Kingfisher Airlines not a systemic risk: KC Chakrabarty

MUMBAI: The debt-laden Kingfisher AirlinesBSE -4.76 %, which owes 17 banks about Rs 7,000crore, does not pose any systemic risk, RBI Deputy Governor K C Chakrabarty said today. 

When asked about the troubles at Kingfisher Airlines, Chakrabarty said that "it does not pose any systemic risk to the banking system". 

He was talking to reporters on the sidelines on an SME event organised by the Bombay Chamber of Commerce and Industry here. 

The aviation regulator DGCA had recently served a show-cause notice to the company asking why its licence should not be revoked. 

Within the lenders consortium, SBI has the single largest exposure with Rs 1,580 crore, followed by IDBI Bank (Rs 720 crore), Punjab National Bank (Rs 435 crore), Bank of India (Rs 575 crore), Bank of Baroda (Rs 530 crore), Central Bank of India (Rs 420 crore), UBI (Rs 350 crore), Corporation Bank (Rs 150 crore), and Federal Bank (Rs 80 crore which is not a loan but an en-cashed bank guarantee to BPCLBSE -0.91 %).

http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/news-by-industry/transportation/airlines-/-aviation/kingfisher-airlines-not-a-systemic-risk-kc-chakrabarty/articleshow/16727690.cms

Kingfisher Airlines ignores DGCA, opens bookings from October 13

NEW DELHI: Kingfisher Airlines, in a fresh instance of violation of regulations, has opened ticket bookings on its website from October 13, even as Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) awaits the airline's response to a show-cause notice, asking why its licence should not be cancelled given its irregularities. 

Even makemytrip.com, one of the largest travel portals in India, has started selling Kingfisher tickets from the same date. 

The cash-strapped carrier, which has not paid salaries to its employees for the past seven months, grounded operations from October 1 due to workers unrest and decided to take bookings from October 5, which was deferred to October 8 and then to October 12. 

However, while civil aviation minister Ajit Singh had made it clear that the airline cannot take off without convincing the government of a sustainable recovery plan, which should include payment of salary dues, the airline has all of a sudden opened bookings without intimation to aviation watchdog DGCA. 

"A few more people have brought this to my notice. We will write to them to stop this," DGCA head Arun Mishra told ET. 

While other big travel portals said they haven't got any cue from Kingfisher AirlinesBSE -4.76 % to start selling, neither do most of them want to sell the airlines' tickets as they want to avoid problems like refunds in case of sudden cancellations, makemytrip.com said they have no control over this. 

"We have no control over this. All I can say is that we are offering full refund on Kingfisher tickets for travel for the whole month of October. We want to ensure our customers don't lose money," travel portal COO Keyur Joshi said. 

Meanwhile, an executive from another travel portal said that the airline told them that the response to the DGCA's show-cause notice is supposed to be different from future plans, which involves getting the workforce and funds together. 

A day after one of Kingfisher Airlines employees' wife committed suicide, citing financial stress as her husband was not paid for months; the DGCA shot a show-cause notice to the Vijay Mallya-owned airline asking it to explain why its licence should not be cancelled. 

According to the notice, abrupt cancellation of flights over past 10 months causing inconvenience to passengers has been "tantamount to non-compliance...which is punishable under Schedule VI of the said rules". 

If the airline fails to reply to this show-cause by October 20, "it will be presumed that you have nothing to say in your defence and suitable action, as deemed fit, shall be taken against your organisation ex parte," the notice reads. Employees of the airline have confirmed that so far no communication about payment of salary arrears has been made to them. Kingfisher Airlines did not send any response to ET's questions on reopening of bookings.

http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/news-by-industry/transportation/airlines-/-aviation/kingfisher-airlines-ignores-dgca-opens-bookings-from-october-13/articleshow/16732843.cms

Kingfisher lenders hope airline management won't let go belly up

MUMBAI: Kingfisher lenders today expressed the hope that the company management will not let the airline go belly up and said banks would be a bigger casualty if it goes bust.

