Kingfisher Airlines on Tuesday said it will not add new international flight routes immediately and also does not plan to take new aircraft deliveries for another two years.
Talking to the media after the annual general meeting of the company, Mr Vijay Mallya, Chairman and CEO, Kingfisher Airlines, said that the private carrier is not looking at expansion of international routes now, but will add frequencies to its existing international sectors such as Thailand, Singapore, London and Dubai.
On the airline’s fund raising plans, Mr Mallya said that the airline has “`drawn only half,” the Rs 2,000-crore it raised from the banks. The UB Group’s President and Chief Financial Officer, Mr Ravi Nedungadi, said the airline expects to “hear back from PE players in early-to-mid October”.
To augment its resources to meet working capital, capital expenditure and general corporate purposes, the company plans to raise funds through rights issue and global depository receipts of $100 million. In all, the company is looking at anywhere “between Rs 800 crore and Rs 1,000 crore”.
Domestically, the airline plans to “look at new routes sometime next year. This year, we will fly to Ludhiana and Pantnagar,” said Mr Mallya. “We need to be cautious in what we do,” he added. Though there is “definite improvement” in business sentiment, he said, “whether it is dramatic improvement or not is questionable. But the decline has stopped.”
The airline, which returned aircraft earlier to shrink domestic capacity, does not plan “to return any more aircraft,” he said. Kingfisher Airlines’ new deliveries will now come only in 2011.
On the employee strife that the sector has been witnessing of late, Mr Mallya said, “Each management needs to deal with its own employees differently. Fortunately, Kingfisher Airlines does not have any such problem. “Any carrier with long-serving employees” should look at the situation and take appropriate action, he added.
Source: The Hindu Business Line
Wednesday, September 30, 2009
Tuesday, September 29, 2009
Air India blinks, but stir still on
National carrier Air India on Sunday evening announced it was setting up a committee to re-examine the controversial order that had sparked off a strike by its executive pilots. But the pilots still refused to get back to work until the order was entirely withdrawn.
Sunday saw widespread disruption of Air India's flights, with around 30 of them being cancelled as more executive pilots called in sick and refused to report for duty, protest the order. Air India officially admitted to 21 cancellations. The order, announced on September 23, had imposed pay cuts on the pilots. The step followed an austerity drive by the ailing airline, which ran up Rs 7,200 crore (Rs 72 billion) in losses last year.
The airline moved to reconsider the wage cut after howls of protest from passengers grew shrill. The strike had begun on Saturday when 13 flights were cancelled. "The number of flights to be operated on Monday is yet to be decided, depending on passenger turnout and load factor;' said an Air India spokesman.
He said the airline was in talks with Jet Airways and IndiGo Air to carry its passengers if the need arises.
The official figure puts the cut in productivity-linked incentives, called flying allowance for pilots, at 25 to 50 per cent, but pilots say there are hidden factors that make the cut deeper, at about 70 per cent.
Air India chairman Arvind Jadhav met executive pilots in Mumbai. Captain VK Bhalla, representing executive pilots in Delhi, said the protest leave was against non-payment of allowances for three months and steep cuts.
“The protest continues. We want a complete reversal of the order,” he said. “If the pilots do not report to work, the worst case scenario will be a lockout,” said a Ministry of Civil Aviation official. “There was one in the 1970s which lasted 17 days.” An aide to civil aviation minister Praful Patel, however, said such a step was improbable.
Source: Hindustan Times
Sunday saw widespread disruption of Air India's flights, with around 30 of them being cancelled as more executive pilots called in sick and refused to report for duty, protest the order. Air India officially admitted to 21 cancellations. The order, announced on September 23, had imposed pay cuts on the pilots. The step followed an austerity drive by the ailing airline, which ran up Rs 7,200 crore (Rs 72 billion) in losses last year.
The airline moved to reconsider the wage cut after howls of protest from passengers grew shrill. The strike had begun on Saturday when 13 flights were cancelled. "The number of flights to be operated on Monday is yet to be decided, depending on passenger turnout and load factor;' said an Air India spokesman.
He said the airline was in talks with Jet Airways and IndiGo Air to carry its passengers if the need arises.
The official figure puts the cut in productivity-linked incentives, called flying allowance for pilots, at 25 to 50 per cent, but pilots say there are hidden factors that make the cut deeper, at about 70 per cent.
Air India chairman Arvind Jadhav met executive pilots in Mumbai. Captain VK Bhalla, representing executive pilots in Delhi, said the protest leave was against non-payment of allowances for three months and steep cuts.
“The protest continues. We want a complete reversal of the order,” he said. “If the pilots do not report to work, the worst case scenario will be a lockout,” said a Ministry of Civil Aviation official. “There was one in the 1970s which lasted 17 days.” An aide to civil aviation minister Praful Patel, however, said such a step was improbable.
Source: Hindustan Times
Friday, September 25, 2009
Kingfisher Airlines adds 52 lakh shares in OI
Kingfisher Airlines ended up 6% with a buildup of 52 lakh shares in open interest for the October series. IFCI ended down nearly 1.7% with a buildup of nearly 3 crore shares in open interest.
The Nifty futures is seen rollover about 65%; 6-7% appreciation seen in the last series which was September Series.
In the last few days there was some unwinding pressure coming from 5,000-5,100 but slowly we saw today there was some short covering happening throughout the day. At one point of time we were trading at a 10-15% discount and at the end we would just see October futures ended at around 15 month premium clearly signifying that there has been a huge short covering seen in the futures.
The next series remains at 4,900 as base because that is the level used for trading the Nifty in the next series and on the upper side its 5,100 which is the region which is worked 4,900-5,100 in the next series.
Stock specifics Kingfisher Airlines, ended up 6% with a good buildup happening in the next series, nearly 52 lakh is the addition, which we saw in the October series and a good rollover of nearly 80%, after a long time we have seen airline stocks which such a good roll.
Also the PSU banks starting form Vijaya bank, Dena Bank, UCO Bank all the stocks which are flaring up any where between 5-10% saw a huge buildup happening in. Vijaya Bank was up nearly 6.5% with a good buildup of nearly 58 lakh shares happening in and you can see mammoth rollovers on all these PSU banks at around 87%.
