Recent News

Astana, 20th Dec 2024: Air Astana will be launching a new three times a week, Airbus A321LR service from Almaty to Frankfurt on 1st June 2025, with tickets already on sale. The new service will complement existing flights to Frankfurt from Astana, Kazakhstan’s capital and Uralsk in western Kazakhstan. Air Astana first launched direct flights to Germany in 2003. The planned schedule will be convenient for both point-to-point and transit passengers, with the flight from Almaty departing at 01:30 and arriving in Frankfurt at 06:55 and the return flight departing at 08:30 and arriving back in Almaty at 18:55. The minimum fare for a round-trip economy class ticket starts at US$550 including taxes & fees and tickets can now be booked on the airline’s website, at sales offices, the Reservation & Information Centre and accredited agencies.

Delhi, 20th December, 2024: Akasa Air has announced its special Christmas Sale offering discounts on fares across its domestic and international network, presenting customers a chance to save big while planning their journeys for the upcoming year. During the offer period, customers can get: • All-inclusive (one-way) fares starting from INR 1499 for domestic routes • Discount of up to 25% on the basic fare for flight bookings on international sectors using the promo code HOLIDAY25. Bookings can be made through all channels. The sale is valid for ‘Saver’ and ‘Flexi’ fares on bookings made between 24th December 2024 and 26th December 2024, for travel starting from 7th January 2025. It applies to non-stop and through flights across Akasa Air’s network and covers both one-way and round-trip tickets.

Delhi, 19th Dec 2024: A meeting of Consultative Committee for the Ministry of Defence (MoD) under the chairmanship of Raksha Mantri Shri Rajnath Singh was held in New Delhi on December 17, 2024. The roles and functions of the new DPSUs, created post corporatisation of erstwhile Ordnance Factory Board, were deliberated upon during the meeting. The committee members were apprised on the financial figures, modernisation, capital expenditure, exports, new products developed and ongoing R&D projects. Raksha Mantri appreciated the efforts taken by the new DPSUs in indigenisation of critical products, modernisation of production facilities and promotion of MSMEs. He appreciated the fact that post corporatisation, the new DPSUs have shown improvement in productivity and quality. There has been good progress in the sales and profit of these DPSUs in a very short span of time, he added. Shri Rajnath Singh exuded confidence that the new DPSUs will carry forward modernisation & indigenisation, and will set new dimensions in quality, turnover, profitability and other financial parameters by incorporating world class technologies. “Our new DPSUs will make India ‘Aatmanirbhar’ in the field of defence production,” he said. On the concerns and suggestions of some of the committee members on certain HR-related issues within the new DPSUs, Raksha Mantri assured them that all issues emanating from the corporatisation of DPSUs are being addressed adequately in consultation with all the stakeholders. He appreciated the suggestions, and said that these would be examined for implementation. Raksha Rajya Mantri Shri Sanjay Seth, Chief of Defence Staff General Anil Chauhan, Secretary (Defence Production) Shri Sanjeev Kumar and other senior officers of MoD were present in the meeting.

Mumbai, 17th Dec 2024: Mumbai’s CSMI Airport in November 2024 witnessed a significant growth in passenger traffic and operational efficiency. The airport catered to 4.77 million passengers, comprising 3.40 million domestic and 1.37 million international travellers. During the month, CSMIA handled 27,200 Air Traffic Movements (ATMs) (19,696 domestic ATMs including freighter and 7,504 international ATMs, including cargo freighters). The busiest day was recorded on 27th November 2024, with 941 flights on a single day. This strong performance was driven by growing demand for both domestic and international air travel during the festive season. CSMIA’s expanding network and focus on providing top-notch services played a key role in meeting this demand, further cementing its position as a major hub for air travel. Among domestic destinations, Delhi, Bangalore, and Goa emerged as the top three locations, catering to both leisure and business travellers. On the international front Dubai, Abu Dhabi, and London were the most frequented routes. CSMIA handled a remarkable 71,046 MT of cargo, comprising 18,653 MT of domestic shipments and 52,393 MT of international consignments. Key domestic commodities included consolidated cargo, engineering goods, and postal mail, while international shipments were dominated by automobiles, pharmaceuticals, and electronics. The top-performing domestic destinations were Delhi, Bangalore, and Kolkata, with London, Frankfurt, and Dubai emerging as the leading international hubs. Cargo operations demonstrated resilient performance, recording an impressive 11% growth compared to November 2023 with 63,924 MT. This surge was significantly fueled by a 32% rise in the movement of automobile products, underscoring a strong upward trend in this segment. During the month, Cargo operations witnessed 699 Air Traffic Movements (349 Domestic ATMs & 350 International ATMs).

