Akasa Air, India’s newest carrier, will begin commercial operations in July, Vinay Dube, the airline’s CEO, has said. “As we get closer to the airline launch date, we can now confirm refined estimates on our timelines. We expect our first aircraft delivery by June, with the intention to start commercial operations in July,” Dube, who is also the founder and managing director of Akasa, said on Monday.
Dube, who gave the earlier June estimate while speaking at an aviation event on March 26, also said that the carrier remains on course to operate as many as 18 aircraft by the end of March next year.
“We are extremely thankful to the Ministry of civil aviation and the Directorate General of Civil Aviation for their guidance and support on all required regulatory clearances. We have received our No Objection Certificate (NOC) and our next key milestone is the Air Operators Permit (AOP). We hope to satisfy all regulatory requirements for the AOP certification at the earliest,” the former Jet Airways and GoAir (now GoFirst) CEO also said.
Here’s all you need to know about Akasa Air:
(1.) Besides Dube, Akasa also has the backing of ace investor Rakesh Jhunjhunwala, and Aditya Gosh, the former chief of IndiGo.
(2.) In the first half of August 2021, the civil aviation ministry gave NOC to the airline to begin commercial operations.
Also Read | Rakesh Jhunjhunwala-backed Akasa Air gets Centre’s nod to operate in India
(3.) In December last year, the company unveiled its brand logo, ‘The Rising A’. It said that the inspiration behind the logo is the ‘elements of the sky’. “The Rising A symbolises the warmth of the sun, the effortless flight of a bird, and the dependability of an aircraft wing,” the carrier said in a tweet.
Also Read | India’s newest carrier Akasa Air unveils brand logo
(4.) The logo has used a mixture of ‘sunrise orange’ and ‘passionate purple’ which reflects the airline’s ‘warm, youthful nature’, it said. The company’s slogan is ‘it’s your sky’.
(5.) By 2025, the airline plants to have a fleet of approximately 70 planes. In November 2021, Akasa signed a deal with Boeing to purchase as many as 72 Boeing 737 Max planes.
(With PTI inputs)