JP Associates is one stock where we saw short covering happening in the day. During the day it was down 3% but it ended up nearly 1.5%, it recovered nearly 4.5% from the day’s low and we saw a buildup of nearly 70 lakh shares happening in, the rollovers also pushed up to 75% on this stock.
IFCI ended down nearly 1.7% with a buildup of nearly 3 crore shares, which was seen in the next series for a net buildup of nearly 1.3 crore shares seen on this stock.
Source: MoneyControl
The Nifty futures is seen rollover about 65%; 6-7% appreciation seen in the last series which was September Series.
In the last few days there was some unwinding pressure coming from 5,000-5,100 but slowly we saw today there was some short covering happening throughout the day. At one point of time we were trading at a 10-15% discount and at the end we would just see October futures ended at around 15 month premium clearly signifying that there has been a huge short covering seen in the futures.
The next series remains at 4,900 as base because that is the level used for trading the Nifty in the next series and on the upper side its 5,100 which is the region which is worked 4,900-5,100 in the next series.
Stock specifics Kingfisher Airlines, ended up 6% with a good buildup happening in the next series, nearly 52 lakh is the addition, which we saw in the October series and a good rollover of nearly 80%, after a long time we have seen airline stocks which such a good roll.
Also the PSU banks starting form Vijaya bank, Dena Bank, UCO Bank all the stocks which are flaring up any where between 5-10% saw a huge buildup happening in. Vijaya Bank was up nearly 6.5% with a good buildup of nearly 58 lakh shares happening in and you can see mammoth rollovers on all these PSU banks at around 87%.
JP Associates is one stock where we saw short covering happening in the day. During the day it was down 3% but it ended up nearly 1.5%, it recovered nearly 4.5% from the day’s low and we saw a buildup of nearly 70 lakh shares happening in, the rollovers also pushed up to 75% on this stock.
IFCI ended down nearly 1.7% with a buildup of nearly 3 crore shares, which was seen in the next series for a net buildup of nearly 1.3 crore shares seen on this stock.
Source: MoneyControl
Wednesday, September 23, 2009
Low-fare airlines offer sops to attract fliers
With full-service airlines making inroads into the low-fare airspace, existing budget carriers are going beyond price advantage and handing out sops to attract and keep passengers. These carriers are either giving away gifts or offering discounts at hotels, restaurants, and retail stores against boarding passes.
Low-fare carriers such as IndiGo (run by InterGlobe Aviation Pvt. Ltd), SpiceJet Ltd, GoAir (GoAirlines (India) Pvt. Ltd) and JetLite (India) Ltd, consider this the most effective way to counter loyalty programmes that are being offered by full-service rivals.
Jet Airways (India) Ltd, Kingfisher Airlines Ltd, National Aviation Co of India Ltd (which runs Air India) and Paramount Airways Ltd are full-service carriers and run loyalty programmes that offer flying miles based on how often a passenger uses the carrier.
“Budget airlines find innovative ways in providing value adds to the customer and the customer is also happy with such offers as they feel that there is a value addition to be got while travelling with carriers that provide them with shopping vouchers,” Neelu Singh, chief operating officer of online travel agent firm, Ezeego1.com.
India’s largest low-fare carrier IndiGo has announced a 20% saving on the prepaid in-flight meal if a passenger books tickets online. In the prepaid excess baggage option, too, the airline has offered a discount of up to 25% on luggage weighing between 10kg and 25kg.
Last week, SpiceJet launched its Privilege Pass Programme that allows travellers to avail special benefits from partner hotels against a used boarding pass. Benefits range from complimentary meals worth Rs1,500 or a discount of Rs500 on their total hotel billing. The partner includes Trident Hotels, Ista Hotels, Keys Hotels, Pride Hotels, Maidens Hotels, Rain Tree Hotels, JHM Interstate and The Park.
GoAir in early September ran an offer of gifts worth Rs3,000 on tickets sold through 20 September. The gift catalogue includes men’s watches and ties, and an oval pearl jewellery set for women.
JetLite, the low-fare unit of full service Jet Airways, is also offering discounts of up to 20% on car rentals with Avis and Hertz, dining, retail stores, and Lemon Tree and Marriott International hotels.
“Low-fare carriers are trying to stimulate the market by offering add on benefits for passengers… (and) are pulling up their socks since full-service carriers are increasing their exposure to low-fare space,” said a senior executive with a Delhi-based low-fare airline. He did not want to be identified. With the festival season already under way, airlines are also expecting greater traffic that they wish to capitalize on, he added.
In August, domestic airlines carried 26% more passengers than in the same period last year, helped largely by cheaper fares and a gradually reviving economy, despite the fact that it is generally considered among the leanest months for traffic.
“With the introduction of these simple yet relevant services, we just upped the cool quotient of our passengers,” said Aditya Ghosh, president, IndiGo. “We see these as value adds to our customer experience. One of the three things that we stand for is a hassle free experience.” However, he conceded that he didn’t see an immediate boost for traffic from these measures.
Source: Mint
Low-fare carriers such as IndiGo (run by InterGlobe Aviation Pvt. Ltd), SpiceJet Ltd, GoAir (GoAirlines (India) Pvt. Ltd) and JetLite (India) Ltd, consider this the most effective way to counter loyalty programmes that are being offered by full-service rivals.
Jet Airways (India) Ltd, Kingfisher Airlines Ltd, National Aviation Co of India Ltd (which runs Air India) and Paramount Airways Ltd are full-service carriers and run loyalty programmes that offer flying miles based on how often a passenger uses the carrier.
“Budget airlines find innovative ways in providing value adds to the customer and the customer is also happy with such offers as they feel that there is a value addition to be got while travelling with carriers that provide them with shopping vouchers,” Neelu Singh, chief operating officer of online travel agent firm, Ezeego1.com.
India’s largest low-fare carrier IndiGo has announced a 20% saving on the prepaid in-flight meal if a passenger books tickets online. In the prepaid excess baggage option, too, the airline has offered a discount of up to 25% on luggage weighing between 10kg and 25kg.
