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BY OUR AVIATION CORRESPONDENT
14th August 2005: Paramount Airways is likely to start its
operations by September and intends to fly with a single aircraft that would
operate from Coimbatore to New Delhi. The carrier would take a round-trip
between New Delhi and Kochi, and will return to Coimbatore from New Delhi.
The airline's flight plan is based on the expected approval of the Directorate
General of Civil Aviation (DGCA).The company had leased five planes from Brazil’s
Embraer for $138 million (Rs 600 crore) in June, which were to be delivered over
a 12-month period, Paramount Airways Managing Director K Thiagarajan said.
Using the Embraer, Paramount aims to occupy the slot between low cost airlines
that use ATRs for short distances and the bigger 737s and A320s that are used
for the longer distance.
Thiagarajan said that the Embraer is a jet type aircraft with the comfort of an
A320 or 737, with no confined feeling and aircraft is comparable to any
mainstream aircraft of the present day.
Paramount's business plan is to fly routes that are not serviced by the existing
airlines, and the aim is to fly 30 flights a day over the next year. This will position
the carrier as a premium service but low cost airline. Embraer would set up a
warehousing facility in India and provide engineering support for two years and
initial pilot support.
Thiagarajan said that the extra services that Embraer would provide would not
require an additional payment, as the lease amount of $138 million included extra
services that the manufacturer would offer.
Paramount does not plan to poach pilots, employed by other commercial airlines.
Thiagarajan, a licensed pilot himself, said that the company had hired pilots
outside the civil aviation industry, who would be guided by Embraer's team for a
while.
Paramount, headquartered in Coimbatore, has set up its own hangar and aircraft
maintenance facilities.
BY OUR AVIATION CORRESPONDENT
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