Major revamp exercise for IA, A-I

In a major revamp exercise, public carriers Air-India and Indian Airlines have jointly appointed a consultant to formulate a long-term business plan for the two airlines, the Rajya Sabha was informed on Tuesday.

The consultant, which will also study the possible synergy in the operations of Air-India and Indian Airlines and optimum utilisation of the fleet, is expected to submit its report within six months, Civil Aviation Minister Shahnawaz Hussain said during Question Hour.

Hussain ruled out withdrawing the Air-India flight to Bangkok from Guwahati saying the Centre did not intend to close the flight though it was running into losses.

He, however, said since the flight was not profit-making, there was no proposal to start any new international flight from Guwahati linking some other foreign cities.

The minister said four ATR aircraft would start operating in the north-eastern region from December 25 to connect the states in the north-east with Guwahati acting as the regional hub.

Responding to a query from RJD member Laloo Prasad Yadav as to why there was no international flight from the Lok Nayak Jayaprakash Narayan International Airport at Patna, he said the runway was short and did not meet the specifications for operating international flights.