Last week, SpiceJet launched its Privilege Pass Programme that allows travellers to avail special benefits from partner hotels against a used boarding pass. Benefits range from complimentary meals worth Rs1,500 or a discount of Rs500 on their total hotel billing. The partner includes Trident Hotels, Ista Hotels, Keys Hotels, Pride Hotels, Maidens Hotels, Rain Tree Hotels, JHM Interstate and The Park.
GoAir in early September ran an offer of gifts worth Rs3,000 on tickets sold through 20 September. The gift catalogue includes men’s watches and ties, and an oval pearl jewellery set for women.
JetLite, the low-fare unit of full service Jet Airways, is also offering discounts of up to 20% on car rentals with Avis and Hertz, dining, retail stores, and Lemon Tree and Marriott International hotels.
“Low-fare carriers are trying to stimulate the market by offering add on benefits for passengers… (and) are pulling up their socks since full-service carriers are increasing their exposure to low-fare space,” said a senior executive with a Delhi-based low-fare airline. He did not want to be identified. With the festival season already under way, airlines are also expecting greater traffic that they wish to capitalize on, he added.
In August, domestic airlines carried 26% more passengers than in the same period last year, helped largely by cheaper fares and a gradually reviving economy, despite the fact that it is generally considered among the leanest months for traffic.
“With the introduction of these simple yet relevant services, we just upped the cool quotient of our passengers,” said Aditya Ghosh, president, IndiGo. “We see these as value adds to our customer experience. One of the three things that we stand for is a hassle free experience.” However, he conceded that he didn’t see an immediate boost for traffic from these measures.
Source: Mint
Tuesday, September 22, 2009
Ground handlers' stir hits Kingfisher
A strike by the ground handling staff of Kingfisher Airlines on Monday saw most of its flights delayed by 30 minutes to one hour through the day. The staff reportedly refused to work on the ground of non-payment of outstanding dues by the airline.
According to sources, the ground handlers called for a one day strike and hence several of them did not report for work on Monday. Even though other airline staff jumped in to salvage the situation, almost all flights were delayed by up to an hour. Ground handlers are responsible for almost all non-technical work of an airline, including loading and unloading of baggage from the aircraft, driving of trolleys, etc.
While sources claimed that the issue was of non-payment of dues by the airline itself, Kingfisher officials said the issue was between the loaders and the previous ground handling agency (GHA) that the airline had employed. "We terminated the contract of the previous ground handling agency and many of their workers were absorbed by the new agency that is working for us. A section of loaders who were employed by our earlier GHA and who are currently on the rolls of our new GHA have a dispute with the earlier GHA. The dispute appears to pertain to arrears of back wages payable by the erstwhile GHA. This is a matter between the loaders and the erstwhile GHA and we understand that there is a move by the loaders to approach the labour court for appropriate relief,'' said a Kingfisher Airlines spokesperson.
The official added: "We are doing our best to avoid and minimise any inconvenience on account of this move on the part of the loaders and we expect the situation to be resolved very quickly."
Source: Times of India
According to sources, the ground handlers called for a one day strike and hence several of them did not report for work on Monday. Even though other airline staff jumped in to salvage the situation, almost all flights were delayed by up to an hour. Ground handlers are responsible for almost all non-technical work of an airline, including loading and unloading of baggage from the aircraft, driving of trolleys, etc.
While sources claimed that the issue was of non-payment of dues by the airline itself, Kingfisher officials said the issue was between the loaders and the previous ground handling agency (GHA) that the airline had employed. "We terminated the contract of the previous ground handling agency and many of their workers were absorbed by the new agency that is working for us. A section of loaders who were employed by our earlier GHA and who are currently on the rolls of our new GHA have a dispute with the earlier GHA. The dispute appears to pertain to arrears of back wages payable by the erstwhile GHA. This is a matter between the loaders and the erstwhile GHA and we understand that there is a move by the loaders to approach the labour court for appropriate relief,'' said a Kingfisher Airlines spokesperson.
The official added: "We are doing our best to avoid and minimise any inconvenience on account of this move on the part of the loaders and we expect the situation to be resolved very quickly."
Source: Times of India
Wednesday, September 16, 2009
Air India joins discount race, cuts domestic fares 20-46%
While a strike is on, air passengers suffer. But once it is over they get a bonanza, even if only for a few days. The end of the five-day agitation by Jet Airways’ pilots, which affected normal flight operations, first led to the airline cutting by 50 per cent the economy class fares on its domestic flights for three days. This forced the other airlines to follow suit.
The latest to join the bandwagon is the state-owned Air India (Domestic), which has reduced its fares by 20-46 per cent on seven routes, including Delhi-Mumbai, Delhi-Hyderabad, Delhi-Chennai and Mumbai-Nagpur. To enjoy these low fares, passengers have to complete their journey by September 18.
Air India (Domestic) will offer a one-way fare of Rs 3,329 on all flights between Delhi and Hyderabad and Hyderabad and Delhi, which works out to a discount of 46.6 per cent; the lowest fare on offer earlier was Rs 6,049.
Similarly, a one-way ticket on all flights on the Mumbai-Nagpur-Mumbai sector will be available for Rs 3,079. The airline is also offering a reduced fare of Rs 2,729 on seven of the daily flights between Delhi and Mumbai and eight of the daily flights between Mumbai and Delhi.
On this sector, the reduction is almost 26 per cent, as the earlier lowest normal fare was Rs 3,679.
Sources indicated that on Monday low-cost airline GoAir dropped fares to match those offered by Jet Airways. Travel portals have also been offering one-way tickets on various domestic airlines at rock-bottom prices.
Discount period
On Tuesday evening, Jet Airways made it clear that it will not be extending the discounted fare offer beyond September 18.
“The 50 per cent discount fare initiative for three days was our way of apologising to all our loyal guests for the inconvenience caused by the recent events. We will not be extending it…” the Chief Commercial Officer, Mr Sudheer Raghavan, said.
The airline also considered reducing business class fares on select flights for a limited period but eventually decided against it.
A statement issued by the airline announcing the reduction in business class fares was withdrawn shortly after it was issued on Monday. The decision to lower fares comes at a time when there has been a 26 per cent growth in the number of passengers that the domestic airlines carried in August compared with the previous month.