"We (the lenders) are for seeing the airline turn around and not getting grounded. We hope the promoters won't let the present crisis get more complicated. After all, we don't think chairman Vijay Mallya will let his image be tarnished by letting the airline go belly up," a senior official of a public sector bank told PTI here this evening.

The banker said: "None of us wants the airline to go bust. If that happens, banks will be a bigger casualty than the airline."

When asked about whether banks are looking at recovery measures by monetising the collaterals, the banker said by doing that the lenders won't be able to recover not even 10 per cent of their outstanding to the airline.

The Vijay Mallya-owned airline and its promoters have most of their shares and assets pledged with banks, including the brand Kingfisher (pledged for a value of Rs 4,100 crore) and two of its properties--the Kingfisher Villa in Goa and the Kingfisher House in Mumbai, together valued at around Rs 200 crore.

"We hope the talks that Mallya is holding for stake sale in his other concerns like United Spirits (with UK'sDiageo) will fructify soon. If that happens Mallya could recapitalise the airline and then we bankers can look at recasting his existing loan or even fund fresh working capital requirements," the banker said.

When asked about the amount that banks are looking at as fresh capital infusion by the airline for a fresh lifeline, he said normally a CDR involves the promoters bringing in at least 25-30 per cent of the overall CDR package in fresh equity. At 25 per cent, this works out to be around Rs 1,750 crore as the airline's outstanding principal alone is over Rs 7,000 crore.

ICICI Bank had an exposure of Rs 400 crore to Kingfisher in June, but sold out loan.

That apart, the lenders together hold around 23 per cent in the airline since March, after the banks converted their Rs 6,500 crore of recast debt (after the November 2010 CDR) into equity.

These banks picked these stakes at a hefty premium- when the share was trading at Rs 38, the banks converted these shares at Rs 64.48 per share. Its shares closed at Rs 14.60 today, down 5 per cent. It had touched a low of Rs 7.01 in August.

A senior official at the State Bank, which has an exposure of Rs 1,580 crore and unpaid interest from January, said if the crisis deepens, the consortium of lenders together will decide what course of action should be taken.

"Though we are the lead the 17-bank consortium of lenders to Kingfisher, we cannot take a unilateral decision. We will have to get the rest of the lenders on board for any concrete action," the SBI official told PTI.

When asked whether the lenders are looking at beginning recovery process, the official said the banks will ensure that they will use every means to protect their interest.

The crisis at Kingfisher worsened today as reconciliation talks between the management and the striking engineers and pilots over payment of seven months salary dues failed with the protestors rejecting the offer of part-payment and vowing to continue their agitation.

With no end to the deadlock, a question mark hung over the airline's plans to resume operations from Friday, after a four-day partial lockout and complete suspension of all operations since Monday night.

Kingfisher has been saddled with a huge loss of over Rs 8,000 crore and a debt burden of over Rs 7,000 crore.

After declaring a partial lockout till October 4 following the strike by engineers and pilots over non-payment of salary, the airline CEO Agarwal had expressed confidence about resolving the situation in the next few days. "We will take a call on October 4 on resumption of our operations."

The airline would be using its current fleet of ten aircraft -- seven Airbus A-320s and three turbo-prop ATRs, to resume flights. With these planes, Kingfisher has been operating about 70-80 flights each day till it suspended all operations on Monday night.

Over 80 pilots and 270 Kingfisher engineers have been on intermittent strikes over the past few months, primarily over delay in payment of salaries.

http://articles.economictimes.indiatimes.com/2012-10-03/news/34238831_1_kingfisher-lenders-kingfisher-house-kingfisher-villa

Air India to hit market with Rs 7,400-crore bond issue

MUMBAI: Debt-laden national carrier Air India is set to hit the market with its Rs 7,400-crore bond issue soon, as the much delayed nod from the finance ministry to back the fund-raising exercise with unconditional government guarantee is expected within a fortnight, two sources close to the development told ET. 

