Akasa Airlines | Business Upturn

Akasa Air launches flights linking Ayodhya to major cities

Matrika Shukla — Sat, 17 Feb 2024 14:14:55 +0000

Akasa Air has launched flights connecting the ancient city of Ayodhya with major metropolitan centres. This move not only enhances Ayodhya’s accessibility and economic prospects but also underscores Akasa Air’s commitment to bridging the gap between urban and non-urban areas across the nation.

On February 15, 2024, Akasa Air inaugurated its maiden flight, marking the commencement of a journey to blend Ayodhya’s cultural heritage with the contemporary ease of air transportation. These daily flights, linking Pune and Ayodhya via Delhi, promise passengers a hassle-free experience without the need for aircraft changes, particularly advantageous for daytime travel. This strategic initiative not only addresses the increasing demand for air travel in the area but also resonates with Akasa Air’s mission of enhancing connectivity beyond major urban hubs.

Praveen Iyer, the Co-Founder and Chief Commercial Officer of Akasa Air, conveyed his enthusiasm regarding the launch, accentuating Ayodhya’s historical prominence and its prospects to evolve into a tourism centre. He emphasized the airline’s dedication to providing dependable travel experiences at competitive fares, thereby fostering the economic growth of the region. Belson Coutinho, the Co-Founder and Chief Marketing & Experience Officer, echoed this sentiment, emphasizing Akasa Air’s exceptional services and hospitable demeanour as pivotal factors in ensuring customer satisfaction.

The airline has unveiled a suite of premium products and services designed to elevate the passenger journey. Featuring expansive cabins boasting generous legroom and equipped with USB ports for convenient gadget charging, every comfort aspect has been thoughtfully crafted. Café Akasa, the in-flight dining service, presents a tantalizing selection of options, including pioneering offerings such as Kombucha, promising a gourmet culinary adventure at cruising altitude. Furthermore, the incorporation of Pets on Akasa and Braille safety instructions underscores the airline’s commitment to inclusivity and accessibility for all travellers.

Since its establishment in August 2022, Akasa Air has rapidly ascended to the forefront of India’s aviation sector, catering to more than 7.7 million passengers and establishing connections among 20 cities nationwide. The airline’s unwavering commitment to innovation and customer satisfaction has solidified its position as a pioneer in the industry, with initiatives like Café Akasa and Pets on Akasa setting new benchmarks for air travel in India.

Delhi HC deferred Akasa Air’s plea against DGCA to March 2024

Mahita Jain — Sun, 15 Oct 2023 11:54:58 +0000

The Delhi High Court has rescheduled the hearing of Akasa Air’s case against the Director General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) regarding pilot resignations to March 12, 2024. This decision was made on October 13.

Justice Manmeet Pritam Singh Arora was presiding over the case. However, due to the judge’s earlier involvement in a division bench, both parties requested adjournments for the cases listed before the bench.

Akasa Air’s plea has been postponed until March 12 by the court. Earlier, on September 27, the Delhi High Court confirmed the DGCA’s authority to take action against pilots and airlines that do not comply with Civil Aviation Requirements (CAR).

However, the court’s interim order stated that the DGCA cannot be directed to act against future pilot resignations, as Akasa Air’s case is still under review

Akasa Airlines in talks with Boeing Company for 737 Max Single-Aisle Jets

Kashvi Basu — Mon, 19 Jun 2023 16:02:21 +0000

India based Akasa Air is said to be in talks with the Boeing Company to place a small follow-on order for 737 Max single-aisle jets as soon as it licks down financing, according to people well versed with the matter. The US plane maker is working to make concrete negotiations as soon as this week at the Paris Air Show, the people said, asking not to be identified as the discussions are confidential.

Funding might serve as a roadblock after the death of Akasa’s billionaire founder and the failure of indian Go Airlines. There is still no assurity whether this contract is bound to happen or not or if an agreement can be struck. Akasa may order a bevy of 10 or fewer aircrafts, one of the sources familiar with the matter said. Whereas, a Boeing representative declined to comment. Akasa, which is India’s newest aviation player, began flying just over a year ago. The carrier has received 20 of the 72 Max jets which it has already ordered. In March, Chief Executive Officer Vinay Dube said the low-cost carrier would place a three-digit order for more aircraft by year-end. Since then, Go Airlines’ insolvency has made aircraft lessors wary of further exposure to the market.