Source: The Hindu Business Line
The latest to join the bandwagon is the state-owned Air India (Domestic), which has reduced its fares by 20-46 per cent on seven routes, including Delhi-Mumbai, Delhi-Hyderabad, Delhi-Chennai and Mumbai-Nagpur. To enjoy these low fares, passengers have to complete their journey by September 18.
Air India (Domestic) will offer a one-way fare of Rs 3,329 on all flights between Delhi and Hyderabad and Hyderabad and Delhi, which works out to a discount of 46.6 per cent; the lowest fare on offer earlier was Rs 6,049.
Similarly, a one-way ticket on all flights on the Mumbai-Nagpur-Mumbai sector will be available for Rs 3,079. The airline is also offering a reduced fare of Rs 2,729 on seven of the daily flights between Delhi and Mumbai and eight of the daily flights between Mumbai and Delhi.
On this sector, the reduction is almost 26 per cent, as the earlier lowest normal fare was Rs 3,679.
Sources indicated that on Monday low-cost airline GoAir dropped fares to match those offered by Jet Airways. Travel portals have also been offering one-way tickets on various domestic airlines at rock-bottom prices.
Discount period
On Tuesday evening, Jet Airways made it clear that it will not be extending the discounted fare offer beyond September 18.
“The 50 per cent discount fare initiative for three days was our way of apologising to all our loyal guests for the inconvenience caused by the recent events. We will not be extending it…” the Chief Commercial Officer, Mr Sudheer Raghavan, said.
The airline also considered reducing business class fares on select flights for a limited period but eventually decided against it.
A statement issued by the airline announcing the reduction in business class fares was withdrawn shortly after it was issued on Monday. The decision to lower fares comes at a time when there has been a 26 per cent growth in the number of passengers that the domestic airlines carried in August compared with the previous month.
Source: The Hindu Business Line
Tuesday, September 15, 2009
Air India pact with Singapore Air
Air India and Singapore Airlines have signed a bilateral agreement that would enable passengers of either carrier to earn and redeem miles on flights operated by the other.
Under the new agreement, effective from tomorrow, frequent flyers on Singapore Airlines and Air India would be able to earn and redeem miles on flights operated by either carrier.
The agreement comes in the wake of efforts by the national carrier to fulfil the conditions of joining the Star Alliance of which SIA is a founder member. Air India has already been invited to join the global alliance, which was formed in 1997 and has a membership of 26. The agreement means that members of SIA's KrisFlyer programme would be able to earn KrisFlyer miles when they fly with Air India, or choose to redeem their miles for flights with the Indian carrier, an SIA statement said here.
Likewise, members of Air India’s Flying Returns programme would enjoy greater choice by having the option of using their miles on the Singaporean carrier or earning miles when they fly on it, it said.
“Singapore Airlines is pleased to welcome Air India on board. The addition of Air India as a KrisFlyer partner boosts the number of carriers we have such agreements with to 28," it said.
“Those who fly frequently with Singapore Airlines and Air India now have more opportunity to increase their frequent flyer miles, and more choice in deciding how best to use their miles,” Mr Huang Cheng Eng, Singapore Airlines executive vice-president (marketing and the regions) said.
SIA operates 42 times a week to six destinations in India. With the inclusion of subsidiary carrier SilkAir, the Singapore Airlines route network covers 93 destinations in 38 countries.
Source: The Statesman
Under the new agreement, effective from tomorrow, frequent flyers on Singapore Airlines and Air India would be able to earn and redeem miles on flights operated by either carrier.
The agreement comes in the wake of efforts by the national carrier to fulfil the conditions of joining the Star Alliance of which SIA is a founder member. Air India has already been invited to join the global alliance, which was formed in 1997 and has a membership of 26. The agreement means that members of SIA's KrisFlyer programme would be able to earn KrisFlyer miles when they fly with Air India, or choose to redeem their miles for flights with the Indian carrier, an SIA statement said here.
Likewise, members of Air India’s Flying Returns programme would enjoy greater choice by having the option of using their miles on the Singaporean carrier or earning miles when they fly on it, it said.
“Singapore Airlines is pleased to welcome Air India on board. The addition of Air India as a KrisFlyer partner boosts the number of carriers we have such agreements with to 28," it said.
“Those who fly frequently with Singapore Airlines and Air India now have more opportunity to increase their frequent flyer miles, and more choice in deciding how best to use their miles,” Mr Huang Cheng Eng, Singapore Airlines executive vice-president (marketing and the regions) said.
SIA operates 42 times a week to six destinations in India. With the inclusion of subsidiary carrier SilkAir, the Singapore Airlines route network covers 93 destinations in 38 countries.
Source: The Statesman
Monday, September 14, 2009
Jet Airways to operate at full capacity from today
The five-day agitation by Jet Airways pilots owing allegiance to the National Aviators’ Guild was called off on Sunday morning after hectic talks between the management and Guild officials.
The pilots, including the four who were sacked, will resume duties. All international flights will resume immediately, and domestic flights by Monday afternoon.
A Jet Airways statement said an amicable agreement was reached and, effective Sunday, the airline would operate its full schedule of services in all sectors, with all crew members reporting for their normal rostered duties.
Prior to the stand-off, Jet’s revenue was around $8 million a day (Rs. 40 crore). It has lost Rs. 200 crore in five days. On an average, Jet carries 23,000 passengers a day, but bookings dropped to 14,000 on September 8, and further down to 7,000 by September 12.
Addressing journalists, Jet Executive Director Saroj Dutta said that after the discussions, a consultative group was put in place. It would include two Jet Airways Board members, the CEO, two representatives of flight operations and five representatives of the pilots. Captain Girish Kaushik, president of the Guild, apologised to the passengers for the hardship they faced and thanked the management for taking back the four sacked pilots.
Mr. Dutta said the consultative body would address the issues of the management and pilots in every area of concern. “It will deal with almost all issues one would normally expect a union to deal with the management. There is no need for a union at all, as the consultative body will address all issues. However, we have just set up the body and are yet to work out the terms of reference.”
