Indian Airlines
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| Indian इंडियन |
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|---|---|---|
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| IATA IC |
ICAO IAC |
Callsign INDAIR |
| Founded | 1953 | |
| Hubs | Indira Gandhi International (main hub) Chhatrapati Shivaji International Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose International Chennai International |
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| Focus cities | Bengaluru International Hyderabad International Suvarnabhumi |
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| Frequent flyer program | defunct (formerly Flying Returns) | |
| Alliance | none | |
| Fleet size | 74 (+43 orders) | |
| Destinations | 80 | |
| Parent company | Air India | |
| Company slogan | New Horizons. Enduring Values. | |
| Headquarters |  New Delhi, India |
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| Key people | CMD: Mr. Raghu Menon | |
| Website: Indian | ||
Indian Airlines Limited or Indian (Hindi: इंडियन एयरलाइंस or इंडियन) was India's state owned primarily domestic airline, under the Government of India's Ministry of Civil Aviation and based in New Delhi. Its main bases were the international airports, Indira Gandhi International (New Delhi), Chennai International (Chennai), Chhatrapati Shivaji International (Mumbai) and Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose International (Kolkata). [1] It has now been merged with Air India for corporate purposes, though for now, continues to issue its own tickets.
On December 7, 2005, the company was rebranded as Indian or इंडियन for advertising purposes as a part of a program to revamp the company image in preparation for an initial public offering (IPO).[2] The airline operated closely with Air India, India's national flag carrier. Alliance Air, now Air India Regional, was a fully owned subsidiary of Indian.[3] On 22 February 2007, a Group of Ministers (GoM) approved the merger of state-owned carriers, Air India and Indian (Indian Airlines Ltd).[4]
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[edit] History
The airline was set up under Air Corporations Act, 1953 with an initial capital of Rs.32 million and started operations on 1 August 1953. It was established after legislation came into force to nationalise the entire airline industry in India. Two new national airlines were to be formed along the same lines as happened in the United Kingdom with British Overseas Airways Corporation (BOAC) and British European Airways (BEA). Air India took over international routes and Indian Airlines Corporation (IAC) took over the domestic and regional routes.[citation needed]
Seven former independent domestic airlines, Deccan Airways, Airways-India, Bharat Airways, Himalayan Aviation, Kalinga Air Lines, Indian National Airways and Air Services of India, were merged to form the new domestic national carrier. Indian Airlines Corporation inherited a fleet of 99 aircraft including 74 Douglas DC-3 Dakotas, 12 Vickers Vikings, 3 Douglas DC-4s and various smaller types from the seven airlines that made it up.
Vickers Viscounts were introduced in 1957 with Fokker F27 Friendships being delivered from 1961. The 1960s also saw Hawker Siddeley HS 748s, manufactured in India by Hindustan Aeronautics Limited, join the fleet.
The jet age began for IAC with the introduction of the pure-jet Sud Aviation Caravelle airliner in 1964, followed by Boeing 737-200s in the early 1970s. April 1976 saw the first three Airbus A300 wide-body jets being introduced. The regional airline, Vayudoot, which had been established in 1981, was later reintegrated.
By 1990, Airbus A320s were introduced. The economic liberalisation process initiated by the Government of India in the early 1990s ended Indian Airlines' dominance of India's domestic air transport industry. Indian Airlines faced tough competition from Jet Airways, Air Sahara (now Jet Lite), East-West Airlines and ModiLuft. As of 2005, Indian Airlines was the second largest airline in India after Jet Airways while Air Sahara controlled 17% of the Indian aviation industry.
East-West Airlines and ModiLuft discontinued flight operations but the entry of several low-cost airlines in India like Deccan, SpiceJet and others like Kingfisher Airlines continue to give competition in its market, forcing Indian to cut down air-fares. However, as of 2006, Indian Airlines was still a profit making airline.
