Edits, Columns & Analysis - July 2008

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India has a market for only two full-service, two low-cost airlines
P.R. Sanjai and Baiju Kalesh
Livemint
Jul 24, 2008
Mumbai: Amitabh Malhotra, director of investment banking firm N.M. Rothschild and Sons (India) Pvt. Ltd, has seen Indian aviation from close quarters since the sector was opened to private investments. He was instrumental in bringing in the first private ­equity investor into Air Deccan (now Simplifly Deccan) in 2004. Four years later, Malhotra brokered another ­important deal — WL Ross and Co. Llc’s $80 million (around Rs338 crore) investment in Delhi-based low-fare carrier SpiceJet Ltd. Malhotra says finding an investor for a private carrier in India, when the rising price of jet fuel is pulling down their profits, is a very tough job.
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Airlines take slick steps to save fuel
Shobha John
Times of India
20 Jul 2008
High fuel prices are causing heartburn in aviation circles. But airlines, finds out Sunday Times , can conserve it by taking long-term steps in various departments. What are they?
Shed flab. That's the new-age mantra. And it works just as well for airlines which want to become lean, mean machines in the time of galloping ATF prices. And they could, if they take certain long-term measures. Aviation experts suggest how to run a well-oiled airline, despite the vagaries of oil prices and other turbulences. Besides cutting flights and routes, there are innovative methods to keep the weight down and fuel consumption less.
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The flying girls of Dehra Dun
Ranjona Banerji
Daily News & Analysis
July 19, 2008
I must confess that I never did think much of air-hostessing as a profession. This prejudice started at a very young age when it occurred to me that it was all about serving horrible people with a smile on your face. I imagined every one of those grinning girls offering passengers “orange juice, sir and madam?” actually wanting to pour it into their laps. Later I heard all the lectures about getting to see the world and meeting world famous fat cats in business and first classes. In years of flying as a passenger, walking past first and business to the cattle section, the only fat cats I have ever noticed are Asha Parekh and Shammi. Obviously, I take the routes less flown.
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The liar of Air India flight 182
MARK BONOKOSKI
Toronto Sun, Canada
July 15, 2008
In the Canadian justice system, where killing one person means the rest are freebies, Inderjit Singh Reyat served in the ballpark of 22.18 days in jail for each of the 329 passengers and crew who were blown up over the Irish Sea while on Air India Flight 182 from Toronto to Bombay.
Two hundred and seventy eight of the dead were Canadians, their lives abruptly coming to an end 23 years ago without rhyme or elaborated reason.
Throw in the two baggage handlers at Tokyo's Narita International Airport, who were killed by a similar bomb while unloading a Bombay-bound CP Air flight from Vancouver, and Reyat's time in jail for his role in both bombings moves down a couple of points to 22.05 days in jail for each victim.
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New airports off to a flying start
Thillai Rajan A.
Balaraman Rajan
Megha Malhotra
Business Line
July 16, 2008
History of sorts in civil aviation was made recently in India. The event was the opening of the Rajiv Gandhi International Airport in Hyderabad and the Bangalore International Airport on March 16 and May 24, respectively. In no other country have two large private sector green-field international airports started operations within a span of just 78 days.
In a way, this is a clear signal that India is on the threshold of a new era of private participation in civil aviation. Though Bangalore was the first private sector airport to be conceptualised way back in 1994, Hyderabad edged out Bangalore close to the finishing line, when it became the first private sector commercial airport to start operations in the country.
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Was A-I & Indian merger ill-timed?
Hormuz P Mama, Aerospace Journalist
and Commentator
Economic Times
Jul 09, 2008
The merger between Air-India and Indian Airlines had just about everything against it. It was between a predominantly international carrier and a primarily domestic one, with few possibilities of synergies between them. While there could be the avoidance of duplication on nearby international destinations, a more optimum use of aircraft, merger of some administrative facilities, and the like, these did not justify a full merger.
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Bial will break even in 5 years if allowed to charge user fee
Venkatesha Babu
Livemint
July 07, 2008
Bangalore: Seventeen years after it was conceived, the Bengaluru International Airport became operational on the night of 24-25 May after several delays. From the day of its launch, the airport has been in the news mainly for the wrong reasons, from complaints over poor connectivity to inadequate toilet facilities. This, however, doesn’t seem to faze Albert Brunner, the soft-spoken chief executive officer of airport operator Bangalore International Airport Ltd (Bial), who has been leading the project since 2002. In an interview with Mint, Brunner responds to the criticism and controversy surrounding Bial.
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Low-cost airlines will survive but must remember self-service is key
P. R. Sanjai
Livemint
Jul 07, 2008
Mumbai: India’s largest airlines were forced in May to raise ticket prices to counter rising prices of aviation fuel and potential combined losses of $2 billion in the year to March 2009. These carriers are trimming costs, getting out of low-profit routes, and thinking up new business models to fly over a looming crisis.
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Off-Loading India’s Air Hostesses
Geeta Seshu
Asia Sentinel, China
04 July 2008
There are male flight attendants aboard Air India and Indian Airlines that are so fat that they have got stuck in the aircraft toilets. And that seems to be fine with the airlines. But if you’re a woman, you had better watch what you eat – and then not eat it.
Widespread publicity has been given to a recent judgment of the Delhi High Court grounding airline staff who do not meet weight criteria, bringing into focus a gamut of issues - fat versus fitness, discrimination against air hostesses, and mindsets trapped in notions of glamour and beauty in this service industry.
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Where India's airlines went wrong
Hormuz P Mama
Economic Times
Jul 04, 2008
When low-fare carrier Air Deccan started services in 2003, other entrepreneurs announced similar plans. It was followed in quick succession by SpiceJet, Kingfisher, GoAir, IndoGo, and others. With many other airlines awaiting launch, it was clear that the traffic would be grossly inadequate for them. Yet, airline promoters continued to rush in - like suicidal lemmings drawn to water. Had they back-tracked, they would have saved themselves - and others - from the present very critical situation.
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