Jet’s Chief Commercial Officer Sudheer Raghavan told The Hindu: “We have immediately started international operations because most bookings were made more than a month ago. For domestic operations, all flights and pilots are available, but because of the situation and because bookings are made a week in advance, we will be operating at full capacity from late afternoon tomorrow [Monday]. In the past few hours though, there has been a ferocious rush for bookings.”
Source: The Hindu
The pilots, including the four who were sacked, will resume duties. All international flights will resume immediately, and domestic flights by Monday afternoon.
A Jet Airways statement said an amicable agreement was reached and, effective Sunday, the airline would operate its full schedule of services in all sectors, with all crew members reporting for their normal rostered duties.
Prior to the stand-off, Jet’s revenue was around $8 million a day (Rs. 40 crore). It has lost Rs. 200 crore in five days. On an average, Jet carries 23,000 passengers a day, but bookings dropped to 14,000 on September 8, and further down to 7,000 by September 12.
Addressing journalists, Jet Executive Director Saroj Dutta said that after the discussions, a consultative group was put in place. It would include two Jet Airways Board members, the CEO, two representatives of flight operations and five representatives of the pilots. Captain Girish Kaushik, president of the Guild, apologised to the passengers for the hardship they faced and thanked the management for taking back the four sacked pilots.
Mr. Dutta said the consultative body would address the issues of the management and pilots in every area of concern. “It will deal with almost all issues one would normally expect a union to deal with the management. There is no need for a union at all, as the consultative body will address all issues. However, we have just set up the body and are yet to work out the terms of reference.”
Jet’s Chief Commercial Officer Sudheer Raghavan told The Hindu: “We have immediately started international operations because most bookings were made more than a month ago. For domestic operations, all flights and pilots are available, but because of the situation and because bookings are made a week in advance, we will be operating at full capacity from late afternoon tomorrow [Monday]. In the past few hours though, there has been a ferocious rush for bookings.”
Source: The Hindu
Friday, September 11, 2009
Don’t make profit on stranded passengers, DGCA tells airlines
The aviation safety regulator, Directorate General of Civil Aviation, came down heavily on the airlines tonight, telling them to keep fares at last week’s level, following reports that airlines were charging more in the wake of strike by Jet pilots. In a letter to all airlines, the Directorate General of Civil Aviation said quoting media reports that airlines were making money by charging high fares from stranded passengers of Jet Airways, which is on an average cancelling 200 flights every day for the past three days due to strike by its pilots.
It asked the airlines not to charge “very” high airfares but keep the fares at the last week’s level. The jet strike is reported to have impacted around 13,000 passengers, affecting domestic operations severely on key metro routes.
It is on these routes that the low-cost airlines and other full-service carriers hiked the prices. The starting fares on the Delhi-Mumbai route, between Rs 2,500 and Rs 4,000 on a low-cost airline, were reported to be around Rs 4,500 on Wednesday. In some cases, the prices went as high as Rs 12,000. A day before, on Tuesday, too, low-cost carriers such as Indigo, GoAir and Kingfisher Red flew passengers at a price of Rs 3,800 to Rs 5,200 on the metro route.
The civil aviation ministry had earlier directed the airlines to ensure that least inconvenience is caused to passengers and they be accommodated on other carriers. State carrier Air India denied any charges of hiking fares. An Air India official told The Indian Express that the carrier had not effected any change in its prices and was following the normal pricing. “The pricing of tickets, as usual, depends on the occupancy level in our aircraft. Pricing is determined by the flight reservation systems.” Air India said that it would deploy additional aircraft and crew if need arose.
“September being a lean season, there is already overcapacity in the market. The question of hiking fares does not arise,” the official said. The civil aviation ministry, which has so far refused to intervene on the issue of the pilots’ strike, calling it a matter between the management and the pilots, maintained that the passenger inconvenience should be minimised.
Source: The Indian Express
It asked the airlines not to charge “very” high airfares but keep the fares at the last week’s level. The jet strike is reported to have impacted around 13,000 passengers, affecting domestic operations severely on key metro routes.
It is on these routes that the low-cost airlines and other full-service carriers hiked the prices. The starting fares on the Delhi-Mumbai route, between Rs 2,500 and Rs 4,000 on a low-cost airline, were reported to be around Rs 4,500 on Wednesday. In some cases, the prices went as high as Rs 12,000. A day before, on Tuesday, too, low-cost carriers such as Indigo, GoAir and Kingfisher Red flew passengers at a price of Rs 3,800 to Rs 5,200 on the metro route.
The civil aviation ministry had earlier directed the airlines to ensure that least inconvenience is caused to passengers and they be accommodated on other carriers. State carrier Air India denied any charges of hiking fares. An Air India official told The Indian Express that the carrier had not effected any change in its prices and was following the normal pricing. “The pricing of tickets, as usual, depends on the occupancy level in our aircraft. Pricing is determined by the flight reservation systems.” Air India said that it would deploy additional aircraft and crew if need arose.
“September being a lean season, there is already overcapacity in the market. The question of hiking fares does not arise,” the official said. The civil aviation ministry, which has so far refused to intervene on the issue of the pilots’ strike, calling it a matter between the management and the pilots, maintained that the passenger inconvenience should be minimised.
Source: The Indian Express
Thursday, September 10, 2009
Ticket prices up as passengers switch flights
The strike by Jet pilots and the upcoming festival season is likely to burn a huge hole in pockets of air passengers. With Jet cancelling 40 outbound flights from Delhi on the second day of the pilots’ strike, air fares shot up with many airlines more than doubling cost of tickets. Thanks to the recession, air fares had been high of late and with many festivals not even a month away, passengers are in for some heavy-duty spending.
Sultana came to Delhi from Saharanpur with her husband Dilshad and child to take a flight to Mumbai, where her father expired on Wednesday morning. The woman, who did not have enough money on her, was told at the counter of a private airline that she would have to pay Rs 7,800 for all three. Lacking cash, she left for a relative’s home and returned in the afternoon with the money. However,she was in for a shock when she went to the counter and was told that the ticket for one person had gone up to Rs 8,000.
During morning and evening peak traffic hours, ticket prices touched the roof. While Sultana had to turn back and try booking a train ticket, there were others who could not afford to wait and had to purchase whatever was offered. A foreign national was sold a Rs 12,500 seat to Ahmedabad on a private airline. The web price for the same ticket is about Rs 2,200. A ticket for Mumbai touched Rs 11,000 by late afternoon for the evening flight.
