Deccan air founder G.R. Gopinath has stepped down as the promoter of Deccan Aviation as the merger with Vijay Mallya’s Kingfisher airline proceeds. On his proposedall-cargo airline plan, Gopinath
"It was frustrating and I thought there should be better cargo connectivity in the country." Gopinath has already appointed Jude Fonseca from logistics major FedEx as the CEO of the new venture, some aircraft have already been orderedand some more are on the way.
Gopinath is also said to be in talks with Cochin International Airport Limited (CIAL), India’s first privately operated airport, to set up a joint venture for dedicated cargo facilities across the country.
Based on a hub-and-spoke model the network would use Nagpur or Hyderabad as cargo hubs and other small facilities across the country will be set up as the spokes with warehousing facilities. Several unused airstrips in Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh are being considered for the smaller facilities.
According to the government’s greenfield airport policy, cargo facilities can also be set up like merchant airports allowing a private company to select the land and develop the airport without government funding. The government’s air cargo policy is expected in the next two or three months. Among other things, the policy will include the concept of cargo villages, which will act as hubs for checking and sorting out cargoconsignments.
Cargo competition is heating up fast in India with new freighter entrant QuikJet planning to start operations to places like Nagpur, Ahmadabad and Indore by the second half of this year. Established express player, Blue Dart, meanwhile, is expanding its facilities across the country starting with a temporary facility at the Hyderabad airport and expanding its facility at the Delhi airport.
The carrier is also planning to expand its fleet of four Boeing 737 and three Boeing 757 aircraft by acquiring new ones. Carriers like Spice Jet are also starting their own cargo companies, Jet Airways and Kingfisher Airlines are looking at starting dedicated freighter airlines soon as well.