AVIATION - LuftHansa quits Manila

TTGasia.com, Jan 11 - 17, 2008

Lufthansa’s imminent departure from the Philippines puts additional strain on an already meagre Europe-Philippine seat capacity – and while impact on business should be minimal – raises concerns on air fares, perception and government policies. Lufthansa is discontinuing its daily Frankfurt-Manila service via Guangzhou on March 30. General manager Philippines, Guam and Micronesia, Mr Christopher Zimmer, told TTG Asia pulling out after 26 years was a purely commercial decision. He said: “We have major expansion plans in China and India but capacity at Lufthansa remains the same. We need aircraft to service new routes. KLM is now the only airline plying the Europe-Philippine route with daily non-stop Amsterdam-Manila flights. However, Asian and Middle Eastern carriers also get a substantial share of the Europe-Philippine traffic.

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AVIATION - More Stars in the sky

expresstravelworld.com, Jan 2008

Star Alliance-the world's biggest airline alliance- recently celebrated its tenth anniversary by inducting two Chinese carriers-Air China based in Beijing and Shanghai Airlines in Shanghai- while its Chief Executives Board unanimously approved Air India's membership in Beijing.
By inducting an Indian carrier, Star has now filled its 'white spots' of India and China. Russia and South America will be next, according to Star CEO Jaan Albrecht. Talks are on with TAM Brazil to replace Varig and restore Star to Latin America. Next year, Turkish Airlines and EgyptAir are expected to join, extending the alliance in South East Europe and North Africa. Air India will become a member once integration of its systems to align with those of Star is completed within 15-18 months, said chairman and managing director, Vasudevan Thulasidas, who specially flew to Beijing for the announcement.

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CAMBODIA - largest airport planned for seaside resort: minister

RadioAustralia.net.au, 12/01/2008

Cambodia's seaside airport near Sihanoukville is slated to become the country's largest as a new focus is placed on bringing tourists into the area.Tourism Minister Thong Khon told the AFP newsagency the airport would be bigger than Phnom Penh International Airport.A year after its re-opening, service at the Sihanoukville airport remains limited to chartered domestic flights.But plans are underway to make it a regional travel hub, with the first phase of a 200 million-dollar expansion expected to be completed by March.

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INDONESIA - Indonesia's Lion Air to Buy 49% of a Brisbane-based Airline

Balidiscovery.com (1/12/2008)

A number of press reports are suggesting that Indonesian Lion Air (PT Lion Mentari Airlines) is eyeing a 49% share in an Australian domestic air carrier as a possible precursor to establishing a feeder network for the establishment of international flights between Indonesia and Australia.Australian press reports say that discussions are at an advanced stage between Lion Air and Brisbane-based Sky Air World.

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MALAYSIA - Langkawi cashes in

TTGasia.com, Dec 14 - 20, 2007

THE tourism industry in Langkawi is pinning its hopes on its new Geopark status to capture the imagination of leisure and meetings and incentives travellers seeking a unique beach destination in South-east Asia.The trade is banking on more tourist traffic coming from Singapore via Kuala Lumpur in 2008 with the deregulation of Singapore-Kuala Lumpur flights to allow low-cost carriers to ply the route. The anticipated boost in traffic is expected to spill over from the Malaysian capital to secondary destinations.In 2008, all infrastructure and tourism projects are directed towards enhancing and promoting the Langkawi Geopark. An important project on Tuba Island is the provision of access and a viewing gallery at Wang Buluh Cave. “The people of Tuba Island are getting excited about the projects coming into their backyard, including a coastal rural road that would provide a scenic drive and also potentially attract fishing enthusiasts,” Langkawi Development Authority (LADA) general manager, Datuk Kamarulzaman Abdul Ghani, said.

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SINGAPORE - Changi Airport Terminal 3 gears up for opening

stbpassport.com, Dec 7th 2007

Come 9 January 2008, Changi Airport, consistently rated one of the world's best airports, will have its brand new Terminal 3 open for operations.
At a cost of S$1.75 billion, the Terminal 3 will add a capacity of 22 million passengers a year, bringing the total capacity of Changi Airport to 70 million passengers.
From 12 November to 9 December 2007, the public is being given a sneak preview of the terminal with some shops already open and offering discounts to entice visitors.
Meanwhile, the Civil Administration Authority of Singapore (CAAS) announced recently that four more airlines, in addition to Singapore Airlines, will operate from the new terminal. They are China Eastern Airlines, Jet Airways, Qatar Airways and United Airlines.