While airline sources confirmed that prices would not have been so high on ordinary days, no officials were willing to comment on the situation. Passengers who chose to take Jet Airway’s offer of flying on another airline had to pay no extra charges but those who preferred to purchase tickets themselves had a tough time finding reasonably priced tickets.
An airline official explained that while airlines did not incur higher costs, they increased the number of tickets under higher slabs. ‘‘All airlines have different price slabs for a certain percentage of tickets. Normally, the earlier one purchases a ticket, the cheaper it will be. A ticket bought off the counter just before departure would be the most expensive as passengers would obviously be doing so in an emergency. All use a software that carries out dynamic pricing. Depending on how many tickets are left on a flight, the computer automatically fixes slabs for tickets,’’ he said.
In the present situation, experts explained that more tickets had been placed under the higher slabs as most passengers stranded at the airport were purchasing whatever was available. ‘‘Even now many flights are not going with a full load but it would still be more profitable for airlines to sell more expensive tickets rather than sell more tickets,’’ revealed sources.
Source: The Times of India
Sultana came to Delhi from Saharanpur with her husband Dilshad and child to take a flight to Mumbai, where her father expired on Wednesday morning. The woman, who did not have enough money on her, was told at the counter of a private airline that she would have to pay Rs 7,800 for all three. Lacking cash, she left for a relative’s home and returned in the afternoon with the money. However,she was in for a shock when she went to the counter and was told that the ticket for one person had gone up to Rs 8,000.
During morning and evening peak traffic hours, ticket prices touched the roof. While Sultana had to turn back and try booking a train ticket, there were others who could not afford to wait and had to purchase whatever was offered. A foreign national was sold a Rs 12,500 seat to Ahmedabad on a private airline. The web price for the same ticket is about Rs 2,200. A ticket for Mumbai touched Rs 11,000 by late afternoon for the evening flight.
While airline sources confirmed that prices would not have been so high on ordinary days, no officials were willing to comment on the situation. Passengers who chose to take Jet Airway’s offer of flying on another airline had to pay no extra charges but those who preferred to purchase tickets themselves had a tough time finding reasonably priced tickets.
An airline official explained that while airlines did not incur higher costs, they increased the number of tickets under higher slabs. ‘‘All airlines have different price slabs for a certain percentage of tickets. Normally, the earlier one purchases a ticket, the cheaper it will be. A ticket bought off the counter just before departure would be the most expensive as passengers would obviously be doing so in an emergency. All use a software that carries out dynamic pricing. Depending on how many tickets are left on a flight, the computer automatically fixes slabs for tickets,’’ he said.
In the present situation, experts explained that more tickets had been placed under the higher slabs as most passengers stranded at the airport were purchasing whatever was available. ‘‘Even now many flights are not going with a full load but it would still be more profitable for airlines to sell more expensive tickets rather than sell more tickets,’’ revealed sources.
Source: The Times of India
Wednesday, September 9, 2009
200 Jet flights cancelled, 13,000 passengers hit
A flash strike by over 300 pilots on Tuesday, in protest against the sacking of two of their senior colleagues, crippled domestic and global operations of Jet Airways.
The strike forced Jet Airways to cancel almost 200 flights even as the Bombay High Court passed a restraining order against the agitators and the government explored the possibility of invoking Essential Services Maintenance Act (Esma) to restore the services.
A large number of passengers who were booked on Jet were accommodated in flights of Air India and other carriers. As the pilots reported sick en-masse, the private carrier termed the failure of the pilots to return to work as illegal and an attempt to “sabotage the operations”. Jet CEO Wolfgang Prock-Schauer said all possible efforts were being made to save passengers from inconvenience and restore normalcy. When asked what action the management would take against the striking pilots and if the two sacked pilots would be reinstated, Prock-Schauer said “the matter is on in the Labour Commission and we would not like to comment.”
Meanwhile, the airline sought the intervention of the Directorate General of Civil Aviation to resolve the crisis in accordance with the laid down guidelines, known as civil aviation requirements (CARs).
The relevant CARs state that any act on the part of pilots which could lead to last minute cancellation of flights and harassment of passengers “would be treated as an act against public interest”.
Hit by the disruption in almost half of their flight schedules affecting almost 13,000 passengers, Jet management asked the pilots to come to the negotiating table. Mumbai, Jet’s operational hub, was the worst-hit as nearly 130 domestic and some international flights were cancelled, followed by about 20 from Delhi, besides Kolkata, Chennai, Hyderabad and Kochi . The airline operates 380 flights, including 80 international ones, everyday.
Source: The Financial Express
The strike forced Jet Airways to cancel almost 200 flights even as the Bombay High Court passed a restraining order against the agitators and the government explored the possibility of invoking Essential Services Maintenance Act (Esma) to restore the services.
A large number of passengers who were booked on Jet were accommodated in flights of Air India and other carriers. As the pilots reported sick en-masse, the private carrier termed the failure of the pilots to return to work as illegal and an attempt to “sabotage the operations”. Jet CEO Wolfgang Prock-Schauer said all possible efforts were being made to save passengers from inconvenience and restore normalcy. When asked what action the management would take against the striking pilots and if the two sacked pilots would be reinstated, Prock-Schauer said “the matter is on in the Labour Commission and we would not like to comment.”
Meanwhile, the airline sought the intervention of the Directorate General of Civil Aviation to resolve the crisis in accordance with the laid down guidelines, known as civil aviation requirements (CARs).
The relevant CARs state that any act on the part of pilots which could lead to last minute cancellation of flights and harassment of passengers “would be treated as an act against public interest”.
Hit by the disruption in almost half of their flight schedules affecting almost 13,000 passengers, Jet management asked the pilots to come to the negotiating table. Mumbai, Jet’s operational hub, was the worst-hit as nearly 130 domestic and some international flights were cancelled, followed by about 20 from Delhi, besides Kolkata, Chennai, Hyderabad and Kochi . The airline operates 380 flights, including 80 international ones, everyday.
