Rakesh Jhunjhunwala-Backed Akasa Air's Launch Likely To Be Delayed Further: Report

Akasa Air is expected to receive its first aircraft only in June or July

New Delhi: The launch of commercial services of Akasa Air is likely to be delayed further as the airline is expected to receive its first aircraft only in June or July, quoting a senior Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) official, the PTI reported.

Earlier, the Rakesh Jhunjhunwala-backed airline was planning to start operations in June, however, later they postponed it to July.

According to the report, a top official of Akasa Air has said the company intends to start services in July.

Akasa Air, based in Mumbai and registered as SNV Aviation, received the mandatory no-objection certificate (NOC) from the Civil Aviation Ministry in October last year.

According to the procedure, once the airline gets aircraft, the company has to conduct a set of successful proving flights or test flights.

In a proving flight, which may originate from one airport and fly to another airport, is part of the regulator’s process for the induction of a new aircraft type in an airline's fleet. It consists of five sectors (legs) with a total block time of 10 hours or more.

This may include one diversion to an enroute alternate airport or a destination.

The DGCA official said, “Their (Akasa Air) aircraft delivery is delayed and it is expected to come around June or July. As far as other procedures are concerned, they all are on track.”

Akasa Air said it was expecting to get the first aircraft by mid-June and intends to commence commercial operations in July.

Akasa Air Founder and Managing Director Vinay Dube said, “We expect our first aircraft delivery by mid-June 2022. The first aircraft will help us with our operating permit and the proving flights will be held as per regulatory requirements prior to the AOP (Air Operator Permit) receipt," said in a statement.

Dube said that the airline wants to start commercial operations in July 2022 and is on course for later aircraft inductions to fly 18 aircraft by the end of March 2023.

On Tuesday, Akasa Air announced its new airline code. In a tweet, the airline has mentioned the new code, QP.