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INDONESIA - Seeking Continental Advice

Balidiscovery.com, (12/1/2007)

Vice President Jusuf Kalla has instructed Garuda Indonesia to seek an European-based consultant in order to enhance the quality and standards of aviation safety. The instructions to hire a foreign consultant comes as something of a surprise from the man who, in the past, has made no secret of his preference for local consultants.An interview with the Vice President published in the Bali Post on December 1, 2007, provides background on Kalla's call for the urgent hiring of an European aviation consultant.
The Interview: Jusuf Kalla

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AVIATION - Get ready for cheap S’pore-KL flights

Traveldailyasia.com, 11/26/2007

Finally, the cost of air travel between the capitals of Singapore and Malaysia are to become more affordable – and reasonable – as low-cost carriers were given the green light to launch limited flights on the route. From February 1 next year, the 30-year monopoly on the route held by the national carriers of both countries - Singapore Airlines and Malaysian Airlines – end.
LCCs would be allowed to operate four flights daily - two from each side – initially but by December 1 next year, there will be full liberalisation, allowing airlines to operate as many services as they want. “It will also bring both countries closer to ASEAN’s goal to remove all restrictions on passenger flights between ASEAN capitals by December 2008,” a statement from Singapore’s transport ministry said at the end of two-day talks between air transport officials from both sides.

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CAMBODIA - To Get New Airline

aero-news.net, 26 Nov 2007

The Cambodian government signed a joint venture agreement with two Indonesian companies Friday, to form a new national airline to exploit the country's growing tourism industry.
The new Cambodian airline, with no name at this time, is expected to begin flying in six months, according to The Associated Press. Cambodia's previous flag carrier, Royal Air Cambodia, went bankrupt five years ago.The joint-venture agreement was signed between Cambodia with Rajawali Group and PT Ancora International. The Indonesian partners' businesses include cigarettes, cement, telecommunications, hotels, resorts, extractive minerals and airlines, according to officials with both companies.

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AUSTRALIA - AirAsia X and Tourism Queensland sign Cooperative Marketing Agreement

Asiatraveltips.com, 22 November 2007

AirAsia X and Tourism Queensland have signed an agreement to collaborate globally to promote travel on AirAsia X’s international services and to develop international tourism to Queensland, Australia.
Under the Cooperative Marketing Agreement, both parties have agreed to implement activities to promote international tourism to Queensland with the Gold Coast International Airport as the primary gateway, using AirAsia X’s international services. Joint marketing activities will be undertaken in various international markets such as Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand, China and other South East Asian markets as deemed appropriate by both parties, to support the Kuala Lumpur to Gold Coast route operated by AirAsia X.

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CAMBODIA - Coast of Utopia

Travel.nytimes.com/2007/11/18

As peace and a measure of prosperity have come to Cambodia, the government has identified the southern coast as a key to diversifying tourism — which for years has almost entirely been focused on Angkor — and travel agents have begun suggesting a few days on the beach as part of their Cambodia packages. The highway from the capital, three and a half hours away by car, has been paved with American aid money and is now safe and easy to navigate, even at night. (When I used to drive it, soldiers with AK-47s would step out onto the road to stop the cars, already slowed to a crawl by craters and washed-away pavement, to demand money and cigarettes.

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THAILAND - Don Muang airport for international flights

Traveldailyasia.com, 11/20/2007

The Airports of Thailand (AoT) was told to submit plans on the Suvarnabhumi airport expansion and the use of Don Muang to the government before the December 23 Thailand election.
''We are rushing to seek cabinet approval for the overall framework, but not going into budgets or any investments,'' Thailand's Deputy Transport Minister Sansern Wongcha-um was quoted saying. With the number of people using Suvarnabhumi airport approaching the annual capacity of 45 million passengers, the new airport needed an additional terminal as well as other buildings, he was quoted saying. As part of the plan, the AoT must conduct a study and initiate plans to shift some international airlines back to the old airport.

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AVIATION - IATA puts damper on Southeast Asia open skies

eTN Asia/Pacific , November 13 2007

Amid the euphoria of low-cost carriers being granted new landing rights in the ASEAN region, the International Air Transport Association is saying the region is still a long way from liberalizing the aviation industry.
The International Air Transport Association (IATA) has dampened the euphoria felt by air passengers in ASEAN member countries with the recent agreement by the Malaysian and Singapore governments to allow “limited” low-cost flights by warning that Southeast Asian nations are still a long way from liberalizing the aviation industry."I think there is a long way to go," said Mike Barclay, regional vice president of IATA. "Regulations still obstruct carriers in the region, hampering the industry's growth."

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REGIONAL DEVELOPMENTS - Urbanization: how will it impact on tourism?

