MDLR Airlines to fly on short-haul routes by November
New Delhi, Aug 12 (UNI)
The Rs 2,000 crore MDLR real estate group said today it will launch short-haul airline operations within three months.
We have obtained a no-objection certificate from the civil aviation ministry, said its chairman Gopal Goyal. The airline will initially operate flights in north Indian sectors like Delhi-Kulu, Delhi-Dharamshala and Delhi-Dehradun.
The Gurgaon-based group is negotiating to acquire five 70-seater British Aerospace BAE RJ-72 and two Kazan MI-172 helicopters each with 27 seats.
In regional jets, the airline will have two class configurations -- executive and tourist. At a later stage, MDLR plans to launch international cargo flights, said Mr Goyal.
Ever heard of overdoing things??? Dont people realise that there are now enough airlines in the sky and further ventures at the moment are not suitable. Bad for them as well as for existing ones.
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I have nothing to declare but my genious. --Oscar Wilde to a US Customs officer
It seems that they plan to use helicopters for inter-city trips-another first. Now that you think of it, it might be a good idea to use copters for city centre to city centre trips. This might work out on routes such as Mumbai-Pune, Vadodara-Ahmedabad etc where regular air services are not particularly time saving.
A new low-cost airline, which plans to make Chennai its main hub, has received initial clearance from the Government for becoming operational.
Official sources told Business Line that the Aircraft Acquisition Committee (AAC) of the Ministry of Civil Aviation has given its nod for the Premier Airways Ltd project. The AAC committee includes senior officials of the Ministry of Civil Aviation and the Director General of Civil Aviation and whets the initial application of companies wanting to import aircraft either for starting a project or expansion plans.
While the company promoting the airline is Premier Airways, the brand name is Easy Air.
"We plan to be a genuine low-cost airline and are currently evaluating whether we should operate the Boeing or Airbus aircraft. We should be operational within six months of receiving the official notification," the company Chairman and Managing Director, Mr Umapathy Pinaghapani, said.
Official sources indicated that the company had cleared the "penultimate" stage required for the airline to become operational.
GoAir fleet expansion
Meanwhile, the Government has also cleared a proposal of the Jeh Wadia promoted Go Airways to import 20 Airbus family aircraft.
The airline currently operates three Airbus A-320 aircraft that can seat 180 passengers.
EasyAir, a new private airline to be floated by NRIs based in US, is expected to start flying this year. The brand EasyAir will be owned by Premier Airways.
Predictably, Easy Air has taken the low-cost airline route to start operations. Premier Airways has already applied for necessary regulatory clearances so that Easy Air can start flying by November this year.
EasyAir will be based in Chennai. The company is chaired by Umapathy Pinaghapani, who has been in software business in the US before.
Easy Air is already in talks for leasing aircraft to start its flights. It is expected that EasyAir will start flying with Airbus SAS320 or Boeing 737. Initially, the airline will start flights with five leased planes, and later, the fleet size will be increased to 40 over a period of five years. According to Pinaghapani, the company sees a lot of potential in the South. It hopes to tap a lot of the feeder routes in the South.
EasyAir will have a start-up capital of $60 million. Pinaghapani will be investing $20 million alongwith his partners. Later, the company may look at other options to raise funds, like a private equity placement or a bond issue.
EasyAir will have to battle several other low-budget airlines in India, current and upcoming. Low-cost airlines already in India include market leader Air Deccan, GoAir and SpiceJet. A bunch of lowcost airlines are slated to hit the skies soon, including Indigo Airlines, Indus Air, East West Airlines, Omega Air, Magic Air, Suriya Airline, Jagson Airways, and Air One.