Jet Airways, Kingfisher Fly Higher on Etihad's likely India visit

Aviation stocks were flying higher on Wednesday on reports that key executives from Etihad Airways' are likely to visit India this week to evaluate potential investment opportunities in Indian carriers. While KFA was up 5%, Jet too climbed 3.7% higher on this news. SpiceJet was also up around 4%.

CNBC-TV18 has learnt from sources that executives are scheduled to meet Jet Airways  and Kingfisher Airlines  top officials. It is also learnt that Etihad's senior executives have been favouring Jet, but decision in this regard is not yet finalised.

Meanwhile, Jet has expanded its code-share agreement with Etihad Airways for the Abu Dhabi-Paris route on Monday. The two airlines already have a similar arrangement for Abu Dhabi-Mumbai/Delhi routes operated by Jet Airways, and the flights originating from Abu Dhabi for Mumbai, Delhi, Cochin, Thiruvananthapuram, Kozhikode, Chennai and Hyderabad operated by Etihad.

Jet is the only Indian airline to have code sharing pact with Etihad . Code-sharing allows an airline to book its passengers on its partner carriers and provide seamless transport to multiple destinations where it has no presence

Sources said Jet has been considering minority stake sale of up to 20 percent while debt-laden Kingfisher Airlines, which has debt of over Rs 7,000 crore, was looking at majority stake sale. Kingfisher sought fresh equity infusion of at least USD 400 million, sources added.

Liquor baron Dr Vijay Mallya is also in discussions with several investors for equity partnership, including Gulf-based Etihad Airways . The company has however denied any deal with any of them, even as it lost five more aircraft due to non- payment of lease rentals and tax dues. "We would like to clarify that the company is in discussions with various investors, including Etihad Airways, for equity investments," Kingfisher said in a filing to BSE.

Video: The Ruby Suns – “Kingfisher Call Me” Consequence of Sound In the video for “Kingfisher Call Me”, New Zealand indie-pop act The Ruby Suns captures the true loneliness of the average mountain man, which involves long hours of intense labor, the stinging cold of the woods, and a general sense of isolation. It's ... See all stories on this topic »

Kingfisher Airlines evaluating steps for revival including capital infusion NDTV Kingfisher Airlines has informed BSE that its Board has been deliberating various alternatives to improve the financial position of the Company in the best interest of all stakeholders. The debt laden and grounded carrier is evaluating several steps ... See all stories on this topic »

Kingfisher Airlines surges on stake sale reports to Eithad Airways Economic Times The news comes on the backdrop of the fact that aviation minister Ajit Singh has categorically said that until and unless Kingfisher Airlines complies with the DGCA norms, it will not be able to fly again. Kingfisher Airlines has been in talks with ... See all stories on this topic » Economic Times

Kingfisher Airlines confirms Etihad talks BBC News India's Kingfisher Airlines has confirmed that it is in talks with Etihad Airways and other investors to take a stake in the embattled carrier. Local media reported thatKingfisher planned to sell a 48% stake, though the firm did not confirm the claims ... See all stories on this topic » BBC News

Kingfisher Airlines confirms Etihad discussions Breaking Travel News Kingfisher Airlines has confirmed it is in talks with Etihad Airways over potentially taking an equity stake in the troubled India carrier. A number of other investors are believed to be interested in the airline, which is battling for survival ... See all stories on this topic » Breaking Travel News

Kingfisher confirms Etihad investment talks Business Traveller Troubled Indian carrier Kingfisher Airlines has confirmed it is “in discussion with various investors, including Etihad Airways, for equity investments in the company”. Local media reports suggest Etihad is looking to take a 48 per cent stake in ... See all stories on this topic »

Jet, Kingfisher fly higher on Etihad's likely India visit Moneycontrol.com Jet, Kingfisher fly higher on Etihad's likely India visit. Aviation stocks were flying high on Wednesday on reports that the Etihad (a flag carrier of the United Arab Emirates) executives are likely to visit India this week to evaluate potential ... See all stories on this topic »

Kingfisher says talks with Etihad still on Business Times (subscription) Grounded: Kingfisher is facing eviction from Mumbai airport over non-payment of charges. - PHOTO: BLOOMBERG. BT 20121213 KINGFISHER13 309771. [MUMBAI] Kingfisher Airlines said on Tuesday that it was in talks with Abu Dhabi's Etihad Airways and ... See all stories on this topic »

How Cloud Computing Is Shaping Your Business, How Business Is Shaping The Cloud

There have been numerous reports over the years on how cloud computing has developed, how businesses are taking to it, and how it is being used in the home. However, little enough research has been done to assess what vendors think about it. A new report aims to remedy that.

