Checks have been satisfactorily performed on four 737 Max 8 aircraft operated by Air India Express, eight by Spicejet, and 20 by Akasa Air, the aviation regulator said.
Orders have been pouring in for the single-aisle jet, and it won’t be long before passengers have little choice but to fly on one or wait for another slot at the departure gate.
Unlike Boeing's 737 Max 7 variants, Max 8 planes cannot fly into 'high/hot' airports as they have high elevations that require longer runways and faster speeds for takeoff.
With Jet Airways grounding its fleet of 119 aircraft fleet and Spice Jet pulling out its 737 Max, airfares have been rising across India for past few weeks.
Demand for older versions of 737s is set to increase after two recent crashes involving 737 Max 8 jets prompt regulators to bar the plane amid safety investigations.
Many flights have been cancelled following the civil aviation ministry ordering Boeing 737 Max flights to be grounded or restricted from Indian airspace.
Cape Town and Chennai in recent years endured punishing droughts. Similar conditions afflicted Bengaluru and Hyderabad last year. Now Tehran is facing the same emergency.
With the US-India trade deal yet to get done, rupee depreciation may be helping to mitigate India’s loss of competitiveness. The other problem is extreme despondence among overseas equity investors.
Of the total package, $649 million will be utilised for additional hardware, software, and support services, and the remaining for Major Defence Equipment (MDE).
Don’t blame misfortune. This is colossal incompetence and insensitivity. So bad, heads would have rolled even in the old PSU-era Indian Airlines and Air India.
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