Tag: Airlines

Go Airlines: Legal scene now shifts to US court after unproductive Pratt & Whitney meet

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Chennai: After getting what it had prayed for before the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT), the legal scene now shifts to a US court where Go Airlines (India) Ltd has filed a suit against the aircraft engine maker Pratt & Whitney.
The Wadia group’s low cost airline has taken Pratt & Whitney to the court in the US to make it honour the award given by an emergency arbitrator appointed in accordance with the 2016 Arbitration Rules of the Singapore International Arbitration Centre (SIAC).
Speaking to IANS, Go Airlines CEO Kaushik Khona said the US court’s decision is expected to happen soon.

According to the airline, it was forced to apply to the NCLT after Pratt & Whitney, the exclusive engine supplier for its Airbus A320neo aircraft fleet, refused to comply with an award issued by an emergency arbitrator appointed in accordance with the 2016 Arbitration Rules of the Singapore International Arbitration Centre (SIAC).
“That order directed Pratt & Whitney to take all the reasonable steps to release and dispatch without delay to Go First at least 10 serviceable spare leased engines by April 27, 2023 and a further 10 spare leased engines per month until December 2023, with the objective of Go First returning to full operations and achieving its financial rehabilitation and survival,” the airline added.
Go Airlines said that even if Pratt & Whitney complied with the arbitration award, it would be able to resume full operations by August/September 2023.
Khona said even meeting the top brass of Pratt & Whitney when they visited India in January 2023 did not result in any positive response.
The top brass of Pratt & Whitney led by Shane Eddy, President, had been to Bengaluru in January 2023 to officially open the doors of the company’s India Engineering Centre (IEC).

“On January 19, 2023, Varun Berry (Managing Director and Vice Chairman of the Wadia group’s Britannia Industries Ltd) and I had gone to Bengaluru to meet Eddy and Mr.Hendrik Deurloo, President, (Commercial Engines) to again asking to provide much awaited and promised repaired engines and spare engines and induct failed engines into MRO (Maintenance, Repair and Overhaul),” Khona told IANS.
According to Go Airlines, the engine maker had promised through a signed Side letter in 2012 that if an engine failed within its initial 6,000 hours (or 4,200 take-off and landing cycles) of normal operation, it would repair and recondition that engine at no charge.
The airline said Pratt & Whitney engine problems have been an industry-wide issue. The teething problems continue even after so many years clearly indicating an inherent design problem.
“These GTF engines were developed on an unproven, new’ technology platform prematurely tested and forced into the market to capture airline attention with performance stats that were never achieved,” Go Airlines charged.
“Between 2016 and February 2023 GoFirst (brand of Go Airlines) carried out 510 GTF Engine removals: 289 Engine Changes as a result of at least 28 different defects, and 221 Engine Swaps. It also shows that the most prevalent technical issue, by some order of magnitude, has been combustor distress, with 140 GTF Engines removed for this issue alone.”
The airlines said 15 per cent of total Pratt & Whitney GTF powered aircrafts are grounded because of faulty engines globally (178 aircrafts are grounded out of 1,219 aircraft as of March this year.
And the most affected region is India with 65 grounded aircraft out of a total 178.
“Out of a total 60 global customers, only four have grounded aircraft in excess of 25 per cent and two of them are Indian. Pratt & Whitney’s recent proposal whereby they proposed to give 5 per cent of induction slots to Go First despite AOG’s (aircraft on ground) at 54 per cent is hard to believe and is a deliberate attempt to kill Go First,” Go Airlines said.
According to Khona, if Indian passengers are suffering high airfare now then it is due to Pratt & Whitney.
“They (Pratt & Whitney) take India for granted,” said Khona.
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#Airlines #Legal #scene #shifts #court #unproductive #Pratt #Whitney #meet
( With inputs from www.siasat.com )

May 10, 2023
Biden pushing airlines to go beyond refunds for delayed or canceled flights