Source: The Financial Express
Tuesday, September 8, 2009
British Airways redeploys planes to tap luxury leisure routes
British Airways, Europe's third largest airline, will use planes freed up by the slump in business travel to start flying to longhaul leisure destinations such as Las Vegas, Jamaica and the Maldives.
Five of the six new routes that the Londonbased carrier will begin for its winter timetable are to vacation hotspots, including Sharm El-Sheikh on the Red Sea and Punta Cana in the Dominican Republic.
"Initial bookings are very encouraging, Richard Tams, head of UK sales," said in an interview. "We chose the routes carefully where we think demand will hold up," Tams said by telephone. "We don't normally have the aircraft available, so this has given us the opportunity to build some business there."
Passenger numbers fell 2.8 per cent in the five months through August, prompting British Airways to park 16 aircraft and cut capacity by 5 per cent for the coming October-March timetable. The carrier's new routes are targeted at upscale resorts catering to wealthier clients who are less likely to rein in spending in the recession, Tams said. "There is still a very healthy market in premium leisure," the executive said in the September 4 interview. The passengers are high-end travellers who not only want comfort at the resort but also on the way there. British Airways will deploy widebody Boeing 777 aircraft for the new routes. The service to Las Vegas will leave from London Heathrow and others from the UK capital's Gatwick airport. The flight to Montego Bay in Jamaica is being revived after a four-year gap, while services to Sharm El-Sheikh in Egypt were dropped last year when the company sold its GB Airways subsidiary to EasyJet. British Airways will this month also begin an experimental business-class-only service from London City airport to New York using two Airbus SAS A318 narrowbody planes.
The new service was announced on February 1 last year. The airline will scrap short-haul flights from Gatwick to Malta, Krakow in Poland, and to Alicante, Palma, Madrid and Barcelona in Spain. British Airways will also screen its first UK television commercial for two years this month. The airline said it's taking advantage of a drop in advertising prices.
Source: Financial Chronicle
Five of the six new routes that the Londonbased carrier will begin for its winter timetable are to vacation hotspots, including Sharm El-Sheikh on the Red Sea and Punta Cana in the Dominican Republic.
"Initial bookings are very encouraging, Richard Tams, head of UK sales," said in an interview. "We chose the routes carefully where we think demand will hold up," Tams said by telephone. "We don't normally have the aircraft available, so this has given us the opportunity to build some business there."
Passenger numbers fell 2.8 per cent in the five months through August, prompting British Airways to park 16 aircraft and cut capacity by 5 per cent for the coming October-March timetable. The carrier's new routes are targeted at upscale resorts catering to wealthier clients who are less likely to rein in spending in the recession, Tams said. "There is still a very healthy market in premium leisure," the executive said in the September 4 interview. The passengers are high-end travellers who not only want comfort at the resort but also on the way there. British Airways will deploy widebody Boeing 777 aircraft for the new routes. The service to Las Vegas will leave from London Heathrow and others from the UK capital's Gatwick airport. The flight to Montego Bay in Jamaica is being revived after a four-year gap, while services to Sharm El-Sheikh in Egypt were dropped last year when the company sold its GB Airways subsidiary to EasyJet. British Airways will this month also begin an experimental business-class-only service from London City airport to New York using two Airbus SAS A318 narrowbody planes.
The new service was announced on February 1 last year. The airline will scrap short-haul flights from Gatwick to Malta, Krakow in Poland, and to Alicante, Palma, Madrid and Barcelona in Spain. British Airways will also screen its first UK television commercial for two years this month. The airline said it's taking advantage of a drop in advertising prices.
Source: Financial Chronicle
Friday, September 4, 2009
Air India puts off domestic low-fare service launch to Nov
The country’s national carrier, Air India, has been forced to delay the start of its domestic low-fare service from this month to November as it’s in the middle of reassessing fleet plans, according to at least three company executives.
Air India, run by National Aviation Co. of India Ltd, currently operates Air India Express as its international low-fare carrier. Its entry into the domestic low-fare aviation market, part of the carrier’s revival strategy, could further lower ticket prices.
The airline, seeking to emulate a recent move by Jet Airways (India) Ltd, wanted to convert 10 Airbus SAS A320 aircraft to an all-economy class configuration to launch its domestic low-fare service under the Air India Express brand by the middle of this month. The plan has been delayed by about two months as the airline reassesses its fleet, the officials said.
“The conversion has been put on hold,” said an airline executive who asked not to be named, referring to the removal of business-class seats. Most of the 10 aircraft are on lease and will require permission from the lessors for conversion. “That is one hurdle,” he said. The delay may harm Air India as the peak festival season will be over by the time the carrier begins the service.
“They should have done it yesterday,” said Aloke Bajpai, CEO of travel site IXiGO.com, referring to the one-month peak festive season running up to Diwali that began early this month and finishes by end-October. “They would not really benefit from the current peak season but will have to wait for the summer season.”
The delay would come as a breather for rivals as the entry of another low-fare carrier was expected to bring fares down further at a time when Jet Airways and Kingfisher Airlines Ltd are struggling with losses.
Another Air India official, who sought anonymity, said the airline was reassessing its 147-strong fleet as it has to return some of its aircraft to leasing companies and that was leading to delays in the process.
The target for the domestic launch is now the winter schedule that starts at the end of October, the official said, adding the process “takes a little time” but that the plan for the low-cost service had not been shelved.
The carrier had on 7 August announced a three-year turnaround plan that included plans to start a low-fare service this month and gradually boost 70% of flights to all-economy ones. An Air India spokesman declined to comment for the story.
Another Air India executive, who also did not want to be named, confirmed the delay, saying the airline was looking at increasing operations in the north-eastern parts of the country and this may be taken into account while starting low-fare services. “We don’t know yet, nothing is in black and white,” this official said.
Rival full-service carriers Kingfisher Airlines and Jet Airways, India’s largest private airlines, have already shifted at least half their fleets to all-economy flights as they fight competition from discount airlines such as SpiceJet Ltd, InterGlobe Aviation Pvt. Ltd-run IndiGo and Go Airlines (India) Pvt. Ltd-run GoAir.
Source: Mint
Air India, run by National Aviation Co. of India Ltd, currently operates Air India Express as its international low-fare carrier. Its entry into the domestic low-fare aviation market, part of the carrier’s revival strategy, could further lower ticket prices.
