Recent News

India, 17th July 2023: Singapore Airlines (SIA) has announced temporary upgauge of its Boeing 737-8 services to Airbus A350-900 services from 17-20 October 2023, and again on 26 and 27 October 2023. Subject to regulatory approvals, this change of aircraft type from a narrow-body to a wide-body over the Durga Puja period will help meet the surge in demand for travel during the festival. Singapore Airlines currently flies daily from Kolkata, operating its 154-seater B737-8 aircraft from Tuesdays to Fridays and its 303-seater A350-900 aircraft every Monday, Saturday and Sunday. With this upgauge, the Airline will operate daily A350-900 services from 14-23 October 2023 and again from 26-30 October 2023, thus increasing SIA’s total capacity from Kolkata by 22% over the Durga Puja period. Daily A350-900 operations during this time will also offer customers an inventory of 40 lie-flat Business Class seats per day as opposed to just 10 on the B737-8 aircraft. The complete current and revised flight schedules for Kolkata can be found in Annexe A at the end of this release. All times stated in the schedules are local. Sy Yen Chen, General Manager India for Singapore Airlines, said, “We are delighted to announce this temporary capacity increase from Kolkata over the Durga Puja period, when demand for travel usually exceeds availability of seats. We are fully committed to the West Bengal market, and we want our customers to enjoy their holidays with seamless connections to their preferred destinations on their favourite Airline.” “Our modern Airbus A350 medium haul aircraft, combined with award-winning inflight service and complimentary Wi-Fi across cabins, will provide enhanced comfort to travellers from Kolkata, further demonstrating SIA’s commitment to product and service excellence.” Mr. Chen added.

Delhi, 14th July 2023: The IAF has been fully involved in Humanitarian Assistance and Disaster Relief operations in the states of Himachal Pradesh and Punjab in the light of current flood situation. In the last 48 hours, a total 40 sorties have been carried out, in which, 126 people have been rescued and 17 tons of relief materials have been distributed in various areas.In the last 24 hrs, major operations have been carried out towards flood affected areas of Haryana. Villages of Nihara, Allaudin Majra, Bishangarh, Segta, Bhunni, Mumni, Segti and Jansui were provided with relief materials consisting of rations, tarpaulin sheets, fresh food and water bottles by M-17 helicopters. Airwarriors and all requisite assets such as M-17 and Chinook Helicopters and An-32 and C-130 Transport Aircraft remain on standby to undertake required operations.

Mumbai, 11th July 2023: Federal Bank in association with Collinson, owner and operator of Priority Pass Access India, a dedicated airport experiences programme for India, and LoungeKey, an international digital travel experiences programme, announces a new programme that offers the Bank’s customers access to premium airport lounges and travel experiences. This partnership will enable eligible Federal Bank cardholders (with payment cards issued across any payment network brand – Mastercard, Visa and Rupay) to enjoy complimentary access to over 50 premium airport lounges and travel experiences across all major cities in India, simply by tapping or swiping their payment card on entry. Additionally, eligible Federal Bank cardholders will also have access to over 1,200 international airport lounges and travel experiences through Collinson’s LoungeKeyTM programme. Depending on their card type, eligible cardholders will be entitled to between two and four complimentary lounge visits per annum. With India experiencing a positive travel rebound over and above pre-COVID levels, this partnership with Federal Bank is perfectly timed to better support its cardholders during their upcoming travels. The premium benefit is also highly relevant, with travellers having expressed that they are willing to pay more for experiences that make their journeys more comfortable, such as airport lounge access. A recent Collinson study surveying over 5,400 frequent travellers across seven Asia Pacific markets (1,063 of which were India-based respondents) found that 87% of travellers in India expect airport lounge access as a premium card benefit. 55% said they felt ‘rewarded’; while a further 52% ‘feel valued as a customer’ when they are provided with lounge access. Indian travellers also valued other travel experiences, such as dining discounts, lifestyle and wellness benefits such as sleep pods and having access to a wellbeing and fitness app, the study found. Speaking on the partnership, Sumit Prakash, Country Director, India and South Asia at Collinson, said: “With the Indian market rapidly approaching full travel recovery in both the domestic and international segments, we are delighted to be partnering with Federal Bank to enhance their customers’ travel experience. We are looking forward to welcoming Federal Bank cardholders to enjoy both our local and international network of airport lounges and travel experiences.” Chitrabhanu K G, Senior Vice President & Country Head- Retail Asset & Cards, Federal Bank said, At Federal Bank, we’re delighted to offer this programme to our valued cardholders that provides seamless, integrated travel experiences at the tap of a card. Through our partnership with Collinson, not only are we excited that our customers will be able to enjoy premium airport lounges and travel experiences in India and abroad; we also believe that this easy access to enhanced travel experiences, will be greatly appreciated by our customers.”

New Delhi, 9th July 2023: Ministry of Defence signed, in New Delhi on July 07, 2023, a contract with Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) for procurement of two Dornier Aircraft for Indian Coast Guard (ICG) along with associated Engineering Support package at an overall cost of Rs 458.87 crore. The aircraft will be procured under the Buy (Indian) Category.The aircraft will be fitted with a number of advanced equipment viz., Glass Cockpit, Maritime Patrol Radar, Electro Optic Infra-Red device, Mission Management System etc. The addition will further bolster the aerial surveillance capability of maritime areas of responsibilities of the ICG. The Dornier aircraft are being indigenously manufactured at HAL (Transport Aircraft Division), Kanpur and will significantly contribute in achieving Aatmanirbharta in defence, in consonance with the ‘Make in India’ initiative of the Government.

New Delhi, 9th July 2023: Raksha Mantri Rajnath Singh will be visiting to Malaysia on July 10-11, 2023, with focus on further consolidating bilateral defence cooperation and Enhanced Strategic Partnership. The Raksha Mantri will hold bilateral talks with Defence Minister of Malaysia Mr Dato’ Seri Mohamad Hasan, during which both the Ministers will review defence cooperation between the two countries and explore new initiatives to further strengthen the engagements. The two sides will also exchange views on regional and global issues of shared interest. Rajnath Singh will also call on the Prime Minister of Malaysia Mr YB Dato’ Seri Anwar bin Ibrahim during the visit. India and Malaysia have a common interest in peace and prosperity of the entire region. The two democracies have a robust and multifaceted relationship which has expanded into several strategic areas, including defence and security. Both the countries are committed to work under the vision of Enhanced Strategic Partnership established during the visit of Prime Minister Narendra Modi to Malaysia in 2015.