HAWK 200 FIGHTER JET CRASH DUE TO ENGINE FAILURE: DEFENSE MINISTRY

Jakarta,Indonesia :  A Defense Ministry spokesman said it was engine failure that caused an Indonesian fighter jet to crash in Kampar district, Riau, on Tuesday morning.

“Temporary assumption is engine failure as he [the pilot] reported there was a malfunction and asked permission to eject,” Hartind Asrin said on Tuesday, as quoted by Antara news agency. He added that the Air Force would investigate further to confirm the preliminary finding.

A British-made Hawk 200 fighter jet crashed into a residential area of Kampar district at about 9:30 a.m. on Tuesday. The pilot managed to eject moments before it went down.

16/10/2012  :  Arientha Primanita & Dessy Sagita / The Jakarta Globe.

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OMAN AIR LAUNCHES AMAZING PRICE REDUCTIONS TO SEVEN DESTINATIONS

Oman Air has launched a range of special offers on flights from London Heathrow via Muscat to some of the most exciting hot spots on the planet. Whether you are hoping to get away before Christmas to the Maldives, Sri Lanka or one of five further fantastic destinations, Oman Air is offering the perfect deal for you at incredibly low prices. 

With 10% off standard ticket prices in economy and  business class available online at www.omanair.com, Oman Air is giving travellers the opportunity to not only discover a range of wonderful destinations, but also to experience at first hand Oman Air’s award-winning products and services. And for those flying on a Sunday in October, there is a 20% discount available. 

The special offers include London Heathrow via Muscat to Bangkok from £616, Kuala Lumpur from £599, Colombo from £551, Dubai from £388, Abu Dhabi from £388, Male from £635 and Karachi from £532.Bookings can be made immediately and until 10 December 2012. 

16/10/2012  :  Incentive Travel.

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INDIAN CARRIERS SEEK TO SELL STAKE TO ETIHAD

All Indian airlines have approached Abu Dhabi-based Etihad Airways to buy their stake, the Gulf carrier's chief executive said on Tuesday.

The airline has been approached by all Indian carriers about the possibility of buying a stake, James Hogan said on the sidelines of a conference in Abu Dhabi, adding that Etihad was still evaluating the impact of the new Foreign Direct Investment laws. India opened up its airline industry to foreign investment last month.

Asked if Etihad would be looking for minority stakes, he said: "Everything we do will be minority stakes. What we don't want to do is to take control."

He said Etihad Airways would consider buying the Irish government's 25 per cent stake in Aer Lingus but so far has not been approached with an offer.

16/10/2012  :  Emirates 24/7

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PLANS UNVEILED FOR REDEVELOPMENT OF O'HARE'S INTERNATIONAL TERMINAL 5

Chicago,USA  --  The Chicago Department of Aviation (CDA) and Westfield Concession Management today unveiled the redevelopment plans for Terminal 5 at Chicago O'Hare International Airport, which includes a massive transformation of the terminal, 15 new dining and retail brands and new passenger amenities throughout.

Scheduled for completion in Fall 2013, the redevelopment will feature world-class dining and retail post-security – including many Chicago-based restaurants and brands – cutting edge design, and a re-engineered layout that enhances the traveler experience and maximizes revenues. Previously, 95 percent of the terminal's dining and retail options were located pre-security, making it difficult for passengers to access dining and shopping while waiting for flights. The redevelopment is the first since the terminal's construction in 1993. 

"The reconfigured Terminal 5 raises the bar for airport concessions programs in Chicago and across the country," said CDA Commissioner Rosemarie S. Andolino during a celebratory unveiling inside the terminal. "The redevelopment fulfills Mayor Rahm Emanuel's vision to transform the terminal into a world-class experience for international visitors and Chicago travelers alike."

16/10/2012  :  aviationpros.com

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ATTACK ON KABUL AIRPORT, INTERIOR MINISTRY, PARLIAMENT FOILED

Afghan intelligence officials on Tuesday said Afghan security forces thwarted deadly attacks on three main locations in capital Kabul.Deputy spokesman for National Directorate of Security (NDS) Shafiqullah Tahiri on Tuesday said Afghan intelligence has detained a suspected militant who was plotting the attack in Kabul city.

He said the militants were looking to carry out attack in Kabul International Airport, Afghan interior ministry and Afghan parliament house.

Shafiqullah Tahiri said Afghan security forces arrested the suspected militant along with arms and ammunitions from the 9th district of capital Kabul.

He said, “The detained militant has been recognized as Noor Mohammad who had taken shelter in a residential area in capital Kabul and wanted to carry out attack on Kabul Airport, Afghan interior ministry and Afghan parliament house. He was arrested by Afghan intelligence forces from a residential house in the 9th district of Kabul city.”