Produced by IT Channel Insight, The Cloud Leaders’ Report 2012 pulls together the results of a number of interviews done with some of the players that are currently shaping the cloud computing industry.

Those that were consulted for this report include: Asigra, Axcient, CA Technologies, Citrix, Dell, Google, HP, IBM, Microsoft, Rackspace, Red Hat, Salesforce, Shoretel, StorageCraft, Symantec and VMware.

In fact, just about anyone who is anyone in a computing space that Gartner estimates will be worth US$ 206 billion in spending in 2016, up 41% from current levels.

Glide Apps Coming To Windows, Android, iOS - Cloud-computing - InformationWeek Since then, Apple, Google and Microsoft have all introduced their own cloud storage, sharing and productivity services, leaving TransMedia to reposition its offerings in an effort to survive amid the giants. Glide Effortless became Glide OS and its ... See all stories on this topic »

SendGrid adds Parse, Stackmob, Azure integrations — Cloud Computing News GigaOM SendGrid is inching towards ubiquity with new integrations to Parse, Stackmob and Windows Azure mobile backend services. SendGrid is popular with developers who want easy email integration for their mobile apps and who don't want to rely too much on ... See all stories on this topic » GigaOM

Oracle buys DataRaker for energy analytics smarts — Cloud Computing News GigaOM Other than its well-publicized cloud computing push, Oracle has been buying more into vertical application niches for years. On Thursday it's done more of the same with news of its planned acquisition of DataRaker, which specializes in “cloud-based” ... See all stories on this topic » GigaOM

Jingdong Mall to build cloud-computing centers China Daily Beijing Jingdong Century Trading Co, known as Jingdong Mall, will invest up to 4 billion yuan ($639.5 million) to build cloud-computing centers in the Inner Mongolia autonomous region and in Jiangsu province in the coming years, said a report in the ... See all stories on this topic »

Dell World: Dell Updates Cloud Strategy | Cloud Computing and Open Source ... Talkin' Cloud Dell's cloud computing business continues to grow, as the company unveiled at Dell World 2012 in Austin, Texas. With cloud revenue growing 30 percent year-over-year in the third quarter of 2013, Dell announced plans to continue supporting open source ... See all stories on this topic »

How Cloud Computing Is Shaping Your Business, How Business Is Shaping The ... CMSWire There have been numerous reports over the years on how cloud computing has developed, how businesses are taking to it, and how it is being used in the home. However, little enough research has been done to assess what vendors think about it. A new ... See all stories on this topic »

Cloud Computing: Cloud Computing Workload Volumes Expected to Surpass ... Formtek Blog (blog) Cloud Computing: Cloud Computing Workload Volumes Expected to Surpass Traditional Ones in Two Years. By Dick Weisinger, on December 13th, 2012. The growth in the flow of data across networks has been phenomenal. Cisco predicts that zettabyte ... See all stories on this topic »

'Cloud Computing' to Improve Tunisian Enterprises' Competitiveness AllAfrica.com Tunis — The Cloud Computing, one the most advanced solutions in the area of information and communication technologies, should be adopted by Tunisian enterprises to guarantee their sustainability and improve their competitiveness," said "Tunisie ... See all stories on this topic »

Will Audiogalaxy buyout move Dropbox into a cloud music service? CloudTech There have been intriguing developments in terms of utilising the cloud as an entertainment vehicle during the past 24 hours, with Dropbox acquiring personal music streaming service Audiogalaxy and Amazon's Cloud Player arriving on Samsung Smart TVs. See all stories on this topic »

NASA's cloud computing odyssey: From Earth to Mars - space, NASA, cloud ... Computerworld Australia But getting there was a long journey, and it's the story of how NASA moved from relying on what it could provide on-premise to using the cloud to do the heavy lifting. The implications go far beyond Curiosity: cloud computing is a key factor in letting ... See all stories on this topic »

Where are all the Women Pilots of Alaska Aviation?

