HC notice to Centre on GVHL's security clearance withdrawal

The Centre was asked today to reply to Ravi Rishi-led Vectra group's aviation firm, Global Vectra Helicorp Ltd's plea against the government's recent decision to withdraw its security clearance, leading the DGCA to scrap its permit to operate its fleet of choppers.
Issuing notice to the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) and the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) on the plea by GVHL, Justice Vipin Sanghi sought their replies by May 15.
The court also asked the MHA to place on its record by the next date of hearing the original files of the aviation firm, belonging to the Ravi Rishi’s Vectra group, which is the largest shareholder in Tatra Holdings owning the Czech truck manufacturer Tatra and is facing CBI probe for allegedly supplying trucks at exorbitant price to the Indian Army.

The court issued notices on GVHL's petition, filed through its counsel Sandeep Bajaj.

The Ministry of Home Affairs on May 7 had withdrawn GVHL's security clearance, leading the DGCA to scrap the firm's permit to operate here.

Appearing for GVHL, senior counsel N K Kaul submitted the government has failed to establish the basis on which the decision was taken in the name of security.

He said the CBI probe against Ravi Rishi, who is one of the directors of the company and has three percent stake in it, cannot be the basis for blacklisting a company which has been supplying the choppers for various purposes in the country since 1998.

DGCA's counsel Anjana Gosai said once the MHA withdraws the security clearance, the DGCA is bound to withdraw the permit to operate the helicopters. (MORE)

http://www.business-standard.com/generalnews/news/hc-notice-to-centregvhls-security-clearance-withdrawal/6373/

Court asks AI pilots to end stir

26 more pilots sacked, govt insists talks only after agitation ends 10 more flights cancelled

Armed with a favourable order from the Delhi High Court and a backing from the civil aviation ministry, the Air India management on Wednesday sacked 26 more pilots after their agitation entered the second day.
The stir by Indian Pilots Guild (IPG) led to the cancellation of Air India flights to eight international destinations — New York, New Jersey, Jeddah, Frankfurt, Chicago, Toronto, Seoul and Beijing — and two on domestic routes. The airline, which had earlier terminated the services of 10 pilots and derecognised the union, fired 26 pilots who did not report to duty on Wednesday and requested all others to join back work after the high court order.

Air India has also prepared itself for the worst and is working on a contingency plan to operate Airbus planes on international routes.

“If the strike continues for another one/two days the services will be completely crippled, as the strength of executive pilots is limited. We are working on a plan to operate some international sector with the Airbus planes instead of Boeing,” said a senior Air India executive, who did not want to be identified. He also added that the airline has stopped taking bookings for long-haul international flights for the next four five days.

The 550-member IPG is opposed to allowing erstwhile IA pilots to operate Dreamliners. Also, they want their career progression and time-bound promotions to be the same as pilots from the erstwhile Indian Airlines, which operates an Airbus fleet.

The erstwhile AI and IA followed different policies on training and promotion. Erstwhile IA pilots got the commander’s grade in about six years; it took 10 years in erstwhile AI.

Earlier on Wednesday, the Delhi high court issued a notice to IPG and asked it to reply to a plea of the Air India management seeking court’s intervention and also a restraint order against the striking pilots. A PTI report said judge Reva Khetrapal also said allowing such a strike to continue would cause irreparable loss to the company and hugely inconvenience passengers travelling by the carrier.

Unfazed, the pilots have decided to continue with the strike. The IPG said it was awaiting a copy of the court order. “We will consult with our lawyers and then take a final decision,” said its president Jitendra Awhad, who is a legislator of the Nationalist Congress Party.

He claimed the airline management had initially accepted the IPG’s demands, but later went back on the promise. “A draft agreement was signed by the union and ED (Industrial Relations) and ED (Operations),” Awhad said. The draft was sent to AI chairman Rohit Nandan, “who refused to approve the draft”, he revealed, saying the executive pilots of Air India would also join the agitation.

The government maintained its tough stance today as well. “The revival of the national carrier is at stake,” according to Civil aviation Minister Ajit Singh. “The government is doing all to bring it into the black,” he told Business Standard. “We need to deal with the situation patiently and firmly. The pilots have done the wrong thing by going on strike. We will take action.”

The minister conceded that the erstwhile IA and AI operated with different set of rules, but said the government was working towards implementing the D M Dharmadhikari committee report, which he claimed had “solution for all the complications with every employee” of the airline. “We have collected the facts to start its implementation. It will happen gradually,” he added.