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The White House said the expanded website will show that only one airline guarantees frequent flyer miles, and that two airlines guarantee travel credits or vouchers as compensation if passengers experience significant delays or cancelations that are caused by something within the airline’s control such as a mechanical issue. Zero airlines guarantee cash compensation for preventable delays and cancellations.
Biden and Buttigieg will officially announce the new effort at an appearance at the White House on Monday. The White House noted that three airlines, Alaska Airlines, Frontier Airlines and American Airlines, announced commitments to provide fee-free family seating after Biden included family seating fees as part of his attack on “junk fees” in this year’s State of the Union.
“When an airline causes a flight cancellation or delay, passengers should not foot the bill,” Buttigieg said in a statement. “This rule would, for the first time in U.S. history, propose to require airlines to compensate passengers and cover expenses such as meals, hotels, and rebooking in cases where the airline has caused a cancellation or significant delay.”
Background: The announcement is another push by the White House to get ahead of a summer travel season that is predicted to exceed pre-pandemic travel levels in 2019.
Late last year, Southwest Airlines’ holiday meltdown stranded tens of thousands of passengers and prompted calls from Buttigieg and lawmakers to make travelers whole. Southwest responded by doling out rewards points and spending millions on hotels and other expenses for passengers who were stranded for days, though Senate Commerce Chair Maria Cantwell (D-Wash.) is pushing the airline to make public how many customers applied for reimbursements for ancillary expenses but were rejected.
Federal law does not require airlines to compensate passengers for flight delays. If a flight is canceled, a passenger can choose to receive a refund.
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#Biden #pushing #airlines #refunds #delayed #canceled #flights
( With inputs from : www.politico.com )

May 8, 2023
Pakistan airlines plane stayed in Indian airspace for 10 mins, travelled 125 km

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Karachi: After failing to land at the Lahore Airport during heavy rain, a Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) plane remained in the Indian airspace for 10 minutes and returned to Pakistan after travelling 125 kilometres over India’s Punjab, state media reported.
It was raining heavily when flight PK-248 of Pakistan’s national airline arrived in Lahore from Muscat at 8 p.m. on May 4. The pilot attempted to land at the Allama Iqbal International Airport at 8:05 p.m., but the Boeing 777 aircraft became unstable and could not land.
On the instructions of the air traffic controller, the pilot initiated the go-around approach, during which he lost his way due to heavy rain and low altitude. The plane entered the Indian airspace from the Badhana police station area in Punjab at 8:11 p.m. Pakistan time, The News reported.

The Boeing 777 aircraft was at an altitude of 13,500 feet moving at a speed of 292 kilometre per hour. At the point where the plane entered India, located 37 km from Amritsar, is the area of the Chhina Bidhi Chand village.
The plane turned back from Naushehra Pannuan after travelling 40 km through the city of Taran Sahib and Rasulpur in India’s Punjab. While flying in the Indian airspace, the captain took the plane to a height of 20,000 feet, The News reported.
The plane flew in the Indian airspace for seven minutes and entered the Pakistani territory from near the village of Jhagian Noor Muhammad in India’s Punjab. The flight then re-entered Indian territory via the villages of Dona Mabboki, Chaant, Dhupsari Kasur and Ghati Kalanjar in the Kasur district of Pakistan’s Punjab.
Three minutes later, at 8:22 p.m., the plane re-entered the Pakistani territory from the village of Lakha Singhwala Hithar in India’s Punjab. At that time, the plane was at an altitude of 23,000 feet at a speed of 320 km, The News reported.
After entering Pakistani airspace, the aircraft flew to Multan, passing by Hujra Shah Muqeem and Dipalpur. The aircraft travelled a total of 120 km in the Indian territory in 10 minutes, The News reported.

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( With inputs from www.siasat.com )

May 7, 2023
Shoot and scoot policy by Go Airlines and Pratt & Whitney

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Chennai: Shoot and scoot seems to be the communication policy being adopted by the two warring groups in the aviation sector – Indias Go Airlines (India) Ltd and the US aircraft engine maker Pratt & Whitney.
Incidentally, Pratt & Whitney India is headed by Ashmita Sethi, who was earlier the Vice President Communications and Public Affairs, South Asia, for Rolls Royce and Director, Communications and Corporate Affairs at Boeing as per her LinkedIn page.
In times of crisis, the principle to be followed is communicate, communicate and communicate is what communication gurus advocate.

