Aerospace Diary

Neelam Mathews April 2, 2012 The much awaited revised offset policy is out. It reinforces its aim is to augment capacity for R&D, foster development of international competitive enterprises and give a boost to synergistic sectors like homeland security and civil aviation. The policy recognizes: TOT as eligible for discharge of offset obligations Technology acquisition by DRDO for a list of specified technologies will be treated as an eligible offset with a multiplier of upto 3. While Tier 1 subvendors can already discharge part of obligations on behalf of the main vendor, the overall responsibility will rest on the vendor. Offsets can now be discharged within a timeframe extending to two years beyond the period of the procurement of the contract Validity of Banking of offsets has been extended from 2 to seven years In the discharge of offsets obligations relating to direct export, FDI, TOT  or investment in ‘kind’ through non equity route, a multiplier of 1.50 ...

Posted by- Neelam Mathews March 26, 2012 A vast majority of airlines and lessors are being forced to secure new, alternative sources of finance to stay in business, according to a new survey by aviation experts Ascend. The global aviation sector needs US$83 billion to cover 1,500 scheduled deliveries of jet and turbo prop planes this year – but accessing those funds is becoming increasingly difficult.  Ascend’s global survey says 73 percent of aviation professionals are seeking financing outside their current relationships with banks and established lenders.  Prior to 2008, this level of difficulty in aircraft financing was unthinkable, says Ascend’s Head of Consultancy in Asia, Paul Sheridan, adding, “To enable deliveries to continue, ever more creative financing options are being forced on the industry.”   Seventy-two percent of the airlines polled said they would be financing their deliveries, both this year and next, with debt – highlighting the importance o...

Neelam Mathews April 22, 2011 Time: 6:30 PM IST Bangkok Airways is looking to expand in India having applied for rights to operate flights to Bangalore and Chennai from Bangkok. Subject to approval, flights to Bangalore route may start this year, followed by Chennai in 2012.  Kingfisher Airlines has added a third daily frequency between of Bangalore and Pune.  An estimated 413,000 O&D passengers travelled between the two destinations in the past year. Jet Airways offers 13 flights per week, while IndiGo and SpiceJet each offer one flight per day. Budget flydubai is to launch flights to Jeddah and Riyadh in early May, increasing destinations in Saudi Arabia to five. Singapore Airlines says it will increase fuel surcharge on tickets issued after April 21 as jet fuel prices have risen over 30 percent since Jan 1. Virgin Atlantic will be re-starting direct flights from London Heathrow to Chicago on May 9 four times a week and then increasing to a daily from May 22. Ae...

Neelam Mathews April 16, 2011 Time: 12:45PM IST Air Seychelles , is consolidating its operations under a new management,. It will cease weekly flights to Chennai started in November last year as part of an initial plan to make Chennai its hub. The carrier will resume direct flights to Singapore begining June. As rising fuel costs become the difference between survival and death, Air India is lowering fares by 20-30 percent on certain routes. Bangkok Airways is looking to operate scheduled daily flights to Bangalore and Chennai from Bangkok, possibly by the end of this year and Chennai by early next year. The carrier started flying to Mumbai in March, now wants to convert its flights to daily from six a week. Afghanistan 's newest cargo airline East Horizon Airlines having taken delivery of its first aircraft, is looking at UAE, Western China and India. It has acquired four CASA 212-00 ramp-loading cargo planes from EADS CASA. NORTHEAST Shuttles , a non-scheduled chartered...