Thaindian News

Bangalore, June 23 (IANS) Deccan 360, the cargo airline founded by low-cost aviation pioneer G.R. Gopinath, has roped in Germany-based Lufthansa Technik for maintaining its Airbus A-310 freighter aircraft fleet and warehousing requirements, including components, the company said Tuesday.
The Bangalore-based cargo airline currently operates a freighter to Hong Kong and Dubai and plans to induct two more freighters by early 2010 for carrying 35-tonnes of cargo per aircraft from 35 cities across the country.

“As our scale of operations is wide and intense, requiring robust support system for supplying aircraft components, we have contracted Lufthansa Technik to maintain our fleet and warehousing requirements,” Gopinath said in a statement here.

The 10-year contract, which includes supplying, provisioning, documentation and MRO (maintenance, repair and overhaul) of the freighter aircraft fleet, is expected to minimise the downtime of the fleet and achieve higher resource and cost efficiencies.

Deccan 360 aims to spearhead a new delivery and distribution network in the country, with an integrated multimodal set-up comprising air and surface transport for cargo handling and express logistics requirements across industries.

“With only seven cargo aircraft offering a combined capacity of 120 tonnes, the Indian logistics industry is constrained in terms of reach and infrastructure. In contrast, China has about 100 dedicated cargo aircraft,” Gopinath pointed out.

As supply chain is the backbone of economic growth, the company plans to build scale and connect the country’s hinterlands and production areas with major domestic and global markets.

“Our long-term goal is to deliver cargo across 75 cities in 24 hours and create growth opportunities for Indian industries, entrepreneurs and agriculture,” Gopinath added.