(a) whether the Union Government have received any proposal from the State Government
to start Budget airlines to operate International Flights;
(b) if so, the details thereof, State-wise;
(c) whether the Government of Kerala had applied for starting an Airline to operate
flights to Middle East; and
(d) if so, the decision taken by the Union Government in this regard?
MINISTER OF STATE (INDEPENDENT CHARGE) OF THE MINISTRY OF CIVIL AVIATION( SHRI PRAFUL PATEL )
(a) to (d): Except Kerala, the Government has not received any proposal from other State
Governments to operate budget airlines in international routes. Though no proposal for
formation of any airline by the name `Air Kerala` is pending with the Government for clearance,
the Government of Kerala had informed that a public limited company, `Air Kerala International
Services Limited` has been registered as a Special Purpose Vehicle for a budget airline
project. Government of Kerala requested this Ministry for exemption to the proposed airline
from the stipulated conditions relating to fleet size and the length of operation in the
domestic sector for an airline to be considered for international operations.This request
was not considered in the light of the existing Government Policy regarding the minimum fleet
size of 20 aircraft and experience of 5 years continuous operations in domestic sector for
permitting an Indian scheduled carrier to operate international services.