initiate weekly MD-11 freighter flights via its new Brussels hub, connecting Brussels with Finnair’s Helsinki hub as well as New York JFK and new destination Chicago O’Hare. Via Helsinki Finnair Cargo offers an extensive network to Finnair's 14 Asian destinations, including Japan, South Korea, China and Southeast Asia, with dedicated freighter flights to Hong Kong and Mumbai.

Brussels is one of Europe’s key gateways for cargo, offering great connections to numerous locations in Europe with fast road feeder services covering the European air cargo market within easy reach in less than 8 hours from Brussels. Brussels Airport is located in the centre of European pharmaceutical industry, which offers great expansion opportunities for Finnair Cargo.

Mumbai Marathon gets DHL push

An event of this scale and spirit requires precision logistics manDHL continued its decade-long association with the Standard agement and DHL is strongly positioned and ensures delivery at Chartered Mumbai Marathon held on the right place, at the right time,” says R January 20, 2013. As the official logistics S Subramanian, Country Manager, DHL partner for the marathon, DHL continued Express India. For DHL, the race has to play a major role in transporting sevthree laps — the first lap, “Race before eral tonnes of material from across the the Race” is the race to get more than world - from heavy weight broadcasting seven tonnes of marathon material and equipment from the UK to sensitive timbroadcast equipment transported to the ing chips from Netherlands. venue. The second lap is the “Race dur“Since the inaugural Standard Charing the Race” which comprises more than tered Mumbai Marathon in 2004, DHL 70 DHL vehicles that will transport over has been the logistics service provider 66,000 litres of drinking water, close to for what has today become a phenom40,000 goody bags, medical supplies, enal road running event attracting long OFF THE GROUND: DHL Container being lifted at one of event branding material and other supdistance runners from around the world. the cargo facilities plies to the participants.

Cruising Heights February 2013

77

globetrotting n  No brushing aside

n  Extra baggage blues

Atlanta airport saw something out of sorts. A battery-powered toothbrush in a bag astounded travellers with a ticktick-ticking sound thereby giving rise to fears of a bomb at Atlanta's airport. As a result, the police had to cordon off a section of the north terminal while a bomb squad responded.

Airport spokeswoman Myrna White said, “AirTran employees heard the ticking sound after the bag was dropped off shortly before 7:30 am at the airline's kiosk, near the curbs where cars and buses pull up to the north terminal. White said some travellers were diverted to the

If you think extra baggage charge at airport is a big hassle, then read this when a man wore 70 items of clothing at airport to avoid baggage charge.

The passenger showed up at Guangzhou Baiyun International Airport in China looking like a Sumo wrestler.

To escape the extra baggage costs, the man took out and wore more than 60 shirts and nine pairs of jeans. Later on, he was stopped by the metal detector and had to undergo a full body search.

In his numerous pockets were batteries, thumb drives and device chargers.

south terminal and normal operations in the area resumed soon.”

n  Rampage in cockpit

n  Taxiing car on runway

A British Airways flight witnessed an emergency landing after an intoxicated, abusive middle-aged woman tried to storm the cockpit. The BA B737400, which was on route to Tunisia, had to divert to Lyon in France to make an emergency landing. French police boarded the plane and apprehended the woman. The woman, aged 50, cursed the staff in front of children while refusing to return to her seats. A passenger on board said, “She decided she was going to meet the captain and marched towards the cockpit. It was very frightening.”

A British Airways Spokesman said, “BA2664 service from Gatwick to Tunis was diverted to Lyon following the continued disruptive behaviour of a female passenger. Our customers and flying crew deserve a safe and enjoyable flight experience. We do not tolerate any disruptive behaviour on board our flights.”

It came as real surprise for the Netherlands’ Schiphol airport authorities when they encountered a man driving a vehicle on the Dutch airport's runway for a few minutes.

Police Spokesman Dennis Muller said, “He drove around for a few minutes but at no point was there any danger to flight traffic. There aren't many flights on Christmas Eve and there were none at all at the time he took the car. We're investigating exactly where he went in the car. We'll interview him about what he's done and then it's up to the prosecutor to decide what to do with him.”

According to Muller, the unnamed man pushed an emergency exit button at one of the gates at Schiphol airport, in Amsterdam, before stumbling onto the tarmac and stealing a car belonging to an airport contract worker.

78

Cruising Heights February 2013

n  Fake tickets on sale An Indian manager conned an Iraqi doctor by selling him four forged airline tickets for a whopping sum of `341,265. The victim agreed in court that he had bought four air tickets to Canada for himself and his family from the accused.

“At the airport, I was shocked when I was told that the tickets were forged.

I called the accused several times until he replied. He told me that he is out of the country and that he will check it on

n 

his return,” said the victim.