It is wholly owned by the Government of India through a government holding company and has 19,300 employees (at March 2007).[5] Its annual turn-over, together with that of its subsidiary Alliance Air, is well over Rs.4000 crores (around US$ 1 billion). Together with its subsidiary, Alliance Air, Indian carries a total of over 7.5 million passengers annually.[citation needed]
Indian Airlines has also been granted permission from the Government of India to merge with Air India, under the name Air India. The two airlines formally became one on 15 July 2007 upon receiving the new Boeing 777-200LR with the new livery of the merged airline. The new airline's headquarters will remain in Mumbai, and will have a fleet of 130+. After the merger, the two airlines have applied for membership of Star Alliance with Lufthansa backing the application.[6] Alliance Air and Air-India Express are also to merge as the new airline's low-cost arm.[7] After successful completion of the Air India - Indian Airlines merger, the airline been accepted as a member of the Star Alliance, the largest airline alliance. After the merger the merged airline had a huge domestic network and fleet which quickly led to acceptance of the application to Star Alliance with Lufthansa's support. The airline will be joining the Star Alliance in 2009.[8]
[edit] Services
Indian served its customers through inbound call centres based at Delhi and outbound call centers at major metropolitan areas. Accessible through a toll free number from all parts of the country, arrival-departure information, reservations, promotional schemes, telephone check-in and booking (Dial-a-Ticket) are a few of the services rendered to fliers and travel agents.
[edit] Destinations
- Further information: Indian Airlines destinations
[edit] Code Share
- Delhi
- Kiev operated by Aerosvit Airlines
- Almaty operated by Air Astana
- Bishkek operated by Kyrgyzstan Airlines
- Tashkent operated by Uzbekistan Airways
[edit] Fleet
As of 10 May 2007, the Indian fleet comprised the following aircraft:[9]
As of 2006, the average Indian fleet age was 15.8 years.[10]
Indian had ordered 43 Airbus jets[2] comprising of:
- 19 Airbus A319 (6 delivered)
- 4 Airbus A320
- 20 Airbus A321 (2 delivered)
The above ordered and existing fleet was merged with the Air India, after which the A300's were phased out on March 31, 2008.
[edit] Livery
The aircraft livery used while the company was called Indian Airlines was one of the longest in terms of time. Its aircraft were mainly white. The belly was in light metallic grey. Above the windows, "Indian Airlines" was written in English on one side and Hindi on other. The tail was bright orange in color with its logo in white. In most of the aircraft, the logo was also painted on the engines over its bare metal color. Also, when the company was under the title of Indian Airlines, to celebrate its 50th year of service the airline put the slogan "50 years of flying" in gold on many of their aircraft.
After the name change to Indian, the company's aircraft was sporting a new look inspired by the Sun Temple at Konark in Orissa. The tail of their aircraft had a partial blue wheel since practically 3/4 of the remainder is cut off. The wheel is over an orange background with the carrier's name "Indian" written in English on one side of the fuselage, and in Hindi on the other.
On 15 May 2007, the Government of India released the new livery, which was sent to Boeing in Seattle, US to repaint all the new fleet coming into the new Air India. The design is a cross between the Air India and Indian Airlines livery. The old fleets of Air India and Indian Airlines will also slowly be painted in the new livery.
[edit] Incidents and accidents
There have been at least 12 fatal events in the history of Indian Airlines and Indian.[11]
- 29 August 1970: Indian Airlines Fokker F27, near Silchar, India: The aircraft crashed into high ground shortly after takeoff. All five crew members and 34 passengers were killed.
- 9 December 1971: Indian Airlines HS748, near Chinnamanur, India: The aircraft was on descent into Madurai when it crashed into high ground about 50 mi (80 km) from the airport. The event occurred in daylight and reduced visibility. All four crew members and 17 passengers were killed.
- 11 August 1972: Indian Airlines F27, New Delhi, India: The aircraft lost altitude and crashed after abandoning a landing attempt. All four crew members and 14 passengers were killed.
- 31 May 1973: Indian Airlines Boeing 737-200, near New Delhi, India: The aircraft crashed and caught fire during landing. The crash killed five of the seven crew members and 43 of the 58 passengers.
- 12 October 1976: Indian Airlines Sud Aviation Caravelle, Mumbai, India: The right engine caught fire shortly after takeoff and the crew elected to return. Fuel flow to the engine was not stopped and the fire spread through the fuselage and led to hydraulic system failure and a loss of aircraft control shortly before landing. All six crew members and 89 passengers were killed.