The Last Frontier is known for the skills, wild tales and accomplished feats of its incredible pilots; for proof, just check out any of the Legends of Alaska Aviation. Among Alaska's hearty and experienced flyers are women, but they're often fewer in number and still a novelty -- even today.

So where are all Alaska's female  Pilots?

Many of the 49th state's female aviators have banded together to form and uphold various associations, organizations and groups, but one group in particular has historic roots both in Alaska and worldwide: the Chapter of the 99s.

The 99s is an international organization of licensed women pilots from 35 countries. In 1954, a small group of independent women established the first chapter of the 99s in Alaska simply called the Alaska 99s. In 1978, the Cook Inlet chapter was established, followed by the Fairbanks chapter in 1981 and the Mat-Su chapter in 1984.

The chairwoman of the Alaska 99s, Melanie Hancock, says that there are around 55 members. She adds that the 99s "have never been more than 75" and they regularly "struggle and hover between 55 and 65."

"We lose a few, gain a few" every year, but have a difficult time attracting more women, Hancock said.

Jane Dale, executive director of the Alaska Airports Association and member of the 99s, adds that although there are fewer female pilots than men, you do see them out and about. Dale lives in Willow, Alaska, where the Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race begins north of the state's largest city. There are a number of lakes and rivers in that part of the Matanuska Valley, and likely more airstrips than roads.

That suits Dale, who's been traversing the Alaska sky for most of her adult life.

"We're kind of a tight-knit group," she said of the 99s. "(There's) a lot of talent in a lot of women (pilots) around the state."

Although Dale doesn't really pay attention to pilot gender, she notes that there definitely are fewer women than men flying over The Great Land.

Here are some statistics from the FAA's 2012 Fact Book for the entire U.S.:

In 2010, the last year that data was available, there were 687,042 pilots in the U.S.
Of those, about 6 percent -- or 42,088 pilots -- were female.
"There are a number of women pilots in Alaska ... the hard part is that not all airmen allow their data to be available," Alaska FAA Aviation and Space Education Coordinator Angie Slingluff said in an email. "Determining gender from names can be tricky. When I last tried to compile a list in 2010 there were 11,207 names."

If those numbers are correct, it's possible that about 27 percent of Alaska's General Aviation pilots are women. And while 27 percent is certainly better than the 6 percent of female aviators nationwide, it does leave one wondering: Where are all the gals?


According to a 2010 study investigating the lack of women in aviation, the top reasons that more women aren't involved in flying -- either recreationally or as an occupation -- may be attributed to the cost, "a lack of readily available female mentors," and "certain perceived gaps in experience and skill sets." The study, lead by Penny Hamilton, Ph.D., also addresses how women can push through these barriers to become pilots.

In Alaska, Slingluff and others have been working hard to attract more women, especially young women, to aviation. Hancock says the 99s "have been fairly active" with Alaskan youth, "working with the Girl Scouts and the Young Eagle flights." She adds, "We have a presence at various aviation events around the state and (99) meetings are open to anyone who wants to come to them."

For more information on women in aviation, and especially if you're a woman looking for a flight training scholarship opportunity, visit the 99s' Alaska chapter.

Five Men Convicted in Fight Against Aviation Crime

Afghans Urged to Take All Military Tasks Except Aviation Bloomberg “They should be able to do all the tasks except perhaps aviation, close air support, that might be the one outlier we are still going to be involved in,” U.S. Marine Corps Major General Lawrence Nicholson, the deputy chief of staff for operations with ... See all stories on this topic »

St. Thomas Jet Center & Lehigh Valley Aviation Services Join the Air Elite Network The Leading Aviation Industry Resource for News, Equipment and Tampa, FL (December 11, 2012)– World Fuel Services announced today that St. Thomas Jet Center located at Cyril E. King Airport (STT) in St. Thomas, U.S. Virgin Islands and Lehigh Valley AviationServices located at Lehigh Valley International Airport ... See all stories on this topic »

82nd Combat Aviation Brigade Change of Command, Thursday Patch.com Col. T. J. Jamison, the 82nd Combat Aviation Brigade commander, will relinquish his command to Col. Michael J. Musiol during a change of command ceremony at Pike Field, Dec. 13 at 10 a.m.. Jamison has commanded the Pegasus brigade since August ... See all stories on this topic »

