Category Archives: Transport

INTERNATIONAL: NATIONAL: AVIATION & AIRPORTS: PM Modi Inaugurates Deoghar Airport, Unveils ₹16,800-crore Projects in Jharkhand

He also flagged off the Deoghar-Kolkata IndiGo flight from the new airport.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday inaugurated the 657-acre Deoghar airport, constructed at a cost of ₹401 crore.

He also flagged off the Deoghar-Kolkata IndiGo flight from the new airport.

The airport has a 2,500-metre-long runway, which can handle the landing and takeoff of Airbus A320 planes.

Mr. Modi had laid the foundation stone of the Deoghar airport on May 25, 2018, as a key step towards providing direct connectivity to Baba Baidyanath Dham, which is an important religious destination for devotees from all over the country.

Civil Aviation Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia, on the occasion, said the airport will be linked to Ranchi, Patna and Delhi in the days to come.

source/content: thehindu.com (headline edited)

INDIA RECORDS: AVIATION: First Aircraft of India’s Newest Airline ‘Akasa Air’ a Boeing 737 MAX Lands at Delhi Airport after Long Ride from Seattle. 71 More to Follow in Time.

Flying all the way from Seattle in the United States, India’s newest airline Akasa Air’s first Boeing 737 MAX aircraft touched down at the Indira Gandhi International Airport in Delhi on Tuesday.(June 21).

“The arrival of our first aircraft is a very happy moment for all of us & marks an important milestone, bringing us closer to our vision of building India’s greenest, most dependable, and most affordable airline,” said Vinay Dube, founder, managing director & chief executive officer, Akasa Air.

It was only last week the airline took delivery of its first 737 Max aircraft from Boeing in Seattle.

In November 2021, Akasa had inked a $9 billion deal with the US-based aircraft major to purchase 72 MAX planes, which includes an initial delivery of 18 aircraft by March 2023 and the remaining 54 aeroplanes in the next four years.

These planes will be powered by the fuel-efficient CFM LEAP B engine.

source/content: newindianexpress.com (headline edited)

WORLD RECORDS: CONSTRUCTION : ROADS & HIGHWAYS : NHAI Enters Guinness World Record for Laying 75 km Highway in 105 Hours: Nitin Gadkari

Highways Minister Nitin Gadkari announced that State-owned National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) and Consultants & Concessionaire, Rajpath Infracon Pvt Ltd & Jagdish Kadam has created a Guinness World Record for the longest continuously laid bituminous lane of 75 kilometres in 105 hours and 33 minutes on the national highway between Amravati and Akola districts in Maharashtra.

Mentioning about the record, Road Transport and Highways Minister Nitin Gadkari on Wednesday said the project was implemented by 720 workers including a team of independent consultants who worked day and night.

The total length of the 75 kilometres of single lane continuous bituminous concrete road is equivalent to 37.5 kilometres of two-lane paved shoulder road and the work started on June 3, at 7:27 am and was completed on June 7, at 5 pm, the minister said in a video message.

The previous Guinness World Record for the longest continuously laid bituminous was for building 25.275 kilometres of road that was achieved in Doha, Qatar in February 2019 and that task was completed in 10 days, Mr. Gadkari said.

source/content: thehindu.com (headline edited)

INDIA RECORDS : SPACE – SATELLITE & LAUNCH VEHICLES: Ananth Technologies Opens the Spacecraft Manufacturing unit at KIADB Aerospace Park in Bengaluru. First Facility in Private Sector.

Ananth Technologies which designs and produces systems for Indian aerospace has set up a 15,000 square metre spacecraft manufacturing unit at KIADB Aerospace Park, Bengaluru, said to be the country’s first such facility in the private sector.

The manufacturing unit would be able to conduct assembly, integration and testing of four large spacecraft simultaneously, the company said in a statement.

Speaking on the occasion, Dr. Subba Rao Pavuluri, Chairman & Managing Director, Ananth Technologies, said, “India is on the cusp of revolutionising the spacecraft industry. As a nation, we are capable of manufacturing world-class spacecrafts.’‘

“Over the years, Ananth Technologies has successfully contributed to major launches of ISRO. Our technology acumen is such that none of the sub-systems supplied by Ananth Technologies has ever failed in orbit,’‘ he claimed.

Since its inception in 1992, Ananth Technologies has contributed to the manufacturing of 89 satellites and 69 launch vehicles built/launched by ISRO, including two satellites for European customers that ISRO had built in collaboration with Airbus, France.

source/content: thehindu.com (edited)

INDIA RECORDS: INDIAN ARMY RECORDS : Captain Abhilasha Barak becomes the First Woman Officer to Join in the Army Aviation Corps as Combat Aviator, May 26th, 2022

Captain Abhilasha Barak has been awarded the Coveted Wings along with 36 Army Pilots by Director General & Colonel Commandant Army Aviation.

