Category Archives: Aviation

Blue Dart has mobilised its Business Contingency and Continuity Plan (BCCP), including pandemic operating plans, and is implementing preventive actions as appropriate to ensure least disruption in its services to Indian businesses. The company’s QRT – Quick Response Team, is working 24×7 towards mitigating potential impacts while ensuring continuity of the supply chain across the nation. Six 757 Boeing freighters operating day and night across Indian skies have been prioritised to deliver medical equipment & pharmaceuticals amongst other shipments enabling the nation in its fight against the COVID 19 pandemic. Balfour Manuel, Managing Director, Blue Dart Express, says, “In this critical health crisis, our express logistics services play a critical role, in saving lives – whether it is by sending emergency medical equipment and supplies to healthcare workers; delivering necessity goods to customers; or by finding solutions for companies to continue their operations. To this end, we are working closely with government bodies and institutions. Our QRT is responding exceptionally to the situation and industries we are working with have appreciated the response that Blue Dart has been able to put together at short notice. We are working round the clock to deliver in a time-bound manner so that the fight against the pandemic is supplemented & multiplied. Ensuring the air life-line of the nation our aircrafts are deployed.” To ensure essential deliveries are not disrupted, Blue Dart also operated two new air routes Guwahati and Pune which are not a part of our normal schedule. We are also flying flights as exigencies demand. Additionally, we are exploring international charter to support critical government requirement.

With the DGCA (Directorate General of Civil Aviation) permission of cargo operations using existing passenger category aircraft, Hyderabad airport handled its first international shipment of essential supplies with Qatar Cargo QR 8311. The same aircraft uplifted 28 tonne of essential supplies from Hyderabad and departed to Doha, on the same day, and connected the shipments from thereon to other corners of the globe. SGK Kishore, CEO, GMR Hyderabad International Airport (GHIAL), said, “Extraordinary situations require extraordinary solutions. The DGCA permission has opened a window of opportunity for the aviation community to leverage the fleet of idled passenger aircraft to help meet the desperate need for air cargo capacity to carry essential medicines and other supplies across the globe during this moment of global crisis. Having successfully handled the first such flight to operate into Hyderabad under the new DGCA guidelines, we remain committed to supporting continued operations of our nation’s air cargo lifeline in the days to come.” Hyderabad International Airport has been categorised as one of the 6 national hubs under Government of India’s ‘Lifeline Udan’ arrangement for operating medical cargo lifelines for the nation in this hour of crisis and GMR Hyderabad Air Cargo and GHIAL are working round the clock in close coordination with the customs, ground handlers, forwarders, CHAs (Customs House Agents), regulators, state Police, cargo trade associations, to keep the critical chain of essential supplies viz. medicines, vaccines, medical equipment, pharma raw material, defense goods, banking documents etc. up and running even through the lockdown. With around 200 dedicated and highly motivated personnel working in a shift, Hyderabad Air Cargo is ensuring all these essential supplies are properly handled and timely cleared. At present, GMR …

The Ministry of Civil Aviation and Air India have worked closely with China to establish a cargo air-bridge between the two countries for transfer of critical medical supplies. The first cargo flight between India and China was operated by Air India carried 21 tonnes of critical medical supplies from China. On the domestic front, 116 flights have been operated by Air India, Alliance Air, IAF, Pawan Hans and private carriers, under Lifeline UDAN and 79 of these flights have been operated by Air India and Alliance Air. Cargo transported till date is around 161 tons. Aerial distance covered by Lifeline Udan flights till date is over 112,178 km. The ministry informs that special focus has been given to the North East Region (NER), island territories and the hill states. MoCA, Air India and IAF have collaborated closely for last mile deliveries to Ladakh, Dimapur, Imphal, Guwahati and Port Blair. Bulk of the cargo comprises light-weight and voluminous products like masks, gloves and other consumables, that require more space on the aircraft per ton. Special permission has been taken to store cargo in the passenger seating area and overhead cabins, with due precautions. The Lifeline Udan flights are being operated despite significant logistical challenges in road transportation of cargo to and from airports; production bottlenecks and in the movement of aviation personnel. Domestic Cargo Operators SpiceJet, Blue Dart and Indigo are operating cargo flights on a commercial basis. Spicejet operated 166 cargo flights from 24 March to April 4, 2020 covering a distance of 2,23,241 km and carrying 1,327 tonnes of cargo. Out of these, 46 were international cargo flights. Blue Dart operated 52 domestic cargo flights, covering a distance of …

