Singapore Airlines opens new SilverKris lounge at New Delhi IGI airport T3

Singapore Airlines has opened its new Silver Kris lounge at New Delhi Indira Gandhi International Airport Terminal 3, its 13th lounge worldwide.

The 80 seat capacity lounge is made with wood and marble tones. The lounge is open to First and Business Class passengers of Singapore Airlines as well as elite members of PPS Club, KrisFlyer Elite Gold and Star Alliance Gold members.

The airline’s Senior Vice President Product and Services Tan Pee Teck said

“We chose Delhi as it is one of our busiest markets in India, with two flights a day to Singapore. It is also part of our ongoing commitment to customer service, which we believe starts from the ground and continues in the air. By offering customers an inviting space to relax in comfort, we hope to enhance their travel experience even before they board their flight,”

The lounge will offer hot meals, light snacks and beverages along with Internet access terminals and complimentary wireless broadband.

Read more »

Pictures: Air India 787 Dreamliner gets water cannon salute on first arrival at Bangalore

On the auspicious day of Ganesh Chaturthi, Air India commenced commercial service of its Boeing 787 Dreamliner. VT-ANH, performing flight AI403 from Delhi was given the traditional welcome, on its first arrival at Bengaluru International Airport, a water cannon salute by the airport's fire-fighters (ARFF).

The Dreamliner, carrying 173 passengers, touched down around 21:06, delayed by almost two hours late due to a failure of the air-conditioning system just as it was departing Delhi airport.

The aircraft was welcomed by senior officials of Air India, and a delegation from Bengaluru International Airport Limited (BIAL), led by Hari Marar, President, Airport Operations. Airside, virtually everyone connected to the aircraft, including engineers from engine manufacturer General Electric were present.

On arrival, the aircraft was given the traditional 'puja' accorded to new vehicles including the flight crew breaking a coconut to ward off evil spirits.

All these ceremonies took a toll on the turn-around time. The Dreamliner departed on its return flight to Delhi around 22:45, nearly three hours late, with 126 passengers on board, along with India's External Affairs Minister S. M. Krishna.

Read more »

Winners of our SpiceJet discount voucher contest

Thanks dear readers.

We had a wonderful response to our SpiceJet discount voucher contest.

Our winners are:

The regular reader quiz contest - Mr. Sharad Arora.
The new subscriber contest - Mr. Mahesh Sastry

CONGRATULATIONS!!!!

The vouchers have already been e-mailed to them.

We still invite you to subscribe to our free daily newsletter and activate your subscription. This will allow us to send you a daily capsule of all the new stories and news at Bangalore Aviation. You have our assurance, that your privacy is protected and your e-mail address will not be used beyond this scope.

Read more »

SilkAir to commence Visakhapatnam Singapore service

SilkAir, the regional wing of Singapore Airlines (SIA), will launch nonstop air services between Visakhapatnam (VTZ) and Singapore (SIN) from the winter 2012 schedule which commences on 28 October, making it the first airline carrier to provide a nonstop international air connection from Visakhapatnam.


The new thrice a week service will be operated with Airbus A319 and A320 aircraft, in a two class configuration.

Flight MI448 departs Singapore on Wed, Fri, Sun at 20:25 and arrives Visakhapatnam 22:05
Flight MI447 departs Visakhapatnam 22:55hrs and arrives Singapore 05:55+1 (the next morning)


Popularly known as Vizag, Visakhapatnam is the second largest city of Andhra Pradesh and offers a multitude of cultural, historic and natural scenic sites such as the Dolphin’s Nose, a prominent rock promontory, the world famous Araku Valley, a pleasant hill station renowned for its scenic gardens, and also the greatly revered Borra Caves, famous for its spectacular, million-year-old stalactite and stalagmite formations. Vizag is also a major port city, a significant base of the Indian Navy, and home to many heavy engineering industries.

Visakhapatnam will be SilkAir’s eighth destination in India and together with Singapore Airlines’ flights to six other Indian destinations, both airlines will now operate from a total of 11 cities in India.

Read more »

We are giving away two SpiceJet Rs. 1000 discount coupons. Participate now!!!