Air India is reeling under a huge debt burden of over Rs 43,000 crore, a mix of long-term debt and working capital loans, and is, therefore, banking heavily on this bond sale backed by sovereign guarantees to ease the interest cost on the expensive working capital loans. The finance ministry had put these plans on the dock when it said that Air India will get only 'conditional guarantees' that too based on achievement of specified parameters. 

"An unconditional guarantee is a serious issue and the finance ministry will take its time. But as we understand the finance ministry is likely to come around on the issue as the Cabinet has already cleared it," Rohit Nandan, Air India chairman and managing director, told ET. 

For the national airline to get going with the bond sale also becomes important as from October 1 some of the loan recoveries will start which were minimal till this period as the airline was under the financial restructuring plan (FRP). 

"As far as milestones are concerned there is already an oversight committee that is reviewing operational performance every month and on most of the parameters for the past four to five months we are doing much better than what has been mandated," Nandan added. 

In the coming months, Air India will pay Rs 100 crore every month as interest cost. "We were under the FRP and that is the reason we were getting away with just Rs 25-30 crore payments per month but now the recoveries will start," Nandan said. 

The minister of civil aviation, Ajit Singh, who met the finance minister recently to resolve the sticky issue, said that unconditional guarantees have to come by as the government was unanimous on Air India's financial restructuring and unconditional guarantees for bonds was an important part of the plan. 

"It was a decision that has been taken by the Group of Ministers and the government has decided that the NCD will be backed by unconditional guarantees. Now the government has to ensure that the issue is subscribed. How it is done and what wordings are used is not material. The whole turnaround plan rests on the financial restructuring and that has to be done as it was a government decision," Ajit Singh told ET. 

In April this year, 17 lenders to the national carrier Air India approved a financial restructuring plan for the airline which envisaged equity infusion of about Rs 23,000 crore into the airline over the next 10 years by the government as a stakeholder. It also said that there would be restructuring of Rs 22,000 crore of its high-cost working capital debt. Of this, the banks agreed for a conversion of Rs 10,500 crore to long-term loans and the rest was to be returned to the banks through the bond sale. 

Air India has, in the meantime, issued fresh dates for inviting the bids extending the earlier date to October 12. "The airline is expecting the government of India guarantees and that could happen within a week. We will be able to close the bids within two weeks of receipt of guarantee," said an Air India top official. 

Air India, according to Nandan, is also looking at other options for low-cost loans like ECBs. "Some people have responded and we are in talks with them for getting in some part of the money through this route. Even if it is one fourth of what is to come by through bond sales, we would be fine," Nandan said. 

More importantly a senior finance ministry official said that the government has no choice but to offer unconditional sovereign guarantee on Air India bonds. 

"If there is no guarantee, the rating of the bonds will go down. This will not only impact its pricing but also several investors such as insurance firms will not be able to subscribe," he said requesting anonymity. 

The official added that if there is no guarantee the whole purpose of issuing bonds will be a waste. "Why will anybody buy a junk paper," he argued. The current regulations restrict insurance companies to invest only in the highest rated 'AAA' or 'AA' credit rated paper. Of this, a minimum of 75% of debt instruments should have 'AAA' rating. From an investor perspective market conditions seem to be the overriding factor for such a subscription. 

"It all depends on the market conditions at that point in time. Since the bonds carry unconditional guarantee, there should be good interest from the investors. It will depend on the interest the big institutional investors show, since the size of the issue is huge. Merchant bankers are waiting for the expression of interest from the issue," said Shashikant Rathi, senior vice president, head, debt capital market, Axis BankBSE 0.61 %. 

http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/markets/bonds/air-india-to-hit-market-with-rs-7400-crore-bond-issue/articleshow/16732697.cms?curpg=2

Mallya, Chhabria set to bury two decade-old legal hatchet Vijay Mallya has been contending he is the rightful owner of Officer's Choice whisky and not Kishore Chhabria

It is among corporate India’s most protracted battles and there are definite signs that it’s in the final lap. The two decade-old legal battle between liquor barons Vijay Mallya and Kishore Chhabria is likely to come to an end as both parties are likely to file an application requesting withdrawal of several cases against each other tomorrow.

