Worldwide, the business of aircraft maintenance is enormous and is set to expand.
The approximate number of airplanes currently in service worldwide is around 500,000 passenger and cargo aircraft and about four million smaller private aircraft used for business or pleasure.
Etihad board is likely to meet next week to firm up its investment plans in India. The board will consider the proposal of both cash-strapped airlines Jet Airways and Kingfisher Airlines, reports CNBC-TV18 quoting sources.
It is learned that the Etihad-Jet talks factor in two deals. Jet promoters hold 80% in the company through Tail Winds and are likely to issue warrants which can be converted to equities later. Post deal, Etihad is likely to hold 22-24% in Jet which currently has a debt of USD 2.3 billion.
Meanwhile, the Gulf carrier may also consider the revival plans of Kingfisher. Earlier, Etihad had sought more clarity on operations and fund infusion from UB Group. According to sources, Etihad wants all dues cleared ahead of any possible deal.
MRO at Thiruvananthapuram to be fully operational by Feb Thiruvananthapuram
The maintenance, repair, and overhaul (MRO) facility of Air India Charters here will become fully operational by February. Mandatory clearance from the Director-General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) is awaited ahead of commencing ‘C’ checks of Boeing 737-800 aircraft of Air India Express. The MRO is situated within the precincts of the international airport here. Air India Charters has sought more land from the State to set up auxiliary industrial units in the form of a hub around the MRO. This was stated by K.C. Venugopal, Union Minister of State for Civil Aviation, who chaired a high-level meeting here on Monday. Venugopal said the MRO would be equipped to take up third party business although initially it will take care of the aircraft in the Air Indian Express (AIE) fleet. 27/12/12 Business Line
India has risen in the past decade to become the world’s fourth-largest economy, and together with its technology sector, one industry in particular has mirrored the nation’s growth: aviation, according to International Business Times. India’s domestic aviation market has tripled in the past five years and, even as its growth rate has slowed this year, the number of passengers carried by domestic airlines rose 0.5 percent to 39.82 million during the January to August period, compared with a year earlier. India, long an underdog in commercial flying, is now the ninth-biggest civil aviation market in the world in terms of traffic. The nation’s airlines fly the newest Boeings and Airbuses, and flag carrier Air India is one of just a handful operating the Boeing 787, the most advanced jetliner in the world. No one in Europe, for example, does yet. The government relaxed rules for Foreign Direct Investment(FDI) in several sectors including aviation, allowing foreign airlines to own up to 49 percent of any Indian carrier.