India’s studded cutthroat aviation industry is seeing hefty orders from newly-privatized Air India Ltd., and market leader IndiGo is expected to double its jet backlog with a 500-plane order at the show. Akasa’s Founder, billionaire Rakesh Jhunjhunwala, died this August, raising questions about the airline’s future funding issues.

PM Modi will inaugurate Arunachal’s first Greenfield airport today

Aryan Jakhar — Sat, 19 Nov 2022 03:00:51 +0000

The Donyi Polo Airport, the first greenfield airport in Arunachal Pradesh, will be opened by Prime Minister Narendra Modi today near Holangi, Itanagar. The Donyi Polo airport was constructed by the Airports Authority of India at an estimated cost of Rs. 645 crore. At the event, he will also dedicate to the country the 600 MW Kameng hydropower station in the West Kameng area.

Today at 9.30 AM, PM Modi will officially open the airport before departing for Varanasi and Gujarat, according to representatives of the state’s civil aviation department. PM Modi opened the renovated Tezu Airport in 2019 and laid the cornerstone for the development of Hollongi’s Greenfield Airport. An official statement claims that the terminal at Hollongi, which has a 4100 sq m area, was built for roughly Rs 955 crore. 200 passengers can be handled at peak capacity per hour.

The easternmost state of the nation, Arunachal Pradesh, lacks an airport. The closest facility is at Lilabari Airport in North Lakhimpur, Assam, which is 80 kilometres distant. The state has a few high-tech landing areas, including those in Pasighat and Tezu. Flights took launched for the first time in 75 years at airports in five northeastern states: Mizoram, Meghalaya, Sikkim, Arunachal Pradesh, and Nagaland.

Over 690 acres have been used to create the airport, which has cost over 640 million rupees. The airport is excellent for daytime operations in all conditions because to its 2,300 m runway. “The airport terminal is a modern building, which promotes energy efficiency, renewable energy, and the recycling of resources. Donyi Polo Airport will be the third operational airport for Arunachal Pradesh, taking the total airport count in the North-East region to 16. From 1947 to 2014, only nine airports were built in the North-East. In a short span of eight years since then, the Modi government has built seven airports in the North-East,” read the official statement.

Except for Wednesday, flights will run every day between Hollongi, which is 15 kilometres from Itanagar, and Mumbai and Kolkata. Wednesday flights between Hollongi and Kolkata will start operating from December 3, according to Sanjay Kumar, chief strategy and revenue officer of IndiGo.

According to him, this is in keeping with the carrier’s mission to improve connectivity in the Northeast, and the flights are made to accommodate business and leisure travellers who are continuously looking for fresh and reasonably priced flying options to reach places with well-known tourist attractions.

According to AAI General Manager Dilip Kumar Sajnani, in addition to IndiGo, Akasa and Flybig airlines have also showed interest in beginning flying operations from Donyi Polo airport. The Airport Authority of India (AAI) has been contacted by Flybig and Indigo, who both showed interest in beginning flight operations. He recently stated that the AAI is hopeful of bringing them on board to begin operations.

Akasa Air to add one aircraft to its fleet every fortnight

Pranay Maniar — Wed, 17 Aug 2022 10:46:59 +0000

After its launch on 7^th August, with its maiden flight from Mumbai’s Chhatrapati Shivaji International Airport to Ahmadabad. The airline said that it would keep adding one aircraft to its fleet every 2 weeks after the budget carrier receives its 3^rd aircraft.

The founder and chief executive officer of the airline, Vinay Dube said that the airline was “well capitalised” to induct 72 new aircraft over the next 5 years. This was while he was mourning the death of the airline’s top patron and India’s veteran investor Rakesh Jhunjhunwala who passed away on 14^th August.

“Our financial platform is strong enough to allow Akasa to place an aircraft order in the next 18 months that will be significantly larger than our first,” Dube added.

Akasa has placed a massive order of 72 Boeing 737 Max back in November last year. Akasa is said to compete with India’s budget carriers like Indigo, Go first and Spicejet.