But the two companies do not adhere to that and remain silent to questions from IANS and the media but resort to shoot and scoot strategy.
It was the Wadia group’s Go Airlines which fired the first shot blaming Pratt & Whitney for its decision to file a voluntary petition for insolvency with the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) Delhi under Section 10 of the Insolvency Bankruptcy Code (IBC).
The airline said that it has approached the NCLT “due to the ever-increasing number of failing engines supplied by Pratt & Whitney’s International Aero Engines, which has resulted in Go First (airline brand) having to ground 25 aircraft (equivalent to approximately 50 per cent of its Airbus A320neo aircraft fleet) as of May 1, 2023.”
“The percentage of grounded aircraft due to Pratt & Whitney’s faulty engines has grown from 7 per cent in December 2019 to 31 per cent in December 2020 to 50 per cent in December 2022. This is despite Pratt & Whitney making several ongoing assurances over the years, which it has repeatedly failed to meet,” Go Airlines said.
Go Airlines had said it has been forced to apply to the NCLT after Pratt & Whitney, the exclusive engine supplier for its Airbus A320neo aircraft fleet, refused to comply with an award issued by an emergency arbitrator appointed in accordance with the 2016 Arbitration Rules of the Singapore International Arbitration Centre (SIAC).

The airline’s decision to apply for insolvency blaming the engine supplier has taken its lenders, creditors, staff and others entirely by surprise.
Perhaps, Go Airlines is the first airline to blame the engine maker for its financial woes.
With Go Airlines tight lipped some are even wondering whether blaming the engine supplier for its woes is a strategy to get a huge loan waiver.
Be that as it may, on Saturday, Go Airlines issued a summary of technical issues it faced with Pratt & Whitney GTF engines.
The airlines said “Airbus certified two engines to power the new A320neo: Pratt’s PurePower PW1127G-JM engine, and a CFM engine. Pratt & Whitney touted itself as the next generation engine, with the expectation that each Engine would have a lifespan of approximately 15,300 hours on wing before its first full interval shop visit (“FISV”). The expected lifespan of the Engines was an important consideration for GoFirst to go ahead with Pratt & Whitney engines.”
According to Go Airlines, these Engines were understood to have new technology that would be more fuel efficient, produce less noise and be more environmentally friendly and would have lower expected maintenance costs.
“Moreover, Pratt offered better commercial terms compared to its competitor which included financing via their affiliate (UTF) for the Pre Delivery Payments,” the airline added.
Go Airlines said from day one the Pratt & Whitney engines were problematic and has been an industry wide issue.
“The teething problems continue even after so many years clearly indicates an inherent design problem. These GTF engines were developed on an unproven, new’ technology platform prematurely tested and forced into the market to capture airline attention with performance stats that were never achieved,” Go Airline charged.
“Pratt & Whitney engine issues are nowhere related to supply chain challenges as Supply chain issues occur when a product is reliable, robust, functional, and in high demand,” the airline added.
“The engine problems included issues with the Engines’ software, start-up times, starter, main gear box, and fan blades, but the key issues were with the combustor (i.e., there was erosion in the combustion chambers, known as combustor distress’),” Go Airlines said.
“Between 2016 and February 2023, GoFirst carried out 510 GTF Engine removals: 289 Engine Changes as a result of at least 28 different defects, and 221 Engine Swaps,” the airline said in its note.
According to Go Airlines, 15% of total Pratt & Whitney GTF powered aircrafts are grounded because of faulty engines globally (178 aircrafts are grounded out of 1,219 aircrafts as of March 2023).
The most affected region is India with 65 grounded aircrafts out of 178 aircrafts. Out of 60 global customers, only 4 customers have grounded aircrafts in excess of 25 per cent and 2 of them are Indian customers.
“Pratt & Whitney’s recent proposal whereby they proposed to give 5% of induction slots to Go First despite AOG’s at 54 per cent is hard to believe and is a deliberate attempt to kill Go First,” the airline charged.
On their part, a spokesperson of Pratt & Whitney told IANS: “Go First has a lengthy history of missing its financial obligations to Pratt,” a spokesperson for the aircraft engine supplier Pratt & Whitney responded to the IANS list of questions.
However, the official declined to elaborate further on its allegation against Go Airline.
“Pratt & Whitney is committed to the success of our airline customers, and we continue to prioritize delivery schedules for all customers. P&W (Pratt & Whitney) is complying with the March 2023 arbitration ruling related to Go First. As this is now a matter of litigation, we will not comment further,” Pratt & Whitney spokesperson said.
And nothing was heard after that from the global aircraft engine maker.
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( With inputs from www.siasat.com )