General aviation taking off at MacArthur Newsday While Long Island MacArthur Airport officials have struggled to jump-start commercial air travel, general aviation flights at the Ronkonkoma airport are soaring. For the first nine months of 2012, MacArthur saw a 33 percent increase in flights by ... See all stories on this topic » Newsday

Middle East Business Aviation Market Poised To Double To $1 Billion By 2018 Aviation Week The Middle East business aviation market, which has more than doubled over the past five years, is expected to remain on that trajectory and reach $1 billion in the next five years, industry executives predict. The region took 246 business aircraft ... See all stories on this topic » Aviation Week

Five Men Convicted in Fight Against Aviation Crime AllAfrica.com The SAPS secured a major victory in the fight against aviation crime following a joint operation between themselves and ground handler Menzies Aviation, which recently saw five men convicted and receiving lengthy jail time. The Kempton Park Regional ... See all stories on this topic »

Dassault Falcon Announces Sale of Two Falcon 900 Business Jets to Wallan ... PR Newswire UK (press release) Wallan Aviation has been operating in the Middle East for 20 years and has also expanded to other services in the aviation field, including charter, jet maintenance and a flight academy to train the next generation of pilots. Wallan was awarded the ... See all stories on this topic »

It's a fall season for aviation Business Standard With air fares in the domestic skies spiralling Indian's are preferring to travel abroad than fly within the country for their Christmas and New Year holidays. With air tickets at an average in the domestic sector up by 20-30%, bookings have fallen by ... See all stories on this topic »

Pilot Capt CJames L. Auman,injured in small-plane Cessna 172 crash near DeKalb Airport

A pilot from Sycamore was hurt but conscious after his Plane crashed in a field just south of DeKalb Airport on Tuesday afternoon.

James L. Auman, 62, was trapped inside the single-engine airplane when it crashed about 3:45 p.m. near Route 38 just east of Weber Road, about a quarter-mile south of DeKalb Airport, authorities said.

Firefighters from nearby DeKalb and Cortland cut him out of the wreck, DeKalb County Sheriff’s police said. Auman was alert and able to communicate with paramedics.

The aircraft, a T-51 Mustang, was registered to Auman, who also was named as the plane’s maker, according to Federal Aviation Administration records and spokesman Tony Molinaro.

Auman, of Sycamore, was airlifted to Saint Anthony Medical Center in Rockford after the crash.

Authorities could not say Tuesday night what caused the crash. The FAA, National Transportation Safety Board and DeKalb Sheriff’s police will continue to investigate.

NH man pleads guilty in fatal Mass. plane crash Boston.com (AP) — A New Hampshire man has pleaded guilty to involuntary manslaughter for a Massachusettsplane crash that killed his daughter nearly two years ago. Fifty-eight-year-old Steven Fay of Hillsboro entered the plea Tuesday in Franklin Superior Court ... See all stories on this topic »

Singer Jenni Rivera's Horrifying Plane Crash Details Released But Family Still ... The Stir Singer Jenni Rivera's family is still hoping and praying that she somehow survived last Sunday'splane crash. The last tweets I saw from her 11-year-old son Johnny Angel Lopez included the message "They will find her," and a screen capture of another ... See all stories on this topic »

South Africa opens new investigation into 1986 plane crash that killed ... Washington Post JOHANNESBURG — South African police have opened a new investigation into the 1986 airplane crash that killed Mozambique's Marxist president and more than 20 others, an official said Wednesday, an incident many have blamed on the former apartheid ... See all stories on this topic »

Sycamore pilot recovering after plane crash Champaign/Urbana News-Gazette DEKALB, Ill. (AP) — A Sycamore man is in good condition in a Rockford hospital after crashing his small plane south of the DeKalb Airport. WNIJ Radio (http://bit.ly/127I87m ) reports that 62-year-old James Auman was flown by helicopter to St. Anthony ... See all stories on this topic »

How planes crash Minnesota Public Radio It's not often we hear firsthand the stories of how plane crashes occur, especially the one in Rochester last week in which four people on their way home from the Packers-Vikings game in Green Bay, ended up upside down in a crashed plane. The ... See all stories on this topic »

