Aviation

All airlines at Delhi to collect development fee

All airlines operating from Delhi would collect the development fee of Rs 200 and Rs 1,300 from each departing domestic and international passenger, respectively.

The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) has informed all the airlines which have started collecting the fee accordingly, official sources said.

The airlines, in return for collecting the fee, levied by Delhi International Airport Ltd (DIAL), would get collection charges of Rs five per passenger. The fee, which came into effect recently, would be collected for 36 months.

Meanwhile, the GMR-led joint venture DIAL, which is modernizing the airport, could exempt certain sections of passengers from the fee. They include infants travelling on infant tickets, diplomatic passport holders, airlines crew on duty and persons travelling on official duty on IAF aircraft.

The exempted category might also include transit and transfer passengers spending less than six hours at the airport and passengers departing from Delhi airport due to “involuntary re routing” of aircraft for reasons like technical problems or weather conditions.

PTI

Emirates special fares to Australia, New Zealand

Travelers out of Colombo to five destinations in Australia and New Zealand can now enjoy the award-winning services of Emirates airlines for less, following the announcement of special fares to these destinations by the airline.

The destinations covered by these special fares which are valid till March 31, are Melbourne, Brisbane, Perth, Auckland and Christchurch.

“Australia and New Zealand are popular destinations for travelers out of Sri Lanka, for studies, employment as well as for visiting relatives and friends,” Emirates’ Sales Manager Devika Ellepola said. “These value-for-money offers will provide timely savings for those planning to travel to these countries.”

Ellepola said all travel on these special fares would also accrue Skywards Miles from the airline’s frequent flyer program, adding more value to the offer. Passengers also have the convenience of booking flights at these special fares online via www.emirates.com/lk and earning bonus Skywards Miles as well.

To avail of these offers which are valid for a maximum stay of three months, all sectors of travel should take place on Emirates operated flights and reservations and ticketing must be completed by March 31.

Cathay Pacific increases flights to Paris, Shanghai and Jakarta

Cathay Pacific Airways will increase the number of flights it offers to three key destinations - Paris, Shanghai and Jakarta - in response to sustained customer demand.

The service enhancements will be introduced in the airline’s summer schedule, which comes into effect on March 29. An additional four flights a week will be added to and from Paris - departing Hong Kong every Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday the airline will provide a double-daily service to the French capital.

In another change effective from the summer schedule, Cathay Pacific will add two more flights each day to Shanghai’s Pudong International Airport, with early and late afternoon departures from Hong Kong, taking the airline’s total to three flights daily.

For Jakarta, the existing twice-daily service from Hong Kong will be supplemented by three more flights a week, departing Tuesday, Friday and Sunday and departing from the Indonesian capital late the same day.

Cathay Pacific Director Corporate Development Ian Shiu said, “We are pleased to strengthen our services to these three cities and I’m sure passengers will appreciate the additional choice and increased convenience when planning their journeys.

Chinese aviation industry needs stimulus plan

China needs to work out a stimulus plan to help the aviation sector ride out of an industry-wide slump, an industry executive said on the sidelines of the annual session of the National People’s Congress (NPC).

Air China, China Eastern Airlines and China Southern Airlines, the country’s three biggest carriers, have all warned of losses for 2008, the worst year since SARS (Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome) struck the industry in 2003.

They are facing an even tougher time ahead, Liu Shaoyong, chairman of China Eastern Airlines and also a NPC deputy, was cited by Xinhua News Agency as saying. He urged the government to optimize the air routes, speed up industry consolidation and expand the aviation market across the Taiwan Straits to deal with the industry slump.

China Eastern and China Southern have already secured cash injection from the government to improve their cash flows and Air China Chairman Kong Dong was quoted by Reuters as saying that the company has also asked for cash injection from the government.

Liu said the government need to increase the cash injection this year to help carriers improve competitiveness and fend off the risks.

China daily