Policeman Isa Abdul Rahman testified that after receiving the victim’s complaint, police located and apprehended the accused.

“When confronted with the counterfeit tickets, he claimed that he had asked someone called Anis to issue the tickets.” The accused admitted to dealing with the victim and to giving him the tickets which were proved to be forged.

Stolen pistol ?

A baggage handler was found stealing a pistol from a man’s luggage while trying to sell it. The man identified as Uriel Ochoa-Valenzuela was working for Menzies Aviation. OchoaValenzuela tried to sell the pistol to a co-worker for $200. The co-worker talked to authorities and investigators put up a notice to mention that the firearm was stolen. Ochoa then admitted

to his co-worker that he had stolen the gun and several other items during the transaction, leading to his detention and the confiscation of more booty from his car. The detective who investigated the case said that Ochoa told him about other items of luggage that he had gone through (that day) while at work for which he as charged with first-degree theft of a firearm.

n  Back from the dead with a thump n  Dog on the loose Sample this: a dog escaped upon its arrival at Dulles International Airport, US. Ralphie, a German Shepherd-Labrador mix absconded from captivity. An airport employee at the airport said the trap, which gently confines animals without harming them, was set near a reported sighting of the dog while it roamed free.

Ralphie’s owner reportedly went to great lengths to rescue him from Egypt when he engaged a network of social media sites to find Ralphie even leading to a headline which read as, "Reunited!

Dulles rescue dog found today!"

In a rare incident that happened during a flight, a 46-year-old surgeon miraculously escaped death after a doctor who was on board gave him a strong blow on the rib cage close to the heart.

It all happened on a Kolkata-Chennai flight which was cruising at 30,000 feet when the passenger fell unconscious. Dr J S Rajkumar, Chairman of Lifeline Hospitals, who was one of the first to rush to his help, said it was a frightening experience. “Gauging him rapidly, we saw to our horror that he had no pulse, even in his neck, and was ice cold and unresponsive. He was dead for all practical purposes,” said Dr Raj Kumar. “I have never felt such cold skin in my life. I gave a strong pericardial thump (a strong blow to the rib cage in front of the heart) and he jumped back to life! His pulse and blood pressure returned to normal.”

Meanwhile, the passenger was taken to Vijaya Hospital for further check as soon as the flight landed in Chennai. The airline authorities said the incident was not reported to airport authorities as the passenger was in a nomal condition.

Cruising Heights February 2013

79

snippets

domestic Airlines

Jet Airways inducts ATR 72-600s Jet Airways has announced the planned induction of five leased ATR 72-600s into its fleet. Scheduled to launch service with the first of the new 68-seat turboprops by the end of last year, Jet Airways said it expects to accept all five Gecas-sourced airplanes by the end of this March. The airline’s domestic expansion strategy

SpiceJet posts turnaround profit

In what can be called a turnaround for the low cost carrier, SpiceJet has continued to successfully deliver passenger growth in the quarter and delivered a profit of `102 crore (post tax) for the quarter ending December as against a loss of `39 crore for the corresponding quarter last year. The airline attributes these numbers to maximum fleet utilisation and an altered route mix on the regional as well as the international flights.

The airline, as a result of an increased number of flights on its international network, has managed to increase the number of passengers on its flights across the network by seven per cent. This is despite the fall in passenger numbers sequentially. As the fuel costs have remained high for the quarter, SpiceJet has managed successfully to palm off the burden to passengers thereby increasing yields by 29 per cent for the quarter when compared to the corresponding quarter last year.

Qatar may buy stake in SpiceJet: After Jet Airways, low-cost carrier (LCC) SpiceJet could be in line to get foreign direct investment from an international airline. The carrier is reportedly in talks with some foreign carriers for the purpose and it appears that Gulf carrier Qatar Airways is the most likely suitor, and the deal could materialise this quarter. SpiceJet has a market capitalisation of ` 2,133 crore. Unlike the Jet-Etihad talks which have now been confirmed by Naresh Goyal's carrier to the BSE, the aviation ministry has not officially been informed of an impending stake sale in the LCC to a foreign airline.

However, Qatar Airways has said that it was not interested in buying stake in SpiceJet or any other Indian airline. Chief executive Akbar Al Baker said, “This is pure speculation by individuals, who deliberately want to spread such unfounded rumours to raise the stock value of their entities.”

AI board to get new directors

In what is being seen as a move to turnaround the future of the bleeding national carrier, the board of Air India will be having two new independent directors — Former Procter & Gamble India Chief Executive Officer Gurcharan Das and academician Prem

80

centres on serving more so-called Tier II and Tier III destinations, according to Jet Airways COO Sudheer Raghavan.