16/10/2012  :  Sajjad / Khaama Press.

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GRAFFITI REMOVED FROM AIRPORT, COURTESY MINISTER

Thiruvananthapuram,India  :   It needed Civil Aviation Minister Ajit Singh's intervention to have obscene graffiti on national women leaders removed from the airport here.

Guru Nair, a Congress leader in Maharashtra, told IANS over phone from Mumbai that he was taken aback when he saw the insulting comments at an airport restroom Oct 8.He alerted a cleaner but nothing happened, said Nair. "Seeing no action being taken, I wrote to the civil aviation minister."

On Oct 15, he got a mail from Ajit Singh's office that the graffiti had been removed."The staff has also been sensitized to be more vigilant and expedient in dealing with such complaints," an aide to the minister said.

Airport director V.N. Chandran told IANS that the actions of "perverted minds" had been cleaned up.

16/10/2012  :  News Track India.

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KANISHKA' BOMBER APPEALS PERJURY CONVICTION IN CANADIAN SC

The lone convicted in the bombing of the Air India flight 'Kanishka' that killed 329 people in 1985 has filed an appeal in Canada's Supreme Court asking it to overturn his perjury conviction, believed to be the longest perjury sentence in Canadian history.

Inderjit Singh Reyat, who himself pleaded guilty to manslaughter for his role in the bombing, was convicted of perjury in September 2010 and later sentenced to nine years in prison, The Globe and Mail reported today.

Reyat filed the appeal yesterday.

 He was accused of lying 19 times during the 2003 trial of Ripudaman Singh Malik and Ajaib Singh Bagri, who were acquitted of mass murder and conspiracy in the bombing of the flight on June 23, 1985.

The bombing off the coast of Ireland was the largest mass murder in Canadian history with 329 people, mostly Canadian citizens, killed. Another blast at an airport in Tokyo killed two baggage handlers.

16/10/2012  :  Business Standard.

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AIR CANADA AIRLINER CREW, PASSENGERS HELP LOCATE YACHT STRANDED OFF AUSTRALIA

Passengers and crew aboard an Air Canada flight are being credited for their assistance in locating a yacht and its crew in distress off the coast of Australia.

Air Canada flight 033 from Vancouver and another Air New Zealand jet, flying from Auckland, were headed to Sydney when they were both asked to divert course.

The Australian Maritime Safety Authority was investigating the signal from an emergency beacon activated at 8:15 a.m. local time Tuesday morning, and wanted help confirming the GPS location.

Flight crew and passengers aboard the Air Canada flight, peering out the windows from an altitude of approximately 6,000 feet, helped locate the yacht 275 nautical miles east of Sydney. The Air New Zealand flight then flew over to confirm the location and nature of the distress.

16/10/2012  :  CTV News.

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UAE MIN SLAMS GOV'T MEDDLING IN AIRLINE SECTOR

HH Sheikh Nahyan bin Mubarak Al Nahyan, UAE Minister of Higher 

Education and Scientific Research.

A “healthy, prosperous” airline industry is one of the biggest forces for achieving world peace, but faces obstacles including interference by governments in the sector, the UAE’s Minister of Higher Education and Scientific Research said at an aviation conference in Abu Dhabi on Tuesday.

“I declare that a healthy, prosperous world passenger airline industry is one of most potent forces in our quest for world peace,” HH Sheikh Nahyan bin Mubarak Al Nahyan, UAE Minister of Higher Education and Scientific Research, said in a speech at the IATA World Passenger Symposium in Abu Dhabi.

“Your airlines have become even more important in bringing people, language, ideas and values together,” he told representatives from airlines around world.

However, Sheikh Nahyan hit out at interference by governments in bilateral aviation agreements as a potential threat to this.

16/10/2012  :  Shane McGinley  /  Arabian Business.

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AMERICAN AIRLINES TO LAYOFF DOZENS IN TENNESSEE

Image : Jake Dean.

American Airlines has issued layoff notices to nearly 100 employees in Memphis and Nashville, WPLN 90.3 FM reports .

The move comes amid the company's restructuring.

Though warnings were issued to 100 Tennessee employees, far fewer will actually be cut, according to a company spokesperson. In Nashville, for instance, 59 employees were warned of layoffs, though only half of those positions are expected to be cut.

Cuts will be made through attrition and buyouts, according to a spokesperson.

16/10/2012  :  Nashville Business Journal.

