BackGuidelines to be issued to promote charter flights
Fractional ownership will lower the barrier on the cost of acquisition of helicopters and aeroplanes through pooled capital by multiple owners, aviation minister Jyotiraditya Scindia said
PremiumNEW DELHI : The civil aviation ministry will issue guidelines on fractional ownership model to promote charter flights, aviation minister Jyotiraditya Scindia said.
“While our scheduled operations are on the fast track and we have increased the fleet size from 400 aeroplanes in 2013 to more than 700 in 2021-22, through these guidelines, we should be able to spur growth in the non-scheduled fleet too," Scindia told the Heli India Summit on Monday.
Fractional ownership will lower the barrier on the cost of acquisition of helicopters and aeroplanes through pooled capital by multiple owners, he said. This will allow companies and individuals to minimise their capital outflow by sharing the purchase cost, reducing their exposure to risks and making it financially easier to run non-scheduled flights business, he added.
“Fractional Ownership Model has the potential to energize the NSOP (non -scheduled operator permit) segment by democratising ownership of aircraft and it can be a key driver to boost the number of aircraft existing in the NSOP industry," Scindia said. The guidelines are yet to be made public.
The government is also keen to promote helicopter services for last mile connectivity and for linking cities across Tiers 1, 2 and 3. In line with this, the government has done away with the landing and parking charges for helicopters, Scindia said. The government will also incubate a pilot called Project Sanjeevani by deploying a helicopter in the next few weeks to provide emergency medical services at AIIMS Rishikesh. The service will cover an area of 150 km radius. Further, the ministry aims to have a helipad in every district in the country.
Under this, the civil aviation ministry has started helicopter sensitization training of ATC officers for swift helicopter traffic handling. Three helicopter corridors—Mumbai-Pune, Ahmedabad-Gandhinagar and Shamshabad-Begumpet—have been created and other helicopter corridors are being planned. The ministry is also working with the road transport ministry to allot helipad spaces from the design stage for all future expressways and major highways so that they can be used for evacuating accident victims.
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