Aerospace Diary

AIN AIR TRANSPORT PERSPECTIVE  »  SEPTEMBER 30, 2013 by    NEELAM MATHEWS Star Alliance member Singapore Airlines has signaled a desire to expand its Indian joint venture’s network to include international destinations eventually. (Photo: Singapore Airlines) September 30, 2013, 11:50 AM The  bid by Malaysia’s AirAsia to launch a low-fare airline in India with the Tata Group  has hit some unexpected turbulence as Singapore Airlines prepares to launch a joint venture with the very same investors. Already holding a 30-percent stake in AirAsia India, the Tata Group has now turned its sights toward the full-service market in agreeing to take a 51-percent stake in Tata SIA  Airlines, apparently to the dismay of at least one of the principal investors in the AirAsia Indian venture. Last week  Forbes  and several Indian media outlets reported that Arun Bhatia, a partner in AirAsia India, expressed shock at ...

Neelam Mathews Sept 10, 2012 Indonesia’s Transportation Ministry has  issued a flight permit to a new, full-service airline, Batik Air, a subsidiary of the country’s largest domestic carrier, budget, Lion Air, reports Jakarta Post. The airline has been approved to fly 66 domestic routes and 20 international routes..   Batik Air’s first flight is scheduled for March next year. Batik Air will connect Jakarta, Medan, Denpasar, and Manado to major cities in ASEAN, East Asia, and Australia,” said a company spokesman to the Post. It will use Boeing 737-900ER and the five B787s on order, the first delivery of which is expected in 2015. The new airline’s aircraft livery will use a batik motif associated with Indonesia. Lion Air’s hub is Jakarta and it has 81 aircraft  flying to 36 cities in Indonesia. It has 280  Boeing jets on order. It is likely, according to reports, that Lion Air and Malaysia's National Aerospace & Defense Industries (NADI)...

Singapore Air Show  » February 15, 2012  by Neelam Mathews Yakovlev Yak-130 two-seat advanced jet trainer/light attack aircraft.February 14, 2012, 3:00 PM Russian defense marketing agency Rosoboronexport believes Southeast Asia is a prime market for the Yakovlev Yak-130 two-seat advanced jet trainer/light attack aircraft. Malaysia and the Philippines, in particular, have shown interest in the trainer, according to Rosboronexport deputy general director Viktor Komardin. During a recent visit to the Irkutsk Aviation Plant last year, Malaysian defense minister Ahmad Zahid Bin Hamidi hinted at an interest in parts manufacturing for the program. “There is a good probability that we will work with this aircraft. The details will be discussed,” he commented. A $550 million order last year for 36 Yakovlev Yak-130 Mitten combat trainers gave the program a boost. But this contract was reportedly from Syria, much to the annoyance of the U.S. Earlier this month Russia and China...