Separately, the ATR 72-600 and its smaller sibling, the ATR 42600, gained type certification from Russia’s Interstate Aviation Committee (IAC), allowing for their operation throughout the CIS. IAC certification validates all the major developments of the ATR -600 series, namely its new avionics suite with a full-glass cockpit. More ATRs now operate in the CIS than any other Western turboprop. More than 50 fly with Russia’s UTAir, UTAir-Ukraine, Taimyr’s Nordstar Airlines and Azerbaijan Airlines.

Vrat, who was a former director of IIT, Roorkee.

At present, there are ten directors on the airline’s board.

Besides Chairman and Managing Director Rohit Nandan, the board has two representatives Prem Vrat Gurucharan Das from the aviation ministry, five functional directors from within Air India and two independent directors including Harsh Vardhan Neotia, Chairman, Ambuja Realty Development and Air Chief Marshal (Retd) Fali Major.

IndiGo gets Sharklet-equipped A320

IndiGo set a new milestone when it recently took delivery of its first A320 aircraft equipped with Sharklet fuel saving wing tip devices, becoming the first Indian carrier to do so. Sharklets are newly designed wing-tip devices that improve the aircraft’s aerodynamics and significantly cut the airline’s fuel burn and emissions by four per cent on longer sectors. This milestone makes 6E the first airline globally to introduce on A320 aircraft powered by IAE engines.

Sharklets are an option on new-build A320 Family aircraft, and standard on all members of the A320neo Family. They offer the flexibility to A320 Family operators of either adding around 100 nautical miles more range or allowing increased payload capability of up to 450 kilograms. All future A320 aircraft to be delivered to IndiGo shall be fitted with the Sharklet wing tip devices.

“We already operate one of the world’s youngest most fuel efficient fleets and our investment in Sharklet will help reduce our fuel consumption even further,” said Aditya Ghosh, President, IndiGo. Ghosh further added, “Our environmentally friendly fleet of the A320s will set a benchmark by significantly reducing the impact on the environment and lead the way to a more sustainable mode of flying. ‘Sharklets’ fitted A320s will help us extend these benefits to our customers, as they select IndiGo, India's greenest carrier.”

IndiGo placed an order for 100 A320 aircraft in 2005. In addition IndiGo was the first Indian airline to order the NEO with a contract for 180 A320neo placed in 2011.

Cruising Heights February 2013

international airlines Inside an IndiGo plane

“With high fuel prices and with a four per cent fuel burn reduction, IndiGo’s investment in the Sharklet will pay handsome dividends, said John Leahy, Chief Operating Officer – Customers.

“We are delighted with IndiGo’s choice to grow their airline with Airbus.”

IndiGo announces new flights: Further consolidating its position as one of the fastest growing airline in the country, low cost carrier IndiGo has introduced new flights connecting Bengaluru, Goa and Kolkata, and has launched its new daily flights on multiple routes.

The new schedule sees the introduction of the fourth daily and direct flight between Bengaluru and Kolkata, a new daily and direct flight between Bengaluru and Goa and a new daily flight between Kolkata and Goa via Bengaluru.

Launches 3rd Thailand route: IndiGo has launched its third route to Thailand with the inauguration of flights on the route from Kolkata (CCU) to Bangkok (BKK). The airline is already flights to Thailand from Delhi and Bombay. Daily departures are offered on the route using the airline’s fleet of A320s. Jet Airways and Thai Airways provide competition, as they operate respectively twicedaily and daily flights in the market from Kolkata to Bangkok.

Flights between Chennai-Singapore: IndiGo has introduced new daily and direct flights connecting Chennai with Singapore effective March 1, 2013. The airline will be offering introductory all

inclusive return fare of `15,998 on the new flight.

Aditya Ghosh, President, IndiGo said, “There are strong trade and tourism ties between southern region of India and Singapore and travellers have requirements of low fares by an Indian airline.

We are absolutely delighted to announce the new daily and non-stop flights between Chennai and Singapore effective March 1, 2013.’’

New flights to Dubai by IndiGo: IndiGo recently announced the introduction of new daily and direct flights connecting Trivandrum and Mumbai with Dubai from March. The airlines will be offering an introductory all inclusive return fare of `14,500 on the new flight from Trivandrum to Dubai and an all inclusive return fare of `13,912 on the second daily flight from Mumbai to Dubai.

10.29 million mark for Etihad

Etihad Airways has surpassed its target of carrying 10 million passengers in 2012 and is set to achieve a 22 per cent increase on the total of 8.41 million passengers for 2011. The increase in passenger numbers - up to a total of 10.29 million - represents an extra 1.88 million passengers travelling on the carrier’s global network that now covers 87 of its own passenger and cargo destinations, and 245 codeshare destinations.

