NEWS: Jet revival, a home for BA’s Queen of the Skies, Vistara and Singapore Airlines get closer
Luke
Today’s news in brief:
Could Jet Airways be flying again by summer 2021?
A new consortium is hoping to revive the famous Jet Airways brand and says flights could take off as early as next summer.
The promoters, Murari Lal Jalan (a UAE-based entrepreneur) and Kalrock Capital, say they are working with India’s Ministry of Civil Aviation and Directorate General of Civil Aviation to get regulatory approvals and to secure the reinstatement of slots and traffic rights.
The consortium’s plan is to revive its hubs in Delhi, Bengaluru and Mumbai, and restart international operations (as well as domestic flights).
Manoj Narender Madnani, a board member of Jalan Kalrock, is quoted as saying: “Jet Airways has been a brand with a glorious history of over 25 years, and it is the vision of the consortium to put Jet Airways back in the skies at the earliest opportunity.
“We aim to re-energise the brand by infusing energy, warmth, and vibrancy into it, while making it bigger and better.”
Despite being a household name in India, the original Jet Airways Ltd went bankrupt in 2019. Cover photo: Photo: Rick Schlamp via Wikimedia.
BA jumbo finds its resting place
One of British Airways’ last remaining Boeing 747 aircraft (affectionately known as the Queen of the Skies) took to the skies for the final time this weekend, setting off for its new home at Dunsfold Aerodrome in Surrey.
Adorned in the iconic Landor livery, the heritage jumbo jet – registration G-BNLY ’96 departed from British Airways’ engineering base in Cardiff on Saturday afternoon.
Since entering BA’s fleet on February 1, 1993, G-BNLY has operated 14,016 flights and flown for more than 122,358 hours over nearly 60 million miles. Its last passenger flight was from Cape Town to Heathrow on March 22, 2020.
Following its short journey to Dunsfold, where it will be preserved for future generations to enjoy, it performed a final fly over before being welcomed by a small crowd of enthusiastic spectators.
In July British Airways announced that all 31 of its remaining 747s had flown their last commercial services before being retired due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
Vistara and Singapore Airlines deepen ties
Singapore Airlines (SIA) and Vistara, a joint venture between Tata Sons Private Limited and SIA, have agreed to work more closely to coordinate their services.
A new Commercial Cooperation Framework Agreement will see the two airlines collaborate on capacity planning, sales, marketing, joint fare products, customer services and operations.
The agreement, subject to regulatory approval in Singapore, builds on a codeshare partnership that came into effect in 2017. The airlines say they want to achieve further synergies on services between Singapore and India, as well as in the key regions of South East Asia, Australia and New Zealand.
JoAnn Tan, an acting SVP at Singapore Airlines, said: “By bolstering our partnership, Singapore Airlines and Vistara are able to work together to provide additional options for our customers. It also reflects the importance of the Indian market to Singapore Airlines, as well as our commitment to grow our network in the coming years.”
Leslie Thng, chief executive officer of Vistara, added: “This is in line with our long-term growth plan of expanding Vistara’s global presence and presenting India’s best airline to the world.”
You can read our review of the brand new Vistara 787 Dreamliner business class here.
