Air inida Cargo Types

Air India's Cargo operation flies everything; to just about anywhere.

Not very surprising, when you consider how far and wide Indians have settled. Vast populations have settled in the Gulf, the US, UK, Africa and the Far East. It is to enable them to maintain links with their friends and families back home. And to let the entrepreneurs conveniently go about their business, that Air India has fine tuned its cargo services to their needs.

An active member of IATA, Air India carries all types of cargo including dangerous goods (hazardous materials) and live animals, provided such shipments are tendered according to IATA Dangerous Goods Regulations and IATA Live Animals Regulations respectively.

So if you have something you'd like to fly down to or from India, but aren't sure if we will, here's the complete list of the airline's cargo operations.

Personal Effects
Air India entered the Guinness Book of Records for evacuating the largest number of civilians during the Gulf war in 1990. With them, logically came their bag and baggage in the form of unaccompanied baggage in the belly of our aircraft.

Foodstuff
To book unaccompanied baggage, please contact any of our offices. For facilitating you in Customs clearance for your unaccompanied baggage at Indian airports, you or your representative should approach Indian Customs at the airport through our office with the following:
a) Copy of Airway bill
b) Passenger's passport
c) Baggage Declaration Form (BDF), duly completed

Sentimental Shipments
We understand how traumatic it is to lose a dear one. That's why we make sure the mortal remains of the deceased are always carried with utmost care and concern.
Besides passport of the deceased, the following documents are required for carriage of sentimental cargo :
Death Certificate from a competent medical authority,
Embalming and Packaging Certificate, Certificate issued by the Ambassador or his representative (Nationality of the deceased) with the deceased's full name, age at the time of death, place of death and photocopy of passport details.
Photocopy of cancelled passport.
It is necessary that the above documents are made in English, otherwise the same should be translated in English.

Postal Mail
Air India is undoubtedly the major carrier of postal mail out of India. We have also successfully bagged postal contracts from various Foreign Postal Administrations for uplift of Postal mail from their countries. For any enquiries, you may contact our local offices in the countries concerned or mail us.

Odd-Sized Cargo
Do you have any odd sized cargo or heavy pieces to carry?
Don't worry. Like we handle valuables and livestock, we also possess expertise in logistics to carry heavy and odd-sized.

Dangerous Goods
India being an industrial and nuclear power, we regularly carry Dangerous Goods such as flammable, corrosive, poisonous and radioactive substances. Our Cargo staff is qualified under Dangerous Goods Regulations, to handle such consignments.

Valuables
In order to ensure security of your valuables, we have provided a container with a security locker, on flight. In fact, the entire operation of loading and unloading is carried out under the vigilant eyes of our Security personnel.

India's largest foreign exchange earner is gems and jewellery, for which Air India gets its due share. White and yellow metals are our frequent flyers and a woman's best friend, diamonds, are our regular companions. Our carriage of valuables is not only restricted to gems and jewellery but also transportation of exquisite museum artifacts and paintings.

Among other valuables, we once had the privilege of carrying exquisite paintings, the Padshahnama from Queen Elizabeth's Windsor Castle collections, dating back to the 17th Century Mughal period.

But we never forget that your life is more precious than all the riches of the world. And, at all times, we adhere to the strictest security for transportation of cargo on our flights. Either we ensure that the cargo is retained in our warehouse for 24 hours before loading on the flight, or the cargo is physically checked or x-rayed.

Livestock
Over the years, we have acquired considerable expertise in carriage of livestock such as elephants, tigers, leopards, horses, cattle and pets. Recently Air India transported two plane loads of high breed horses from Europe to India.

Tips for Unaccompanied Baggage
To book unaccompanied baggage, please contact any of our offices. For facilitating you in Customs clearance for your unaccompanied baggage at Indian airports, you or your representative should approach Indian Customs at the airport through our office with the following:
A) Copy of Airway bill
B) Passenger's passport
C) Baggage Declaration Form (BDF), duly completed

Mishandled Baggage
Any loss or damage to baggage must be reported immediately on arrival.
All mishandled baggage is traced through the worldwide computerized tracer system.
Passengers can check the status of their missing bag on this site

Couriers
Courier traffic is a rapidly growing market. Air India has been in the courier business transporting small packages and documents between destinations for years. As we now allow drop-off facility en-route, the on-board courier can carry courier loads to more than one destination, considerably saving on cost and time.

Air india Cargo Operations

Air India's modern fleet of Boeing and Airbus aircraft carries just about everything. From emeralds to elephants, pins to pigments, shrimps to super computers.