May 6, 2023
Saudia Airlines announces 60% off on flights for 7 destinations

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Riyadh: Saudia Airlines, the national carrier of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA), has announced a flash sale on tickets to seven destinations, with discounts of up to 60 percent.
The airlines made the announcement via Twitter on Friday, stating that tickets to certain destinations will be available at discounted rates for 48 hours.
Tickets must be purchased on May 5 and May 6, and can travel between May 10 and June 15 2023.

Saudia ticket sale
The 60 per cent discount applies on flights from the Kingdom to
Interested can reserve their seats at saudia.com.
خصم يصل إلى 60% على وجهات مختارة 🤩
أبوظبي🇦🇪| الكويت🇰🇼| الدوحة🇶🇦| مسقط🇴🇲| مدريد🇪🇸| موريشيوس🇲🇺| جوانج زاو🇨🇳| جزر المالديف🇲🇻
⏰ العرض متاح لمدة 48 ساعة فقط
🗓️ فترة السفر: من 10 مايو – 15 يونيو 2023
— السعودية | SAUDIA (@Saudi_Airlines) May 4, 2023
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( With inputs from www.siasat.com )

May 6, 2023
Rural America dips into its wallet as airlines drop service

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Multiple large carriers used to fly in and out of Dubuque’s airport. Now, locals and visitors need to drive approximately 80 miles to Moline or Cedar Rapids, or, to get to bigger destinations, three hours to Chicago, mostly using a two-lane road.
Local leaders are deeply worried about the economic implications of being cut off from the rest of the U.S. as businesses calculate whether it’s worth it to continue operating or relocating to the Midwest city.
“To say that it’s challenging would be an understatement,” said Molly Grover, president of the Dubuque Area Chamber of Commerce.
Some small airports can get a lifeline through a multimillion-dollar federal subsidy program that pays airlines to connect rural locations to central hubs.
Under that “essential air service” program, the Transportation Department can require carriers trying to leave a location to remain until a replacement carrier is lined up. But it only includes about 108 airports and weighs factors such as the average number of daily trips, how much subsidy is needed and the distance to the nearest larger hub. Many cities — like Dubuque — can’t join because of limits put on the program in 2012.
Losing air service cost the Dubuque airport nearly 200 jobs and reduced its economic output by more than $26 million, according to an economic impact analysis the city paid for comparing data from 2019 to 2022.
The city is hoping to begin to close that gaping financial hole by welcoming budget airline Avelo, which in March launched seasonal, twice-weekly flights to Orlando, the result of an incentive package offered by the city that includes a revenue guarantee.
Repercussions may extend beyond financial losses. Dubuque Mayor Brad Cavanagh, a Democrat, believes that nothing else will have a greater impact on politics in the decade ahead than further isolating cities like his.

“In rural communities like ours there’s no way we’re going to survive long-term without air service,” Cavanagh said in an interview. “We’re going to die a slow, agonizing death.”
Feeling connected to the rest of the country is “a huge part of our identity and if we don’t feel like that’s being supported, that’s going to have huge implications politically,” he said. It’s what “people in the Midwest think of when they say Washington doesn’t think of them.”
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#Rural #America #dips #wallet #airlines #drop #service
( With inputs from : www.politico.com )

April 26, 2023
Southwest Airlines briefly pauses flights nationwide over computer glitch

