Kerala to maintain an open sky policy for seaplane project

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Kerala will adopt an open sky policy for the seaplane project so that more than one operator can take advantage of the situation, tourism minister A P Anil Kumar said here on Friday.

Pawan Hans Helicopters Limited will conduct the feasibility study for the project at a cost of Rs 30 lakh and present its report in a month. "Pawan Hans was chosen to do the study as it is a government agency", the minister said. "Five domestic companies had approached the tourism department to operate seaplanes in Kerala. We are yet to fully understand the financial feasibility of the project and so an expression of interest should be invited shortly," he said.

Addressing the media after a project presentation by the tourism department for the chief minister, tourism secretary T K Manoj Kumar said that the department was conducting a destination study. "We are looking for amphibious aircraft that can take off from airports at Thiruvananthapuram, Kochi and Karipur and land at water bodies in Peechi, Malampuzha, Wayanad etc. Around 20 destinations have been studied but they will further shortlisted when the environmental impact study for the waterdrome is conducted," he said.

The government is considering approaching the central government for subsidy on the project. Additionally the government can make the offer lucrative for the operators by offering various concessions on Air Turbine Fuel, landing/parking charges etc.

The chief minister and his cabinet colleagues were shown twin-radial engine amphibious flying boats during the presentation. But the tourism department will have to opt for a humbler version. For instance, a Dornier Seastar, Caravan or a Twin-Otter with passenger capacity of 13 to 20. The financial estimates have also been kept at the lowest common denominator, such as the projected running cost (per seat/mile) is at Rs 37 for a Seastar, Rs 36 each for a Caravan or a Twin-Otter class. But industry watchers said it could be much steeper, touching at Rs 50 and above. According to the initial analysis of the financial breakup of the project by the tourism department, 35% of the cost would be taken up by fuel, 22% depreciation and maintenance cost and 12% will be the marketing cost incurred by state government for the project. The rest is split between HR, insurance and financing.

The chief minister was hoping to land a seaplane during the Emerging Kerala conclave, but that has clearly been ruled out after Friday's meeting citing DGCA clearances

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/thiruvananthapuram/Kerala-to-maintain-an-open-sky-policy-for-seaplane-project/articleshow/14508929.cms

'Aircraft concepts to come from East'

The concept plane, Airbus’ vision of flight for 2050, was the centre of focus at the Bangalore leg of the Indo-German Urban Mela. Its concept cabin, which is recyclable, can be turned transparent with the flick of a switch. It also boasts of self-cleaning material, grown from sustainable plant fibres that reduce maintenance and wastage. To top it all, the cabin has an integrated neural network that recognises passengers, and adapts to their needs.

And, this marvel of technology might be partially developed right here, in Bangalore

With the aviation market moving from the western hemisphere to the East, the concepts of aircraft design should be coming from the East,” Kiran Rao, president, Airbus India, told Business Standard. “We have decided our think tank for determining how aeroplanes should be, how these should interact with airports and passengers and how pilots should interact with the craft would be headquartered in Bangalore and be headed by an Indian,” he said.

Airbus sources software and engineering services from its facility here. Recently, it had set up an innovation cell, expected to be operational by the year-end.

“While this would not be an engineering centre, it would work with Airbus units for developing designs and concepts,” said Rao. He added the company’s investment was based on long-term commitment and cooperation, which outweighed any offset obligation. Today, about 2,000 people work on Airbus projects in India. The company estimates Indian airlines would purchase 1,043 aircraft over the next 20 years. India, therefore, would be vital to the company’s plans.

The Airbus Engineering Centre here, which employs about 270 locally-trained staff, is a fully-integrated unit, focusing on flight physics and structure, systems simulations and other key segments in designing high-performance aircraft.

Operational since mid-2007, the staff strength of the engineering centre is expected to rise to 450 over the next three years.

Airbus also has a training centre here, focusing on maintenance and pilot training. A second such centre is scheduled to be opened in Gurgaon. “It has been a long-standing need of airlines in the North,” Rao told Business Standard.

“We are working with EADS (European Aeronautic Defence and Space Company NV) and Air India, along with private companies, to establish a maintenance, repair and operations facility for Airbus aircraft,” said Rao.

