This growth has been achieved through the integration of operational efficiencies network planning, strategic code shares, marketing initiatives and on-time performance, all of which has helped the airline stay a step ahead, said Nikos Kardassis, CEO, Jet Airways.

Fifty passengers began praying fervently, when the aircraft they were travelling in, started shuddering in bad weather, soon after it took off from Kochi airport yesterday.

Seven days after the Mangalore air crash that killed 158 persons, the memory returned to haunt passengers of a Jet Konnect flight 2734 that was headed towards Chennai from Kochi.

Jet Airways Konnect flight 2734 takes off from Kochi and heads towards Chennai. ILLUSTRATIONS/SAMEER PAWAR

Twenty minutes into the journey, due to rain and bad weather, the flight starts shaking

Panic-stricken passengers pray, hoping that the Mangalore crash would not be repeated

The ATR aircraft, small in size with 50 passengers, two crew members and pilot on board had just taken off, when it started raining and the airplane started shaking.

Eyewitnesses said almost all the panic-stricken passengers were praying, hoping that the Mangalore crash would not be repeated. Some of the passengers started reciting the verses from their prayer books.

“Twenty minutes into the journey, and the flight suddenly started shaking. The cabin crew asked us to tie our seat belts. The memories of the recent Mangalore air crash suddenly came to my mind and I got scared. I observed a lady passenger, who was reading the Bible and was in tears,” said Shriprada, a passenger.

“The situation was tense in the flight. After 15-20 minutes the turbulence stopped and the flight landed safely at the Chennai airport by 9.20 pm,” Shriprada added.

Sources in the Chennai Air Traffic Control (ATC) explained that the climate was bad and the pilot was unable to control the flight movement initially.

When contacted Jet Airways spokesperson did not respond to our calls.

This new JetLite service will complement the existing Jet Airways Konnect flight on Tuesdays/ Thursdays/ Saturdays/Sundays, where 9W 2478 departs Kolkata at 1350 hrs and arrives into Agartala at 1455 hrs. On the return, 9W 2479 departs Agartala at 1755hrs arriving into Kolkata at 1845 hrs.

On Mondays/Wednesdays/Fridays, Jet Airways Konnect flight 9W 2478 departs from Kolkata at 1640 hrs and arrives into Agartala at 1745 hrs. Flight 9W 2479 leaves Agartala at 1825 hrs and arrives into Kolkata at 1920 hrs.

LCCs such as SpiceJet Ltd, GoAir, run by Wadia Group’s Go Airlines (India) Pvt. Ltd and IndiGo, operated by InterGlobe General Aviation Pvt. Ltd have begun offering a slew of free services and discounts that were expected only from FSCs until recently.

And FSCs such as Jet Airways (India) Ltd and Kingfisher Airlines Ltd have moved two-thirds of their passenger capacities to no-frills and all-economy services—the traditional domain of LCCs.

GoAir, which opened a business class in 2008, has now has started offering complimentary drinks to passengers at the airport before they board the aircraft.

It has tied up with beverage shops at various airports, allowing passengers to get coffee or tea by simply showing a boarding pass.

“The rationale behind offering freebies is to get an edge over the competition,” said Rakesh Tiwari, vice-president, commercial operations, GoAir. “Travellers feel only fully-service carriers offer something for free.”

Other LCCs such as SpiceJet and IndiGo are offering discounts for defence personnel between 26 January and 26 March, and free meals to corporate customers.

SpiceJet recently launched television commercials focusing on customer service features and product benefits.

“We believe that regular engagement with customers is the key to our success. With these new campaigns, we will be in a position to bring to life the value proposition that passengers will experience when they fly with us,” said Sanjay Aggarwal, chief executive at SpiceJet.

The Delhi-based airline has also introduced supervision of unaccompanied minors, online check-in, hot beverage and combo meals available for sale, two-bag waiver for guests connecting on SpiceJet within 24 hours of international travel and waiver of additional charges on sports kits.

IndiGo is not far behind. It has introduced a hand-held machine that issues boarding passes and check-in through automatic kiosks, besides informing passengers of their flight status through text messages on their mobiles.

In a bid to deal with the economic downturn, FSCs moved the bulk of their capacity into the low-fare space last year.

Jet Airways introduced a new brand for its low-fare no-frill service, Jet Airways Konnect. Kingfisher offers similar services through Kingfisher Red. Jet Airways also has the low fare unit JetLite (India) Ltd, formerly Air Sahara.

Aloke Bajpai, chief executive of travel website IXiGO.com, said almost every airline in India was a low-cost carrier.

“In such an environment where low-cost carrier bookings now form a majority of the total bookings, it is becoming increasingly important for the pure play low-fare carriers to differentiate their brands for various consumer segments and offer value-added services,” he said.

This, he added, allows travellers to build brand preference not just because of low fares—which was now common to all—but on account of added comfort levels, on-time performance, food and beverages or personalized services.

Flight 9W 553, with a full complement of passengers  departed Doha at 0330 hrs, and arrived in Delhi at 0940 .The flight was behind schedule by 4 Hrs 40 Minutes due to adverse weather conditions at Delhi .

Flight 9W554 from Delhi arrived Doha at 0001 Hrs local time. Mr. K.Prasad, General Manager Qatar and Mr. Vijay Bhushan Airport Manager, Doha received the Passengers and Crew. All the departing Passengers were met and  greeted and given special gifts.

