Recent News

Gurugram, 27 December 2023: Air India has announced that passengers flying to and from Delhi IGI airport during the winter season will be allowed to reschedule or cancel their bookings at no extra cost if their flight is likely to be affected by major fog delays. This is part of its FogCare initiative introduced last winter. Air India will provide proactive assistance to affected passengers and offer them easy options to reschedule or cancel their ticket at no extra cost. “The FogCare initiative is a sincere effort to minimise inconvenience to guests whose flights are likely to get affected by fog. It will also help maintain network schedule integrity,” said Rajesh Dogra, Chief Customer Experience Officer, Air India. Passengers of these flights will be kept updated with flight-specific advisories and offered easy options in advance to ease their travel experience.

Los Angeles, CA, 22nd Dec 2023: Los Angeles International Airport (LAX) is wrapping up the year with an anticipated busy winter holiday travel period. The airport is expecting more than 4 million passengers to use the airport between December 14 and January 3, a 12% increase compared to the same period last year. “We are anticipating a daily average of 211,000 passengers to pass through LAX over the 21-day winter holiday travel period,” said Beatrice Hsu, Interim CEO of Los Angeles World Airports. “While our airport will be busier than usual, there are several ways to plan ahead and avoid the hassles that often accompany holiday travel. We encourage guests to arrive early, pre-book parking at FlyLAX.com, and take advantage of the LAX Order Now service to skip the wait for concessions.” Vehicle traffic in the Central Terminal Area (CTA) is expected to be heavy, with an average of more than 93,000 vehicles expected daily during the holiday period. Los Angeles Department of Transportation (LADOT) Traffic Control Officers will help direct traffic on the airport perimeter roadways and Airport Police Traffic Control Officers will direct vehicles in the CTA roadway. Due to increased airport traffic and parking garages approaching full capacity, guests are encouraged to reserve a parking space in advance at Parking.FLYLAX.com. The new LAX Budget Parking facility, LAX Economy Parking, and CTA garages offer pre-booking options. For savings on general and premium parking in the CTA garages, guests can use the promo code MERRY10 to receive a 10% discount. This offer is valid until December 31, 2023.

22-December-2023, New Delhi: Air India Express, announces the commencement of new routes from Gwalior to two major metropolitan cities – Gwalior to Delhi and Gwalior to Bengaluru, starting January 16th. The airline will operate daily direct flights on these routes, significantly improving the connectivity to and from Gwalior. This comes less than a month after the airline started operations from the city with direct connectivity to Hyderabad. The inaugural flight on the Bengaluru-Gwalior route, IX 1590, is set to depart on January 16, 2024, at 05:10 hours, reaching Gwalior at 07:45 hours. The return flight, IX 1592, will leave Gwalior at 15:35 hours, arriving in Bengaluru at 18:10 hours. IX 1590 on the Gwalior-Delhi route will depart Gwalior at 08:15 hours, landing in Delhi at 09:20 hours. Subsequently, from Delhi, IX 1592 departs at 13:35 hours, touching down in Gwalior at 15:00 hours. Speaking about the expansion, Ankur Garg, Chief Commercial Officer, Air India Express, said “At Air India Express, our commitment is to fortify the connectivity of New India, with a particular focus on our robust tier 2 & 3 cities. The launch of services from Gwalior to New Delhi and Bengaluru symbolises this pledge. Beyond these direct flights, we are establishing connections from Gwalior to 21 key destinations, accessible via convenient one-stop itineraries through Bengaluru, New Delhi, and Hyderabad. Furthermore, the New Delhi – Gwalior flight extends convenient via-connectivity for the people of Gwalior to the city of Ayodhya.”

Mumbai, 20th Dec 2023: Vistara will boost international connectivity from Mumbai by increasing flight frequencies to two popular destinations – London Heathrow and Singapore. Commencing on 1 March 2024, Vistara will increase the flight frequency between Mumbai and London Heathrow from 4x weekly to daily flights. Additionally, a second daily flight between Mumbai and Singapore will be introduced starting 1 February 2024. Vistara connects Mumbai to a total of 14 international destinations, including Abu Dhabi, Bangkok, Colombo, Dammam, Dhaka, Doha, Dubai, Frankfurt, Jeddah, London Heathrow, Male, Mauritius, Muscat, and Singapore.

