Aviation Ministry | Business Upturn

Air India Express Launches Operations from Nagpur, Adds Twice-Daily Services to Bengaluru

Riddhima Jain — Tue, 02 Dec 2025 05:08:39 +0000

Air India Express has commenced operations from Nagpur with the launch of twice-daily direct flights to Bengaluru, strengthening connectivity between central India and the airline’s largest domestic hub.

The inaugural flight took off from Nagpur at 10:00 hrs following a ceremony at Dr. Babasaheb Ambedkar International Airport, where passengers received commemorative boarding passes. The schedule, effective December 1, includes Nagpur departures at 10:00 and 21:05 hrs, and Bengaluru departures at 07:25 and 18:30 hrs.

Speaking about the launch, Aloke Singh, Managing Director, Air India Express, said,
“With the commencement of our operations from Nagpur today, alongside our upcoming launch from the new Navi Mumbai International Airport, we are further strengthening our presence across Maharashtra. These additions reinforce our focus on enhancing connectivity between non-metro cities and our major hubs, particularly Bengaluru, which continues to grow as our key domestic hub. This expanded network enables guests to enjoy seamless one-stop access across India, the Gulf, South Asia, and Southeast Asia. As we scale our network, we look forward to welcoming more travellers to ‘Xplore More, and Xpress More’ with Air India Express.”

The airline will now provide one-stop access to 29 domestic and seven international destinations from Nagpur. It also continues expanding in Maharashtra, with more than 130 weekly flights from Mumbai and 90 weekly flights from Pune. Direct flights from Navi Mumbai to Bengaluru and Delhi will begin December 25.

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.

Civil Aviation Ministry signs MoU with Adani Group to provide services at 3 airports

Vandana Nampoothiri — Thu, 26 Aug 2021 05:37:22 +0000

The Ministry of Civil Aviation (MoCA) on Wednesday signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Adani Enterprises to provide services like customs, immigration, health services, etc. for Jaipur, Guwahati, and Thiruvananthapuram Airports.

“An MoU for providing Reserved Services(Customs, Immigration, Plant & Animal Quarantine Services, Health Services, Meteorological & Security Services) was signed between MoCA and Adani Enterprises Ltd for Jaipur, Guwahati and Thiruvananthapuram Airports.” The ministry said in an official statement on Twitter.

An MoU for providing Reserved Services(Customs, Immigration, Plant & Animal Quarantine Services, Health Services, Meteorological & Security Services) was signed between MoCA and Adani Enterprises Ltd for Jaipur, Guwahati and Thiruvananthapuram Airports. pic.twitter.com/IFR1miWnmZ

— MoCA_GoI (@MoCA_GoI) August 25, 2021

A communication navigation surveillance-air traffic management (CNS-ATM) was also signed on Wednesday between Airports Authority of India (AAI) and Adani Enterprises for a public-private partnership for a lease period of 50 years.

“CNS-ATM Agreement for providing Communication Navigation Surveillance-Air Traffic Management services at these three airports has also been executed today. The Agreement was signed between AAI and Adani Enterprises,” the ministry said.

The MoU was signed by Rubina Ali, Joint Secretary, MoCA, and Parikshit Kaul, Senior Vice President, Adani Enterprises, while the CNS-ATM agreement was signed between S. Swaminathan, GM (ATS), AAI and Parikshit Kaul in presence of AAI Chairman, Board Members and Senior officials.

According to PTI, the central government had privatized six major airports in the country – Lucknow, Ahmedabad, Mangaluru, Jaipur, Thiruvananthapuram and Guwahati, through a bidding process in which Adani Group won the rights for 50 years.

The Adani group took charge of the Lucknow, Ahmedabad and Mangaluru airports in October and November last year. It is yet to take charge of the remaining airports.

Aviation Ministry extends fare cap on Domestic Flights till 31 March

Devanshu Singla — Sat, 09 Jan 2021 08:14:37 +0000

The Ministry of Civil Aviation has extended the upper and lower limits on domestic airfares till March 31. The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) had on May 21, 2020, announced seven bands of ticket pricing with lower and upper fare limits based on flight duration. The ministry put these limits in May 2020 till August 24. Later, they were extended till November 24, and then till February 24, 2021.

The first such band consists of flights that are of less than 40 minutes duration. The lower and the upper fare limits for this band are Rs 2,000 and Rs 6,000.

The subsequent bands are for flights with durations of 40-60 minutes, 60-90 minutes, 90-120 minutes, 120-150 minutes, 150-180 minutes and 180-210 minutes.

The lower and upper limits for these bands are: Rs 2,500-Rs 7,500; Rs 3,000-Rs 9,000; Rs 3,500-Rs 10,000; Rs 4,500-Rs 13,000; Rs 5,500-Rs 15,700 and Rs 6,500-Rs 18,600 respectively.

“The capping of fare…is hereby further extended till 23:59 hours on March 31, 2021,” the ministry said in an order.

The order also mentioned that airlines are required to sell a minimum of 20 per cent of seats on each flight below the midpoint of the upper and lower airfare. Till now, airlines were selling a minimum of 40 per cent of tickets for a flight below the midpoint.