As for the talks to happen between the agitating pilots and him, Singh said the pilots would have to first call off their strike. “Nothing can proceed unless they do it,” he added.

http://www.business-standard.com/india/news/court-asks-ai-pilots-to-end-stir/473950/

Day 2 of Air India strike: 400 pilots join stir

Mumbai: The crisis at state-owned carrier Air India worsened on Wednesday. About 400 agitating pilots failed to report to work for the second day disrupting flight schedules and leaving passengers stranded across airports in the country.

The image of the struggling airline was further dented even as its management was in Mumbai negotiating with bankers for its financial restructuring.

Taking a cue from the civil aviation minister's tough spiel against the striking pilots on Tuesday, an angry management lashed at the truant pilots by sacking 10 more, taking the total number of sacked pilots to 20 in two days.

The mass sacking of airline pilots is in itself a record in the country. The sackings on Tuesday were essentially of the committee members of the agitating unions while the pilots who were shown the door on Wednesday were a mixed lot.

Air India also approached the Delhi High Court on Wednesday seeking court's intervention to restrain pilots from striking work. The court, after the hearing, declared the strike illegal and restrained the pilots from going on strike. Buoyed by the directive, Air India management sacked 10 pilots.

Unfazed by a resolute management, the pilots refused to relent and return to their planes. Amid the rhetoric from the management and the striking pilots, civil aviation minister Ajit Singh did some tough talking in the capital threatening Air India of a closure if the pilots do not report back to work. "Government has given them 30,000 crore of public money but that is not without strings.

They have to prove their worth. Let me point out the example of Kingfisher. They downsized and since then they are doing fine. Air India only has 17% market share. The pilots must look at this also," he said, adding that government should try and keep out of service industry and that the time for national carriers is over.

As a result of the pilot stir, the debt-ridden airline was forced to cancel seven of its international flights, two from Mumbai and five from Delhi, including flights to New York, Frankfurt and Chicago. Air India has 50 international flights daily. The number of remaining pilots, 150, was insufficient to support full schedule of the airline.

The agitating pilots belong to the Indian Pilots' Guild (IPG), which is responsible for international flights and has about 550 members.

The pilots started calling in sick on Tuesday after four days of hectic discussions between the management and the pilots failed on Monday. The pilots of the erstwhile Air India are demanding security of their seniority and career advancement prospects which they feel will be hampered post the merger of Indian Airlines (domestic) and Air India in 2007.

"The management did a u-turn on the template of demands it agreed with the IPG members during discussions with the pilots from Thursday to Sunday. They promised us the security of our careers in the merged airline but then went back on the agreed terms," said Capt Tauseef Mukadam, official spokesperson of the now dissolved IPG.

http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/news-by-industry/transportation/airlines-/-aviation/day-2-of-air-india-strike-400-pilots-join-stir/articleshow/13074545.cms?curpg=2

Russian jet with 50 aboard missing in Indonesia

JAKARTA: A Russian Sukhoi Superjet 100 with about 50 people on board went missing in a mountainous area south of the Indonesian capital Jakarta during a demonstration flight Wednesday, officials said.

"The plane disappeared from the radar around the Bogor area. We are still looking for it and we are uncertain whether it crashed," said Gagah Prakoso, spokesman for the national search and rescue agency.

Around 200 police, military and rescue workers were headed in vehicles and on foot towards Salak mountain where the plane went missing, he said.

"We suspect the plane crashed, but we're not yet certain," rescue chief Marsdya Daryatmo told reporters several hours after the disappearance.

"We tried to send two helicopters to search for the plane... but because of bad weather and strong winds they had to return. We will send them out again tomorrow," he said.

The Superjet 100 is a new passenger aircraft built by legendary Russian planemaker Sukhoi in an attempt to lift the country's civil aviation industry from a post-Soviet crisis.

The Superjet only made its first commercial flight last year and if a major accident is confirmed it would be the first disaster to involve the aircraft.

The plane took off at 2:00 pm (0700 GMT) from east Jakarta's Halim Perdanakusuma airport, which is used for some commercial and military flights.

"At 2:50 pm it dropped from 10,000 feet (3,048 metres) to 6,000 feet," the rescue agency said in a text message to AFP.

The Salak mountain, where the plane disappeared, is more than 7,200 feet (2,200 metres) high.

