Aerospace Diary

by  Neelam Mathews  -  September 10, 2018, 2:26 PM SpiceJet unveiled the first SpiceXpress Boeing 737-700 freighter in Delhi on September 10. (Photo: Neelam Mathews) As India’s GDP hits a high of 8.2 percent and airline cargo belly space starts to exceed demand, Budget SpiceJet has become the first commercial airline to launch a dedicated domestic and international cargo airline, SpiceXpress. It will start operations to Bangalore from Delhi on September 18 and this year launch international destinations, including Hong Kong and Afghanistan. Israel Aerospace Industries' (IAI) Bedek Aviation Group converted the SpiceXpress Boeing 737-700 freighter, which it acquired on an operating lease from Austin Texas-based Spectre Air Capital. The deal represents the first Spectre has ever completed in India, Spectre Cargo Solutions Kevin Casey told AIN. The airline has ordered ten freighters and will receive a total of four by the end of the year, SpiceJet chairman and ma...

Neelam Mathews Dec 17, 2012 Express Industry Council of India (EICI), the apex industry body of Express companies, says domestic  airlines should stop charging fuel surcharge immediately and allow market forces to operate. It  has alleged that domestic airlines have formed a price cartel that is exploiting the levy of fuel surcharge (FSC) on cargo by not applying a rational pricing mechanism. Aerospace Diary could not confirm this and invites airlines to give their point of view. The EICI says in the "last four years, there has been substantial hike in fuel surcharge, which has not been commensurate to the highly volatile Air Turbine Fuel (ATF) prices. With effect from November 19, 2012, domestic airlines have further increased the FSC on cargo by Rs. 2/kg in spite of a marked drop in ATF prices." “What has been surprising is that all airlines have chosen to increase the FSC by the same amount more or less at the same time. This has led us to believe that this ...

Neelam Mathews Nov 8, 2012 Kuala Lumpur Cargo isn’t recovering just as yet, says Andrew Herdman, Director General of the Association of Asia Pacific Airlines (AAPA) a day before the 56 th Assembly of Presidents, being hosted by Malaysia Airlines in Kuala Lumpur over the next two days. “The global economic slowdown has had a dramatic impact on air freight, which has remained depressed as a result of weak consumer confidence in Europe and the United States, with a corresponding slowdown of exports from Asia.  As Asian carriers operate large freighter fleets and account for approximately 40% of global air cargo traffic, they have been particularly hard hit by the current cargo market weakness,” said Herdman.“It is difficult to see a cargo upturn.” There is hope for the passenger business. “2012 is proving to be a pivotal year for the global air transport industry, with enterprising carriers from the Asia Pacific region at the forefront of major developments. ...

Posted by- Neelam Mathews Sept 27, 2012 Preliminary traffic figures for the month of August released today by the Association of Asia Pacific Airlines (AAPA) showed a sustained increase in international air passenger traffic, in contrast to continued weakness in air freight markets. Air freight markets remain depressed, as a result of weakening consumer confidence in the major developed economies leading to a corresponding slowdown in exports from Asia.  International air cargo demand, as expressed in freight tonne Km (FTK) terms, was 4.4% lower in August compared to the same month last year. Combined with a 4.1% reduction in offered freight capacity, the average international air cargo load factor was almost unchanged, at 64.6%. Asia Pacific airlines carried an aggregate total of 18.5 million international passengers in August, a 6.8% increase compared to the same month last year, led by relatively strong demand for regional travel. International passenger traffic, ...

Posted by- Neelam Mathews May 28, 2012  P reliminary traffic figures for the month of April released today by the Association of Asia Pacific Airlines (AAPA) showed further growth in international air passenger numbers, but international air cargo markets remained weak. Airlines based in the Asia Pacific region carried 17.2 million international passengers in April, a 12.2% increase compared to the same month last year.  In revenue passenger kilometre (RPK) terms, international passenger demand grew by 10.1%, reflecting significantly stronger demand on regional routes.  With traffic growth outpacing an 8.5% increase in available seat capacity, the average international passenger load factor was 76.3%, 1.1 percentage points higher than in the same month last year. Conversely, international air cargo traffic, measured in freight tonne kilometres (FTK), registered a 7.6% decline compared to the same month last year, reflecting continued w...

Airports Aviation Daily Apr 01 , 2010 , p. 12 Neelam Mathews Rajasthan Aviation Infrastructure (RAI) will set up the first phase of construction of one of three greenfield airports that have received government approval in India. The field, located 50 km from Jaipur, will cover 1,500 acres and have a 3,000-meter runway. It is expected to be completed by 2013. The airport will be part of a 4,000-acre project on the Delhi-Jaipur highway in the western Indian state of Rajasthan and intends to tap into the air cargo market. The developers insist that the existing airport at Jaipur will not be cannibalized and that the new field will have a niche of its own. The problem in developing cargo business in India is that new and private airports are mostly "five-star" facilities, raising the cost of air freight. "Cargo does not require five-star facilities," Yogesh Garg, CEO of RAI, told The DAILY. "We have a narrow mindset on infrastructure in India and don...

News Aviation Daily Mar 02 , 2010 , p. 13 Neelam Mathews With the corporate market and economy bouncing back, Bangaluru International Airport is adding more international airlines this year. Cargo will be the focus of Air China, which starts twice-weekly operations on Feb. 27, Fedex with five weekly flights starts operations June 1, and Air Asia on May 29. Etihad has also shown interest, but is limited by present bilaterals. Qatar launched daily flights on Feb. 22 to its 11th Indian destination. Bengaluru will be served daily with 144-seat Airbus A320s from the airline’s Doha hub. The third-largest city in India has until now only been served by Emirates among the Middle East airlines. These new services will take the international flights to Bengaluru (formerly Bangalore) to 19. Six domestic carriers fly to the airport, which was hit during the recessionary months last year with declines in international travel. Bengaluru is now the fourth-largest city for cargo operation...