Comfort and enjoyment to passengers on flights of up - Cathay Pacific

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A grateful regular passenger paid a special visit <strong>to</strong> Cathay City <strong>to</strong> meet with the staff from the Hong Kong Office Reservations team who had been helping her out over the years. Ms Cheung visited four Hong Kong Office Reservations Cus<strong>to</strong>mer Sales Officers on 28 September <strong>and</strong> presented them with small gifts <strong>to</strong> show her appreciation for the caring service they had provided <strong>to</strong> her over the past few years. The four – Cus<strong>to</strong>mer Sales Officers Joyce Kwok, Sarajane Chan <strong>and</strong> Christy Lam, <strong>and</strong> Cus<strong>to</strong>mer Sales Supervisor Monita Pang – were very <strong>to</strong>uched by her visit. Ms Cheung said she had stayed a loyal CX cus<strong>to</strong>mer because of the service the team had always provided <strong>and</strong> she calls them up every time she travels. Member Service Executive Innah Sut<strong>to</strong>n from the Philippines Service Centre was commended by a cus<strong>to</strong>mer for the service she provided. “I have just spoken with Member Service Executive Innah Sut<strong>to</strong>n <strong>and</strong> she was excellent. Very rarely do I encounter good cus<strong>to</strong>mer service like that <strong>and</strong> so I feel it was necessary <strong>to</strong> make a formal thank you <strong>to</strong> her <strong>and</strong> ensure that the company is aware of her efforts. I had many questions <strong>and</strong> had difficulty with the online booking system. She was able <strong>to</strong> easily solve my problems <strong>and</strong> make my booking.” HKIA Supervisor Shirley Or helped an elderly couple with their meet-<strong>and</strong>-greet arrangements when they were travelling <strong>to</strong> Rome. “My parents, who are in their 80s, required assistance upon arrival in Rome. I spoke with Supervisor Shirley Or at Hong Kong airport <strong>and</strong> she was very helpful <strong>and</strong> efficient in sorting out our requirements. Being in the service industry myself, I do know it is a challenge <strong>to</strong> keep service st<strong>and</strong>ards high <strong>and</strong> I wanted <strong>to</strong> offer my compliments for a great experience with Shirley.” n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n Stuck in the middle Could you please clarify who receives priority <strong>to</strong> be upgraded? My underst<strong>and</strong>ing is that ID <strong>passengers</strong> have a higher priority for upgrades, but it is plain that revenue <strong>passengers</strong> have a much better chance of being upgraded than ID <strong>passengers</strong>. I would also like <strong>to</strong> know why when bulhead or aisle seats are still available, ID <strong>passengers</strong> get the middle seats? I underst<strong>and</strong> that when the flight is full, then the better seats are given <strong>to</strong> revenue <strong>passengers</strong>. However staff often get their boarding passes after the passenger counter has already closed. By that time surely ground staff should know what seats are available, so there is no need <strong>to</strong> give ID <strong>passengers</strong> the middle seats all the time. Is there a regulation that ID <strong>passengers</strong> get the middle seats? And finally, while I underst<strong>and</strong> that the staff at the st<strong>and</strong>by counter are always busy, that is no excuse for not smiling or even being grumpy. We all work for the same company <strong>and</strong> we should be nice <strong>to</strong> each other. Name withheld Bob Nipperess, Employee Services Manager, replies: I should like <strong>to</strong> stress that only after all revenue passenger needs have been satisfied – <strong>and</strong> this includes purchased upgrades <strong>and</strong> preferred seats – can airport teams allocate seats <strong>to</strong> sub-load travellers. Therefore the seats available for sub-load travellers are those remaining after full-fare cus<strong>to</strong>mers have been ac- Brendan Duffy, Catering Manager Planning & Concept Design, replies: Most processed foods will contain some form of preservative or will have gone through a preserving process such as freezing, pickling or heat treatment in order <strong>to</strong> protect or extend the shelf life of a product. The type of food will determine the type of preserving agent used. Highly processed proteins such as sausages, luncheon meat, mayonnaise <strong>and</strong> <strong>to</strong>ma<strong>to</strong> sauce may contain a number of natural <strong>and</strong> chemical preservatives for stabilising <strong>and</strong> prolonging the life of the product. Whole pieces of chicken, beef, seafood, vegetables <strong>and</strong> starches will have gone through a preserving process such as Cryovac or snap freezing. We have a Catering Hygiene Service St<strong>and</strong>ard with all our catering partners. Part of this governs the time control st<strong>and</strong>ards for food