The airline, seeking to emulate a recent move by Jet Airways (India) Ltd, wanted to convert 10 Airbus SAS A320 aircraft to an all-economy class configuration to launch its domestic low-fare service under the Air India Express brand by the middle of this month. The plan has been delayed by about two months as the airline reassesses its fleet, the officials said.
“The conversion has been put on hold,” said an airline executive who asked not to be named, referring to the removal of business-class seats. Most of the 10 aircraft are on lease and will require permission from the lessors for conversion. “That is one hurdle,” he said. The delay may harm Air India as the peak festival season will be over by the time the carrier begins the service.
“They should have done it yesterday,” said Aloke Bajpai, CEO of travel site IXiGO.com, referring to the one-month peak festive season running up to Diwali that began early this month and finishes by end-October. “They would not really benefit from the current peak season but will have to wait for the summer season.”
The delay would come as a breather for rivals as the entry of another low-fare carrier was expected to bring fares down further at a time when Jet Airways and Kingfisher Airlines Ltd are struggling with losses.
Another Air India official, who sought anonymity, said the airline was reassessing its 147-strong fleet as it has to return some of its aircraft to leasing companies and that was leading to delays in the process.
The target for the domestic launch is now the winter schedule that starts at the end of October, the official said, adding the process “takes a little time” but that the plan for the low-cost service had not been shelved.
The carrier had on 7 August announced a three-year turnaround plan that included plans to start a low-fare service this month and gradually boost 70% of flights to all-economy ones. An Air India spokesman declined to comment for the story.
Another Air India executive, who also did not want to be named, confirmed the delay, saying the airline was looking at increasing operations in the north-eastern parts of the country and this may be taken into account while starting low-fare services. “We don’t know yet, nothing is in black and white,” this official said.
Rival full-service carriers Kingfisher Airlines and Jet Airways, India’s largest private airlines, have already shifted at least half their fleets to all-economy flights as they fight competition from discount airlines such as SpiceJet Ltd, InterGlobe Aviation Pvt. Ltd-run IndiGo and Go Airlines (India) Pvt. Ltd-run GoAir.
Source: Mint
Thursday, September 3, 2009
Jet-Kingfisher pact yet to gather momentum: Goyal
Jet Airways Chairman Naresh Goyal said the strategic alliance forged almost a year ago between his company and Kingfisher Airlines has still not achieved tangible progress. "I can't really tell you when it (strategic alliance) would be fully operational. We have been discussing, but nothing much has been done yet," Goyal told reporters on the sidelines of a function here.
Goyal-owned private air-carrier, Jet Airways, and Vijay Mallya-promoted Kingfisher Airlines had sealed a strategic alliance in October last year with a view to curtail costs after crude prices had shot up astronomically. Goyal, however, said the two partners have taken certain steps to synergise their operations.
"We have done certain things. We are co-operating in engineering and (sharing) some other facilities in order to improve our bottom lines. We have been looking at how we can improve our cost structures, especially in engineering," he said.
Goyal also advocated a 20-25 per cent increase in fares across the board to bridge the gap between input costs and revenue. The industry has been faced with a situation in which the former has been increasing while the latter has been falling. Jet-Kingfisher is alliance yet to gather momentum, he said.
"I think today the industry needs around a 20-25 per cent rise in fares because there is a need to cover costs and also to break-even," Goyal said. He said the domestic aviation industry is on an average losing Rs 800-900 crore due to a 20-25 per cent gap between revenues and costs, which he attributed to irrational pricing by air-carriers.
"Everyone is doing irrational pricing. Everyone is selling below prices. We don't want to sell below cost," Goyal said. However, when asked if he had any plans to hike fares he declined to give specifics, saying, "I don't know." On the strike-call by Jet Airways pilots union, National Aviator's Guild on September 7, Goyal said the government has already declared the strike as "illegal" and hoped that the pilots would follow the law. "It (dispute) is with the conciliation officer, who has already termed the proposed strike as illegal. We will do whatever is needed to be done," he said.
Source: Business Standard
Goyal-owned private air-carrier, Jet Airways, and Vijay Mallya-promoted Kingfisher Airlines had sealed a strategic alliance in October last year with a view to curtail costs after crude prices had shot up astronomically. Goyal, however, said the two partners have taken certain steps to synergise their operations.
"We have done certain things. We are co-operating in engineering and (sharing) some other facilities in order to improve our bottom lines. We have been looking at how we can improve our cost structures, especially in engineering," he said.
Goyal also advocated a 20-25 per cent increase in fares across the board to bridge the gap between input costs and revenue. The industry has been faced with a situation in which the former has been increasing while the latter has been falling. Jet-Kingfisher is alliance yet to gather momentum, he said.
"I think today the industry needs around a 20-25 per cent rise in fares because there is a need to cover costs and also to break-even," Goyal said. He said the domestic aviation industry is on an average losing Rs 800-900 crore due to a 20-25 per cent gap between revenues and costs, which he attributed to irrational pricing by air-carriers.
"Everyone is doing irrational pricing. Everyone is selling below prices. We don't want to sell below cost," Goyal said. However, when asked if he had any plans to hike fares he declined to give specifics, saying, "I don't know." On the strike-call by Jet Airways pilots union, National Aviator's Guild on September 7, Goyal said the government has already declared the strike as "illegal" and hoped that the pilots would follow the law. "It (dispute) is with the conciliation officer, who has already termed the proposed strike as illegal. We will do whatever is needed to be done," he said.
Source: Business Standard
Wednesday, September 2, 2009
Jet starts Kochl Sharjah daily flight
Private carrier Jet Airways today launched a daily flight from Kochi to Sharjah in the Gulf and has deployed Boeing 737 aircraft for the purpose. This is Jet's fourth daily flight to the Gulf from Kochi. The carrier currently flies daily from Kochi to Doha, Kuwait and Muscat, it said in a statement. The airline also operates daily flights twice to Dubai from Mumbai, Delhi and Chennai, in addition to a daily flight to Abu Dhabi from Delhi and Mumbai.
Source: The Hindu Business Line
Source: The Hindu Business Line
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