As part of India’s war against COVID-19, the Ministry of Civil Aviation, Government of India has launched ‘lifeline Udan’ flights for movement of medical and essential supplies across the country and beyond. Under the Udan initiative of Ministry of Civil Aviation, 74 flights have been operated till date for transporting medical cargo across the country. A total of 37.63 tonne of cargo has been transported till date out of which more than 22 tonne has been transported on March 31, 2020. A dedicated medical air cargo related website has been launched and is fully functional from today. Domestic cargo operators; Blue Dart and Spicejet are operating cargo flights on commercial basis. On March 31, following flights were operated: Lifeline 1: Air India flights; Mumbai to New Delhi to Guwahati to Mumbai carried consignments of Meghalaya, Assam, ICMR, consignment of Nagaland, Arunachal, and Pune Lifeline 2: Air India flights; New Delhi to Hyderabad to Trivandrum to Goa to Delhi. It carried consignments of Andhra Pradesh, Kerala, ICMR. Lifeline 3: Alliance Air flight; Hyderabad to Bengaluru to Hyderabad carried consignment of Ministry of Textiles. Lifeline 4: Air India flight; Chennai to Port Blair to Chennai Lifeline 5: IAF flight; Hindon (Delhi) to Port Blair via Sulur

The cargo flights were operated to carry medical supplies to Southern, eastern and north eastern regions on 30th March 2020. Ministry of Civil Aviation (MoCA) shares the below details: Lifeline 1- Air India flight A320 on its route Mumbai-New Delhi-Bengaluru-Mumbai, carried HLL consignment of 6593 kg and Nagaland ventilator masks, consignments of Kerala and Karnataka, consignment of Bipaps for Meghalaya and consignment of Ministry of Textiles for Coimbatore. Lifelines 2- IAF flight from Hindon- Dimapur- Imphal-Guwahati carried consignments of HLL and ICMR kits for Shillong. Private airlines such as Indigo, Spicejet and Blue Dart are also operating flights on commercial basis. MoCA group was formed with important stakeholders. Hub & spoke lifeline services were started. Cargo Hubs have been created at Delhi, Mumbai, Hyderabad, Bengaluru and Kolkata. Hubs feed to spokes at Guwahati, Dibrugarh, Agartala, Aizwal, Imphal, Coimbatore, Thiruvananthapuram. Total cargo load carried from 26th to 29th March 2020 was 10 Tonnes. The cargo essentially covered COVID-19 related reagents, enzymes, medical equipment, testing kits & PPE, masks, gloves & other accessories of HLL & cargo requisitioned by State/UT Governments. A dedicated Medical Air Cargo related website has been launched and is functional. This website will be fully functional from 1st April, 2020. The link is available on the MoCA website (www.civilaviation.gov.in). The information sharing, answering of queries and the work at ground is going on round the clock for delivering the supplies to the destinations in a timely manner so that the efforts to fight the COVID 19 are multiplied and supplemented.

The airport has suspended all the commercial passenger flights until April 14 midnight with the recent directive by the Government of India. However, the airport continues to remain operational with a curtailed staff of over 500 personnel working endlessly for vital cargo operations and emergency evacuation flights, if any at the same time safeguarding safety precautions at the airport. To cater to the greater need of mobilizing and supplying essential commodities across India and the world, the airport is operating its cargo handling activities. The items include pharmaceutical goods, medical equipment, which are approved by the regulatory bodies and customs.