The passenger growth for Etihad Airways is mirrored by its equity partners. By the end of 2012, airberlin is expected to have carried 33.4 million passengers, Virgin Australia 19.5 million passengers, Aer Lingus nearly 11 million passengers, and Air Seychelles 241,000 passengers. Etihad Airways and its equity partners will have collectively carried more than 74 million passengers in 2012, with cooperation between the five airlines greatly contributing to passenger growth. James Hogan, Etihad Airways’ President and Chief Executive Officer, said: “Etihad Airways has achieved significant expansion in 2012 and therefore it’s very satisfying to pass our target of flying more than 10 million passengers during a year for the first time.

JRD Trust seminar looks at aviation

The JRD Tata Memorial Trust, formed by the veterans of Air India on April 11, 1995 with the objective of organizing annual lectures and seminars on civil aviation subjects dear to JRD Tata, held this year's function at Taj Lands End Hotel in Mumbai on December 1, 2012.

Considering the tough times being faced by the Indian aviation industry, the theme aptly selected for this year's seminar was “Challenges and Opportunities in Aviation”. The chief guest was Arun Mishra, Director General Civil Aviation. The seminar commenced with the traditional lighting of the lamp.

This was followed by a welcome address by Capt D S Mathur, Chairman of the Trust.

Kapil Kaul, CEO-South Asia CAPA, the guest of honour, gave an analyitical presentation of the aviation scenario particularly in India. His presentation encompassed both the historical and current aspects highlighting the industry's current state, the challenges faced and what was needed to be done.

The talk, which evinced keen interest, was appreciated by the audience which comprised both serving and retired stalwarts of the industry.

for aviation's sake: CAPA's Kapil Kaul speaking at the JRD Tata Memorial Trust seminar in Mumbai

The JRD Tata Memorial Trust which has amongst its trustees Capt D S Mathur, Capt D Bose, M P Mascarenhas, all past Managing Directors of Air India; B P Baliga, J A Shah, Babu Peter, former Directors of Air India, Capt Russi Bunsha, Executive Trustee, P S Ganapathy and Ratan Tata. Jitender Bhargava, former executive director of Air India, has joined as trustee this year.

— Jitender Bhargava

Cruising Heights February 2013

81

snippets

A380 departs from Dubai

With the inaugural departure of an A380 flight from the new and world’s only dedicated and purpose-built A380 concourse at Dubai International Airport, world’s leading airline Emirates achieved another milestone. Part of the airport's Terminal 3 complex, Concourse A will become the “home of the Emirates A380”, from where passengers will connect to more than 20 Emirates A380 destinations around the world, including A380 flights to Europe on Australian airline, Qantas, in terms of the global partnership announced recently which is pending the approval of the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission.

The departure of flight EK003 at 14.30 to London Heathrow marked the start of flights from four gates which opened at Concourse A. This also forms part of on-going operational trials and testing to ensure a smooth and seamless passenger experience before it officially opens and becomes fully operational during the first quarter this year.

More than 500 passengers across First Class, Business Class and Economy Class became the first travellers to experience boarding through the unique double decker air contact bridges connected

A world class hub: The dedicated and purpose-built A380 concourse at Dubai International Airport

to the aircraft, one of the key features of the facility.

With 528,000 m2 spread across eleven floors and the capacity to handle 15 million passengers a year, the concourse offers Emirates customers a seamless experience, from direct lounge boarding for First Class and Business Class customers to an expansive duty

AirAsia ‘best managed company’ Leading international magazine Euromoney recently named AirAsia Berhad as winner of the overall best managed company in Malaysia as well as the best managed company in Asia in the Airlines/Aviation sector for the Euromoney ‘Best Managed and Governed Companies — Asia poll 2013’.

The poll is based on replies received from a total of 130 of the leading equity analysts at the largest investment banks and research houses in the Asia Pacific region nominating a total of 207 different companies. Analysts were asked to name which companies were the most impressive across a number of factors including; management accessibility, accounting transparency and corporate governance procedures amongst others.

Internal promotion in AirAsia: AirAsia recently promoted Siegtraund Teh as Group Chief Commercial Officer. With this position, Siegtraund Teh will take on the responsibility of Kathleen Tan, the current Group Head of Commercial whom has accepted a position as Chief Executive Officer at AirAsia Expedia. Siegtraund Teh's main responsibility will be to manage the commercial team and deliver commercial performance improvements across the AirAsia group.

A core member of the AirAsia regional team, Siegtraund Teh brings with her a wealth of experience principally gained from a senior level commercial role with AirAsia.