Young Aviators are now ready to spread their wings in Combat Aviation Squadrons.

The Indian Army officer from Haryana successfully completed her six-month-long Combat Army Aviation Course to join Army Aviation Corps as a helicopter pilot. She was accorded with the Coveted Wings along with 36 Army Pilots by Director General & Colonel Commandant Army Aviation Lt. Gen. A. K. Suri during a valedictory ceremony held at Combat Army Aviation Training School, Nashik.

Captain Barak has been assigned to the second flight of the 2072 Army Aviation Squadron that operates the Dhruv Advanced Light Helicopter (ALH).

source/content: newsonair.com (edited) / others

INDIA RECORDS: SPACE TECHNOLOGY : Skyroot Successfully Test Fires Space Launch Vehicle ‘Vikram-1’ Rocket Stage , Achieves a Major Milestone.

Nam ed ‘Kalam-100’after the renowned Indian rocket scientist A.P.J. Abdul Kalam.

Skyroot Aerospace, the national-award winning startup building India’s first privately built space launch vehicles has announced the successful completion of a full duration test-firing of its ‘Vikram-1’ rocket stage, representing a major milestone for the company on Thursday.

Named ‘Kalam-100’ after former President and the renowned Indian rocket scientist A.P.J. Abdul Kalam, the third stage of ‘Vikram-1’ produces a peak vacuum thrust of 100 kN (or ~10Tons) and has a burn time of 108 sec, said the city based firm’s founders, in an official release.

The rocket stage has been built with high-strength carbon fiber structure, solid fuel, novel thermal protection system, and carbon ablative nozzle. “It’s a highly reliable stage with no moving parts and high level of automation in manufacturing.

This testing will help us in development of orbital vehicle Vikram-1 and gives great confidence for our other rocket stages planned to be tested soon,” said Chief Executive Officer (CEO) and co-founder Pawan Kumar Chandana.

source/content: thehindu.com (edited)

INDIA : SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY : DEFENCE : Indian Navy Successfully Test-Fires First Indigenously Developed Naval Anti-Ship Missile

The Indian Navy on Wednesday successfully carried out the maiden test firing of the first indigenously developed naval anti-ship missile from a Seaking helicopter, officials said.

The test was conducted at the Integrated Test Range (ITR) in Odisha’s Balasore.

“This firing is a significant step towards achieving self-reliance in niche missile technology and reaffirms the Indian Navy’s commitment to indigenisation,” said a senior Navy official.

source/content: newindianexpress.com (edited)

WORLD RECORDS: INDIA 2nd : Delhi Airport Replaces Dubai as the World’s Second Busiest Airport in March: Report

The Delhi Airport was in 23rd place in March 2019 before the pandemic.

Delhi Airport was the world’s second busiest airport in March 2022 in terms of domestic and international flights handled, said Official Airline Guide (OAG), a global travel data provider, in its recent report.

Whilst Atlanta retains its position as largest, Dubai is knocked out of second place this month (March) by Delhi which moves up from third place last month (February),” the OAG’s report mentioned.

The Delhi Airport was in 23rd place in March 2019 before the pandemic, it added. In March this year, airports in Atlanta in the US, Delhi in India and Dubai in the UAE handled 4.42 million, 3.61 million and 3.55 million seats, it mentioned.

dnaindia.com (edited)

INDIA RECORDS : CONSTRUCTION – Ahmedabad’s SVPIA sets a National Record in ReCarpeting Runway Work

Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel International Airport (SVPIA), managed by the Adani Group, has completed the recarpeting work on its 3.5 – kilometre-long runway in a record time of 75 days. This duration is an all-time best among brownfield runways in India.

Ahmedabad’s SVPIA is the busiest airport in Gujarat with over 200 flights every day in the pre-covid time.

The challenge of recarpeting the runway without impacting the operations of scheduled flights was tackled by Adani Airport Holdings Ltd (AAHL) by using only nine hours of NOTAM (Notice to Airmen) daily.

During the 75 days it took to complete the project, SVPIA kept the runway open daily for 160 flights on average during the remaining 15 hours of the day.

The quantum of asphalt laid for the recarpeting was equivalent to a 200 km stretch of road, while the concrete used for the runway drainage system was sufficient to build a 40-storied structure.

source/content: daijiworld.com (edited0

INDIA RECORDS : AVIATION : IAF Chopper makes New Record, Flies non-stop from Chandigarh to Jorhat

“The 1910 kilometre route was completed in 7 hours 30 minutes and made possible by the capabilities of Chinook along with operational planning and execution of the IAF,” a spokesperson for Western Air Command of IAF said.

An Indian Air Force (IAF) Chinook heavy-lift chopper has created a flying record by completing a non-stop helicopter sortie in India, flying from Chandigarh to Jorhat (Assam).

source/content: indianexpress.com (edited)