Domestic air travel in India has made a sharp recovery this year with airlines flying over 57 million passengers in the first half, up 238% from last year, government data showed.

Akasa Air bags Air Operator Certificate, will start operations by July end

Aayush Agarwal — Thu, 07 Jul 2022 12:55:32 +0000

Akasa Air obtained its Air Operator Certificate from the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) today. The airline will now be able to officially begin its operations in civil aviation.

Akasa Air, the newly launched airline claims “air travel should be inclusive and affordable for all”. Hence, passengers are expecting domestic flight costs to be low. With the added benefit of green and sustainable flying. The carrier plans to offer commercial flights starting in the summer of 2022 to support the growing demand across India.

Akasa Air gets DCGA nod

According to Akasa Air, they are committed to being socially responsible. Hence, it has placed a firm order of 72 Boeing 737 MAX airplanes, powered by CFM fuel efficient, LEAP-1B engines.

The startup carrier is backed by ace stock market investor Rakesh Jhunjhunwala.

Commenting on the significant milestone, Vinay Dube, Founder and Chief Executive Officer, Akasa Air said. “We are extremely thankful to the Ministry of Civil Aviation and the DGCA for their constructive guidance, active support and the highest levels of efficiency throughout the AOC process. We now look forward to opening our flights for sale, leading to the start of commercial operations by late July. This will begin our journey towards building India’s greenest, most dependable, and most affordable airline”.

“We also want to take this moment to thank and acknowledge the collective contributions of our employees and partners whose commitment, perseverance, optimism, meticulous planning and exemplary teamwork have helped achieve this milestone. This is not just a significant milestone for Akasa Air and Indian aviation, but also a testimony to the story of a vibrant and resilient India”. he added.

Moreover, Akasa Air received its first 737 MAX on June 21, 2022. The end of this month, the airline will commence commercial operations with two aircrafts. By the end of the fiscal year 2022-23, the airline claims to have successfully added 18 aircraft. Therefore, eventually it will have 12-14 aircraft every 12 months, which will make up its order of 72 delivered over five years.

Rakesh Jhunjhunwala’s Akasa Airlines obtains NOC from the Aviation Ministry, operations to begin from 2022

Ayisha Farah — Mon, 11 Oct 2021 15:02:42 +0000

Rakesh Jhunjhunwala’s Akasa Airlines has obtained the NOC from the Aviation Ministry. SNV Aviation Pvt Ltd will operate under Akasa Air’s brand name, and Vinay Dube will be the CEO, reported CNBC- TV 18.

Money control has confirmed the same, and the low-cost airline supported by former Jet Airways chief executive officer Vinay Dube will now address the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) for its Air Operator’s Permit.

“We are extremely happy and grateful to the Ministry of Civil Aviation for their support and for the grant of the NOC. We will continue to work with the regulatory authorities on all additional compliances required to successfully launch Akasa Air,” Dube, now CEO of Akasa Air, said in a press release.

The company added to its statement that the airline is seeking to begin operation in India by the summer of 2022. Akasa Air and three other airline companies appealed for no-objection certificates from the civil aviation ministry to begin registered air passenger services and air cargo services in August.

According to reports, Akasa Air is in discussions with Boeing and Airbus for purchasing aircrafts. Earlier on July 28, reports surfaced that Jhunjhunwala planned on holding 70 planes in four years for a new airline investment that he has decided to sponsor. Jhunjhunwala is assumed to own almost 40 per cent of the stake in the new airline and is contemplating investing $35 million in the enterprise.

Ex-President of domestic carrier Indigo, Aditya Ghosh, will be the co-founder of Akasa, Jhunjhunwala and former Jet Airways CEO Vinay Dube. Apart from Jhunjhunwala, other investors incorporate Airbnb and Par Capital Management, which has investments in US ULCC Sun Country Airlines. Other vital posts at Akasa will see former Jet Airways senior VP Praveen Iyer take up the COO position.

In contrast, former GoAir revenue management VP Anand Srinivasan will be CTO, and former Jet flight operations VP Floyd Gracious will probably have a similar position. Industry veteran Neelu Khatri is being charged as head of corporate affairs.