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Abu Dhabi,11th October 2022: Etihad Airways, the national airline of the United Arab Emirates (UAE), has launched its first-ever scheduled flights linking Abu Dhabi and Guangzhou. The inaugural flight, EY868, departed Abu Dhabi last night after a ribbon-cutting ceremony attended by representatives from the Chinese Embassy to the UAE, Abu Dhabi Airports Company, Miral Asset Management and Etihad Aviation Group. The flight touched down at Guangzhou Baiyun International Airport this morning at 10:25 (local time), making Etihad the first international airline to operate long-haul passenger services to the top three Chinese gateways – Beijing, Shanghai and Guangzhou – since the start of the pandemic. Tony Douglas, Group Chief Executive Officer, Etihad Aviation Group, said: “We have been tremendously excited about the launch of this service. Guangzhou is actually the latest destination to be opened in China by Etihad since the launch of the Abu Dhabi–Shanghai route back in 2012. It will continue to help build a solid air bridge for commerce and cultural exchanges between China and the UAE. “We are very grateful for the support from both governments, business partners and our Etihad team, as our new service to Guangzhou will not only further address the huge demand for passenger travel between the UAE and China, building on the formidable people and business ties between the two markets, but also support the increasing consolidation and strengthening of Etihad’s presence in China and the global aviation industry. It also reinforces the airline’s commitment to serving the Chinese market.” To highlight Guangzhou’s reputation as “the spiritual home of Cantonese cuisine”, and to appreciate the cultural diversity within Etihad’s in-house hospitality team, the event offered a tapestry of cuisines, consisting of several signature dim sum and Arabic-style canapés jointly created by Etihad Airways Chef Murray Reason and Capital Hospitality Executive Chef Imad Soboh. The evening gave a glimpse into the fascinating culinary experiences every business and leisure traveller can enjoy on board Etihad flights. Flight EY868 marks the launch of scheduled services between Abu Dhabi and Guangzhou, growing Etihad’s network to 67 destinations across 45 countries. The new twice-weekly service will be operated via a two-class Boeing 777.

Kashmir, 10th October 2022: Minister of Civil Aviation, Jyotiraditya M. Scindia said that a civil enclave will be built in Jammu at a cost of Rs 861 crores and the Srinagar’s present terminal will be expanded three times from 20,000 square meters to 60,000 square meters at a cost of Rs 1500 crores.Scindia said this while inaugurating 4th Heli-India Summit 2022 with the theme ‘Helicopters for last Mile Connectivity’ at Sher-e-Kashmir International Conference Centre, Srinagar, in presence of Lieutenant Governor of the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir, Sh. Manoj Sinha. During the summit,Scindia said that the decrease in VAT on Aviation Turbine Fuel (ATF) from 26.5 percent to one percent by the J&K government has set a new dawn for air connectivity in the Union territory with 360 percent increase in refueling, thus increasing the air connectivity to Jammu and Kashmir. Praising PM Narendra Modi for bringing a revolution in the Civil Aviation sector in India from 2014 onwards, Sh. Scindia said that from 1947 to 2014, the country had only 74 airports, but now the number has increased to 141, with 67 added in last seven years which shows the pace of progress in the Civil Aviation sector.The government is committed to increase the number to above 200 in the next few years, Sh. Scindia added. Scindia said that the Civil Aviation has now become the need of the hour not only for India but for humankind across the world as it always brings with it two important multipliers, the economic multiplier and the employment multiplier. The sector has huge impact with economic multiplier of 3.1 and employment multiplier of 6, the Minister informed. Therefore, the Civil Aviation across the world today forms a very important cog of the wheel of economic development, the Minister added. During the summit, Sh. Scindia said that helicopters have multifarious roles, providing urban connectivity which is no more an elitist prerogative in India but is based on PM Narendra Modi’s vision ‘Sab Ude, Sab Jude’. The other roles of helicopter service has been the emergency medical services and disaster management during floods, rescue operations etc., the Minister informed. Jammu & Kashmir has set an example of the best use of helicopter service when it erected transmission lines and towers using heli-cranes (sky cranes) on the Peer Panjal mountain range, the Minister added. Scindia further said that Civil Aviation Ministry not only organizes summits but also monitors the progress of ‘Sankalps’ taken from one summit to another. During the 3rd Heli-India Summit at Dehradun, the eight Sankalps taken like providing Heli-Sewa Portal, Heli-Disha, Helicopter Accelerator Cell, doing away with the landing & parking charges for helicopter service, creation of specific helicopter corridors, helipads to be given priority while framing DPR for all new highways, upgradation of Juhu airbase to accommodate night operations etc. were taken to their logical end. HeliSewa portal is fully online and being used by all operators for obtaining landing permissions to helipads, and it also is creating a database of helipads in the country. HeliDisha, the guidance material on helicopter