Mallya has been contending that he is the rightful owner of Officer’s Choice whisky and not Chhabria, who currently owns the brand under his company Allied Blenders and Distillers (ABD). The dispute had arisen nearly seven years ago after Mallya took over Shaw Wallace, owned by Kishore Chhabria’s late brother Manu Chhabria. During that transaction, Kishore Chhabria had laid claim to Officer’s  Choice, which Mallya opposed.

It is understood that Mallya’s flagship spirits company, United Spirits, will get a one-time fee of Rs 8 crore from ABD to settle the issue. Officer’s Choice whisky has been growing aggressively in the recent past and had during last year overtaken Mallya’s Bagpiper as India’s largest selling whisky brand at close to 16 million cases. Mallya had late last year moved the Calcutta High Court to restrain ABD from raising fresh resources until the ownership issue was settled.

The move to settle all legal disputes between the two is expected to pave the way for their respective strategic moves, going ahead. While Chhabria is expected to raise Rs 200 crore through the private equity route for expanding ABD, Mallya will be moving a step closer to his strategic deal with global spirits major Diageo. Both companies preferred not to comment on the planned settlement.

Since exiting Shaw Wallace, Chhabria has built the company’s gross sales to more than Rs 1,800 crore by selling close to 17.6 million cases of spirits last fiscal, of which as much as 95 per cent came from ABD’s flagship brand Officer’s Choice. According to ABD estimates, sales of the brand are expected to cross the 20-million mark by next year as it has been growing at a CAGR of around 30 per cent.

In view of the merger of Shaw Wallace & Company with United Spirits, an application was filed in the Calcutta High Court by United Spirits to substitute itself in place of Shaw Wallace in a suit filed in 1992 when Shaw Wallace was under the stewardship of the late Manu Chhabria. The principal allegation in the suit was that in breach of his fiduciary duty Kishore Chhabria had caused the assets of Shaw Wallace and its subsidiaries to be dealt with in a manner prejudicial to their interests — in particular, the valuable ownership and control of BDA Ltd, manufacturer of Officer’s Choice.

http://www.business-standard.com/india/news/mallya-chhabria-set-to-bury-two-decade-old-legal-hatchet/488982/

Air India delays payments to banks

NEW DELHI: National Aviation Company of India (Nacil), which flies under the Air India brand, has delayed settling dues with lenders because of its inability to raise Rs 7,400 crore through a planned bond issue, raising fresh concerns over the financial restructuring plan cleared by the government six months ago.

At least two bankers confirmed the "delay" in payment beyond September although a senior Nacil executive said there were no overdues to the bank and whatever short-term liabilities had to be cleared would be cleared over the next few days when it gets a full-fledged government guarantee to raise fresh funds at a lower cost and retire its earlier high-cost loans.

The finance ministry has denied an unconditional guarantee to Nacil despite the Cabinet decision and civil aviation minister Ajit Singh's meeting with finance minister P Chidambaram a few days ago. The national carrier was forced to put off its bond issue as the finance ministry only issued a conditional guarantee, which would be valid in case all specified parameters are met, something that investors do not see as sufficient security.

Although a banker said Nacil issued a tender for a bond issue last week, citing an unconditional guarantee, the finance ministry is yet to issue the notification. The Air India executive, however, said too much should not be read into the issue as the guarantee, which would bind the government to take over the liability in case of a default by the airline, would be issued over the next week to 10 days. "It's all procedural. This often takes a little time," said the executive, who did not wish to be identified.