There were scenes of grief at the airport, with relatives of some passengers weeping uncontrollably as they waited on tenterhooks for more information about the missing plane.

Reports of the exact number on board varied slightly, with Prakoso saying it was carrying 46 people and Trimarga Rekatama, the company responsible for inviting the passengers saying 50 were on board.

Russia's RIA Novosti news agency reported 36 non-Russians on board and eight Russians, four of them crew and the others Sukhoi company representatives. It named the captain as Alexander Yablontsev, 57, a veteran pilot.

Herry Bakti, head of the aviation division of Indonesia's transport ministry, said Superjet was on the second of two demonstration flights, and those on board were invited guests.

"It was just going to briefly circle the area and land back at Halim airport," he said.

A list of 36 passenger names posted at Halim airport showed that most of them were Indonesian airline and aviation officials, plus five journalists and a representative of French aircraft engine maker SNECMA with a Vietnamese name.

The French embassy in Jakarta confirmed there was one Frenchman aboard.

The Superjet is crucial to Russia's hopes of becoming a major player in the modern aviation market and improving its image in the industry, which has been scarred by frequent crashes of ageing Soviet-era jets.

The project is a joint venture between Sukhoi and Italy's Alenia Aeronautica, part of aerospace and defence giant Finmeccanica.

A mid-range airliner, the Superjet 100 is designed to carry up to 98 passengers and is a direct rival of similar aircraft produced by Brazil's Embraer and Canada's Bombardier.

So far it is being flown by two airlines, Russia's Aeroflot and Armenia's Armavia, although orders have been confirmed with several more. Its first commercial flight was operated by Armavia in April 2011 and Aeroflot followed later that year.

Indonesia's official Antara news agency said that domestic carrier Kartika Airlines and regional Sky Aviation had both placed orders for the plane.

The demonstration flight in Indonesia was part of an Asian roadshow to promote the aircraft that started May 3. It earlier took in Kazakhstan and Pakistan, and was due to go on to Laos and Vietnam.

A source at the Russian Ministry of Industry and Commerce told the Interfax news agency: "Preparations before the flight were carried out in full, and technically the plane was in perfect condition."

But the Superjet has experienced some troubles while being flown by Russian flag carrier Aeroflot, which has been under heavy pressure from the government to add more Russian planes to its fleet.

Aeroflot's first Superjet spent several weeks grounded upon delivery because of an air conditioning problem, and in March, a plane had to cut short a scheduled flight after it encountered problems with its undercarriage.

The sprawling Indonesian archipelago relies heavily on air transport but has a poor aviation safety record.

http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/politics/nation/russian-jet-with-50-aboard-missing-in-indonesia/articleshow/13069937.cms?curpg=2

Four Air India flights cancelled after 100 pilots refused to join work

MUMBAI: Four Air India international flights were cancelled from Delhi and Mumbai on Tuesday after about 100 pilots refused to join work.
The airlines domestic operations, however, were unaffected.
"Four flights - Delhi-Toronto, Delhi-Chicago, Mumbai-Newark and Mumbai-Hongkong via Delhi have been cancelled due to unavailability of pilots," an Air India spokesperson said here.
About 100 pilots have so far not reported for duty, the spokesperson said.
A section of Air India pilots owing allegiance to Indian Pilots Guild are agitating over the rescheduling of Boeing 787 Dreamliner training.
A section of Air India pilots had yesterday threatened to strike work following the failure of talks with the Air India management.
"The management (Air India) has completely backtracked from what had been agreed upon in the last 2-3 days. Therefore, we are left with no option but to intensify our agitation," Guild sources had told PTI here.
Disappointed over the management's attitude, some 100 odd pilots have already join the agitation and the Guild expects the number to swell to 250-300 by tomorrow, they had said, indicating the flights operations could be hit severely in the coming days.
Earlier, the management held meeting with the pilots in New Delhi in its bid to defuse the crisis, arising out of the rescheduling of the Dreamliners training programme.
On Saturday, a section of pilots reported sick, apparently to protest the move, resulting in cancellation of one international flight and delaying another two.
It is understood that during their meeting yesterday, the airline management told the pilots that they had no reasons to strike work at a time when the government had announced a bailout package for the national carriers.
The management is also said to have told the pilots to wait for a solution till the Justice D M Dharamadhikari Committee report is implemented by the government.

http://articles.economictimes.indiatimes.com/2012-05-08/news/31626679_1_air-india-pilots-pilots-owing-allegiance-indian-pilots-guild

Five flights from State affected

The strike by a section of pilots owing allegiance to the Indian Pilots' Guild on the issue of training for the Boeing-787 Dreamliner affected the national carrier's five international flights, including four of Air India Express, from Thiruvananthapuram and Kozhikode on Tuesday.

