♥ Monday, August 2
Thai Airways and Singapore's Tiger to form budget carrier
On Monday 2 August 2010, 13:35 SGT
Singapore's budget carrier Tiger Airways and Thai Airways will launch a low-cost airline expected to start operations next year, they said Monday, potentially hastening a shake-up in the region.
Thai Tiger Airways will fly domestic and international flights from Suvarnabhumi International Airport in Bangkok, starting in the first quarter of 2011, the statement said.
Thai Airways and another Thai entity will hold 51 percent in the airline with the remaining 49 percent under Tiger Airways.
No details were given on the investment cost for the new budget carrier but the two partners were to hold a media conference call later Monday after signing the memorandum of understanding in Bangkok.
Thai Airways said the venture would allow it to beef up its presence in the fast-growing budget travel market in Asia.
"With its disciplined approach to the low-cost model, Tiger Airways has proven that it has the right approach to competing effectively in the growing low fare travel market in Asia," said Thai Airways president Piyasvasti Amranand.
"We believe that this move will provide revenue opportunities for Thai (Airways) and allow Thai to be more competitive in the region with the anticipated growth in the low cost market... which we expect will lead to growth in air travel in the Asian market."
Tiger Airways, partly owned by national carrier Singapore Airlines, has rapidly expanded its route network in the Asia-Pacific region since establishing operations in 2004.
The carrier flies to 37 destinations in 11 countries and has a fleet of 19 Airbus A320s, with plans to expand to 68 planes by December 2015.
Analysts from the Centre for Asia Pacific Aviation (CAPA) said the new budget carrier could potentially hasten a shake-up for the industry in the region, where some markets are still inhibited by entry barriers.
"The new joint venture... raises the bar in low cost airline operations competition in Asia and could have a major impact on the pace of airline liberalisation in the region," Sydney-based CAPA said in a commentary.
"There will be many more moves in this regional tapestry of low cost airline competition before the end game, but Tiger's announcement today should not be underestimated in scope."
4/9 '10 loves x3 8:54 PM
♥ Sunday, August 1
Close shave for SIA plane
By yahoosingapore – August 1st, 2010Email Facebook Twitter Print
A Singapore Airlines plane was involved in a minor collision after its right wing-tip struck the tail of another plane while departing from Beijing’s International Airport.
Singapore-bound SQ803, Boeing 777, was taxiing out to the runway when its wing-tip hit the tail of a stationary Air China Boeing 737 at about 9am on Saturday.
An SIA spokesman confirmed the incident to The Straits Times.
Two hours later, all 248 passengers on board the SIA flight were told to disembark.
“Engineers were inspecting the plane to see if the aircraft could be fixed immediately,” said the spokesman.
Initial investigations have put the cause down to pilot error due to poor visibility.
4/9 '10 loves x3 4:52 PM
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"Black box" recovered from Pakistan crash site
Reuters - Sunday, August 1SendIM StoryPrint
ISLAMABAD - Pakistani investigators found on Saturday the data recorder from AirBlue flight 202, which crashed in heavy rain near Islamabad this week killing all 152 people onboard, officials said.
The Airbus 321 crashed on Wednesday into a steep and heavily wooded hillside overlooking the capital shortly before landing after a flight from the southern port city of Karachi.
"It has been recovered from the scene, from the tail of the plane," Interior Minister Rehman Malik told reporters near the site of the crash.
The Director General of the Civil Aviation Authority, Junaid Ameen, told the private television channel Geo that both the cockpit voice recorder and the flight data recorder -- the so-called "black box" -- had been found.
Thick fog and rainy weather are considered the most likely reasons for the worst aviation accident on Pakistani soil.
While Wednesday's crash is the worst aviation accident inside Pakistan, the state-owned airline PIA has had worse disasters. In 1979 and 1992, PIA jets crashed in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia and Kathmandu, Nepal, killing 156 and 167 people, respectively.
Within Pakistan, the last major aviation accident was in 2006 when a PIA plane crashed near the central city of Multan killing 45 people
4/9 '10 loves x3 1:32 AM
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Out of pilots, Philippine airline grounds flights
AP - Saturday, July 31SendIM StoryPrint
MANILA, Philippines – Good morning, passengers, and welcome aboard. We're expecting clear skies today, but we're out of pilots.
National air carrier Philippine Airlines had to cancel at least five flights Saturday _ one to Hong Kong, the others to domestic destinations _ after several Airbus A320 pilots decamped for jobs abroad.
Brain drain _ the decamping of professionals, including teachers and nurses, for better jobs abroad _ has long plagued the impoverished Southeast Asian nation. About 10 percent of the population of 94 million works abroad, sending home the money that provides the bloodline for the economy.
PAL spokesman Jonathan Gesmundo went on TV and radio stations to apologize to the public for the cancellations, which he said were caused by the sudden departure of nearly dozen pilots for better-paying jobs overseas.
He said the pilots did not inform the management, but that this was not a group action.
"In the past few days, pilots had not been reporting for duty. This has caused problems for us," Gesmundo said.
PAL said in a statement it will be filing appropriate charges against the pilots "who chose not to report for work immediately after submitting resignation letters. Most of the pilots still owe PAL the cost of their aviation school training, which run into millions of pesos per pilot.
"The indiscriminate resignation of the A320 pilots for flying jobs whose salaries PAL is unable to match, is in violation of their contracts with PAL as well as with pertinent government regulations that require resigning pilots to give PAL six months to train their replacements," it said.
Gesmundo said the airline was adjusting its schedule and will probably bring in bigger aircraft to accommodate the stranded passengers.
The indebted flag carrier has said it would lay off some of its 8,000-strong work force because of financial losses in the third straight year.
4/9 '10 loves x3 1:16 AM
