There’s bad news for those who enjoy the in-flight catering aboard Air India flights, and that’s because it’s going away. Just like many of the airlines in the United States, Air India has decided to ditch in-flight meals for some of its passengers on some of its flights. Of course the blame falls squarely on the cost, but at least they still might throw a granola bar or something your way.

As of February 1, short-haul domestic flights received this new revised in-flight menu, and that means no more freebie meals for those in the economy cabin. For flights less than 90 minutes the typical breakfast, lunch, or dinner selections are gone, but in their place the airline is promising “heavy snacks and soft drinks.” Honestly, for less than 90 minutes we’d be happy with some in-flight Naan and a Diet Coke, but still, clearly this is an overall bummer. ]]> kjb 2012-02-08T10:23:54-05:00 http://www.jaunted.com/story/2011/12/5/125618/717

Tom Cruise spent a whirlwind weekend in India, taking part in everything from a photo-op at the Taj Mahal to an all-night party in Mumbai, but it's his "fans" who are making headlines overseas.

According to the Hindustan Times, hundreds of the fans who were waiting for Cruise to arrive at the Mumbai Airport weren't fans at all, but rather "junior artists" being paid 150 INR ($3) for the day. One of the "fans" even admitted she never heard of Tom Cruise before arriving at the airport for her paid gig. That's a bit farfetched (who hasn't heard of Tom Cruise), but let's go with it.]]> cmb 2011-12-05T14:24:56-05:00 http://www.jaunted.com/story/2011/8/2/162912/0944

It’s time for another low cost carrier to hit the market, and this week it looks like Air India is going to try their best to get their brand of cheap fare into the air. Unfortunately, don’t expect the 787, as we’re pretty sure they’re going to save that for the more expensive routes.

At first it sounds like this will be just a domestic venture, so your dreams of cheap nonstop flights to New Delhi from JFK might have to wait a few years—or longer. Air India already has its own regional carrier known as Alliance Air, but it sounds like those at the top of the airline are looking to revamp things into a true LCC capable of cut-throat fares and little to no frills. ]]> kjb 2011-08-03T08:57:10-05:00 http://www.jaunted.com/story/2010/11/8/1066/33465

Despite that whole $200 million/day vacation trip myth clouding President Obama's visit to India this weekend, it looks as though the brief stop in Mumbai went off without a hitch. Mr. and Mrs. Obama arrived to India for a 3-day stop as part of an Asian tour to talk foreign economic relations.

Hopefully they caught some Zzzs onboard Air Force One, because over the weekend while in both New Delhi and Mumbai, they dropped by the Holy Name High School and another elementary and college for Diwali celebrations, Humayan's Tomb (pictured above) for some sightseeing, Mumbai's port for a speech, and Mani Bhawan Gandhi Museum (for Barack) and Kamathipura (for Michelle) for goodwill. On top of all this, the pair stayed at the Taj Mahal Hotel, where they visited the memorial to those killed in the terrorist attacks on hotels almost exactly two years ago.

Today, Barack will address Indian parliament before flying off to his next stop, Indonesia. The next week will also see the Obamas landing in South Korea and Japan.

[Photo: AFP/Getty] ]]> JetSetCD 2010-11-08T10:27:31-05:00 http://www.jaunted.com/story/2010/11/4/142640/638

[Update 10am November 5] It is finally coming out that the $200 million pricetag is "wildly inflated, " says the White House and that the original press release that communicated these numbers was based solely on an unverified statement by an Indian provincial official. Anderson Cooper on CNN delves into the report and states that the White House is not releasing numbers for security reasons, however, in the 90s, President Clinton's visited 6 African countries to the tune of $5 million per day (inflation adjusted), so one way to guesstimate the cost of this India trip is to extrapolate from the cost of Clinton's trip. Remember, at the end of the day, we are all still guessing at the number until it is officially released.
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We hope you aren't planning on traveling to Mumbai, India this weekend, as President Obama is planning to visit the city for a whopping 24 hours, during which time Mumbai air space will be shut down for periods and the city will be on heavy alert. In fact, with all the needed security, the accommodations and the full media and tactical teams that are accompanying the prez, the cost of Obama's little daytrip to india has the heart attack pricetag of $200 million dollars [new reports show that this figure is a guess made by an Indian official, see above].

That makes the Maldives 5-star bungalow vacations of celebs look like child's play and in effect, it is. $200 million is getting Obama a suite at the renowned Taj Hotel, plus his usual Air Force One flight and all of the greased palms that it requires to make the state visit go over without incident. Barack is heading to Mumbai to talk economic foreign relations. ]]> JetSetCD 2010-11-04T14:26:40-05:00 http://www.jaunted.com/story/2010/10/20/112341/90

Katy Perry tried to hide behind her coat yesterday as she, and fiance Russell Brand, wheeled their luggage through Mumbai's Chhatrapati Shivaji International Airport. The couple seemed uncharacteristically dour as they arrived in India where their wedding will take place later this week. Cold feet perhaps?

Russell and Katy will be joined by 85 of their closest friends and family for a week long celebration, at the luxurious Rambagh Palace in Jaipur, the same venue where the couple was engaged earlier this year. ]]> cmb 2010-10-20T15:05:06-05:00 http://www.jaunted.com/story/2010/8/9/74716/16953

Harry Potter and friends just finished putting the final touches on their new home away from home, but they’re already looking to bring their wizarding world elsewhere around the globe. Reliance Anil Dhirubhai Ambani Group—we’ll just call them R-ADAG for short—has been chatting up Universal Studios about the possibility of building a brand new Universal Studios theme park over in India.

They’re looking to spend around $1.5 billion on the new park, which would most likely be in either Mumbai or Delhi. The park would be similar to current parks, and it would draw inspiration from Hollywood movie classics. We’d expect to see rides and attractions from Jaws, ET, and Jurassic Park like parks in California and Florida, but they’d also try to incorporate a little bit of Bollywood movie magic as well. ]]> kjb 2010-08-09T09:05:08-05:00 Search Jaunted string http://www.jaunted.com/search/