Jagson to buy 6 aircraft; start chopper services for pilgrims
Jagson Airlines, which has received the scheduled regional airline status from the government, on Thursday said it planned to acquire six 50-70 seater aircraft this year.
By PTI |
NEW DELHI: Jagson Airlines, which has received the scheduled regional airline status from the government, on Thursday said it planned to acquire six 50-70 seater aircraft this year and deploy a helicopter to ferry pilgrims on the Kailash Mansarovar Yatra.
"In 2008, we plan to buy six more aircraft ... 50-70 seaters. They could either be (turboprop) ATRs or Dash-8s," the airline Chairman J P Gupta told reporters here.
Asked whether these planes would be acquired outright, he said acquisition would be made through a mix of lease and purchase. The airline, which flies out of Delhi to Himachal Pradesh, Jammu and Kashmir and Uttarakhand, has a fleet of three Dorniers and two MI-172 helicopters.
Referring to Kailash Mansarovar Yatra, Gupta said the airline was in talks with the Uttarakhand government to launch chopper services from Pantnagar to a helipad on the Indo-China border, from where the pilgrims would enter China to visit the famed Mansarovar lake.
"We will start operations within 60 days of finalisation of our negotiations. We will deploy one 26-seater MI-172 helicopter on this route," he said.
A passenger can fly from Delhi to Pantnagar on a Dornier, then go by helicopter to the forward helipad and start the trek to the lake crossing the Chinese border. This would reduce travel time from 14 days to two-three days.
With the regional airline status, Jagson Airlines can operate from Delhi, cover the entire northern region and fly to any non-metro city in other parts of the country.
The airline also reconstituted its Board inducting three former IAS officers, including former Indian Airlines CMD P C Sen. The others are former Secretary R C Jain and former Telecom Commission Chairman Vinod Vaish.
"In 2008, we plan to buy six more aircraft ... 50-70 seaters. They could either be (turboprop) ATRs or Dash-8s," the airline Chairman J P Gupta told reporters here.
Asked whether these planes would be acquired outright, he said acquisition would be made through a mix of lease and purchase. The airline, which flies out of Delhi to Himachal Pradesh, Jammu and Kashmir and Uttarakhand, has a fleet of three Dorniers and two MI-172 helicopters.
Referring to Kailash Mansarovar Yatra, Gupta said the airline was in talks with the Uttarakhand government to launch chopper services from Pantnagar to a helipad on the Indo-China border, from where the pilgrims would enter China to visit the famed Mansarovar lake.
"We will start operations within 60 days of finalisation of our negotiations. We will deploy one 26-seater MI-172 helicopter on this route," he said.
A passenger can fly from Delhi to Pantnagar on a Dornier, then go by helicopter to the forward helipad and start the trek to the lake crossing the Chinese border. This would reduce travel time from 14 days to two-three days.
ADVERTISEMENT
With the regional airline status, Jagson Airlines can operate from Delhi, cover the entire northern region and fly to any non-metro city in other parts of the country.
The airline also reconstituted its Board inducting three former IAS officers, including former Indian Airlines CMD P C Sen. The others are former Secretary R C Jain and former Telecom Commission Chairman Vinod Vaish.
Start a SIP with as low as ₹500 with ET Money App!
Download
The Economic Times News App for Quarterly Results, Latest News in ITR, Business, Share Market, Live Sensex News & More.
The Economic Times News App for Quarterly Results, Latest News in ITR, Business, Share Market, Live Sensex News & More.
ADVERTISEMENT