Keralites proceeding to the Gulf countries and other destinations on connection flights were the worst affected. Although the stir by the pilots without prior notice to the management commenced on Friday, the impact was felt in the State only on Tuesday.

Air India Express IX 548 Thiruvananthapuram-Muscat flight scheduled to depart at 9.20 a.m. from here was cancelled.

The IX 537 Thiruvananthapuram-Dubai-Abu Dhabi flight that was to depart at 5.15 p.m. could not take off as scheduled as its pilot reported sick. Airline sources said efforts were on to get a pilot from New Delhi to operate the flight later in the night.

The stranded passengers who were to proceed to Muscat were ferried in the flights of Oman Air and Jet Airways and via Mumbai in the Air India flights. The airline had also given the passengers the option of changing date of journey or taking refund.

The flights that were cancelled from Kozhikode were Air India Express IX 337 Kozhikode-Muscat-Sharjah (11 a.m.) and IX 389 Kozhikode-Kuwait that was to depart at 3.40 p.m. Air India also cancelled the AI 923 Kozhikode-Riyadh flight that was to depart at 3 p.m. The flight was to be operated using Jumbo aircraft.

The strike by the 500-strong Indian Pilots' Guild has affected the national carrier's international operations during the summer holiday season. The Mumbai-Newark, Delhi-Toronto and Delhi-Chicago flights were cancelled and this had put lot of hardship to those who had booked tickets in these flights. The national carrier had taken the decision to cancel the flights rather than operating the flights later.

The Supreme Court has backed the management's decision to send pilots from the erstwhile Indian Airlines for training on the Dreamliner. The guild had been laying exclusive claim to this aircraft.

---

·  Gulf-bound passengers worst-hit

·  Strike by Indian Pilots Guild

http://www.thehindu.com/todays-paper/tp-national/article3399381.ece

Air India crisis: 26 more pilots sacked, court steps in

National carrier Air India sacked 26 more pilots who went on mass sick leave leading to several flight cancellations on Wednesday, as the Delhi High Court stepped in to normalise operations by restraining pilots from going on strike.

"We have sacked 26 more pilots. We are ready for talks, negotiations but we will also not tolerate this kind of illegal action which will permanently hurt the airline's image," a senior Air India official said.

The flag carrier had sacked 26 pilots on Tuesday and derecognised their union - Indian Pilots Guild (IPG).

The Delhi High Court attempted to restore operations and issued restraining orders on pilots from going on strike. The flag carrier had moved the court against the agitating pilots.

Trouble started when pilots belonging to IPG, of pre-merger Air India pilots, had gone on mass 'sick' leave protesting the move by the airline to provide Boeing-787 Dreamliner training to pilots from the erstwhile Indian Airlines. The stir caused four international flight cancellations each on Tuesday and Wednesday.

On Wednesday, the airline had to cancel three international flights from Delhi and one from Mumbai.

"Till now in the day, four flights have been cancelled, including New Delhi-Singapore, New Delhi-New York, New Delhi-Frankfurt and Mumbai-Newark," the official said.

"We have called in reserve pilots and other flights are operating per schedule. Passengers are being updated about their flight status."

Sources in the pilots union claimed that the disgruntled aviators had reached out to the chief labour commissioner's (CLC) office. The IPG is likely to discuss the issue and the sacking of its senior pilots at a meeting later Wednesday.

On Tuesday, Civil Aviation Minister Ajit Singh slammed the agitation calling it illegal. "There are certain ways of even going on strike. The pilots may have grievances but they should have spoken to the management, to me and other well wishers."

"How can they (pilots) go on strike when Air India is on the path of recovery and when it is not out of the woods," he asked.

Ajit Singh further said that while in an earlier order the Delhi High Court had upheld the contention that the erstwhile Indian Airlines pilots cannot be trained on the Dreamliner, the Supreme Court had vacated the stay.

"How can the protesting pilots expect the government to go against the Supreme Court?"