A senior executive at one of the large public sector banks too played down concerns. "There is a small due from Air India but it is not critical from the point of view of a non-performing asset. The company is in the process of raising money from the market and the guarantee is also expected to come through," the banker said. Another banker said Nacil was already in talks with financial institutions such as Life Insurance Corporation of India for the bond issue.

A government guarantee, along with equity infusion by the Centre and taking over aircraft loans, were the key elements of Nacil's Rs 30,000 crore financial restructuring plan cleared by the Cabinet in April.

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/business/india-business/Air-India-delays-payments-to-banks/articleshow/16731944.cms

Kingfisher not a systemic risk, says Chakrabarty

The debt-laden Kingfisher Airlines, which owes 17 banks about Rs.7,000 crore, does not pose any systemic risk, Reserve Bank of India Deputy Governor K. C. Chakrabarty said on Monday.

When asked about the troubles at Kingfisher Airlines, Dr. Chakrabarty said that “it does not pose any systemic risk to the banking system“.

He was talking to reporters on the sidelines of an SME event organised by the Bombay Chamber of Commerce and Industry here.

The aviation regulator DGCA had recently served a show-cause notice on the company asking why its licence should not be revoked.

Within the lenders’ consortium, SBI has the single largest exposure with Rs.1,580 crore, followed by IDBI Bank (Rs.720 crore), Punjab National Bank (Rs.435 crore), Bank of India (Rs.575 crore), Bank of Baroda (Rs.530 crore), Central Bank of India (Rs.420 crore), UBI (Rs.350 crore), Corporation Bank (Rs.150 crore), and Federal Bank (Rs.80 crore which is not a loan but an en-cashed bank guarantee to BPCL). — PTI

http://www.thehindu.com/todays-paper/tp-business/kingfisher-not-a-systemic-risk-says-chakrabarty/article3979633.ece

In fourth such incident in 3 months, aircraft grounded after tow bar of trolley pierces outer cowling of engine

00 Haj pilgrims were to take the Air India flight

Air India’s Jeddah-bound Boeing 747 aircraft was grounded at the Chennai airport on Monday, after the tow bar of a trolley pierced the outer cowling of the engine while the aircraft was being towed from the remote parking bay.

Airport Director H.S. Suresh said around 8 a.m. the aircraft was towed from parking bay 30 to the contact bay. The tow tractor driver failed to notice the trolley tow bar kept at a 90 degree elevation near bay 31. It hit the outer cowling of the first engine on the left side of the aircraft and pierced it.

A senior Airports Authority of India (AAI) official said trolleys, belonging to a private ground handling agency, were not supposed to be left near Bay 31. Whenever the trolleys were detached from a tractor, the drivers used to put the tow bar on the ground. In this case the driver left it in a standing position, resulting in the accident.

The trolleys were brought to attend to a Sri Lankan airways flight expected sometime later in the morning.

It was the lack of apron discipline among ground handling agencies and failure on the part of AAI to strictly monitor the movement of trolleys and other vehicles in the operational area that led to accidents of this kind, according to the official.

The presence of too many ground handling agencies was also a reason for accidents, resulting in serious damages to aircraft.

This was the fourth incident in the last three months at the airport in which an aircraft had been seriously damaged, the official said.

Four hundred passengers were set to fly in the grounded Air India flight, exclusively meant for the Haj trip. When contacted, Air India officials said a preliminary enquiry had been ordered. The Director General of Civil Aviation will conduct a separate enquiry into the accident, airport sources said. The national carrier brought in another Boeing 747 aircraft from Mumbai to take the stranded passengers to Jeddah, the Air India sources said.

D. Sudhakara Reddy, national president, Air Passengers Association of India, said he received calls from some of the passengers of the flight.  He was shocked to hear that an important part of the aircraft engine was damaged due to the negligence on the part of the technical team towing the aircraft from a remote parking bay.  