AIRASIA X to launch new route: AirAsia X, the low fare airline and affiliate of the AirAsia Group, recently announced a new route to Jeddah from its Kuala Lumpur hub. The flights from Kuala Lumpur to Jeddah will offer guests the opportunity to discover the major urban centre of western Saudi Arabia and its historical surroundings.

AirAsia X plans to begin flights to King Abdul Aziz International Airport, Jeddah from Kuala Lumpur with three flights weekly from February 16 to April 30, 2013 and increase its flight frequency to four flights weekly from May 1, 2013 onwards, but may adjust the frequency based on seasonality.

In conjunction with the Open for Sale announcement, AirAsia X is offering promotional fares from as low as $132 on Economy,

82

officiating KL JEDDAH: (L-R) Aireen Omar, CEO of AirAsia, Dato’ Kamarudin Meranun, Co-founder and Director of AirAsia X, Tan Sri Rafidah Aziz, Chairman of AirAsia X and Azran Osman-Rani, CEO of AirAsia X officiating the launch of AirAsia X’s latest destination from Kuala Lumpur to Jeddah

and from as low as $528 on the premium flatbed from Kuala Lumpur to Jeddah one way.

Azran Osman-Rani, CEO of AirAsia X said, “AirAsia X is delighted to announce the launch of Jeddah, which is the fourteenth

Cathay enhances its offerings Cathay Pacific Airways recently announced that passengers could enjoy a new level of luxury when travelling between Mumbai and Hong Kong with the introduction of its new Premium Economy Class cabin on the route. Along with the product enhancement, Cathay Pacific will also increase the number of flights between Mumbai and Hong Kong, operating 10 weekly non-stop flights between the two cities from April 2, 2013.

The airlines’ new Premium Economy Class was designed with the entire customer experience in mind. It features a quieter, more spacious cabin than the traditional Economy Class with between 26 and 34 seats per aircraft. The seat pitch is 38 inches — six inches more than Economy Class — and the seat itself is wider and has a bigger recline. It has a large meal table, cocktail table, footrest, a 10.6-inch personal television, an in-seat power outlet, a multi-port connector for personal devices and extra personal stowage space.

Cathay Pacific General Manager - South Asia, Middle East and

Cruising Heights February 2013

free shopping area, food courts, cafes and fine dining options, a Timeless Spa and the largest First Class and Business Class lounges in the world. The concourse also offers a dedicated hotel floor with both a four and five star offering. Passengers are transported between Terminal 3 and Concourse A by underground trains and shuttle busses from where they can depart through 20 gates when the facility becomes fully operational.

Emirates doubles A380 capacity: With a twice daily A380 service from Dubai now operating into New York’s John F. Kennedy and Paris’ Charles De Gaulle airports, Emirates has doubled its A380 capacity to the two cities.

Upgrading capacity into New York by 1848 seats per week, flights EK203 and EK204 is now operated by the Airbus A380-800.

EK203 departs from Dubai at 02.25 hrs, arriving at JFK at 07.45 hrs. The return sector EK204 leaves JFK at 10.40 hrs arriving in Dubai at 08.10 hrs the next day. In Paris, an additional 2198 seats per week will be added; EK 075 leaves Dubai at 15.00 hrs and arrives in Paris at 19.30 hrs. The return flight, EK 076 departs Paris at 21.10 hrs and gets into Dubai at 06.40 hrs the next day. “The decision to commit a second A380 to both New York and Paris is a clear indication of customer demand, for the state-of-the-art air-

craft and these two popular destinations,” said Thierry Antinori, Emirates’ Executive Vice President, Passenger Sales Worldwide.

“New York and Paris are both important routes for Emirates and its customers. Adding larger capacity aircraft is central to helping us meet growing passenger demand and will also boost economic support for American and French international commerce.”

With the world’s largest fleet of A380 aircraft at 31 and another 59 on order, Emirates continues to set the pace for A380 deployment. In the four years since the Emirates A380 has been in operation over 11.5 million passengers have flown on the aircraft, covering 169 million kilometres. In 2012 alone, Emirates added 11 A380’s to its fleet. “Emirates has redefined air travel and we look forward to offering the unique A380 experience to even more of our passengers on the Paris and New York routes with the exceptional and innovative features we offer on-board including the industry first Shower Spas, the First and Business Class On-Board lounge and an award-winning inflight system offering 1400 channels of on-demand entertainment. Combine this with our gourmet cuisine as well as a network spanning six continents, and you have a product which has become extremely popular with our global travellers.”

destination in our network. With Jeddah being the gateway to holy cities of Madinah and Makkah, we are delighted that our services will provide more affordable travel for our Muslim guests in Malaysia and throughout the region to perform the holy pilgrimage of Hajj and Umrah.”

