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Kingfisher Airlines Limited is an airline based in Bangalore, India. It is a major Indian airline operating 218 flights a day and has an extensive network to 37 destinations, with plans for regional and long-haul international services. Its main bases are Bangalore International Airport, Bangalore, Chhatrapati Shivaji International Airport, Mumbai and Indira Gandhi International Airport, Delhi. Kingfisher Airlines, through one of its holding companies United Breweries Group, has acquired 26% stake in the budget airline Air Deccan and has option to buy further of 20% stake from the secondary market.

Kingfisher is one of only 6 airlines in the world to have a 5 star rating from Skytrax, along with Asiana Airlines, Malaysia Airlines, Qatar Airways, Singapore Airlines and Cathay Pacific Airways.

History

The airline started operations on 9 May 2005, following the lease of 4 Airbus A320 aircraft. As of July 2007, Kingfisher operates only on domestic routes, however it has announced plans to start flights to the USA with Airbus A340 and Airbus A380 aircraft. The airline is owned by the United Breweries Group. (which also owns the popular Indian beer of the same name). The airline promises to suit the needs of air travellers and to provide reasonable air fares. Kingfisher Airlines' main "luxury" component is its In-Flight Entertainment System, a first among Indian airlines.. The airlines in-flight Mobile Phone and Internet Services will be provided by OnAir starting 2008 for longhaul flights. In October 2007, the airline announced Deepika Padukone as its brand ambassador.

Destinations

Fleet

The Kingfisher Airlines fleet consists of the following aircraft as of 02 October 2007:

• The airline was the first in India to initially, and to continue, to operate with all new aircraft.
• On 18 February 2005 Kingfisher Airlines signed a contract with Airbus for three Airbus A319 aircraft, adding to the 10 Airbus A320 aircraft (plus twenty options) ordered in January 2005. The first of the A319s will be delivered in December 2005, complementing the A320s on routes to smaller cities in India.

• On June 15 2005 it became the first (and only) Indian airline to order the Airbus A380. It placed orders for 5 A380s, 5 Airbus A350-800 aircraft and 5 Airbus A330-200 aircraft in a deal valued at over $3 billion. Delivery of the A330s is due to start in late 2007, followed by the A380s in 2010 and the A350s in 2012.
• On November 20, 2005 at the Dubai Air Show, Kingfisher Airlines announced that it would be buying 20 ATR 72-500s (plus 15 options). The deal is estimated to be worth $500 million dollars with the deliveries starting from March 2006. The last of the 20 planes would be handed over to Kingfisher Airlines by 2008. The first aircraft from that order was delivered to the airlines on March 31, 2006.
• On November 21, 2005 at the same air show, Kingfisher Airlines placed an order to acquire 30 more A320s in a deal estimated to be worth $2 billion. Engine making joint venture International Aero Engines will supply the engines for the planes. Deliveries for the planes are likely to start from 2008.
• On January 13, 2006 an Airbus A319 of Kingfisher Airlines was the first aircraft in that class to land on the short older runway at Mangalore airport.
• On the April 24, 2006, Kingfisher signed a contract for five Airbus A340-500 HGWs. The airline plans to use this for its Bangalore-San Francisco and Mumbai-New York route. Delivery is expected for 2008.
• Kingfisher has sold two Airbus A321s to Pegasus Aviation Finance in a sale and lease-back deal. Pegasus says in a statement that the two new-build A321-200s that are being prepared for delivery to Kingfisher will be the first of the stretched A320-family variant in India. Kingfisher already leases one A320 from Pegasus.
• Kingfisher was also the first Indian airline to bring the latest super jumbo Airbus 380 to India. An A380 arrived on 6th May 2007 in New Delhi and in Mumbai on 8th May as part of Kingfisher's second anniversary celebrations
• On 20 Jun 2007 Kingfisher airlines announced to buy Airbus aircraft including an extra 15 A350-800 XWB jets worth $3 billion. The order also includes five four-engine A340-500 planes, 10 A330-200 wide-body models and 20 single-aisle A320-family jets. The order is worth a total of $7.2 billion at list prices. Kingfisher had already ordered 5 of the original version A350 and has upgraded these orders to the redesigned A350 XWB model

Sponsorship

Kingfisher Airlines is an official sponsor of the Panasonic Toyota F1 Team. Kingfisher Airlines has entered a 2 year agreement to be a sponsor of Toyota F1 beginning in 2007. The "Fly Kingfisher" logo appeared on the sides of the Toyota F1 Car and on the driver's overalls and helmet during the 2007 season. However, due to the fact that Kingfisher Airliners' owner Dr. Vijay Mallya focused on the new F1 team Force India which was formed after Dr. Mallya's 2007 acquisition of Spyker F1 team, Toyota and Kingfisher Airlines' ended the contract on January 2, 2008.

References

1. ^ "Directory: World Airlines". Flight International. 2007-04-03. p. 101.
2. Kingfisher becomes first Indian customer for A380, A350, & A330 airbus.com
3. Creates History - Airbus A-319 Trial Flight Lands at Bajpe daijiworld.com
4. Kingfisher grows its Airbus fleet with purchase of five A340-500 airbus.com
5. Air Transport Intelligence news. Oct/2006
6. ^ "Kingfisher Airlines is Toyota's official F1 racing team partner". domain-b.com. 2007-01-15. Retrieved 2007-01-17. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
7. "Toyota and Kingfisher Airlines part ways". formula1.com. 2008-01-02. Retrieved 2008-01-02. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)

External links

• Kingfisher Airlines
• Kingfisher Airlines Fleet
• Photographs
• Kingfisher Airlines and Toyota F1
• Kingfisher World - The World of Good Times
• kingfisher airline info

• Airlines of India
• Airlines established in 2004
• Companies based in Bangalore