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Southwest blamed the problem on “data connection issues resulting from a firewall failure,” according to a statement.
“Early this morning, a vendor-supplied firewall went down and connection to some operational data was unexpectedly lost. Southwest Teams worked quickly to minimize flight disruptions,” the airline said.
DOT Secretary Pete Buttigieg, who has pressed airlines to ensure customers receive adequate refunds after flight disruptions, said in a tweet that “We are here to ensure passengers have strong protections when airline failures like this affect their plans,” and directed affected Southwest customers to DOT’s Airline Customer Service Dashboard.
Background: Though so far there’s no indication that Tuesday’s glitch was related to problems with the airline’s internal scheduling software that caused the holiday flight havoc late last year, Southwest continues to face scrutiny for how it handled those flights.
In February, Southwest COO Andrew Watterson apologized to Congress for the holiday meltdown that was triggered by winter weather but dragged on for nearly a week due to issues with the airline’s scheduling and rebooking systems. Watterson in February promised his airline is now “intensely focused on learning from this event by taking immediate mitigation efforts.”
But the top Senate Democrat overseeing the aviation industry, Senate Commerce Committee Chair Maria Cantwell (D-Wash.) charged that Southwest withheld information from Congress about how it’s handling refunds for customers caught up in its December holiday meltdown, where some 16,000 flights were canceled. Cantwell is seeking specifics on how many passengers were involved, how many were issued cash refunds versus vouchers for future flights, how many were rebooked and when the airline plans to upgrade its internal systems that caused the debacle.
Earlier this month, Southwest released the results of a report detailing failings surrounding the end-of-year meltdown. The report, which was also conducted by an outside consulting firm hired by Southwest, said that “insufficient winter infrastructure” and computer software issues with rescheduling and rebooking passengers and crew were mostly to blame. The airline said a host of steps to improve winter operations will be complete by next winter, while software upgrades are already in place or will be completed by next winter.

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( With inputs from : www.politico.com )

April 18, 2023
Kashmir Airfares Hiked At Will By Airlines And Ticket Operators: KCCI

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SRINAGAR: The Kashmir Chamber of Commerce & Industry Saturday alleged that some airlines in collusion with bulk ticket booking operators are hiking the airfares at their sweet will in wake of the huge influx of tourists and Non-Resident Kashmiris (NRK).
The Chamber said that the feedback received about the tourist inflow to Kashmir Valley by air route indicates that the rush of air travellers to the valley is increasing as besides the tourists, a large number of NRKs, students, and patients taking treatment outside the state are returning for the celebration of Eid festival at their homes and it is learnt that some Airlines in collusion with bulk ticket booking operators are hiking the airfares at their sweet will which is not only affecting the tourist business in Jammu & Kashmir adversely but it also overburdens the Non Resident Kashmiris, local students and patients.
Faiz Ahmad Bakshi, Secretary General, the Kashmir Chamber of Commerce & Industry said that it has already expressed its grave concern about such ill-advised unwarranted fare hiking practice by the concerned airlines’ bulk ticket booking operators as it was also observed by the Department-related Parliamentary Committee on Transport, Tourism and Culture, Government of India.
“It appears that the Airlines operators on Delhi/Jammu/Srinagar air route have not taken the clear recommendations of the said Department- related Parliamentary Committee on the subject seriously and are instead hiking the fares irrationally which is tantamount to undue profiteering by the Airlines causing a hurdle to the tourist movement,” the Chamber said.
The Kashmir Chamber of Commerce & Industry said that it would earnestly request the Minister for Civil Aviation and Director General Civil Aviation Government of India to have the recommendations of said Department-related Parliamentary Committee implemented in letter and spirit without fail.
“The Committee recommends that there should be a mechanism with the Ministry such as capping of upper and lower prices to stop the practice of ‘predatory pricing’ or the sudden surge in prices even though price buckets are being created as per international aviation norms, a close watch has to be maintained by the DGCA & the Ministry and a mechanism should be devised to monitor the websites of various airlines to prevent them from misguiding passengers,” the panel said that in case private airlines do not publish the correct information regarding fares, they should be penalised for it. “The Committee observes that the Ministry of Civil Aviation has a responsibility to the travelling public and the nation at large to ensure that predatory pricing mechanism is not adopted by the airlines under the cloak of free market economy. The committee recommends the ministry should formulate a pricing mechanism for air fares to ensure that passengers are not charged exorbitant prices.”
The Chamber said that it also likes to impress upon the Airlines operating Delhi/Jammu/Srinagar route to operate additional flights to meet the growing travel to Srinagar.