preparation <strong>and</strong> stipulates the time frame for food preparation. Food that will be reheated inflight must not exceed 72 hours counting back from the scheduled time of departure. Food that will be served cold inflight commodated, <strong>and</strong> it st<strong>and</strong>s <strong>to</strong> reason that the remaining seats are often the middle ones. We do not have a policy <strong>to</strong> set aside any specific seats for ID <strong>passengers</strong>, <strong>and</strong> where possible endeavour <strong>to</strong> allocate seating in the ticketed class. Like all employees, our airport teams have clearly defined performance st<strong>and</strong>ards <strong>and</strong> are expected <strong>to</strong> meet these performance goals. If there is an occasion when a traveller feels they have not received the service they expected, they can advise us <strong>and</strong> we will follow up with the department concerned. Send us your feedback We welcome feedback from anyone in the CX network on any issue affecting the airline or the industry. Please email your letters <strong>to</strong> CCD#SCT. Not all letters will be published but those that are will be edited for length <strong>and</strong> <strong>to</strong> comply with the CX World style. The sender of the star letter each month will win 3,000 Asia Miles. The Feedback page is sponsored by Asia’s leading travel reward programme. Preservatives added? I am curious <strong>to</strong> know how much of what we eat inflight is laden with preservatives. And how long before the flight are the meals prepared? Name withheld must not exceed 48 hours counting back from the scheduled time of departure. All our caterers will have a Hazard Analysis & Critical Control Point (HACCP) pro<strong>to</strong>col in place <strong>to</strong> safeguard against any process failings <strong>and</strong> Cathay Pacific has a robust <strong>and</strong> comprehensive audit programme in place. ID passenger rights Recently I have seen a few complaints online about our ID <strong>passengers</strong> being asked <strong>to</strong> swap seats with revenue <strong>passengers</strong> after boarding the plane. If a full-fare passenger is not satisfied with the seat for whatever reason, such as a problem with the IFE, should the crew make the decision <strong>to</strong> swap seats without getting prior permission from the ID passenger? Shouldn’t ID <strong>passengers</strong> be treated the same way as revenue <strong>passengers</strong> or are there certain obligations for them <strong>to</strong> follow? Name withheld
Le Le Ng, Inflight Service St<strong>and</strong>ards Manager, replies: Airport staff <strong>and</strong> cabin crew will always do their best <strong>to</strong> assist ID <strong>passengers</strong> both on ground <strong>and</strong> inflight. That said, ID <strong>passengers</strong> should also be aware that they have responsibilities when travelling. While we respect ID travellers are also <strong>passengers</strong>, our first priority is with revenue <strong>passengers</strong>. Staff travelling on ID tickets are asked <strong>to</strong> please cooperate with airport staff or cabin crew for requests related <strong>to</strong> check-in, boarding, downgrading, re-seating or meal request changes. For further information, please visit the Leisure Travel Policy area on IntraCX. Duty-free savings? Many airlines offer discounts <strong>to</strong> staff for purchases made in onboard duty free s<strong>to</strong>res. For example, Qantas <strong>and</strong> Delta offer a 20% discount onboard for their staff. Can Cathay Pacific consider offering similar discounts for our staff when they are travelling on presentation of a staff ID card? It may help increase sales onboard as well. Alan Davis, SYD Jessica Wan, Inflight Sales Operations Manager, replies: Currently, discounts are not offered <strong>to</strong> staff when they are travelling so that the limited s<strong>to</strong>ck uplifted can be made available <strong>to</strong> revenue <strong>passengers</strong>. However we do have an online staff sale website which can be accessed on IntraCX. Staff can buy items from that site at any time <strong>and</strong> a 30% discount is available on most products. The discount is coupled with occasional special offers such as lucky draws <strong>and</strong> <strong>to</strong>p spender awards. Regular staff sale events are also held at Cathay City where staff can purchase products at discounted prices. New routes on target The booming central city of Zhengzhou is the latest <strong>to</strong> join Dragonair’s network, with a launch date set for 8 January 2013. Zhengzhou, the second largest city in central China after Wuhan, is the economic <strong>and</strong> political hub of Henan Province <strong>and</strong> its surrounding areas. Growth in the manufacturing <strong>and</strong> high technology sec<strong>to</strong>rs is attracting domestic <strong>and</strong> international investment, causing a steady rise in GDP in recent years. Zhengzhou’s his<strong>to</strong>rical heritage as one of China’s eight great ancient capitals, as well as its prox- Increased