Deadly plane crash in Lowndes Co. WALB-TV Tonight, aviation investigators and clean-up crews remain on the scene of that deadly plane crash in Lowndes County. They're still not sure why the plane went down Monday night shortly after takeoff fromMore >>. Tonight, aviation investigators and ... See all stories on this topic »

Jenni Rivera dead, plane crash update: Owner of plane in crash linked to ... WPTV In short, the insurance companies claim that Starwood lied in its application for coverage about the history of the planes being insured and about the true owner of the company. Starwood is the owner of the Learjet that crashed Sunday in Mexico, most... See all stories on this topic » WPTV

Pilot injured in small-plane crash near DeKalb Airport Chicago Sun-Times A pilot from Sycamore was hurt but conscious after his plane crashed in a field just south of DeKalb Airport on Tuesday afternoon. James L. Auman, 62, was trapped inside the single-engine airplane when it crashed about 3:45 p.m. near Route 38 just east ... See all stories on this topic »

Jenni Rivera Crash Investigation Raises Startling Legal Questions Over ... Billboard.biz Jenni Rivera was "in the final stages" of buying the Lear Jet on which she and six others were killed Sunday when the plane crashed in Mexico, according to Christian E. Esquino Nuñez, who, the Los Angeles Times blog reported, identified himself as the ... See all stories on this topic »

Plane crashes near DeKalb airport; one injured Rockford Register Star DEKALB — A small plane crashed shortly after take off Tuesday afternoon in a farm field about 1¼-mile south of DeKalb Taylor Municipal Airport. The crash occurred about 3:45 p.m. near Illinois 38 and Webster Road. The plane flipped over once and came ... See all stories on this topic »

Singapore Airlines to focus on Asia after Virgin Divestment

: Singapore Airlines’ (SIA) sale of its 49% stake in Virgin Atlantic will allow the cash-rich Asian carrier to focus resources on its fast-growing regional market, analysts said Wednesday.
The Singapore carrier’s tie-up with British billionaire Richard Branson’s Virgin Atlantic never really took off since the alliance began 12 years ago when the stake was bought for £600 million ($966.5 million).
SIA on Tuesday said it will sell the stake to Delta Air Lines of the United States for $360 million in cash in a deal to be completed next year.
SIA said it “had been evaluating strategic options for the stake for some time, as the investment has not performed to expectations and the synergies the parties originally hoped for have not materialised.”
Analysts said SIA, consistently one of the world’s most profitable airlines, had little say in how Virgin Atlantic was run by the flamboyant Branson, and the sale allows it to exit an underperforming investment in the troubled European market.
“SIA can now focus on investments in the Asia Pacific region,” Brendan Sobie, a Singapore-based analyst with industry consultancy Centre for Aviation, told the news agency.
Sobie said it made more sense for Delta to have a strategic stake in Virgin Atlantic as there are more synergies in their trans-Atlantic network.
Jason Hughes, an analyst with IG Markets Singapore, said that despite the higher acquisition price paid by SIA, the $360 million “will go down as a profit, as losses had already been accounted for in previous years”.
SIA shares closed 1.12% higher at Sg$10.87 as investors cheered the divestment.
Malaysian bank CIMB said in a note that the sale would give SIA a “short-term boost” but urged investors to focus on the long-term challenges posed by Middle Eastern carriers and budget airlines.
Shukor Yusof, an aviation analyst with Standard & Poor’s Equity Research, said SIA can use the extra cash to “redefine its business strategy on top of beefing up its regional subsidiaries”.
“It’s also good to exit out of Europe because the market conditions there are quite atrocious,” he told the news agency.
Shukor said conflicting management styles with Branson was one of the chief reasons why the alliance failed to prosper beyond a code-sharing agreement.
“Branson remained the controlling shareholder and he called the shots,” he said.
Virgin Atlantic also did not have enough slots at London’s high-traffic Heathrow airport for SIA to latch on in its bid to gain a share of the lucrative trans-Atlantic route to New York, Shukor added.
Analysts said SIA’s decision to buy the stake in Virgin Atlantic in March 2000 was a good move at the time because Asia was just emerging from the 1997-1998 financial crisis.
But the centre of global economic power has since shifted to Asia, sparking a travel boom in the region.
Passenger traffic in the Asia Pacific is forecast to account for 33% of the global market in 2016, up from 29% in 2011, according to trade body International Air Transport Association (IATA).
“This makes the region the largest regional market for air transport, ahead of North America and Europe which each represent 21%,” IATA said in a statement on their latest industry forecast.
SIA has been investing both in the premium travel segment, where it faces competition from Middle East carriers, and in the low-cost market where it is challenged by budget airlines.
SIA in June launched a long-haul budget wing called Scoot while maintaining a substantial stake in low-fare carrier Tiger Airways. It also operates a regional wing, SilkAir.
SIA and Scoot in October announced orders for 45 Airbus and Boeing aircraft. The orders came after SilkAir in August said it would buy 54 new Boeing planes with an option to buy a further 14 aircraft. AFP