As a thank you to our valued readers, Bangalore Aviation is giving away two SpiceJet discount vouchers, each for Rs. 1000 off. To decide the winners, we are having two contests. The terms and conditions of the vouchers are:

1. This voucher is valid for single use only and cannot be reinstated / refunded once the booking is cancelled or the voucher expires.
2. Only one voucher can be used per passenger.
3. This voucher cannot be used or clubbed with any other promotional offer / discounts / on tickets bought through any concession mode, Travel Agent, Travel Partners.
4. This voucher cannot be used for Corporate or Group bookings.
5. Usage of the voucher is restricted on Jammu, Srinagar and all international routes. Please call the SpiceJet call centre for more details.
6. If used partially, the balance amount will lapse.
7. Ticket purchased with a voucher and then is cancelled, would make the voucher invalid and there would be no refund.
8. The voucher is valid for ticket purchases made, and travel by, September 30, 2012.

The first voucher is called the "regular reader" and will be decided by a small quiz based on stories published on Bangalore Aviation in the last two weeks. Please answer the five questions below via e-mail to ba [at] bangaloreaviation [dot] com, with the subject "Regular Reader Contest".

The second voucher is called "new subscribers". To participate in this, you have to subscribe to our free daily newsletter and activate your subscription so that we can send you a capsule of all the new stories and news at Bangalore Aviation. You have our assurance, that your privacy is protected and your e-mail address will not be used beyond this scope.

You may participate in both contests.

Regular Reader Quiz
Please answer the five questions below via e-mail to ba [at] bangaloreaviation [dot] com, with the subject "Regular Reader Contest".

1. What is the registration number of Air India's first 787 Dreamliner aircraft? (Hint)
2. Which company entered in to a strategic agreement with Qatar Airways? (Hint)
3. On what date did Lufthansa's upgraded Boeing 747-8i service land in Bangalore? (Hint)
4. Which airline will be the first recipient of the Airbus A320 fitted with 'Sharklets' (Hint) 
5. Which company is helping Jet Airways save $6 million? (Hint)

Both contests are open till 23:59:59 (i.e. 11:59pm), Thursday, September 20, 2012.

Read more »

Air India Boeing 787 Dreamliner commences commercial service tomorrow to Bangalore and Chennai

National carrier Air India will commence commercial service of its new Boeing 787 Dreamliner tomorrow 19 September with flights from New Delhi to Bangalore and Chennai.

AI 439 Delhi to Chennai 07:00 ~ 09:40
AI 430 Chennai to Delhi 10:45 ~ 13:25

AI 403 Delhi to Bangalore 16:30 ~ 19:10
AI 404 Bangalore to Delhi 20:10 ~ 22:45

So here is a heads-up to Chennai spotters to go and grab some good photos. We in Bangalore will get the new aircraft only after sunset.

The Aviation Photographers India group is making a visit to a vantage viewing location to see the arrival of the new aircraft. Send a message to ba [at] bangaloreaviation [dot] com if you want to join. We will meet at the trumpet interchange at 6:00pm tomorrow.

Read more »

Photos: Japan Airlines (JAL) Boeing 787 panorama

Image courtesy The Boeing Company

Japan Airlines, the second operator of the new Boeing 787 has produced a great little panorama which offers controllable 360 degree views of the exterior and interior of the aircraft.

Take a look at the panorama here.

It was also very interesting to read interviews with various stakeholders on how they were involved with the airliner in the JAL 787 Story.

Japan Airlines is the first and only airline to feature the TOTO washlet toilet commode which features a spray of warm water to clean you after you have gone about your business; but only those passengers flying up front in executive class will have access to these "hands free" devices. You can read an interview on how TOTO, JAL and Boeing cooperated to take this great toilet into the skies.

Japan Airlines currently flies the 787 on the New Delhi Tokyo route. Regrettably the airline will shift this aircraft to the Singapore Tokyo route, and operate a 777-200 from the Winter 2012 schedule commencing from end October.

Read more »

Video and photos: Airbus A320 Sharklets flying display at ILA Berlin 2012 show

Courtesy Airbus S.A.S. enjoy photos and a video of the first production A320 fitted with Sharklets wing-tip devices. This aircraft is due to be delivered to Malaysian low cost carrier AirAsia after certification.

Airbus Test Pilot Christophe Cail takes you along for the ride during a flight presentation with a Sharklet-equipped A320 jetliner, providing step-by-step commentary during this aircraft’s flying display at the 2012 ILA Berlin Air Show.

Read more »