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Time of India
an hour ago
- Business
- Time of India
Pakistan airspace ban adding to flying costs, says Air India CEO Campbell Wilson
The continuing ban for Indian airlines in using Pakistani airspace is adding flying hours for non-stop flights and will weigh down Air India 's path to profitability, the company's Chief Executive Officer Campbell Wilson said in a Bloomberg TV interview Monday. 'The impact is significant but we have been able to sustain non-stop operations' to most destinations in North America and Europe, Wilson said. 'It'll certainly hit our bottom line.' The airspace curbs have increased flying time for west-bound flights from India by an hour or so, according to Wilson, who declined to give details on the discussions the Tata Group-owned carrier was having with stakeholders on this front. Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like Exclusive MBA Scholarships [Start Now] Google Search Search Now Undo India launched Operation Sindoor in the early hours of May 7, targeting nine terror camps in Pakistan. The operation was in retaliation to the April 22 terror attack in Pahalgam. The Indian Air Force conducted precise strikes on key Pakistani airbases, including Nur Khan and Bholari, exposing weaknesses in Chinese-supplied defence systems. In response, Pakistan attempted to strike Indian military sites on May 8, 9, and 10. India retaliated by hitting several key Pakistani military assets such as radar sites, air defence systems, and command centres. Live Events On the evening of May 10, Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri said both countries agreed to an immediate halt to all military actions across land, air, and sea. Geopolitical strife has been complicating flying routes and business models for airlines globally in the past few years as they skirt conflict zones. Tariffs are also now a closely watched development for the sector. 'We want certainty. Uncertainty is difficult when you are making investment decisions,' Wilson said, adding that this was a common theme at the ongoing aviation industry event in New Delhi. So far, Air India sees no impact of tariffs on travel flows for its geography and markets. The recent showdown between the US President Donald Trump and Harvard University has added another layer of complication for international fliers especially those looking to study in American institutions. Pointing to anecdotal stories, Wilson said that there seems to be some shift in the large student population from India that usually vies to be on US campuses. 'You hear people thinking of alternatives,' he said. 'Obviously, it's a relatively new development, so people are still digesting it but it does seem that people are more willing to look at alternative locations than perhaps they were before.' Air India, the unprofitable carrier which the Tata conglomerate acquired from the Indian government in 2021, will start receiving new planes it had ordered toward the end of this year, according to Wilson. The deliveries are 'later than we hoped, slower than we hoped,' he said. 'It is constraining our ambitions a little bit in the short term but the long term opportunity for this market is massive, so we are very, very confident.' (With Bloomberg inputs)
Time of India
2 hours ago
- Business
- Time of India
BigBasket pilots 10-minute food delivery with Starbucks, Qmin in Bengaluru
Grocery delivery firm BigBasket has entered the rapid food delivery segment, providing 10-minute food delivery service in select locations in Bengaluru . It comes five months after cofounder and chief executive Hari Menon announced on X that the Tata Group-owned firm was expanding its services to food delivery in 2025. He had said in a post in December 2024 that BigBasket would increase its stock keeping units to more than 30,000 in all tier-1 cities, launch pharma deliveries with Tata 1mg, as well as launch a food delivery service. Currently, BigBasket's 10-minute food delivery includes items from Starbucks , a joint venture between Tata Consumer Products and Starbucks Corporation, and Qmin , a food delivery platform owned by Indian Hotels Company Limited (IHCL). Launched in 2020, Qmin is Tata Sons-owned IHCL's food delivery service, which has its own app allowing customers to order food from Tata-owned hotels and restaurants. The service also has Qmin cafe offering bakery and confectionery products along with beverage items across the country. There are 11 such cafes in Bengaluru. Under its 10-minute food delivery service, BigBasket is offering beverages such as coffee, tea and juice, snacks, meal bowls and desserts. ET had reported in February that Tata Sons wasn't too pleased with what it regarded as BigBasket's sluggish response to the rapid rise of quick commerce in the country. Tata Sons also indicated that BigBasket should seek external investors for a proposed round of $1 billion (Rs 8,556 crore) to mount a fightback in this segment, according to people aware of the matter. 10-minute food delivery race Meanwhile, the rapid food delivery segment is seeing increasing demand as quick commerce platforms Zepto (Zepto Cafe), Swiggy (Snacc) and Blinkit (Bistro) are expanding their services and offerings. During its earnings announcement for the fourth quarter of 2024-25, Zomato 's parent Eternal said that it was doubling down on Bistro, its in-house rapid food delivery service, and pivoting away from restaurant partnerships for this service. Bistro is being expanded across Delhi-National Capital Region, Bengaluru and Mumbai, according to people in the know. Bistro now runs more than 100 kitchens in these markets. Swiggy , on the other hand, is scaling up its 10-minute food delivery service Bolt , which relies on select restaurant partners offering limited menus. It also has an offering similar to Bistro, which is called Snacc. On May 23, ET reported that Zepto paused operations of its 10-minute food delivery vertical, Zepto Cafe, in several cities including Delhi, Agra, Chandigarh, Mohali, Amritsar and Meerut owing to supply chain issues. This impacted the operations of 44 Zepto Cafe stores.