That's why when you think of trading with India, or from India, Air India is your logical choice. An option which lakhs of corporates and international enterprises have made. We have the infrastructure and the network to ensure smooth transportation and delivery of cargo, worldwide. Air India's cargo operations give you a capacity advantage, combined with a 13-city network in India alone. So you can arrange for hassle-free and direct Customs clearance both for your Export and Import cargo. In India, we fly to Mumbai, Delhi, Chennai, Thiruvananthapuram, Hyderabad, Bangalore, Kolkata, Ahmedabad, Goa, Kochi, Kozhikode and Lucknow.

Internationally, Air India has tied up with various foreign airlines and trucking companies. This enables us to carry your cargo between Helsinki to Sydney.... or between any two points on the globe that you can think of.

To support our Cargo operations, we have a highly skilled and experienced team of professionals backed by our Training Division of international repute to constantly upgrade skills of our personnel.

At our warehouse in Mumbai, we have developed an indigenous system of inventory management for cargo handling of import/export functions. This takes care of the entire management of cargo, supports Electronic Data Interface (EDI) messages with Indian Customs and replaces to a great extent existing paper correspondence between Customs, Airlines, and the custodians. This also replaces manual handling and binning of cargo at the warehouse in Mumbai by Air India in our role as custodian and helps to identify large number of pieces for one Air Waybill with different weights and commodities binned in separate locations, track and identify arrival of part shipments under the same Air Waybills on different flights and maintain information on House Goods for a consol Air Waybill at the House Bill level.

Air india Check In options

AIR INDIA (IC) offers various options of check-in besides the counter check-in at the airport. You may now avoid airport queues with our real time check-in options. Select preferred seat & print your Boarding Card with our Web and Kiosk check-in options. Or you may check-in at our select cities in the booking office or on telephone.

The various check-in options are:
Tele Check-In
If you have a confirmed seat and plan to travel with hand baggage only on a domestic flight, you can Tele check-in for the flights operating on the same day or next day and report at the Tele check-in counter at least thirty minutes prior to the flight departure. (Only for Executive Class & FFP Members).

This facility is available in the six metros - Delhi, Mumbai, Calcutta, Chennai, Bangalore & Hyderabad. Passengers can contact either our designated tele check-in numbers or call centre number. We are available on 24x7 basis across India on both Toll Free and paid numbers. Users of service providers such as MTNL/BSNL and Reliance could us on Toll Free number 1800-180-1407. You may also contact us on short code number 1407 while in Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata, Chennai, Bangalore and Hyderabad. Should you be in any othe city, you may contact us on 1407 by pre-fixing the STD code of any these cities.


I-Check-In (Web Check-In)
AIR INDIA (IC) has introduced I-check-in facility (web based check-in facility) whereby a passenger holding E-ticket, Net ticket, Dial-a-ticket or bid-n-fly ticket can check-in on AIR INDIA (IC) website and make selection of his seat on line and print boarding pass in the convenience of his office, residence etc. This facilitates you to report directly for the security check without reporting at check-in counters unless you have baggage to deposit with the airline, for which you are requested to report one hour prior to departure to deposit the baggage. This facility is available for purely domestic flights only for both Economy & Executive Class passengers. Return & onward check-in is also permitted for same & next day departure.


Self Check-In Kiosks

Self Service check-in Kiosks have been installed at select locations / airports to enable you to check-in yourself & obtain boarding pass from the Kiosk machine without interface with check-in staff. This facility is available for purely domestic flights. This facility is available up to thirty minutes before departure time. Through this facility you can select seat of your choice too.


City Check-In

Now you can check-in at the AIR INDIA (IC) city booking office for not just the same day flights but also for the next day.
Only passengers holding confirmed reservations on the flight ex. that station qualify for the same. This facility is available for passengers traveling with only hand baggage. City check-in is permitted up to two hrs. before the scheduled departure time & you should report at the airport at least thirty minutes prior to departure.
This facility is available in the six metros - Delhi, Mumbai, Calcutta, Chennai, Hyderabad & Bangalore for domestic flights only.


Return Check-In
Now you can return check-in if your flight is on the same day or the next. Collect your return boarding card from the originating station and report to the airport just 30 minutes before departure if you're travelling with hand baggage only. This facility is available for domestic flights only.


Through Check-In
You may through check-in from AIR INDIA (IC) to AIR INDIA (IC) domestic & international flights. Similarly this facility is available to you if you are travelling on AIR INDIA (IC) domestic and connecting on to AIR INDIA (AI) (or select other airlines) international flight. In other words you can through check-in along with your baggage up to New York, if you are travelling Kolkata / Delhi / New York. This facility is available on the reverse direction too. Special transfer desks have been established in the arrival halls of major metro airports, where you would be facilitated and assistance provided to connect you on to your next flight. Please ask our check-in counter staff for through check-in.

Air india - Medical Care in Air

Medical incidents in the air, though rare, are always a possibility. For this our cabin crew is trained in advanced first aid and life support. Our medical kits are recognized and approved as per international medical guidelines, which can be administered by our cabin crew in an eventuality and also by a doctor or nurse, who may be on board, willing to volunteer to assist if the situation demands.

