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Vistara and AirAsia India eye rapid fleet expansion
July 1st 2016
Gurgaon-headquartered Vistara is considering accelerating its fleet growth plans. “Based on our current plan, our fleet size will touch 20 by June 2018," Vistara chief, Phee Teik Yeoh, told India's Business Standard News. Read More » "We are seriously thinking of advancing our plans,” he said, adding the carrier may also consider adding widebodies.
Phee’s comments echo those from AirAsia India CEO, Amar Abrol, who last week said the LCC would increase its fleet from six A320s at current to 20 “as soon as possible”.
India last week relaxed the unpopular 5/20 rule, which required local carriers to fly domestically for at least five years and operate 20 aircraft, before they were allowed to fly overseas. Under the policy change, Indian airlines now no longer need to wait five years to go abroad, as long as they deploy 20 aircraft or 20% of total capacity, whichever is higher, in the domestic market. Moreover, the government under Narendra Modi has announced that India-based airlines may now be 100%-foreign-owned, up from 49%, but only with prior approval from the government.
The Modi government this week upped the ante once again, after amending a more than two-decade old rule governing the import of used aircraft. Until now, airlines were banned from importing airframes older than 15 years. The bar has now been raised to 18 years.
"Considering that modern commercial air transport aircraft are significant economic assets that can have an effective economic useful life of decades, the restriction imposed on import of aged aircraft is cautiously revised," India’s Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) said.
In other India updates, the DGCA has rejected an exemption application from Air India to keep 130 flight attendants classified as “obese” flying.
In 2014, 600 of Air India’s 3,500 cabin crew were found to exceed weight restrictions. When 130 of them failed to lose weight by last October, the flag carrier sent an exemption request to the regulator as the crew in question were among the most senior and experienced staff. The DGCA now denied the application, saying weight norms are “set after long deliberations over safety concerns.”
Air India said it will ground its obese attendants, or offer early retirement.