“Similarly, guests from Saudi Arabia will have the opportunity to travel across our extensive network in South East Asia and beyond. We believe that AirAsia’s wide network and favourable fare structures make cultural, heritage, recreational and shopping destinations across Malaysia, Singapore, Indonesia, Thailand, Australia and other countries in the Asia Pacific Region more accessible to guests and thus will create new travel demand from Saudi Arabia.”

AirAsia X Fly-thru destinations on offer concurrent with the promotional campaign include destinations from Jeddah to Australia (Melbourne) from as low as $331, Indonesia (Jakarta, Medan, Surabaya, Bali) from as low as $190 and Singapore from as low as $166.

BA, VisitBritain offers lots

luxurious economy: Anand Yedery, Area Sales Manager, Charlie StewartCox, General Manager-South Asia, Middle East and Africa and Rakesh Raicar, Regional Sales and Marketing Manager, Cathay Pacific at the press conference to launch the new Premium Economy Class in Mumbai

Africa, Charlie Stewart-Cox said: “Cathay Pacific’s Mumbai service is now better than ever. Travellers from India will soon be able

With the launch of the third phase of the multi-million pound joint marketing campaign between British Airways and VisitBritain, customers from India can now enjoy attractive fares to the most exciting destinations in the UK in World Traveller and Club World cabins for travel period till June 30, 2013.

Christopher Fordyce, British Airways Regional Commercial Manager- South Asia said, “We are pleased to be back with the third phase of our joint marketing campaign with VisitBritain in India. This is one of the best seasons to visit London and the rest of the UK. We would be delighted to welcome our guests from India while they experience our unmatched travel and on-board services.”

While in Britain, there are fantastic shopping offers from 10 per cent discount on some of the biggest global brands, such as, Liberty, Burlington Arcade, Hawes & Curtis, Eterno among others. to take advantage of improved arrival times in Hong Kong to enjoy smooth and seamless connections to their destination of choice on Cathay Pacific’s network. Our Premium Economy class will also bring a new level of comfort to passengers travelling between the two cities.”

New General Manager takes over: Cathay Pacific Airways announced that Charlie Stewart-Cox had been appointed as the airline’s General Manager — South Asia, Middle East & Africa with effect from January 21, 2013. Stewart-Cox will be responsible for overseeing the business and operations of Cathay Pacific and Dragonair in the three regions and will be based in Mumbai, India. Stewart-Cox replaced Tom Wright, who retired from the position after 27 years’ of service with the Group.

Stewart-Cox joined Cathay Pacific in September 1982. He has held a number of positions within the airline including Assistant Reservations Manager-Central Reservations Control; Country Manager India, Nepal & Bangladesh and Airport Services Manager-Kai Tak among others.

Cruising Heights February 2013

83

snippets

TRAVEL & TOURISM

Philippines prepares for increased Indian tourists A business-to-business meeting was organised at the recent cies, and around fifty of their Filipino counterparts engaged in table Philippine India Travel Exchange (PHILINDEX) held at the Sofitop discussions on how to bolster Indian travel to the Philippines tel Philippine Plaza, Manila with the and enhance the potential of the Chenobjective of providing a boost to travel nai and Bangalore markets. “Outbound between the two countries. travel from the two cities make up 26 An industry-based initiative which per cent of total outbound from India”, started in 2009, PHILINDEX is the according to DoT Assistant Secretary first-ever bilateral travel exchange Benito Bengzon Jr. between the Philippines and a source “With a target of 10 million visitors market. This is a follow-through of by 2016, we need to rethink our stratthe road-shows that the Department egies and meet new standards of perof Tourism (DoT) organised in the formance in order to grow our existing two cities, which marked the initial markets, as well as develop new ones. marketing efforts outside the cities of By 2020, India is predicted to have 50 Mumbai and New Delhi. million outbound travels. By that time, A total of twenty-four Indian tour picturesque waters: An exotic view of the beautiful waters of we should have already deepened our operators, wholesalers, travel agen- Philippines stake as a choice destination.’’

Royal Caribbean is leading brand

Global cruise brand Royal Caribbean International won the prestigious World Travel Awards 2012 for the ‘World’s Leading Cruise Brand’ and ‘World’s Leading Cruise Line’ titles. This is the 15th time Royal Caribbean International has been awarded for these categories since 1994.

The annual World Travel Awards acknowledges and celebrates excellence across all sectors of the tourism industry. Each year, the

Jordan Tourism’s new India rep

Think Strawberries has been appointed as the India representative office of the Jordan Tourism Board, to promote and market Jordan’s sites and products within the Indian tourism sector for both the media and the trade.

The Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan, which once was the topic of folklore, continues to capture the imagination of a whole new generation with its stunning combination of nature, history, food, religious and Biblical sites that are important for those interested in holy land pilgrimage and historical sites of relevance. An extremely peaceful, stable and progressive nation, Jordan enjoys a temperate and warm climate all around the year.

Wasabi is best Japanese restaurant

Best Performers: Ratna Chadha (centre), Royal Caribbean International’s India Representative and Sam Manalo (right) of Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. receiving the award

WTA covers the globe with a series of regional gala ceremonies to recognise and celebrate individual and collective successes within each key geographical region. All regional winners competed in a final round of voting for the WTA’s world awards as the ultimate accolade in the travel and tourism industry. This year, the Grand Final was hosted in Asia for the first time, taking place in New Delhi on December 12. The award was received by Ratna Chadha, Chief Executive, TIRUN Travel Marketing — India Representative for Royal Caribbean International, and Sam Manalo, Sales ManagerAsia for Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd.

84

Wasabi by Morimoto was awarded as the Best Japanese restaurant by Vir Sanghvi, and it also bagged an award for one of the Best Japanese restaurants under the Pan Asian and Chinese category in Hindustan Times — Crystal Awards 2012. Moreover, Wasabi has also been nominated as the Best Asian Restaurant at the NDTV Food Awards 2012.

Wasabi is the brainchild of Chef Masaharu Morimoto, known to many as the Iron Chef. Wasabi entered Delhi four years ago after the success of Wasabi at Taj Mahal Palace and Tower, Mumbai. Chef Hemant Oberoi and the team of Japanese and Indian Chefs at Wasabi, in creative consultation with Chef Morimoto, have been innovating successfully. Chef Masaharu Morimoto's cooking has unique Japanese roots, and yet it's actually, as the Chef calls it "global cooking for the 21st century." The restaurant has been designed by Theo Nicolau from EAD, London, who has given a distinct personality that is stylish and compliments Chef Morimoto’s special culinary style. It features the most remarkable repertoire of Japanese Sake’s with a separate Sake Bar, and claims of a dramatic Teppanyaki counter, setting ablaze a dynamic display of theatre in iron showmanship and Sushi Bar, fresh ingredients flown in from Tsujuki every day. The restaurant has also introduced the ‘Omakase Menu’— A concept wherein the guest lets the chef decide the menu of his choice and treat him with the best on offer, entirely unique and independent of the set menu, topped with the unique interactive dining experience.

Cruising Heights February 2013

Louis Philippe Cup in Greater Noida

The second edition of Louis Philippe Cup, golf’s equivalent of the IPL, will be taking place between February 11 and 16, 2013.

Golf professionals as well amateurs from nine teams will fight for name, fame and a prize money of `1.2 crore to be distributed between winning and runner-up teams. Endorsed and sanctioned by the Professional Golf Tour of India (PGTI), the tournament’s host is Jaypee Greens Golf Resort, Greater Noida.

One of the sponsors, Turkish Airlines becomes a part of this

a unique hospitality experience. The complex offers a set of beautifully furnished service apartments combined with fabulous facilities to give you a relaxing holiday with friends and family.

Treehouse Blue allows you to enjoy the privacy and flexibility of an apartment stay in South Goa, with all the facilities of a hotel.

This great destination has 24 plush service apartments comprising of six studio apartments and 18 one bedroom apartments, all of which come with living areas, kitchenettes, and balconies overlooking lush greenery and all the amenities needed for the business or leisure traveller.

Unique Travel Trade seminar

setting new standards: The sponsors of the Louis Philippe Cup, along with cricketer Kapil Dev, who is the Director of the Dev-Ellora team, displaying their team's uniform at a press conference

enticing competition to set a mark on the Indian golf history. The first edition played in March 2012 at Karnataka Golf Association (KGA) Bangalore, won by Navratna Ahmedabad with golfers Vikrant Chopra, Mithun Perera (Sri Lanka) and Vinod Chopra. This year with a new host and addition of a new team, the spectator turnout is expected to be much bigger. Day one begins with a practice session and day two hosting to 27 pro-golfers and 81 invitee golfers. Teams from Ahmedabad, Bangalore, Chandigarh, Chennai, Delhi, Kolkata, Noida, Gurgaon and Greater Noida will have three pro-golfers each competing in the tournament.

STIC enters global market

STIC Travel Group, one of the largest travel groups in India, has marked its entry in the global market by opening its first international office in Singapore.

The company is entering its 40th year reaffirming its commitment towards excellence in service to its travel industry partners and the international clients that it exclusively represents. STIC will Subhash Goyal be contributing to various causes throughout the year through its charitable trust — Awakening.