The Hyderabad International Airport has been shut for international and domestic traffic for the last few days. However, air cargo services are operational to keep the vital link of essential supplies alive and operational round the clock. The airport is handling 11 freighters weekly along with some special cargo charters, which are connecting Hyderabad with all major international destinations in the United States of America, European countries, Middle-east, Africa, Far East, etc. – moving emergency supplies. About 100 tonnes of export and import cargo is being witnessed at the airport. Out of this over 70 per cent consignment belongs to pharma and essential products. Some of the key Pharma companies, which are using the cargo services include – Dr. Reddys Laboratories, Aurobindo Pharma, Mylan Laboratories Limited, Hetero Drugs, Divis Laboratories Limited, MSN Pharma, Pfizer, Glenmark Pharmaceuticals, Natco Pharma, among others. Approx. 40-50 trucks which includes bonded trucking, temp-controlled trucks and general cargo trucks, are coming to Hyderabad Airport for consignment delivery and lift-off daily. With around 200 dedicated and highly motivated personnel working in a shift, Hyderabad Air Cargo is operating round the clock to ensure all these essential supplies are properly handled and timely cleared. The personnel include GMR cargo staff, Customs officials, Regulatory Agencies, Ground handlers, Freight Forwarders, CHAs among others.

The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) has issued a set of instructions for safely operating this crucial service with all cargo flight allowed in the Indian skies. The DGCA circular for cargo operation says, “All personnel involved with cargo operations to be made aware of the importance of ensuring adequate distance (minimum 1-1.5 metres) at all work stations. All personnel dealing with cargo operations will be provided with personal protective equipments like masks, gloves, etc. All agencies shall ensure that repeated disinfection of common working areas is carried out at timely intervals.”

The Ministry of Civil Aviation (MoCA) says that it is coordinating with state governments to ensure the supply of medical equipment and related essential items needed for protection against and testing of COVID-19. The senior officials of the Ministry coordinate with supply agencies for providing required material which can be further transported to the desired destinations, based on the requirements received from various states on urgent basis. Air India and Alliance Air flights are being operated to carry out the necessary supply operations across the country. Agencies authorised by MoCA to carry shipment on these flights contact the concerned officials of their region and coordinate for timely delivery/ receipt of shipments. In order to cater to eastern and north eastern parts of the country, an Alliance Air flight from Delhi to Kolkata carried shipments for Kolkata, Guwahati, Dibrugarh and Agartala on March 29, 2020. In northern region, IAF flight from Delhi to Chandigarh to Leh carried ICMR VTM kits and other essential cargo. Alliance Air transferred Pune shipment to Mumbai on Air India flight. Flights on Mumbai -Delhi-Hyderabad-Chennai-Mumbai and Hyderabad-Coimbatore route carried and transported ICMR kits of Shimla, Rishikesh, Lucknow and Imphal from Pune to Delhi. ICMR kits were carried to Chennai. A consignment of Hyderabad was delivered. Consignments of Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu and Puducherry were also delivered. A consignment of Ministry of Textiles was moved to Coimbatore. The information sharing, answering of queries and the work at ground is going on round the clock for delivering the supplies to the destinations in a timely manner so the efforts to fight the COVID-19 are multiplied and supplemented.

DHL Express and BVC entered a partnership to enable Indian SMEs, in the gems and jewellery industry, to grow their presence in the international marketplace. The service is targeted at 10,000 Indian jewellery SME exporters to help them expand their presence in international markets for B2C shipments. Commenting on the partnership, Sandeep Juneja, Vice President – Commercial, DHL Express India, said, “There is a significantly large cross-border e-commerce opportunity, that this sector can leverage using our e-commerce supply chain solutions. Our vast network of over 220 countries and territories opens the door to expand beyond traditional trade lanes.” Yogesh Bansode, President – International, BVC, said, “BVC is digitising the jewellery industry through its ecosystem of offerings and the DHL partnership expands the shipping solutions.”