Indian National Airways Ltd was an airline based in Delhi, India.[1] The founder of the airline was R. E. Grant Govan, a Delhi based British industrialist who also co-founded the Board of Control for Cricket in India and the Cricket Club of India.[2][3][4] The airline was formed on the basis of a government airmail contract.[5]
History
The company was started by Govan Bros Ltd. in May 1933 with a capital of Rs. 3 million.[6] It became the second airline to start operations in India in December 1933, with weekly passenger and freight services from Calcutta to Rangoon and Dhaka.[7] It also started a weekly service between Karachi and Lahore, a feeder service for Imperial Airways.[1] The company then had a fleet made up of light single-engined aircraft.[8] By 1937 the airline had clocked over a million miles and made a slender annual profit.[9]
The airline was awarded another government contract in 1938 under the Empire Air Mail Scheme for carrying first class mail on the Karachi - Lahore and Karachi - Colombo routes for a period of ten years along with Tata Airlines. This was a major boost for aviation in India. As this contract promised a minimum income along with an operating subsidy, the company was able to expand and renovate its fleet.[7][10] During World War II, all mail contracts were suspended and aircraft put under government disposal. Only spare capacity was allowed for commercial use, which affected the industry on the whole.[7]
It was one of the four major airlines in India at the time of Indian Independence in 1947.[11] Govan Bros Ltd. and all its businesses, including Indian National Airways Ltd, was sold to the Ramkrishna Dalmia led Dalmia Group on 4 July 1946. As of 1947, the airline had a fleet of six Vickers Vikings with another nine De Havilland Doves on order.[12] The company also bought some war-surplus Douglas DC-3 aircraft from the United States of America at the end of the war.[13] In 1953, Indian National Airways was nationalised and merged into Indian Airlines.[7]
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Award on the industrial dispute between Air-India and their workmen{{#if:Khosla|, Khosla}. India. National Industrial Tribunal (Airlines Disputes), Manager of Publications(1966)Page 15
- ↑ Asian review{{#if:(London, England)|, (London, England)}. East & West Ltd(1957)Page 105
- ↑ Aeroplane directory of British aviation{{#if:|, {{{last}}}}. Published by the English Universities for Temple Press(1953)Page 458
- ↑ CCI & the Brabourne Stadium, 1937-1987{{#if:Vasant Raiji|, Vasant Raiji}. Cricket Club of India(1987)Page 22
- ↑ India today and tomorrow, Volume 5{{#if:|, {{{last}}}}. V.J. Joseph.(1973)Page 7-9
- ↑ Aviation news, Volume 67{{#if:|, {{{last}}}}. HPC Publishing(2005)Page 845
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 7.3 Successful Tourism: Volume II: Tourism Practices{{#if:Seth|, Seth}. Sterling Publishers Pvt. Ltd(2006). ISBN 81-207-3200-6Page 93-96
- ↑ India: annual review{{#if:|, {{{last}}}}. Information Service of India.(1960)Page 92
- ↑ Aeroplane and commercial aviation news{{#if:|, {{{last}}}}(1947)Page 796
- ↑ Asian review{{#if:Boulger|, Boulger}. East & West(1970)Page 106
- ↑ Basic Mathematics for Economists{{#if:Dr.SC Aggarwal|, Dr.SC Aggarwal}. FK Publications. ISBN 9788187139553Page 472
- ↑ Aviation news, Volume 7{{#if:Hudson Wood|, Hudson Wood}. McGraw-Hill Pub. Co(1947)Page 32
- ↑ The Times of India directory and year book including who's who, Volume 35{{#if:Reed|, Reed}. Bennett, Coleman.(1949)Page 275