Amber Dubey, partner and head (aviation), KPMG India, said with these engagements, the company could “leverage the cost arbitrage offered by Indian channel partners and create significant goodwill in India by creating local jobs and contributing to revenue and government taxes.” He added design and engineering work in India was 20-40 per cent cheaper, owing to low manpower costs. This, he said, was a significant driver.

http://www.business-standard.com/india/news/aircraft-concepts-to-comeeast/478956/

Air India reschedules flights

Air India flights will be rescheduled on June 30 due to closure of a runway in Chennai airport from 1 p.m. to 7 p.m. The runway has been closed for maintenance after three years, sources said. Some important domestic and international flights have been rescheduled on Saturday, as the middle portion of the runway will undergo repairs. The St. Thomas Mount end of the runway may be closed from July 2 to July 4 and is likely to affect services. Officials said passengers had been intimated regarding changes in flight timings. Passengers can contact the helpline 1800-180-1407 for further queries.

http://www.thehindu.com/todays-paper/tp-national/tp-tamilnadu/article3587276.ece

Flights rescheduled due to closure of runway

Following the closure of runway at the Chennai Airport between 1 p.m. and 7 p.m. on June 30, Air India has rescheduled/combined some of its flights operating from/to Chennai on that day.

Flight AI 440 to Delhi would leave Chennai at 6 a.m. instead of 6.40 a.m. Flight AI 429 would arrive at 12.20 p.m. instead of 1.15 p.m.

Flight AI 273 to Colombo would leave Chennai at 9.20 a.m. instead of 2.15 p.m. and return flight from Colombo AI 274 would arrive at 12.40 p.m. instead of 6 p.m.

Flight AI 513 to Thiruvananthapuram would leave at 9.30 a.m. instead of 5.30 a.m. Flight AI 264 from Male/Thiruvananthapuram would arrive at 7.15 p.m. instead of 2.30 p.m.

Flight AI 510 to Kochi via Bangalore would leave at 12.30 p.m. and reach Bangalore at 1.20 p.m. It would leave Bangalore at 2.10 p.m. and reach Kochi at 3.20 p.m.

Flights AI 766 to Kolkata, AI 967 to Thiruvananthapuram/Sharjah and AI 975 to Goa/Kuwait will leave at 7 p.m.

Flight AI 545 to Hyderabad would leave at 8 p.m. and flight AI 546 from Hyderabad would arrive at 10.40 p.m. AI 539 to Delhi would leave Chennai at 7.50 p.m.

Combined flights

Flight AI 045 to Delhi would be combined with flight AI 430 and depart at 10.45 am. Flight AI 674 to Mumbai would be combined with Flight AI 571 and depart at 8.45 pm. Consequently flight AI 968 from Sharjah/Thiruvananthapuram would arrive Chennai at 8.10 am on July 01 and AI 143 to Delhi would leave at 9 am, according to an official release.

http://www.thehindu.com/todays-paper/tp-national/tp-tamilnadu/article3587288.ece

Duty-free sales add to CIAL revenue growth

Kochi, June 29:

Surge in duty-free sales and non-aeronautic revenues has contributed substantially to the revenue growth of Cochin International Airport Ltd during FY-12.

The company recorded a profit after tax of Rs 102 crore in 2011-12 as against Rs 90 crore in the preceding year.

The pretax profit also showed a marked improvement from Rs 116 crore during 2010-11 to Rs 134 crore during the current year.

Consistency

CIAL has been consistently generating profits from 2003-04, barely 3 years after its commissioning in 1999.

Right from the beginning, the company has been focusing on non aeronautic revenue to drive growth, a statement issued here said.

Duty-free sales

This year, the duty free sales have been the main driver of revenue.

The main contribution to revenue growth came from duty free sales which jumped by more than 27 per cent to Rs 93.64 crore. Rent and services and royalties accounted for Rs 80.31 crore.

Aeronautic sources

The aeronautic sources of income such as landing, parking and other charges contributed Rs 57.10 crore. Cargo income contributed around Rs 14.50 crore.

The passenger movement for 2011-12 was around 4.72 million comprising of 2.6 million international passengers and 2.12 million domestic passengers.

Total revenue

The total revenue for 2011-12 was Rs 276 crore as against Rs 246 crore for the preceding year, recording a topline growth of 12 per cent.

The board of directors of CIAL also decided to recommend a dividend of 16 per cent to the shareholders.

This, if approved at the Annual General Meeting of the company scheduled on September, would entail a pay out of Rs 47 crore to the shareholders, the statement added.

http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/todays-paper/tp-others/tp-states/article3586150.ece