Currently training for the first batch of pilot and crew members for the 787 is going on in Singapore. An aircraft like 787 requires around 10 pilots for operating a full day's schedule or a connecting long haul flight.

Air India had booked 27 Boeing 787s in 2006 in a mega deal for 68 aircraft from Boeing. The first of the 27 Boeing 787 aircraft which were ordered in 2006 for IPG cadre pilots before the merger in 2007 is expected to join the fleet at the end of the month.

Air India is only the third global airline after All Nippon Airways and Japan Airlines to receive the fuel-efficient and eco-friendly aircraft.

http://www.deccanchronicle.com/channels/nation/north/air-india-crisis-26-more-pilots-sacked-court-steps-998

More AI pilots sacked, HC calls strike illegal

NEW DELHI: Maintaining their stand of not reporting to duty, the erstwhile Air India pilots-led union Indian Pilots Guild (IPG) said that it is going to continue its strike even as the Air India management issued dismissal letters to 26 more pilots who reported sick and approached the Delhi High Court for relief on Wednesday. The court directed over 200 agitating Air India pilots to stop their “illegal strike”, and barred them from reporting sick or staging demonstrations.

The Air India Management represented by advocate Lalit Bhasin appealed to the court that the IPG had resorted to illegal means for pressuring the management to adhere to its demands. “This sort of blackmailing is unreasonable and the court has appreciated our concerns. The pilots have been directed to discontinue their current en masse reporting sick and instructed not to resort to any kind of public agitation around any of the Air India premises in the country,” Bhasin said.

In its appeal, the Air India management had said that almost 5,000 passengers had suffered because of the strike until Tuesday. Meanwhile, an IPG representative told Express that their agitations will continue. “They have issued only 36 dismissal letters. They have to do the same for 530 more pilots. We will agitate till all of us get dismissal letters,” the representative said.

Civil Aviation Minister Ajit Singh said that a dialogue was possible only if the pilots resumed duty. “Discussions and disruptions cannot take place simultaneously. Air India is almost bankrupt and not able to pay salaries for months. Neither has it paid the AAI or the oil companies. So, in these times of crisis if the pilots don’t cooperate we are willing to downsize the airline,” he said, adding that when in the next few months they start discussing the integration plan suggested by Justice Dharmadhikari, pilots from both unions would be involved. “If you keep striking... every three months, then we are not ready to invest public money in Air India,” he said.

The AI spokesperson said now the HC directive would prevail lest the pilots would be held in contempt of court.

http://expressbuzz.com/nation/More-AI-pilots-sacked-HC-calls-strike-illegal/390190.html

High Court restrains Air India pilots from continuing strike

10 more pilots sacked; services disrupted for third day

Mumbai/New Delhi, May 9:

The Delhi High Court on Wednesday restrained Air India pilots from going on strike or disrupting airline schedules.

This follows the Air India management filing a suit in the Delhi High Court against the action of a section of pilots. Some Air India pilots went on sudden leave, disrupting normal flight operations for the third day.

The airline cancelled six flights on Wednesday, including the Mumbai-Newark return service, Mumbai- New Jersey and the Mumbai-Jeddah flights. In addition, five flights from Delhi to Singapore, JFK (New York), Chicago and Toronto were also cancelled.

The management today sacked 10 more pilots, who had gone on sudden leave. They are agitating against the management's decision to allow pilots of the erstwhile Indian (Airlines) to train on the Boeing 787 aircraft, the Dreamliner. The management derecognised the Indian Pilots Guild, an apex body of Air India pilots, on Tuesday and sealed their offices in Delhi and Mumbai. The airline is also sending medical teams to the residence of pilots to check on their health.

Official sources indicated that in the last three days, at least 10 international flights had been cancelled as a result of the agitation. Apart from causing inconvenience to passengers, the airline is seeing a 25-30 per cent decline in daily revenues. Its daily earnings from international operations are down to Rs 9 crore now from Rs 15 crore.

Travel agents said that the bookings of all West-bound flights of Air India were stopped from Tuesday. Travellers say that they were not informed about the cancellations in advance.

Air India carries about 8,000 international passengers every day and operates 50 international and 400 domestic flights daily. “This is a peak travel season. With the aviation sector already in trouble, this unrest and cancellations are creating further imbalance and will lead to escalation of air fares,” said Mr Iqbal Mulla, President, Travel Agents Association of India (TAAI).

http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/todays-paper/article3402033.ece

Govt fails to take tough line against pilots

New Delhi, May 9:

The current agitation by a section of Air India's pilots has once again brought to the fore the Government's failure to take strong action against the Maharaja's employees. The most recent “industrial action” by the pilots has led to a 25-30 per cent decline in Air India's daily revenues.

