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747-237 · Last edited by 747-237 on Sat Jan 08, 2022 8:46 am; edited 1 time in total

http://www.ainonline.com/?q=aviation-news/aviation-international-news/2012-02-02/ventura-airconnect-launches-intrastate-ga-flights-india

Ventura Airconnect Launches Intrastate GA Flights in India

February 2, 2012

Ventura Airconnect has launched the first intrastate, non-scheduled airline in the central Indian state of Madhya Pradesh. It operates twice daily flights between different city pairs within the state. From its bases at Bhopal and Indore, the airline connects Jabalpur, Gwalior, Khajuraho, Agra, Satna, Rewa and tiger resort destinations of Kanha and Bhandavgarh.

Uttam Bose, founder of Air Sahara, the domestic airline that was later bought and integrated into Jet Airways, serves as the managing director of Ventura Airconnect. He was looking for an investment, but “I didn’t want to invest in a regular airline that gobbles a lot of money,” he told AIN. “Connecting smaller cities within the state seemed a good option, as many people residing in mid-level towns are willing to spend more to save on travel time.” Tourists can also benefit from these services.

The company has invested $3 million and currently has three nine-seat Cessna Grand Caravans fitted with glass cockpits. It leases the aircraft from Cessna Finance Corp. and uses a DGCA-approved, third-party MRO for maintenance.

Ventura plans to field a fleet of 19 aircraft in three years. It will then be able to fly nearly five million passengers per year with each aircraft making an average of eight trips a day.

The government of Madhya Pradesh will underwrite three to four seats on every flight for three years and refund the value added tax (VAT) on fuel for five years, under a memorandum of understanding it signed with Ventura.

Ventura Airconnect faced several challenges in starting up operations. Among them: getting the “schedules approved by the airport authorities, especially at airfields controlled by defense headquarters,” and significant airport fees that add to the company’s cost of operations, according to Bose.

Airports impose significant fees beyond the “watch hour,” an hour before or after the departure of a scheduled airline. According to Bose, “These hourly charges by Airport Authority of India [AAI] are ten times higher than those [for operations] happening within the watch hour.”

Fares on Ventura start at $29 (Rs 1500) per trip. The company is in talks with other state governments to extend its service area. “We’ll have at least two bases in each state of operation,” said Bose.

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ASFlyer · Posted: Tue Feb 07, 2012 10:25 pm Post subject:

Looks like a lot of old Vayudoot cities are getting a new life. Jabalpur, Satna and Rewa especially. Interesting to see that their route map includes some interesting connections.

How exactly does a non-scheduled airline work because it seems that they have exactly what routing the aircraft will do on a daily basis.

Will be very interesting to see how this one turns out.

-ASFlyer
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747-237 · Posted: Fri Jan 07, 2022 6:15 am Post subject:

https://www.ch-aviation.com/portal/news/111405-indias-ventura-airconnect-re-attempts-interstate-services

Ventura AirConnect re-attempts interstate services

06.01.2022

Ventura AirConnect (Ahmedabad) has relaunched intra-state flights from Surat to four other cities under a Gujarat government subsidy scheme aimed at providing affordable air services in the Indian state.

On January 1, the airline launched non-stop daily flights to Ahmedabad, Rajkot, Amreli, and Bhavnagar, using two nine-seater Cessna (single turboprop) C208B Caravans. Launch fares in January start at INR1,999 rupee (USD26.7) one-way.

Ventura AirConnect director Ishver Dholakiya told reporters at the launch event the discounted fares would be offered for a month, whereafter tickets would increase to between INR2,500 (USD33) and INR3,500 (USD47) one-way, reported The Times of India. He said more routes would be added depending on feasibility.

This is the airline's fourth attempt to provide intra-state flights since 2014, with previous unsuccessful attempts having been made in 2016 and 2018. Other interstate operations in 2015 with GSEC Aviation (Ahmedabad) and Mehair (Mumbai Int'l) also failed to gather sufficient support.
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The_Goat · Posted: Fri Jan 07, 2022 6:58 pm Post subject:

Good. It looks like AMD will receive some IndiGo ATRs soon.
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iah87 · Member Joined: 17 Apr 2007 Posts: 2566

Since 9 seaters are proposed be in operation, this traffic segment may be too small so Indigo may ignore it.

The problem with these various regional airlines is reliability. So in India, many just book Indigo so they know the flight will operate. Indigo has achieved that trust with many domestic Indian passengers. Even I hesitated to book Spice Jet or GoFirst, in fact one of my GoFirst flights was cancelled.