He wanted to know when Air India would change its attitude and become passenger-friendly and a safe operator.  “How long will the government continue to support Air India…?  How long will tax payers’ money be used to put an airline that does not show any sign of improving?” he asked.

http://www.thehindu.com/todays-paper/tp-national/in-fourth-such-incident-in-3-months-aircraft-grounded-after-tow-bar-of-trolley-pierces-outer-cowling-of-engine/article3979891.ece

Tiger Moth aircraft steals the show

The Tiger Moth aircraft of the 1930 vintage was the cynosure of all eyes during a flypast at the Air Force Day parade at the Hindon air base on the outskirts of the capital on Monday. The aircraft stole the show in the absence of aerobatic display by the grounded Suryakiran planes and Sarang helicopter squad.

On the 80th anniversary of the IAF, the Tiger Moth biplane, the first resurrected aircraft of the vintage squadron of the force, was the only new addition to the flying display team for the event.

As soon as the yellow-coloured aircraft, which saw action during World War II, took off, it was greeted by a thunderous applause from the gathering which included families of air warriors and school children.

The IAF is planning to resurrect around six old aircraft for the vintage squadron that will include a Wapiti, Howard, Spitfire and three other planes. The indigenously-developed Airborne Early Warning and Control Aircraft (AEW&C) along with the Russian-origin Mi-17 V5 choppers were showcased for the first time as part of the static display.

“The Hindustan Aeronautics Limited is adding some safety features in all the Dhruv choppers and that is why they are not here. In next two months, they will start aerobatic practice,” IAF Chief Air Chief Marshal N.A.K. Browne told journalists.

The IAF has initiated the process of raising a new aerobatic display team with Advanced Jet Trainer ‘Hawk’ aircraft and a ‘request for proposal’ (RFP) has already been issued to the British BAE systems for supplying 20 new planes for the purpose, he said.

The other aircraft which took part in the aerial display included the frontline Su-30MKI, Mirage 2000, Jaguar, MiG 21s and C-130J Super Hercules transport aircraft.

On the new aerobatic team being formed by the IAF, the Air Chief said the government had given approval for procuring 20 new Hawk AJT aircraft and it was expected by 2013-end.

On the increasing role of women pilots in the force, he said as many as 55 women pilots were engaged in flying helicopters such as Cheetah, Chetak and the Mi-8 and transport aircraft like the Ilyushin-76 and AN-32. However, he added that there was no woman pilot flying attack choppers such as the Mi-35.

Addressing the parade, the IAF Chief said the situation in country’s neighbourhood was a matter of serious concern. “The present times are both interesting and challenging. The deteriorating security situation in the neighbourhood and its frequent violent manifestations are a matter of serious concern to us,” he said stressing that the need of the hour was to be ever-vigilant and prepared.

On the phasing out of combat aircraft such as the MiG 21 and MiG 23 from service, Air Chief Marshal Browne said despite phasing out of the legacy aircraft, the IAF maintained very high combat potential through the raising of new Su-30MKI squadrons.

The IAF is planning to raise 14 squadrons of the Su-30MKI fighter jets and is planning to deploy them at several places in its Eastern, Southern and South-Western command areas. The mid-life upgrade of aircraft such as the Mirage 2000 and Jaguar would enhance their capabilities and “add punch to the country’s air power,” he said.

On the proposed induction of new aircraft, he said the AW-101 aircraft from Italy for ferrying VVIPs were expected to be inducted by next year along with Pilatus basic jet trainers from Switzerland.

“The IAF has truly transformed into a strategic Air Force — fully ready and committed to guard our nation’s vital interests. Our capacity to embrace emerging technologies with contemporary systems and to quickly adapt to produce a range of sovereign options has always been the cornerstone of our history,” the Air Chief said.

“In a short time of only eight months, we inducted four Mi-17V5 helicopter units and these are actively deployed in our Western and North Eastern sectors. The remaining two V5 helicopter units would be operationalised by the end of this year. Our C-130J fleet is fully operational today and is regularly conducting missions across its entire operational envelope,” the IAF chief said.