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#Kashmir #Airfares #Hiked #Airlines #Ticket #Operators #KCCI
( With inputs from : kashmirlife.net )

April 16, 2023
Saudia Airlines makes emergency landing in Kolkata due to windshield cracks

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Kolkata: A Saudia Airlines cargo flight on Saturday made an emergency landing at Kolkata Airport after its windshield cracked mid-air, airport officials told ANI.
The aircraft landed safely at the Kolkata Airport at 12:02 pm.
Before the landing, the airport had made all the necessary arrangements.

Full emergency was withdrawn after the flight landed, according to airport officials.
Recently, an Abu Dhabi-bound Etihad Airways flight returned to the Bangalore International Airport shortly after take-off due to a technical issue.
The airline said that the aircraft did a normal landing at Bangalore airport.
The flight inspection was done and later took off to its destination where it landed this morning.
Earlier on April 1, a full emergency was declared at the Indira Gandhi International Airport in Delhi after a Dubai-bound FedEx aircraft suffered a bird hit soon after take-off, according to airport officials.

(Except for the headline, the story has not been edited by Siasat staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
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( With inputs from www.siasat.com )

April 15, 2023
Unruly passengers: DGCA issues advisory to airlines

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New Delhi: Aviation regulator DGCA on Monday issued an advisory to airlines reiterating the existing provisions in place to deal with unruly passengers.
The advisory comes against the backdrop of rising incidents of unruly passengers onboard flights and also on a day when a male passenger was deboarded by Air India from a Delhi-London flight for causing physical harm to two cabin crew members.
In an advisory, DGCA said there are provisions under the Civil Aviation Requirement (CAR) for action to be taken by the airline to deal with unruly passengers.

Besides, it said the responsibilities of pilots, cabin crew members and the director of inflight services are also mentioned in the CAR.
DGCA said that in the recent past, it has noticed a few incidents such as smoking in aircraft, consumption of alcoholic beverages resulting in unruly behaviour, altercations between passengers and sometimes inappropriate touching or sexual harassment by the passengers onboard an aircraft during the flight, wherein “post holders, pilots and cabin crew members have failed to take appropriate actions”.
“Such incidents have potential of compromising the safety of aircraft operations,” the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) said.
The watchdog has advised the heads of operations of all airlines to sensitise their pilots, cabin crew and post holders on handling of unruly passengers through appropriate means.
The measures can be “but not limited to training programme for ensuring effective monitoring, maintenance of good order and discipline on board the aircraft so that safety of aircraft operations is not jeopardised in any manner,” the advisory said.

DGCA regulations provide for classifying unruly passenger behaviour into three levels and such people can face flying ban for varying periods.
Unruly behaviour such as physical gestures, verbal harassment and unruly inebriation are classified as Level 1 while physically abusive behaviour like pushing, kicking or sexual harassment will be classified as Level 2.
Life threatening behaviour such as damage to aircraft operating systems, physical violence like choking and murderous assault will be considered as Level 3.
Depending on the level of unruly behaviour, an internal committee set up by the airline concerned can decide on the duration for which an unruly passenger can be banned from flying.
On Monday, Air India deboarded an unruly male passenger who caused physical harm to two cabin crew members onboard a Delhi-London flight, which returned to the national capital shortly after departure.
The passenger was handed over to the security personnel after the flight AI 111 landed at the Delhi airport and an FIR has also been lodged with the police, the airline said in a statement.
In a written reply to Rajya Sabha on April 3, Minister of State for Civil Aviation V K Singh said as many as 63 persons were put in the ‘No Fly List’ by airlines in 2022.
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( With inputs from www.siasat.com )

April 10, 2023