T o u r i s m S c a n, Vol. 4 Issue 10 November 2007

Twenty-one major cities are reported to be in most danger of rising sea levels, one of the effects of climate change, as a recently released report by the Worldwatch Institute announced. According to the Associated Press, the most vulnerable cities will count at least an 8-million population by 2015. Cities identified as "highly vulnerable" i.e. in danger by climate change effects, while housing a total of 10% of the world's population are: New York, Los Angeles, Tokyo, Bangkok, Jakarta, Buenos Aires, Rio de Janeiro, Shanghai,
Cairo, Mumbai and Karachi, according to Australia's News.com. Unplanned and chaotic urbanization is taking a huge toll on human health and the quality of the environment, contributing to social, ecological, and economic instability. Of the 3 billion urban dwellers today, 1 billion live in “slums,” defined as areas where people cannot secure key necessities. An estimated 1.6 million urban residents die each year due to lack
of clean water and sanitation as a result.

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BALI - Running out of Runway

Balidiscovery.com (11/10/2007)

PT Angkasa Pura I, the managers of Bali's Ngurah Rai International Airport, surprised a meeting of local planners and regency officials on November 5, 2007 when they revealed current airport development plans only contemplate a runway extension sometime after the year 2025.Quoting Angkasa Pura's aviation consultants, the current thinking is that Bali's single runway of 3,000 meters in length and 45 meters in width "is sufficient to land a Boeing 747 carrying 400 passengers and a full load of fuel."

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AVIATION - Tiger Aviation to establish New Low Cost Airline in Korea

Asiatraveltips.com, 6 November 2007

On Monday, Tiger Aviation CEO, Tony Davis and Incheon City Mayor Ahn Sang-Soo, signed a letter of co-operation to establish a new Korean low fare airline called Incheon Tiger Airways.
Tiger Aviation and Incheon Metropolitan City will now commence work on the required approvals from the central government necessary to secure the appropriate traffic rights. Incheon City and Tiger Aviation will establish a joint venture company to form the new airline.

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AVIATION - Tourism Players Want A Say In BIMP-EAGA Air Links

Bernama.com.my, Nov 3 2007

Tourism players want their input considered when airlines initiate air connectivity within the Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines East Asean Growth Area (BIMP-EAGA).The call follows the disclosure that a Malaysia Airlines subsidiary, FireFly, is considering serving the sub-region.Sarawak Tourism Federation (STF) president Wee Hong Seng said Saturday such feedback would help create a win-win situation for the airline industry as well as the BIMP-EAGA stakeholders in the public and private sectors of the four participating countries."We need to promote two-way traffic for both inbound and outbound tourists, otherwise the load may not be enough for the airlines to be viable in this sub region," he told Bernama on the sidelines of the Value Chain Tourism Forum held in conjunction with the Third BIMP-EAGA Travel Exchange 2007 here.

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AVIATION - Tourism Players Want A Say In BIMP-EAGA Air Links

Bernama.com.my, Nov 3 2007

Tourism players want their input considered when airlines initiate air connectivity within the Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines East Asean Growth Area (BIMP-EAGA).The call follows the disclosure that a Malaysia Airlines subsidiary, FireFly, is considering serving the sub-region.Sarawak Tourism Federation (STF) president Wee Hong Seng said Saturday such feedback would help create a win-win situation for the airline industry as well as the BIMP-EAGA stakeholders in the public and private sectors of the four participating countries."We need to promote two-way traffic for both inbound and outbound tourists, otherwise the load may not be enough for the airlines to be viable in this sub region," he told Bernama on the sidelines of the Value Chain Tourism Forum held in conjunction with the Third BIMP-EAGA Travel Exchange 2007 here.

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AVIATION - A deregulated Singapore-Malaysia skies opens fierce debate

TTGasia.com, Nov 2 - 8, 2007

Malaysian outbound agents find the prospects of dirt-cheap air fares between Singapore and Kuala Lumpur (KL) scary, while Singapore agents who work with budget carriers cannot wait for them to crack the route finally.Twice daily services by AirAsia and a Singapore low-cost carrier (LCC) on the Singapore-KL route could begin as early as December if Singapore agrees. Malaysia’s government gave its in-principle nod last week.This route has been monopolised by Singapore Airlines (SIA) and Malaysia Airlines (MAS), resulting in one of, if not the highest, fares in the region in relation to distance flown. Its deregulation is a real breakthrough and will have various implications for various sectors.Malaysian outbound agents argue business at Kuala Lumpur International Airport (KLIA) will suffer, likewise, tourism in Johor, Malaysia’s southern gateway.

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AVIATION - Cellphone could speed demise of paper airline tickets

ajc.com, 17 October 2007

Airlines agree to standard for bar code text message
Major airlines have agreed on a standard that will allow travelers to check in using a bar code sent to their cellphones, the International Air Transport Association said at a meeting in Geneva.Passengers will register their cellphone number when buying a ticket and receive a bar code by text message, the group representing most commercial carriers said.Check-in staff will scan the bar code directly from cell phones, doing away with the need for a boarding pass.

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