Indian Air Corridor to Central Asia
An exclusive terminal for General Aviation has been inaugurated at Delhi’s Palam Airport to facilitate operation of chartered or private aircraft. According to Civil Aviation Minister Hardeep Singh Puri, “we expect a bulk of pre-Covid-19 domestic air passengers’ traffic to be back by Diwali, and General Aviation will have a significant contribution on it. The new General Aviation Terminal at Delhi airport is the need of the hour which would significantly support this growth”.
Udan 4.0
Mr Hardeep Singh Puri, Minister of Civil Aviation has stated that “Udan 4.0 is ready to go, seventy-eight additional routes have now been approved, taking the total number of sanctioned routes to 766”. He said 18 unserved or underserved airports would be connected to major cities, including Delhi, Kolkata and Kochi.
The Government of India is assessing the possibility of creating an air corridor to the Central Asian countries to boost trade and overcome Covid-related travel and transport restrictions. Initially, this will essentially be a cargo corridor that can be used to ferry goods between India and the five Central Asian countries Kazakhistan, Kyrgyzstan, Turkmenistan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan. Issues related to developing air corridor were discussed by officials of MEA, civil aviation ministry, representatives of airlines during a webinar by Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry ( photo above of Bishkek, capital of Kyrgystan, earlier known as Frunze, where batches of IAF officers were once posted for MiG-21 conversion).
Tata Sons to bid for Air India
The Tata Group has reportedly carried out due diligence on the national carrier Air India and may soon make a formal bid, along with some financial partners. Their focus presently is to examine business synergies and viability and perhaps “it is premature
Goa Shipyard Ltd has carried out the first plate cutting on 21 September for the Advanced Missile Frigate Project for the Indian Navy, marking official commencement of the construction phase. Adm G Ashok Kumar, VCNS presided over the ceremony via Video Conference. The ceremony was also attended by VAdm SR Sarma, Chief of Materiel, Indian Navy, VL Kantharao, Additional Secretary (Defence Production), RAdm Philopose Pynumootil, FOGNA and other senior dignitaries from the Ministry of Defence and the Indian Navy.
Third stealth frigate of Project 17A
Keel of the third ship (Yard-12653) of the P17A class stealth frigates was laid on 10 September 2020. Seven warships under the P17A series ( depicted in photo) will be constructed of which four are being built at MDL and three at GRSE, with MDL as the lead
At a ceremony at Goa Shipyard’s Yard 1236, fourth in the series of five Offshore Patrol Vessels (OPV) for the Indian Coast Guard was recently launched and named ICGS Sarthak. This was conducted through video conferencing from Coast Guard Headquarters at New Delhi, in the presence of Dr Ajay Kumar, Defence Secretary, DG K Natarajan DGCG and others. The OPV ship is fitted with state-of-the-art navigation and communication equipment, sensor and machinery, displaces 2350 tons and is propelled by two 9100 KW diesel engines.
A major item also cleared by the DAC on10 August 2020 was procurement of an upgraded version of the Super Rapid Gun Mount (SRGM) to be fitted onboard Navy and Indian Coast Guard warships, made by Bharat Heavy Electricals Limited (BHEL).