operations for State administration has been distributed to 780 districts. The Helicopter Accelerator Cell is fully active in resolving helicopter issues and the advisory group of industry representatives is helping identify problems areas. “We have waived off landing and parking charges for helicopters at airports and we have started helicopter sensitization training of ATC officers for speedier helicopter traffic handling. Three helicopter corridors from Mumbai-Pune, Ahmedabad-Gandhinagar, and Shamshabad-Begumpet have been created and new IFR corridors are being planned. Working with MoRTH, we have been able to allot helipad spaces from the design stage for all future expressways and major highways so that it can be used for the evacuation of accident victims. And we have already commenced work on the upgradation of Juhuheli base which is the largest in the country, to accommodate night operations and helicopter IFR routes using GAGAN.”, he added. The Minister informed that today the guidelines on Fractional Ownership Model have been released to help grow the non-scheduled operations. “While our scheduled operations are on the fast track and we have increased the fleet size from 400 aeroplanes in 2013 to more than 700 in 2021-22, through these guidelines, we should be able to spur growth in the non-scheduled fleet too. Fractional ownership will lower the barrier on the cost of acquisition of helicopters and aeroplanes through pooled capital by multiple owners. This will allow companies and individuals to minimise their capital outflow by sharing the purchase cost, reducing their exposure to risks and making it financially easier to run a NSOP business. Fractional Ownership Model has the potential to energize the NSOP segment by democratising ownership of aircraft and it can be a key driver to boost the number of aircraft existing in the NSOP industry. The helicopter industry should be recognised for its social service. It is not a transportation vehicle but a transformation tool, it can be used not only for economic development but could also to transform lives.”, he added. Shri scindia said that we have also decided to incubate a HEMS pilot called Project Sanjeevani by deploying a helicopter in the next few weeks to provide emergency medical services at AIIMS Rishikesh. The helicopter will be based at the hospital at 20 min notice and will have a service cover to an area of 150 km radius. It is the intention of the Govt to expand medical outreach and access to trauma care services to a wider population base across the country using the speed advantage and mobility of helicopters. We will use the learnings from Project Sanjeevani to explore the viability of the concept, its benefits, and the attendant risks and later articulate a national policy on HEMS before committing larger resources. Lieutenant Governor of Jammu and Kashmir, Sh. Manoj Sinha, who was special guest during the summit said that the decision taken by the J&K UT government of decreasing VAT on Aviation Turbine Fuel (ATF) from 26.5

6th October 2022,New Delhi: Akasa Air, India’s newest airline, shared its expansion plan with addition of Delhi and Ahmadabad to it growing network. Speaking at an event to mark the airline’s first 60 days of operations, Vinay Dube, Founder and Chief Executive Officer, Akasa Air said, “Our first two months have been very exciting and satisfying as we moved from planning to commercial operations. We have been hyper focused on establishing and delivering an empathetic, dependable, and reliable flying experience unlike anything witnessed in the Indian skies thus far”. “We are delighted that a significant number of flyers have already chosen to fly with us and are very pleased with the positive feedback we have received on our product and service. It is equally satisfying to see the pride in our employees as they work together to deliver the Akasa Experience”, he added. Akasa Air also announced starting flights to and from Delhi from 7th October onwards establish the network with national capital as its sixth destination. Additionally, Delhi- Ahmedabad routes will also start serving both the routes with daily flights in each direction. The airline has announced eight destinations so far, including Mumbai, Ahmedabad, Bengaluru, Kochi, Chennai, Delhi, Agartala and Guwahati being covered with 11 non-stop routes. Commenting on the occasion, Praveen Iyer, Co-Founder, and Chief Commercial Officer, Akasa Air, said “We are elated by the response we have received as we welcomed on board more than 100,000 passengers within just 60 days of operations. Further strengthening our domestic connectivity and catering to more flyers during the festive season, we are delighted to be able to add Delhi to our network and connect the capital city to the rapidly growing and vibrant cities of Bengaluru and Ahmedabad. By expanding our network with an aircraft arriving every 15 days, we aim to fulfil our goal of developing a strong pan-India presence and expect to operate 300 weekly flights by October end.” In a new concept among the Indian carrier, Akasa Air will commence pet-friendly service from 1st November 2022, wherein passengers flying on Akasa Air will be able to travel with their pets in the cabin. Akasa Air has been progressively expanding its network with the introduction of routes in Tier 2 and 3 cities. The company has recently received its sixth aircraft and will have a fleet size of 18 aircraft by the end of March 2023. Over the next four years, the airline will add 54 additional aircraft, taking its total fleet size to 72 aircraft.