Low-cost airlines in China? - Orient Aviation

DIARY
PERSPECTIVE
CLASSY: Oh, to have been a fly on the
wall. It was a couple of months before
Christmas when what many might have
thought “unthinkable” occurred.
The place was Toulouse, France and Alan
Mulally, president and chief executive of the
Boeing Commercial Airplane Group
was coming to the hometown of archrival
Airbus to deliver a speech at the local university.
Mullaly’s office called Airbus to inquire
if a visit might be arranged. “Why not?” was
Boeing’s chief
Mulally
the answer. So Mulally and his small team, including Boeing
vice-president and programme manager for the now shelved
Sonic Cruiser, Walt Gillette, visited Airbus and met with
Airbus president and CEO, Noël Forgeard, and executive
vice-president customer affairs, John Leahy.
Events moved along so smoothly that the professional
rivals enjoyed a cosy dinner together the same evening. The
next day the Boeing team returned for a personal guided tour
of the A380 mock-up. It must have been quite an eye opener
for the Airbus staff.
Orient Aviation understands the dinner included some
“vigorous debate” between senior engineers from the two
airplane manufacturers about the Sonic Cruiser.
By the way, before Mulally arrived, it suddenly occurred
to Airbus staff that the soiree might raise
some eyebrows amongst government officials
on both sides of the Atlantic. They
quickly called the local U.S. Consulate and
had one of Washington’s diplomats attend
and take notes to show nothing underhand
was going on.
And one more thing: Forgeard and Leahy
were told they would be “most welcome” in
Seattle. They are still awaiting the official invitation.
It must have gone astray in the mail!
Airbus head
Forgeard
Singapore Airlines CEO-designate,
Chew Choon Seng
CHANGES
In January, Singapore
Airlines (SIA) confirmed
what the industry had anticipated
for some time – that
Dr. Cheong Choong Kong,
chief executive and deputy
chairman of the airline group
would retire in June this year.
The CEO-designate of the
prestigious carrier is SIA’s
current senior executive vicepresident
(administration),
Chew Choon Seng (56).
A mechanical engineer by
training with a Master of Science
degree from Imperial
College, London, Chew joined
SIA in 1972. He has worked
his way through all areas of
the company, including stints
as country manager in Italy
and Japan and posts as regional
senior vice-president
of the Southwest Pacific, the
Americas and Europe. Currently,
he is in charge of SIA’s
corporate affairs, finance and
internal audit. SIA spokesman,
Rick Clements, said in media
interviews at the time of the
announcement that Chew will
carry on Dr. Cheong’s vision
of expansion. His task was to
make the airline group and
its related subsidiaries a global
company, said Clements.
Eighteen months ago, youthful
Koh Boon Hwee, a brilliant
academic and entrepreneur,
became the new chairman of
the Singapore Airlines Group.
He is a decade younger than
Chew and had never worked
in the airline industry until his
appointment to SIA.
ACTION STATIONS
The musical chairs never
stop at China’s Hainan Airlines,
the airline arm of the
swashbuckling Hainan Air
Group and its many aviation
related subsidiaries. In January,
the company announced
that Li Weijian had resigned
as president and would be
succeeded by Zhao Zhongying.
Zhao was formerly the
president of China Xinhua
Airlines, a domestic Chinese
carrier that Hainan Airlines
took over last year. At the
same time, the board, still led
by chairman Chen Feng, appointed
Hainan Airlines vicepresident
Zhu Yimin, as the
carrier’s new chief executive.
BIG BUST UP
At press time, a 180 kg
Taiwanese female, identified
only by her family name of
Hsieh in court documents,
has demanded compensation
and an apology from Dragonair
after airline staff barred
her from taking her seat on a
Taipei via Hong Kong flight to
Shanghai. Hsieh has lodged a
complaint with the Consumer’s
Foundation of Taiwan
and claimed she had been
hurt and humiliated by the airline’s
behaviour. In its defence,
Dragonair said the ban was
made in the interests of safety.
An airline spokesman in Taiwan
said it could not accept
Ms Hsieh on board because
there was no seatbelt available
in her size. “The consideration
of Dragonair is the flight
safety of Ms Hsieh and other
passengers,” said Steven
Chang, the marketing and
sales manager for the airline in
Taiwan. “This should never be
interpreted as discrimination
against the overweight.” But
said Consumer Foundation
chairman Tsai Tzai-pen at a
press conference in Taipei: “It
is hard to understand because
international airlines would
not refuse to carry large-sized
people like Sumo wrestlers or
body builders.”
CONFIRMED
Despite some nasty and
ill-founded rumours that he
would not survive his probation
at Thai International
Airways, the airline’s president
since May last year,
Kanok Abhirodee, was
confirmed in his position by
the airline’s board before the
Christmas recess. Kanok, who
had never worked in an airline
until he was chosen in open
competition for the THAI top
job last May, must now carry
off the part privatisation of the
carrier, set for this year, as well
as oversee a fleet renewal plan
for the carrier.
VACANCY FILLED
Although former Asian
Aerospace Pte Ltd president,
Jimmy Lau, resigned in
the final days of the Singapore
conference and exhibition,
Asian Aerospace 2002,
the company has only just
announced his successor, Ed
Ng. A Harvard MBA holder
and a first class honours science
graduate from Manchester
University, Ng has spent
several years with a global
property investment and development
company, Capitaland
and also has been president
and country manager of
GE Capital for Singapore and
the Philippines.
Orient Aviation, February 2003