New Delhi, 12th Dec 2024: Raksha Mantri Shri Rajnath Singh called on the President of the Russian Federation Mr Vladimir Putin in Moscow on December 10, 2024, on the margins of the 21st session of India-Russia Inter-Governmental Commission on Military and Military Cooperation (IRIGC-M&MTC). Raksha Mantri conveyed warm greetings of Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi to President Putin. Shri Rajnath Singh discussed various issues of bilateral defence cooperation. Both leaders expressed that partnership between both countries holds immense potential and combined efforts will pave way for remarkable outcomes. During the meeting, Shri Rajnath Singh said “Friendship between our countries is higher than the highest mountain and deeper than the deepest ocean.” India has always stood by its Russian friends and will continue to do so in future, he added.

New Delhi,9 December 2024: SriLankan Airlines’ frequent flyer programme, FlySmiLes, has gone live with a reimagined website that introduces several standout features, offering seamless access and reward redemptions alongside many other intuitive functionalities for its nearly 800,000 global members. The platform is designed to bring exceptional ease and privileges, enhancing the travel experience for FlySmiLes members throughout their journeys and beyond. Dimuthu Tennakoon, Head of Worldwide Sales and Distribution of SriLankan Airlines, stated, “The new FlySmiLes’ website exemplifies our unwavering commitment to delivering a superior customer experience. It marks a significant step forward in how we engage with and reward our loyal customers. With its enhanced, user-friendly features, the website empowers members to access exclusive rewards and personalised offers anytime, anywhere.” Chamara Perera, Group Head of Information Technology of SriLankan Airlines, added, “Developed entirely in-house, this project reflects the remarkable talent and innovation within our airline. The collective efforts of our teams ensured that every detail and feature of the website met the specific needs of our frequent flyers. By integrating cutting-edge technology, the website strikes the perfect balance between practicality and aesthetics, serving as a comprehensive digital front for FlySmiLes and providing solutions for nearly every member requirement.” Members can now effortlessly navigate their personalised dashboard, check their FlySmiLes miles balance and track their membership tier progress. What’s more, buying, transferring, and gifting miles has never been simpler. The platform also offers a seamless user experience with social login, enabling members to sign in using their Google or Facebook accounts. For added security, an OTP (One-Time Password) has been enabled for transactions, all integrated smoothly with a range of payment options, including American Express, Visa and MasterCard. The website makes managing redemption vouchers a breeze, by making it possible to request, redeem, modify or cancel with just a few clicks. It also offers easy access to a variety of other vouchers, such as lounge access vouchers for co-branded cardholders, excess baggage vouchers and vouchers from non-airline partners.

New Delhi, 8th December 2024: Vipin Kumar, Chairman, Airports Authority of India (AAI) visited Patna Airport to review the ongoing works of the New Terminal Building. He inspected the entire project thoroughly along with Dr. Sharad Kumar, Member (Operations), AAI; Anil Kumar Gupta, Member (Planning), AAI and the team of engineers at the site. Chairman,AAI during his review, gave instruction to the agencies and engineers at site to expedite and complete all remaining works,so as to make the airport ready by January 2025. He also directed the Airport Director to ensure seamless co-ordination with state authorities and regulatory bodies including DGCA, BCAS for all mandatory approvals required in order to meet the project deadlines, prior to commissioning of the new terminal. The master plan for the expansion of Patna airport is estimated to cost Rs 1216.90 Crore, which includes development of new terminal building, multi-level car parking facility and parking Bays. With a built-up area of 65,155 Sqm, the new world-class terminal building will cater to 3,000 passengers during peak hours.This expansion will also boost the airport’s capacity from 3 million to 10 million passengers annually.The construction of new terminal building will include six new additional parking stands, increasing the present five to eleven. The New terminal is equipped with State- of the art passenger facilities including 54 checks in counters, five passenger boarding bridges, five conveyor belts, and eight in-line XBIS machines which allows for quick transit of passenger inside terminals. The design of this Griha IV- star rated new terminal Building is inspired form the forms of Nalanda ruins and interiors will be adorned with Madhubani Paintings.