Air india - Document to carry

Passengers are required to ensure that they are in possession of all documents necessary for travel, apart from their tickets. For international travel, passengers require to be in possession of valid passport, valid visa and/or entry permits and health certificates as required. Embarkation forms should be duly filled and submitted to customs and immigration authorities before boarding the aircraft.

For domestic travel within India, valid photo identification, namely, a passport, Income Tax PAN card, Voter’s ID or Driving license is mandatory.

Air india - Secure flight Data for passengers travelling to and from US

Secure Flight Data and APIS (Advance Passenger Information System) requirement.

Effective 01Nov, passengers travelling into, out of and over the U.S, will be required to provide the following mandatory Secure Flight Passenger Data (SFPD) and Advance Passenger Information (APIS) to the airline when making a reservation through a travel agent or directly with the airline. This data is required to be forwarded to the US Transportation Security Administration (TSA) which is responsible for the screening process, to enable pre screening of passengers, no later than 72 hours before the departure of the flight.

    * Name as it appears on the passport
    * Date of Birth
    * Gender
    * Redress Number (if available ) - if a passenger whose name is identical to a passenger on the "No Fly" List of the US Department of Homeland Security, gets a Redress Number from them to identify him/her from the "No Fly" passenger.
    * Passport number
    * Country of issue of passport
    * Passport expiry date
    * Country of residence
    * Travel document type
    * Address while in US

Every passenger must receive clearance from TSA before boarding the flight.

If the above data has not been provided at the time of booking, please ensure you contact the following toll free numbers and supply the required information:
From India from MTNL/BSNL landlines  toll free 1800 227722
From Northern/Eastern India private telcom/mobile users 0124 287 7777
From Western/Southern India private telcom/mobile users 022 2758 0777
From USA  toll free 1800 223 7776

Kingfisher daily direct flights from Bangalore and Chennai to Colombo

Kingfisher Airlines, India’s first and only Five Star Airline, rated by Skytrax today extended its international footprint by launching daily direct flights from Bangalore to Colombo and Chennai to Colombo. Guests traveling on this route can now experience Five Star service, thanks to the unique flying experience offered by Kingfisher Airlines. The flights on these two new routes will be operated using brand new Airbus A320 aircraft featuring personalized in-flight entertainment on every seat, gourmet cuisine and Five Star service at the hands of a warm and thoroughly professional cabin crew.

The flights are conveniently timed with the departure from Bangalore at 3.00 pm in the afternoon and reaching Colombo at 4.20 pm and the return flight takes off from Colombo at 9.15 am and reaches Bangalore at 10.30 am. Also from Chennai, there is a daily departure at 06.45 am reaching Colombo at 8.05 am with a return flight at 5.30 pm that gets into Chennai at 06.45 pm. The launch of these flights will not only cater to the leisure travelers but will also cater to entrepreneurs and traders frequently flying on these routes. With these convenient timings, guests from Colombo can also enjoy easy access to India’s widest airline network.

Commenting on the launch, Mr. Siva Ramachandran – Vice President Global Sales, Kingfisher Airlines Limited said, “We are delighted to welcome Colombo as the latest destination in our global network, and we look forward to extending our hospitality to guests on this new service. The warm relationship between India and Sri Lanka has grown over the years, and we believe the introduction of Kingfisher Airlines’ new service will help foster even closer bilateral trade and tourism ties. The initial response to the launch of these new flights has been extremely encouraging and we look forward to rapidly establishing our presence in the Sri Lankan market”

The introduction of these flights marks the continuation of the second phase of international route expansion plans of Kingfisher Airlines. Kingfisher Airlines launched daily direct services between Mumbai and London Heathrow. In the first phase of the roll out of its international route network, Kingfisher Airlines commenced services from Bangalore to London Heathrow.
Kingfisher Airlines has blazed a trail of innovations and introduced a range of market-firsts that have completely redefined the whole experience of flying. By elevating its customers to a level of being ‘guests’ and not just passengers, Kingfisher Airlines has endeared itself to consumers. A growing testimony of this is the numerous awards and recognitions that Kingfisher Airlines has won at domestic as well as International level.

JetScreen to feature select movies honoured at the Oscars, BAFTA and Golden Globes

On the occasion of International Women’s Day, JetScreen, Jet Airways' state-of-the-art in-flight entertainment system, will feature a film festival titled “Modern Day Heroines”, celebrating women in the movies, in collaboration with JetViva. This cycle will also feature the work and craft of the acclaimed Indian Director Sai Paranjpye in the form of Katha, Chashme Buddoor and Disha. The screening will include her exclusive interview, where guests will learn about her perspective on movies and society.