Time of India
2 days ago
- Business
- Time of India
BigBasket pilots 10-minute food delivery with Starbucks, Qmin in Bengaluru
Live Events Grocery delivery firm BigBasket has entered the rapid food delivery segment, providing 10-minute food delivery service in select locations in Bengaluru It comes five months after cofounder and chief executive Hari Menon announced on X that the Tata Group-owned firm was expanding its services to food delivery in 2025. He had said in a post in December 2024 that BigBasket would increase its stock keeping units to more than 30,000 in all tier-1 cities, launch pharma deliveries with Tata 1mg, as well as launch a food delivery BigBasket's 10-minute food delivery includes items from Starbucks, a joint venture between Tata Consumer Products and Starbucks Corporation, and Qmin , a food delivery platform owned by Indian Hotels Company Limited (IHCL).Launched in 2020, Qmin is Tata Sons-owned IHCL's food delivery service, which has its own app allowing customers to order food from Tata-owned hotels and restaurants. The service also has Qmin cafe offering bakery and confectionery products along with beverage items across the country. There are 11 such cafes in its 10-minute food delivery service, BigBasket is offering beverages such as coffee, tea and juice, snacks, meal bowls and had reported in February that Tata Sons wasn't too pleased with what it regarded as BigBasket's sluggish response to the rapid rise of quick commerce in the country. Tata Sons also indicated that BigBasket should seek external investors for a proposed round of $1 billion (Rs 8,556 crore) to mount a fightback in this segment, according to people aware of the the rapid food delivery segment is seeing increasing demand as quick commerce platforms Zepto (Zepto Cafe), Swiggy (Snacc) and Blinkit (Bistro) are expanding their services and its earnings announcement for the fourth quarter of 2024-25, Zomato 's parent Eternal said that it was doubling down on Bistro, its in-house rapid food delivery service, and pivoting away from restaurant partnerships for this service. Bistro is being expanded across Delhi-National Capital Region, Bengaluru and Mumbai, according to people in the know. Bistro now runs more than 100 kitchens in these on the other hand, is scaling up its 10-minute food delivery service Bolt, which relies on select restaurant partners offering limited menus. It also has an offering similar to Bistro, which is called May 23, ET reported that Zepto paused operations of its 10-minute food delivery vertical, Zepto Cafe, in several cities including Delhi, Agra, Chandigarh, Mohali, Amritsar and Meerut owing to supply chain issues. This impacted the operations of 44 Zepto Cafe stores.