New Delhi, 20th Nov 2023: Union Minister of Civil Aviation Jyotiraditya Scindia held an Advisory Group Meeting with Airport Operators on 19th December, 2023. With the upcoming season in mind, the Minister emphasized on the importance of preventing congestion at airports. He assured that the ministry is proactively implementing all possible measures to facilitate a smooth and time-saving travel experience for passengers during this period. In the meeting, the Minister listened to the queries and suggestions from operators and guided them to ensure optimal operations for the convenience of passengers. An important topic of the discussion was the promotion of ‘DigiYatra’ to enhance the conversion rate from manual to digital check-ins and entry gate processes, ensuring hassle-free and swift passenger movement. Currently, the facility is available for domestic passengers at 13 airports of the country including: Lucknow, Mumbai, Ahmedabad, Kochi, Jaipur, Guwahati, Delhi, Bangalore, Varanasi, Vijayawada, Pune, Hyderabad, and Kolkata airports. In the discussion, the suggestion of integrating ‘DigiYatra’ for international passenger access at both departure and arrival. To explore best practices, the airport operators were also tasked with presenting biometric enabled models being successfully used in other countries. Moving ahead, the Minister also reviewed the Capital Expenditure target of all airport operators, aligning it with the actuals obtained in Q3. The meeting was attended by all airport operators including GMR Airports, Adani Airports, BIAL, Cochin Airport and the Airports Authority of India. The Secretary Civil Aviation, Vumlunmang Vualnam, DG BCAS, Zulfiqar Hasan, DG DGCA, Vikram Devdutt and other Joint secretaries and senior officials of the Ministry were also present in the meeting.

Surat, 15th Nov 2023: The Union Cabinet chaired by the Prime Minister Narendra Modi has approved the proposal to declare Surat Airport as an International Airport. Surat Airport will not only become a gateway for international travelers but also facilitate seamless export-import operations for the thriving diamond and textile – industries. This strategic move promises to unlock unprecedented economic potential, making Surat a key player in the international aviation landscape and fostering a new era of prosperity for the region. Latest developments also confirms that will have direct international flights to Bangkok, Malaysia, and Singapore have been revealed, with operations scheduled to begin in 2024 from Surat airport (STV). Sanjay Ezhava, President of the Surat Airport Action Committee (SAAC), has also announced that Surat Airport is on track to establish direct air connectivity with Bangkok and other prominent destinations, including Malaysia and Singapore, starting from February 2024. Surat, a rapidly growing city in India, has demonstrated remarkable economic prowess and industrial development. Elevating Surat Airport to international status is paramount for enhancing economic growth, attracting foreign investment, and bolstering diplomatic ties. With a surge in passenger traffic and cargo operations, the airport’s international designation will provide a crucial impetus for regional development.

Singapore, 13th Dec 2023; Marriott International and Singapore Airlines (SIA) announced the strengthening of their strategic partnership, which provides members of Marriott Bonvoy, Marriott International’s award-winning travel programme, and KrisFlyer, the SIA Group’s lifestyle rewards programme, with more ways to maximise their benefits. The eligible members of the two programmes may receive a status match and take advantage of an accelerated pathway to obtain a higher elite status. The expansion of this collaboration is in addition to the two-way points and miles transfer benefits for members of both programmes that was announced in January 2023, and allows them to convert their Marriott Bonvoy points into KrisFlyer miles and vice versa. John Toomey, Chief Sales and Marketing Officer, Asia Pacific excluding China, Marriott International, said: “We are thrilled to announce the expansion of our collaboration with Singapore Airlines, providing members with added value to make the most of their travels and enjoy exclusive benefits across Marriott Bonvoy’s extensive global network of nearly 8,700 hotels and resorts spanning over 30 distinct brands. This is a significant milestone that not only marks the extension of our global airline programme but also reaffirms our commitment to continuously enhance our approach to customer loyalty.” Dai Haoyu, Acting Senior Vice President Marketing Planning, Singapore Airlines, said: “Strengthening our partnership with Marriott allows KrisFlyer members to unlock even greater benefits, while enjoying more ways to earn and redeem their points and miles. This comes at an opportune time amid the strong demand for international travel. With this enhancement, our members can look forward to better value, as well as more accrual and redemption opportunities that match their evolving lifestyle interests.” Details of the enhanced benefits include: • Status Match: Members will be able to enjoy elite status match according to the elite tiers of both programmes. Solitaire PPS Club, PPS Club, and KrisFlyer Elite Gold members will receive a status match to Marriott Bonvoy Gold, while Marriott Bonvoy Platinum, Titanium, and Ambassador members will receive a status match to the KrisFlyer Elite Silver tier. Marriott Bonvoy Elite status benefits may include room upgrades, late check-outs, bonus points, welcome gifts, and more. KrisFlyer Elite status benefits may include bonus miles, complimentary seat selection for customers flying with Singapore Airlines, complimentary lounge access, priority check-in and boarding, additional baggage allowance, and more. • Accelerated Pathways to Higher Membership Tiers: Eligible Marriott Bonvoy members can accelerate the upgrade of their KrisFlyer membership to higher tiers by completing as few as two to four flights with SIA within a six-month period. Similarly, eligible KrisFlyer members can achieve accelerated status match with Marriott Bonvoy by staying three to 10 nights at any participating Marriott Bonvoy portfolio of hotels, within a span of six months. ● Access to Exclusive Promotions: Marriott Bonvoy and KrisFlyer will periodically launch exclusive campaigns where members can earn both miles and points through their hotel stay and flights. More details will be announced in due course.