For the cycle March to April 2011, Jet Airways' JetScreen will also screen movies ranging from the critically acclaimed “The Kings Speech” (Winner of four Oscars, including Best Picture, Best Actor in a Leading Role, Best Director and Best Original Screenplay) and “Black Swan” (Oscar for Best Actress in a Leading Role), as well as Oscar-nominees "True Grit", "127 Hours" and "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part1".

According to Sudheer Raghavan, CCO, Jet Airways, “In-flight entertainment is a critical part of the on-board experience for all our guests. Our selection of the best movies from various genres is aimed at enhancing the overall in-flight experience. We are confident that our latest selection of movies will appeal to all guests and make their journey more enjoyable. This is part of our initiative to heighten customer satisfaction and we will continue to work towards improving our offerings.”

The airline will also host a delectable fare of award winning international cinema from various parts of the globe including the likes of “I am Love” – an Italian movie and nominee of Oscars, BAFTA and Golden Globe, “Jouese” – a French film par excellence, “Po Po Chiu Kai Yan” (Cantonese and Mandarin) and “The Cove” (documentary and winner of last year’s Oscar). Not to mention arthouse cinema such as “Jogwa”, “36 Chowringee Lane”, “Udaan” and “An Education”.

For viewers of Indian movies, JetScreen will feature popular Hindi movies such as “No One Killed Jessica”, “Dabangg”, “Do Dooni Chaar”, “Guzaarish” and “No Problem”.

Air India flights to Australia

Air India will be operating direct air services between Melbourne and Delhi from the Winter Schedule. The services will meet a long-felt demand for direct connectivity between India and Australia.

Air India will be resuming services to Australia after a lapse of over a decade. Apart from serving the Indian Diaspora in the region, the new link will cater to the growing demand of business travelers not only between the two countries but also beyond India to the Gulf and Europe.

The services will be operated with B-777 aircraft on a daily basis. The air services are expected to begin by late October/early November this year.

Air India Express flights to Dubai from Amritsar and Mangalore

Air India Express, India’s only International budget airline and a fully-owned subsidiary of Air India, will operate it’s anaugural flights to Dubai from Amritsar and Mangalore.  These direct flights will commence operations effective October 5, 2006 on a thrice weekly frequency between Delhi, Amritsar and Mangalore to Dubai.

The flight from Amritsar to Dubai commences at Delhi (Dep 0910 hrs LT) to Amritsar (Arrv 1025 /Dep 1125  hrs LT) and arrive into Dubai (1310 hrs LT) every Monday, Thursday and Saturday.   And will depart Dubai (0001 hrs LT) for Amritsar (Arrv 0430 hrs/Dep 0530 hrs LT) and arrive Delhi at 0645 hrs LT every Tuesday, Friday and Sunday.  With this, Air India Express has taken the first step to fulfill the requirement of the Punjab market for direct flights to the Gulf.

While the direct flight from Mangalore to Dubai will depart at 2100 hrs (LT) and arrive Dubai at 2300 hrs (LT) every Monday, Thursday and  Saturday,  the return  from Dubai to Mangalore (Dep 1410 hrs/Arrv 1910 hrs LT)  the same days i.e. Monday, Thursday and Saturday respectively.  This will be the first international flight from Mangalore in Karnataka.

Air India Express will now operate 41 flights per week between Amritsar, Delhi, Mangalore, Kozhikode, Kochi and Thiruvananthapuram and Dubai, Sharjah, Abu Dhabi and Al Ain. in the UAE and to Muscat and Salalah in Oman.

Presently, the Air India Express flights operate with an all-economy-class-configuration Boeing 737-800 aircraft.

Jet Airways to operate international flights ex-Trivandrum

Jet Airways, the country’s premier international airline will operate all international flights out of Trivandrum from the New International Terminal Building (NITB) effective 6 pm this evening.

Jet Airways will operate its first flight 9W 566 from Trivandrum at 2015 hrs for Dammam from the newly commissioned NITB built by the Airports Authority of India.

Jet Airways will now operate four flights daily in and out of Trivandrum’s NITB from and to Dammam and Muscat in the Gulf.
The New International Terminal Building comprises a range of modern features and facilities designed to provide superior passenger comfort and convenience. For easy access, Jet Airways’ guests may enter the Departure terminal from the Chakki side of the city to the New International Terminal Building, and proceed towards the check in areas, for departure formalities.

Sudheer Raghavan, CCO - Jet Airways, commenting on the airline's move to the new terminal said, “With Trivandrum’s New International Terminal Building (NITB), guests will now experience international standards in travel experience and services. The NITB will open up immense possibilities for guests traveling to/from Trivandrum, as airlines will now be able to offer increased connectivity.”

The Terminal features brand new check-in counters, of which the Jet Airways Group will man multiple integrated check-in counters for international travel, significantly reducing check-in time for the airline’s guests. The new terminal is also equipped with a fully automated baggage handling system.