The Air Force was currently implementing the second phase of the Integrated Air Command and Control System (IACCS) which would cover the entire Indian airspace including that of Andaman and Nicobar Islands.

http://www.thehindu.com/todays-paper/tp-national/tiger-moth-aircraft-steals-the-show/article3979809.ece

Air Kerala will take off on April 14: Oommen Chandy

Thiruvananthapuram: Air Kerala, the state government's airline, would be launched on April 14, 2013, to coincide with Vishu, new year's day in the Malayalam calendar, says Chief Minister Oommen Chandy. "It (Air Kerala) will be airborne on April 14. The only question is whether the first flight will be an international or domestic one," said Chandy.

He added, "Next month, we will be applying to the Director General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) with the preliminary capital of Rs 100 crore, which we will raise by then," Chandy, who is convalescing after a leg injury, told IANS during an exclusive chat.

The chief minister explained that under the rules, an airline can only fly international routes after completing five years of domestic service; there is also a stipulation about the number of aircraft that an airline operating internationally should have.

"But Air India Express was given a relaxation in rules when it started international operations. They said it was because it was a subsidiary of Air India. So, when the state government put up the application, we also sought similar exemption. Moreover, at the moment, we are given to understand that one foreign airline is allowed to fly in here, without observing these stipulations," Chandy said.

Chandy first took up the project in 2004. After he stepped down in 2006, the project lay in cold storage, during the tenure of the Left government. On returning as chief minister last May, one of the first decisions Chandy took was to revive this project. He has received support from Malayali businessmen in the Middle East.

"We have, in principle, decided to float shares of Rs 10,000 each and we were surprised when our own Malayalee businessmen there (in the Middle East) who employ thousands of employees agreed to take shares in their employees' names. Each of them employ more than 20,000 employees, so the issue of raising money of Rs 500 crore is not at all a problem. We are confident our dream will soon take flight," Chandy said.

Chandy has drawn out a schedule, and fixed April 14 as the target date for launch of the new airline. And if Air Kerala is unable to fly international, it will at least take to domestic skies. With Air India having opened a brand new hangar facility in the Thiruvananthapuram airport, Air Kerala, on entering into a contract with Air India and paying the maintenance charges, can use the hangar here, the chief minister said. Air Kerala will also have access to the engineering department of Air India, so it will not need to recruit engineers, he added.

Air India was given the land for setting up the hangar free of cost by the Kerala government. What this means, though, is that Air Kerala can only lease B 737-800 aircraft; these are what the hangar here is equipped to service.

http://ibnlive.in.com/news/air-kerala-will-take-off-on-april-14-oommen-chandy/298918-62-126.html

Plan to develop 10-15 greenfield airports: Ajit Singh

New Delhi, Oct. 8:  

The Government plans to develop 10 to 15 greenfield airports, Civil Aviation Minster Ajit Singh said on Monday.

Addressing the 49th conference of Director-General of Civil Aviation, Asia-Pacific region, the Minister said there were also plans to modernise about 50 non-metro airports in the next two years.

Singh said to accommodate the growing air traffic, India had undertaken initiatives to modernise and upgrade existing airports and develop new greenfield airports through a mixed strategy of public sector, private sector, joint venture and public-private partnership.

Accepting that the challenges of dealing with growth and environment were huge, the Minister said India was trying to deal with this in a mature manner.

“We need the support of developed countries, financially as well as technologically, to address environmental concerns without depriving Indian people of the economic benefits of air transport. India would seek support of all the members to help create a level playing field for the new developing states in the international civil aviation arena.

Air India salaries being paid

Later, speaking to the media, the Minister said that Air India employees were being paid although the salaries may be late.

On Kingfisher, he said that any action would depend on how the airline addressed the concerns raised by the airline regulator, the Directorate General of Civil Aviation.

http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/todays-paper/tp-economy/article3979090.ece