According to Mr. Nikos Kardassis, CEO, Jet Airways, Doha has been among the more popular destinations in Jet Airways international network, and the airlines services to and from India to the capital of Qatar have been much appreciated by travelers. The launch of Jet Airways daily services to Doha from Delhi will cater to the strong customer demand for direct flights on the route, and will also connect travelers from Doha to Jet Airways 61-destination strong network spanning the length and breadth of India and beyond. In addition to Doha, Jet Airways flies from India to eight destinations in the Gulf, including Kuwait, Bahrain, Muscat, Abu Dhabi, Dubai, Jeddah, Sharjah and Riyadh.

About Jet Airways

Jet Airways currently operates a fleet of 89 aircraft, which includes 10 Boeing 777-300 ER aircraft, 12 Airbus A330-200 aircraft, 53 next generation Boeing 737-700-800-900 aircraft and 14 modern ATR 72-500 turboprop aircraft. With an average fleet age of 4.58 years, the airline has one of the youngest aircraft fleet in the world.

Flights to 61 destinations span the length and breadth of India and beyond, including New York both JFK and Newark, Toronto, Brussels, London Heathrow, Hong Kong, Singapore, Kuala Lumpur, Colombo, Bangkok, Kathmandu, Dhaka, Kuwait, Bahrain, Muscat, Doha, Abu Dhabi, Dubai, Jeddah, Sharjah and Riyadh.

About Jet Airways Konnect

Jet Airways Konnect is Jet Airways’ all-economy service on key domestic routes, designed to meet the needs of the low-fare segment with value-for-money fares.

Jet Airways Konnect links five major metros- Mumbai, Delhi, Chennai, Bengaluru and Kolkata – with several destinations across India, operating over 195 flights daily.

Jet Airways and its all-economy, no-frills Jet Airways Konnect service together operate over 300 flights daily.

About JetLite

JetLite is a wholly owned subsidiary of Jet Airways India Ltd. and was acquired by Jet Airways in April 2007. Positioned as an all-economy, no-frills airline, JetLite operates a fleet of 23 aircraft, which includes 16 Boeing 737 series and 7 Canadian Regional Jets 200 Series. The airline flies to 28 domestic destinations and 2 international destinations Kathmandu and Colombo, operating over 110 flights a day, on average.

Jet Airways, Jet Airways Konnect, its all-economy, no-frills service, and JetLite have a combined fleet strength of 112 aircraft and operate over 410 flights daily.

Dr. P. Umanath, Collector, Coimbatore District was the Chief Guest at the event. Well-known film stars Radhika Sarathkumar and Master Rahhul Sarat added glitter to the celebrations, making the day more memorable for the young guests.

Corporate partners and sponsors Airports Authority of India, Indian Oil Corporation, set of new clothes from Shree Devi Textiles, Lux Casual Wear (Tirupur) and K R Group turned up in full force in support of this noble cause.

Over 50 children had a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to experience the joy of flying on board Jet Airways flight 9W 817. The flight was operated in support of three non-governmental organizations, Family for Children, Don Bosco and Make a Wish Foundation as also hearing and speech impaired children from Government sponsored schools.

The Flight of Fantasy initiative was launched by Jet Airways in 1997. The airline has been operating such flights year after year, usually to commemorate Childrens Day in several cities across India, benefiting and enlightening several underprivileged and special children.

Nikos Kardassis, Chief Executive Officer, Jet Airways said, It is indeed a privilege for us to work with these notable NGOs and their wards. It is most gratifying to see smiles lighting up the little faces with The Flight of Fantasy.

The flight took off from the domestic terminal of the Coimbatore Airport at 12.40 hours and returned to the airport at 13.15 hours.

Fun, frolic and excitement filled every moment of the childrens Flight of Fantasy experience right from the time they arrived at the domestic terminal. Refreshments were served at the lounge, courtesy KR Group. As the flight landed, the children were in for another surprise. Jet Airways staff at Coimbatore airport contributed towards special gifts and goodie bags for the children, thereby helping them takeaway memories that they could cherish for a lifetime.

About Jet Airways

Jet Airways currently operates a fleet of 89 aircraft, which includes 10 Boeing 777-300 ER aircraft, 12 Airbus A330-200 aircraft, 53 next generation Boeing 737-700/800/900 aircraft and 14 modern ATR 72-500 turboprop aircraft. With an average fleet age of 4.58 years, the airline has one of the youngest aircraft fleet in the world.

Flights to 61 destinations span the length and breadth of India and beyond, including New York (both JFK and Newark), Toronto, Brussels, London (Heathrow), Hong Kong, Singapore, Kuala Lumpur, Colombo, Bangkok, Kathmandu, Dhaka, Kuwait, Bahrain, Muscat, Doha, Abu Dhabi, Dubai, Jeddah, Sharjah and Riyadh.

About Jet Airways Konnect

Jet Airways Konnect is Jet Airways all-economy service on key domestic routes, designed to meet the needs of the low-fare segment with value-for-money fares.

Jet Airways Konnect links five major metros- Mumbai, Delhi, Chennai, Bengaluru and Kolkata – with several destinations across India, operating over 195 flights daily.

Jet Airways and its all-economy, no-frills Jet Airways Konnect service together operate over 300 flights daily.

About JetLite

JetLite is a wholly owned subsidiary of Jet Airways India Ltd. and was acquired by Jet Airways in April 2007. Positioned as an all-economy, no-frills airline, JetLite operates a fleet of 23 aircraft, which includes 16 Boeing 737 series and 7 Canadian Regional Jets 200 Series. The airline flies to 28 domestic destinations and 2 international destinations (Kathmandu and Colombo), operating over 110 flights a day, on average.

Jet Airways, Jet Airways Konnect, its all-economy, no-frills service, and JetLite have a combined fleet strength of 112 aircraft and operate over 410 flights daily.