Deal Buzz Swarms Around India's Airlines Wall Street Journal (India) (blog) Indian airlines may be bleeding cash, but some foreign airlines still find them attractive targets. Nearly three months ago, when India had allowed foreign airlines to own up to 49% in domestic carriers, airline industry experts were skeptical about ... See all stories on this topic » Wall Street Journal (India) (blog)

Singapore Airlines to focus on Asia after Virgin divestment Livemint Tweet. First Published: Wed, Dec 12 2012. 05 09 PM IST. Singapore Airlines has been investing both in the premium travel segment, where it faces competition from Middle East carriers, and in the low-cost market where it is challenged by budgetairlines. See all stories on this topic » Livemint

Three international airlines show interest in Kolkata Business Standard According to Kolkata airport officials, three international airlines from Japan, Turkey and Dubai have expressed there willingness to operate to and from the city. “Japan Airlines, Turkish Airlines and Fly Dubai have evinced interest in starting ... See all stories on this topic »

Kingfisher Airlines may fly past Jet Airways in the race for alliance with ... Economic Times MUMBAI: Vijay Mallya's Kingfisher Airlines has emerged as the dark horse in the race for a strategic alliance with Etihad Airways as the possible deal between Naresh Goyal's Jet Airways and the Abu Dhabi-based airline may flounder on valuations. See all stories on this topic » Economic Times

Buy HUL; Exit Kingfisher Airlines: Sukhani Moneycontrol.com Buy HUL; Exit Kingfisher Airlines: Sukhani. Sudarshan Sukhani, s2analytics.com is of the view that one should exit Kingfisher Airlines while long term investor can buy HUL with a target of Rs 1000. Traders Only. Share · Tweet · Share on Tumblr. Like ... See all stories on this topic »

Govt to ask airlines to cut fares, boost PLF Rediff Concerned over spiralling fares, the civil aviation ministry, which will launch an airfare monitoring cell next week, has decided to ask domestic carriers to reduce rates and increase passenger load factor (PLF) that has been falling even in peak seasons. See all stories on this topic » Rediff

Turkish Airlines eyes expansion in India; add Hyderabad, Kolkata as new ... Economic Times NEW DELHI: Turkey's national carrier Turkish Airlines plans to double flights between Delhi and Istanbul and add Hyderabad and Kolkata as new destinations next year, its chief executive, Temel Kotil, told ET. "We will expand into 250 destinations by ... See all stories on this topic » Economic Times

Ryanair Flies as Rival European Airlines Flag Wall Street Journal (blog) Grabbing market share from Europe's shrinking flag carriers as well as the smallairlines that have gone bankrupt in the past year helps explain the continued strong growth in traffic at Ryanair and other budget carriers like easyJet PLC and Norwegian... See all stories on this topic » Wall Street Journal (blog)

Kingfisher Airlines up 5% on talks with investors, Etihad Moneycontrol.com Shares of Kingfisher Airlines rose 5% to Rs 16.45 on news that the company is in discussions with several investors for equity partnership, including Gulf-based Etihad Airways. Source: Moneycontrol.com ... See all stories on this topic » Moneycontrol.com

RPT-Qatar Airways says studying Czech Airlines privatisation Reuters DUBAI, Dec 11 (Reuters) - Qatar Airways is interested in the privatisation of Czech Airlines (CSA), but has not taken a decision on whether to participate in it, the chief executive of the Gulf carrier said on Tuesday. The Czech government said last ... See all stories on this topic »