SpiceJet cancels 35 Max 8 flights today

New Delhi, March 13  

All Boeing 737 Max 8 aircraft being operated by Indian airlines have been grounded and around 35 flights of SpiceJet would be cancelled on Thursday consequently, Civil Aviation Secretary PS Kharola said today.

He said Thursday would be a “challenging” day as “out of 520 odd flights that SpiceJet flies every day, about 30-35 will have to be cancelled”.

SpiceJet has been most affected by the grounding of 737 Max 8 aircraft as it has 12 of them in its fleet.

Jet Airways has not been affected as its five 737 Max 8 aircraft have already been grounded owing to non-payment of dues to lessors.

As the Ethiopian Airlines’ 737 Max 8 crashed killing all 157 persons on Sunday, Indian aviation watchdog Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) on Tuesday night announced that the Boeing Max 8 aircraft would be “immediately” grounded.

On Wednesday morning, it said no Max 8 aircraft would be allowed to fly in Indian airspace from 4 pm. “Today, SpiceJet just cancelled 14 flights... They were able to accommodate the passengers within their own system,” Kharola said. — PTI

No surge pricing

• Operators have agreed not to indulge in "predatory pricing", the secretary said
• DGCA chief BS Bhullar said lifting the ban on Max 8 aircraft will be based on inputs from agencies and will not happen soon
• DGCA said it will monitor fare levels regularly