- 4 August 1979: Indian Airlines HS748, near Mumbai, India: The aircraft was approaching the airport at night and in poor weather when it collided with high ground about 6 mi (9.7 km) from the airport. All four crew members and 41 passengers were killed.
- 10 May 1980: Indian Airlines 737-200, near Rampurhat, India: The aircraft experienced severe en route turbulence. Two of the 132 passengers were killed.
- 19 October 1988: Indian Airlines Flight 113, Ahmedabad, India: The aircraft hit an electric mast 5 mi (8.0 km) out on approach in poor visibility. All six crew members and 128 of 129 passengers were killed.
- 14 February 1990: Indian Airlines Flight 605 (an Airbus A320), Bangalore, India: Controlled flight into terrain during approach. The aircraft hit about 400 m (1,300 ft) short of the runway. Four of the seven crew members and 88 of the 139 passengers were killed.
- 16 August 1991: Indian Airlines Flight 257, near Imphal, India: The aircraft hit high ground during descent about 30 km (19 mi) from the airport. All six crew members and 63 passengers were killed.
- 26 April 1993: Indian Airlines Flight 491, (Boeing 737-200), Aurangabad, India: The flight crew initiated their liftoff late and the aircraft struck a large vehicle on a road just outside the airport. The vehicle strike damaged one engine and the aircraft later hit power lines and crashed. Four of the six crew members and 52 of the 112 passengers were killed. The administrators of the airport were also cited for failing to regulate vehicular traffic on the road.
- 24 December 1999: Indian Airlines Flight 814, which had just taken off from Kathmandu, Nepal to Indira Gandhi International Airport in Delhi, was hijacked. The plane flew around different points in South Asia and Southwest Asia as officials of the government of India and the Taliban negotiated. One passenger was killed and some were released. On 31 December 1999, the rest of the hostages on Flight 814 were freed.
A non-fatal aircraft loss occurred on 15 November 1993. Indian Airlines Flight 440, an Airbus A300B2-101, executed a missed approach at Hyderabad-Begumpet Airport due to poor visibility, but the flaps failed to retract. After trying to solve the problem while flying in the vicinity of Hyderabad, the crew eventually diverted the aircraft to Chennai. The delay in diverting, and the need to fly slower due to the extended flaps, resulted in the aircraft running out of fuel on the way. The aircraft force-landed in a paddy field and was damaged beyond repair.
[edit] Financials
Given below is a chart of trend of profitability of Indian Airlines as published in the 2004 annual report by Ministry of Civil Aviation with figures in millions of Indian Rupees.[12]
| Year | Operating Revenues | Operating Profit/(Loss) |
|---|---|---|
| 2002 | 41,015 | (1,347) |
| 2003 | 46,498 | 1,251 |
[edit] Controversies
Indian Airlines when trying to terminate its overweight employees in an effort to compete with private airlines was sued by the terminated employees. However, Delhi high court dismissed their plea in support of the airlines. The ruling is based on the provision in the contract signed by the air hostesses with the airlines about a possible termination of their contract in case of weight gain.[13]
[edit] References
- ^ Indian Airlines network. indian-airlines.in (2007-11-15).
- ^ a b Indian Airlines to be called 'Indian' now. Rediff.com (2005-12-07).
- ^ "Why one large airline makes economic sense", The Hindu Businessline, 2005-06-30. Retrieved on 2007-07-30.
- ^ "Asia's largest airline to fly soon", CNN-IBN, 2007-02-22. Retrieved on 2007-06-01.
- ^ "Directory: World Airlines", Flight International, 2007-04-03, pp. 92-93.
- ^ Air India joins star alliance of 17 airlines
- ^ Air India Express, Alliance Air to merge
- ^ Air India joins star alliance of 17 airlines- Airlines / Aviation-Transportation-News By Industry-News-The Economic Times
- ^ List of Scheduled Operator's Permit Holders. Indian Directorate General of Civil Aviation (2007-05-10). Retrieved on 2007-07-25.
- ^ Indian Airlines. Airfleets.net.
- ^ Fatal Events Since 1970 for Indian Airlines. AirSafe.com.
- ^ 2004 Annual Report
- ^ Indian Airlines dismisses overweight employees
[edit] External links
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