Air India's (AI) plan to launch
fuel-efficient Dreamliner flights from Delhi to the Far East as part of the strategy to turnaround its loss-making operations has run into the Japanese barrier.
Japan's civil aviation authorities have asked AI for details of modifications in its Dreamliner fleet along with various clearances from the US Federal Aviation Authority and International Civil Aviation Organisation before it is given clearance to
operate these flights to Tokyo or Osaka.
Japanese authorities have made out this information to be of crucial importance before they grant permission to AI flights in view of the series of snags that had grounded the Dreamliner fleet worldwide.
The airline
operates four weekly flights on the Delhi-Tokyo route and three flights on the Delhi-Osaka route via Hong Kong. Apart from this, it also operates four flights to Seoul via Hong-Kong every week.
AI currently operates its gas-guzzling Boeing 777-200 LRs flights on Far East routes, which are running in loss.
Dreamliner flights would turn these routes profitable as the aircraft has a better seat configuration and consumes 20 per cent less fuel than the 777s.
A senior AI official told MAIL Today that the airline has been "providing information to the Japanese authorities from time to time as and when required by them but the permission to operate Dreamliner still has not come through... The issue is now being dealt with by the DGCA and Japan's civil aviation regulator."
AI had earlier planned to operate its Dreamliner flights to Tokyo and Osaka from June, but since the delay in clearance from Japan, it has been forced to shelve the move.
According to sources, Japan is not keen to allow AI operate its Dreamliners to Tokyo and Osaka as it could erode market share of its own airlines All Nippon Airways and Japan Airlines.
"All the features of the Dreamliner are well known the world over and Japan itself has several of these planes in its fleet. So, this cannot be a major issue," the official pointed out.
In association with Mail Today 
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