capacity <strong>to</strong> meet booming Cambodian market The Cambodia team is preparing for the winter months – the traditional high season for visiting the country – with increased frequencies <strong>and</strong> bigger aircraft. Three additional weekly flights on Mondays, Tuesdays <strong>and</strong> Sundays will be mounted on the Phnom Penh route from 28 Oc<strong>to</strong>ber until the end of next March. Dragonair is currently operating a daily flight <strong>to</strong> Phnom Penh. Country Manager Cambodia Nicolas Masse pointed out that the added frequency is a re- ON A HIGH: Nicolas (far right) <strong>and</strong> his team <strong>and</strong> are looking forward <strong>to</strong> more flights in winter. imity <strong>to</strong> the legendary Shaolin monastery, also makes it a popular destination for <strong>to</strong>urists. The new daily service will be operated by Airbus A320 aircraft. “The peak season for both inbound <strong>and</strong> outbound traffic will run from July <strong>to</strong> Oc<strong>to</strong>ber. Frontend business <strong>to</strong> <strong>and</strong> from the city is predicted <strong>to</strong> come mainly from government traffic <strong>and</strong> business travellers,” says Manager Alliance & Revenue Planning Katherine Lo. “Zhengzhou is expected <strong>to</strong> attract considerable leisure <strong>and</strong> business traffic from Hong Kong, with the Shaolin Temple <strong>and</strong> Mount Song being the main <strong>to</strong>urist draws,” Katherine adds. Hong Kong, Macau <strong>and</strong> Taiwan are expected <strong>to</strong> be popular destinations for Zhengzhou local residents, who are now eligible <strong>to</strong> apply for individual visit visas. Meanwhile, advanced bookings are picking up slowly for Haikou <strong>and</strong> Kolkata,which are launching on 28 Oc<strong>to</strong>ber <strong>and</strong> 2 November, respectively. Similar <strong>to</strong> Zhengzhou, student traffic <strong>and</strong> the Individual Visit Scheme <strong>to</strong> Hong Kong is expected <strong>to</strong> help business out of Haikou. Inbound visi<strong>to</strong>rs <strong>to</strong> Haikou will sponse <strong>to</strong> rising travel dem<strong>and</strong> in<strong>to</strong> Cambodia from around the world. According <strong>to</strong> government figures, 2.88 million foreign <strong>to</strong>urists were recorded in 2011, a substantial increase of 14.9% over 2010. Visi<strong>to</strong>rs from China alone grew by 89.6% over the previous year. The growth of international traffic is the result of good internal security <strong>and</strong> improved <strong>to</strong>urism infrastructure in the country, according <strong>to</strong> Nicolas. “On <strong>to</strong>p of being a leisure destination that offers good value for money, Cambodia is also gaining a reputation as a business route with the growth of the manufacturing industry in Southeast Asia, Cambodia being no exception,” says Nicolas. “By operating 10 flights a week during the winter months, KA is better poised <strong>to</strong> capture the China market, where travel dem<strong>and</strong> <strong>to</strong> Cambodia has been growing fast,” he adds. The new schedule translates <strong>to</strong> a 65% increase in passenger capacity <strong>and</strong> 100% for cargo in November <strong>and</strong> December this year. Passenger <strong>and</strong> cargo capacity from January till March 2013 will increase by 45% <strong>and</strong> 50%, respectively. The increase in <strong>to</strong>tal capacity is also expected <strong>to</strong> help the cargo market <strong>to</strong> <strong>and</strong> from Cambodia, which has doubled out of Phnom Penh since early 2012 as exports have soared. most likely hail from Hong Kong, Japan <strong>and</strong> Korea. Kolkata, which is used as an international gateway by East Indian states, is expecting strong business <strong>and</strong> leisure traffic. Visiting friends <strong>and</strong> relatives has also been identified as a niche market for the route. STOP PRESS! As CX World went <strong>to</strong> press, Dragonair announced it will launch a four-times-weekly service <strong>to</strong> Yangon, Myanmar, commencing on 9 January. Top Taiwanese cuisine in the sky Until Oc<strong>to</strong>ber 2013, First <strong>and</strong> Business Class <strong>passengers</strong> can enjoy Chinese dishes from two Taiwan partners – Chinese Sky Restaurant at the Han-Hsien International Hotel in Kaohsiung <strong>and</strong> Ji-Pin-Shuan Restaurant in Taipei. Flights from Kaohsiung <strong>to</strong> Hong Kong will feature dishes by the Chinese Sky Restaurant while <strong>passengers</strong> travelling from Taipei <strong>to</strong> Hong Kong are offered a selection of dishes created by Ji-Pin-Shuan Restaurant. The Chinese Sky Restaurant is known for authentic Can<strong>to</strong>nese cuisine while the Ji-Pin- Shuan Restaurant has an enticing range of Zhejiang dishes.
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Comfort and enjoyment to passengers on flights of up - Cathay Pacific

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