Business Standard
3 days ago
- Business
- Business Standard
Air India explores new routes for North America flights amid airspace curbs
Currently, Tata Group-owned Air India operates 71 flights a week to North American destinations and out of them, 54 services are from the national capital Business Standard Editorial Comment Air India is looking at various alternatives for its North America flights from the national capital, including operating the services with a technical stop in a city within India, to reduce operational costs that have shot up due to the Pakistan airspace closure, sources said on Friday. Currently, Tata Group-owned Air India operates 71 flights a week to North American destinations and out of them, 54 services are from the national capital. The airline flies to Chicago, New York, Washington, San Francisco, and Newark in the US, and to Toronto and Vancouver in Canada. In his message to the staff on Friday, Air India MD and CEO Campbell Wilson said there have been a number of network-related developments and the airline has temporarily adjusted some of its Europe and US routes in response to recent airspace restrictions, as well as adding a few technical stops.
Business Times
17-05-2025
- Business
- Business Times
Indian companies, consumers snub Pakistan and its allies
[MUMBAI] A growing number of Indian merchants, companies, and consumers are cutting business ties with Pakistan and some of its allies after a heightened conflict between the South Asian neighbours. Trade and travel with Turkey and Azerbaijan are being curtailed after they issued statements supporting Pakistan following Indian military strikes. India and Pakistan were thrown into a conflict after gunmen killed 26 civilians in India's Kashmir region, with military actions escalating before a ceasefire was announced May 10. The Indian government banned all imports from Pakistan in a May 2 notification, including both goods originating from and transiting through its neighbour. The Confederation of All India Traders, a body that represents the country's largest merchants, will stop importing goods from Turkey and Azerbaijan, as well as exporting to the two countries, it said in a statement Friday. Bilateral trade between India and Turkey was about US$10.4 billion in the financial year ended March 2024. Merchants are also skipping buying Turkish apples and marbles in protest, local media reported. BT in your inbox Start and end each day with the latest news stories and analyses delivered straight to your inbox. Sign Up Sign Up Jewelers in Lucknow in Uttar Pradesh state are boycotting Turkish jewelry, which typically sees high demand, according to Economic Times. Bookings to Turkey and Azerbaijan fell 60 per cent and cancellations surged 250 per cent over the past week compared to the period before tensions flared, online platform Makemytrip said Wednesday (May 14). Other travel platforms including Ixigo operator Le Travenues Technology, Easy Trip Planners and Cox & Kings also stopped offering promotions or travel services to Turkey and Azerbaijan. 'We strongly support this sentiment and advise all against all non-essential travel to Azerbaijan and Turkey,' a spokesperson for MakeMyTrip said. Air India has lobbied Indian officials to stop IndiGo, run by InterGlobe Aviation, from renewing its leasing tie-up with Turkish Airlines, Reuters reported. The Tata Group-owned carrier also flagged its rival's codeshare partnership with Turkish Airlines in a document submitted to government departments, Reuters wrote. India stopped units of a Turkish company Celebi Hava Servisi from operating at its airports Thursday, revoking its security clearance. The Indian aviation ministry said the decision was made on national security grounds, without elaborating. The ground handling services provider operated in nine cities. Operators of New Delhi, Mumbai and Ahmedabad airports later issued statements saying they have ended their contracts with Celebi. A bakery in the southern Indian city of Hyderabad called Karachi Bakery has been seeing vandalisation and boycotts for its name, according to local media, as Karachi is also the largest city in Pakistan. The owners are said to have no connection to the country. India's Central Consumer Protection Authority directed marketplaces including Walmart-backed Flipkart India, and Etsy to stop the sale of Pakistani flags and related merchandise in India, the country's Consumer Affairs Minister Pralhad Joshi said Wednesday on X. Actors from Pakistan have been removed from posters and thumbnails of Indian movies they have acted in on music platforms, local media reported. A Shah Rukh Khan movie made a couple of years ago with a Pakistani actress removed her photo from the thumbnail of a song on YouTube, the report said. The trade body CAIT also asked filmmakers and commercial houses to boycott film shoots and product promotions that might be shot in Turkey. The Indian government blocked YouTube channels of Pakistani cricketers such as Shoaib Akhtar, along with channels of some of the country's news publications, local media reported last month. Two days before the ceasefire, X said that it had received executive orders from the Indian government requiring it to block over 8,000 accounts in the country, subject to penalties including fines and imprisonment of the firm's local employees. BLOOMBERG