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FROM JANUARY, NO AIRPORT DEVELOPMENT FEE FOR DELHI, MUMBAI PASSENGERS

FROM JANUARY, NO AIRPORT DEVELOPMENT FEE FOR DELHI, MUMBAI PASSENGERS

New Delhi,India  :  The government has decided to abolish the airport development fee charged in Delhi and Mumbai.

The Civil Aviation Ministry said the fee will not apply from January 1.Domestic fliers pay Rs. 200 at Delhi, and  Rs. 100 at Mumbai. International passengers are charged Rs. 1300 in Delhi and Rs. 600 in Mumbai.

In August, the national auditor or Comptroller and Auditor General had attacked the civil aviation ministry for allowing the Delhi airport consortium to charge passengers a development fee to help raise funds for the project. 

The auditor said this was not part of the original contract. The CAG says Delhi International Airport Limited (DIAL) will get an undue benefit of over Rs. 3,400 crore from the development fee.

16/10/2012  :  NDTV.

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FLIERS IN SMALL PLANES AT RISK OF OXYGEN SHORTAGE

Image : The Times Of India.

Mumbai,India  :  It is a small detail but it could mean the difference between life and death. If you are in a turbo prop aircraft like a Bombardier Q400 or an ATR aircraft, oxygen masks in these flying machines are not deployed automatically during an emergency in case oxygen levels in the passenger cabin dip, making it hard to breathe.

In such situations, passengers in such aircraft are expected to make do with poor oxygen supply for a maximum of four minutes, which is something a healthy person can endure. But if you have an asthma condition or a pulmonary or cardiac problem or are severely anaemic or if you are a heavy smoker, you could be in trouble. The same would apply if you are a senior citizen or if you are flying with a baby.

Bombardier Q400 aircraft have no oxygen masks for passengers. One has to call for help and the flight attendant is expected to rush with an oxygen cylinder which has masks attached. In case of an ATR aircraft, the flight attendant will have to come to your row and manually deploy the oxygen mask, which though is available only for 25 percent of the passengers. 

16/10/2012  :  Manju V / The Times Of India.

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GEETIKA SUICIDE CASE: ARUNA CHADDHA'S BAIL PLEA DISMISSED

Image : IBN Live.

New Delhi,India  :  A Delhi court Monday rejected the bail plea of Aruna Chaddha, an accused in former flight attendant Geetika Sharma's suicide.

District Judge S.K. Sarvaria dismissed the bail application of Chaddha, an official of the now-defunct MDLR Airlines where Geetika had worked. She was arrested Aug 8.

"The apprehension of the prosecution that the applicant would tamper with prosecution evidence if enlarged on bail cannot be said to be baseless," the court said.

Former Haryana minister Gopal Goyal Kanda, employer of Chaddha and Geetika, is the prime accused in the case. He too is in judicial custody along with Chaddha.

Geetika, 23, died on the night of Aug 4-5 at her house in Delhi's Ashok Vihar area. Her two suicide notes named Kanda and Chaddha for harassing her and driving her to suicide. Both have denied the allegations.

16/10/2012  :  Punjab Newsline.

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B.C. PLANE CRASH KILLS 1, INJURES ANOTHER

B.C.,Canada  :  One person has been killed and another is in hospital with undetermined injuries after a small plane crashed late Monday afternoon into Pitt Lake, east of Vancouver.

The Rescue Co-ordination Centre in Victoria says the Cessna 172 had taken off shortly before the crash from the nearby Pitt Meadows airport.

It's unclear at this time what caused the aircraft to go down.

Weather conditions were overcast at the time of the crash, which occurred in daylight.

16/10/2012  :  CBC News.

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KINGFISHER HEIR CHIEF TO BE 

ARRESTED FOR BOUNCED CHEQUES

 It's crunch time for Mallya as Kingfisher's debts pile up. Not only are his airplanes grounded while cabin crew and engineers protest months of unpaid wages, Hyderabad Airport has now pressed charges over mounting debts and there's an order for his arrest hanging over his head.

The Hyderabad row centres over 103m rupees (£1.2m) in bounced cheques, issued to cover airport charges. Mallya then failed to appear in court when a summons was issued - and now he's in a lot of hot water. It is unlikely he'll actually be arrested but he will have to appear in court to arrange bail.

But will Mallya be able to settle the debts? The airline chief is currently in talks with investors after a change in regulation allowed foreign parties to buy stakes in Indian airlines (up to 49%). But will there be a be a white knight for Kingfisher, which has just cancelled 40 flights off the back of strike action and has been plagued by heath and safety issues and cash shortages? After all, this isn't just a bad patch for Kingfisher - the company has reported losses for five years in a row.

This Kingfisher has certainly had its wings clipped for now.

16/10/2012  :  Management Today.

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