“We are looking forward to exploring opportunities in the travel and tourism industry of Singapore especially given the recent closer economic cooperation. We firmly believe that our new office in Singapore will allow us to further accelerate and promote travel trade ties between the two countries.” said Subhash Goyal, Chairman, STIC Travel Group.

Treehouse Blue experience

The brand new Treehouse Blue-located a fleeting distance from the picturesque Majorda beach in South Goa provides guests with

The first ever Destination America and Visa educational seminar organised by Visit USA Committee (VUSACOM) Delhi Chapter, supported by the US Commercial Service in India, ended recently on a high note in New Delhi. The seminar was attended by over 130 travel agents and tour operators; several senior staff from the US Embassy, and heads of major associations such as TAAI, SFTO and OTOAI. The main objective of the seminar was to educate travel agents on the range of holiday options available in the US. The participants present at the seminar were — Philadelphia Convention and Visitors Bureau, Princess Cruises, Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority, Visit California, San Francisco Travel Association San Francisco International Airport, Visit Orlando, Choice Hotels and Fairmont Raffles Hotels International. Josh Glazeroff, Counsul General from the US Visa Section, Embassy of the United States in India addressed the audience on new visa procedures for the US. Judy R Reinke, Minister-Counselor for Commercial Affairs while addressing the travel agents remarked, “I wish to congratulate VUSACOM - Delhi chapter in putting together the first ever educational seminar — that promises to be a great platform for promoting USA as a travel destination to the travel and tourism industry.

DoubleTree by Hilton awarded DoubleTree by Hilton Gurgaon — New Delhi NCR has been awarded the 2013 Deal of the Year award in the First Class category at the Hotel Investment Forum India (HIFI), that is hosted by Burba Hotel Network (BHN) and Horwath HTL. The 184-room hotel is conveniently located on the Golf Course Road, within four km of companies like Dell, Genpact and American Express and seven km of Cyber City, offering easy access to prime corporate, commercial awarded: The façade of DoubleTree by and residential districts. Hilton Gurgaon The hotel presents a sophisticated and modern combination of guest services, amenities and technology in a refreshingly spirited and welcoming ambiance.

Cruising Heights February 2013

85

 





DESIGN INSPIRED BY AVIATION WORLD: 1. The inside of a commercial aircraft has been recreated brilliantly at the restaurant.

2. A reception that is the replica of check-in counters.

3-4. The bedrooms have been designed to make you feel closer to the skies.

5. A bar that recreates the interior of a plane.



back page

Flt VY 550 is

on ground “W

elcome aboard the aircraft, but on land, not in the air.” Surprised? Don’t be!

Because here is a unique one-of-its-kind urban tourism opportunity for those who love experiences that are not run-of-themill, resulting from a strategic partnership between The Hoteles Catalonia chain and Vueling Airlines. Both have joined forces to create a new accommodation concept: a four-star hotel that will be aesthetically designed like the inside of a commercial aircraft.

Hoteles Catalonia, that has invested Euros three million in the project, will manage on an exclusive basis the first establishment resulting from this alliance, Vueling

by HC Hotels, that will open in downtown

86

Barcelona during the first quarter of 2013.

However, both companies will be involved in the design, interior decoration and commercialisation of the hotel, following the guidelines set by the brand image of Vueling Airlines, that licences the brand in exchange for a royalty and commissions linked to the bookings made.

Located at Gran Vía No. 550 in Barcelona, the hotel Vueling BCN by HC will have 64 rooms of four different types: standard with and without balcony, top class with and without balcony, junior suite and a spacious suite with a private terrace and open air swimming pool.

The inside of a commercial aircraft has been recreated brilliantly at the bar restaurant, while the multipurpose area intended for serving breakfast will make you believe Cruising Heights February 2013

that you are inside a terminal. Furthermore, the reception area, with its conveyor belts and information screens, simulates the check-in desks of an airport. The original facilities are rounded off with a fitness area and an open air swimming pool with a solarium. The names of the 64 rooms are related to various Vueling destinations with Barcelona being the name given to the hotel’s main suite.

Reservations can be made directly from the websites of the two companies and Vueling outlets. No flight/hotel packages will be offered to customers as the chain only has one establishment. The two entities have signed an agreement for a period of ten years. Although Vueling and Hoteles Catalonia have yet not announced specific goals for future hotels, the next openings are planning to take the indigenous concept to other cities including the main destinations of the airline, such as the cities of Madrid, Seville and Valencia.

Well, aviation lovers and those in search of unique design concepts can’t be asking for more. n

Postal RNI No. DELENG/2006/16897, Reg. No. DL(E) 01/5294/2012-14, Publication Date: 1st of every month, Posting Date: 8-9th every month