Bailout package

As this is the start of the peak travel season, the agitation, which has led to the cancellation of over 20 flights and the suspension of at least 10 pilots, has also meant the airline's image getting a severe battering yet again.

What is damaging for the airline is that this “industrial action” comes at a time when the Government is providing the cash-strapped airline more than Rs 30,000 crore as part of a financial restructuring programme.

Further, the Justice Dharamadhikari Committee, which was set up to smoothen the process of integrating Indian and Air India employees when the two were merged, has has expressed its commitment to implementing it.

Agitation by the pilots could mean the bailout package is in trouble as the Government releasing more equity to the airline hinges on the latter meeting a number of milestones. These include increasing the number of hours an aircraft is flown, increasing revenues from cargo and passengers, and improving customer satisfaction. Bankers are now expressing concern about the airline being able to meet these milestones.

Rumours are rife that some political leaders are backing the striking pilots. This has also been the case in the past, when pilots have placed their petty needs before the future of the airline.

For instance, as far back as two decades, Mr L.Vasudev resigned as the Managing Director of Indian Airlines after the Government yielded to the demands of striking pilots. The airline suspended a number of them for not reporting for duty only to reinstate them when Mr Vasudev resigned.

On another occasion, the airline management derecognised the Air India pilots union only to recognise it after the pilots called off their agitation.

Way forward

Then, during UPA's first tenure, the Government was ready to declare a lockout in Air India after a section of the pilots went on strike.

A senior government official was on his way to Delhi to sign the order for the lockout, but the decision was reversed even before he landed in the Capital. And, a golden chance of setting the affairs of Air India in order was lost.

Perhaps the Government should use the recent agitation to show it is serious about the well-being of Air India. Suspending pilots and then reinstating them again after a compromise is struck is no solution. Neither is succumbing to political interests, which are allegedly backing the agitating pilots.

Instead, sacking the striking pilots would send out a first clear message that it is serious. Taking a more long-term view on curtailing international operations and running limited routes efficiently could be another step. But is the Government ready to take such harsh measures?

http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/todays-paper/tp-economy/article3402017.ece

Cargo volume down at Chennai airport

Domestic, international sectors witness dip first time in 10 years

Chennai, May 9:

For the first time in 10 years, cargo volume at the Chennai airport has dipped.

The drop was witnessed in both domestic and international sectors in the just concluded financial year.

In 2011-12, there was an 8.14 per dip in cargo volume to 3.57 lakh tonnes compared with 3.88 lakh tonnes, the previous year.

Mr E.P. Hareendranathan, Airport Director, attributes the drop to global economic slowdown, poor demand from the US and Europe and the dollar appreciation.

Cargo revenues in 2011-12 were flat at Rs 194 crore. “Major boost was supposed to have come from cargo with the handling rates being revised. Despite this, cargo volumes have dipped,” he said.

Mr J. Krishnan of S. Natesa Iyer & Co, a leading freight forwarder in Chennai, said traditional commodities such as textiles, garments and leather to traditional markets such as the US and Europe have dropped last year.

Even during the global recession period of 2008-09, there was a marginal increase in cargo volume by 0.65 per cent.

Passenger traffic

“Last year has been the worst so far,” said an industry source.

After a spurt in growth rate of passenger traffic in 2010-11 – in the immediate wake of economic recovery – the growth rate quietened in 2011-12. Passenger traffic grew a modest 7.3 per cent to 1.29 crore (43 lakh international; 86 lakh domestic) against 1.20 crore the previous year.

While the traffic in the domestic sector grew over 10 per cent, the international traffic went up marginally by 1.47 per cent, according to Airports Authority of India data.

“The number of business travellers have come down,” said Mr Hareendranathan.

Total revenue for the Chennai airport during 2011-12 increased to Rs 711 crore (Rs 693 crore).

Projections

Airports Authority of India projects cargo volume at the Chennai airport to grow five per cent to 3.75 lakh tonnes during 2012-13. The current year will see the passenger traffic grow by 8.4 per cent to 1.4 crore.

http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/todays-paper/tp-logistics/article3402053.ece