geoff dixon - Orient Aviation

REGIONAL ROUND-UP
SHORTTAKES
CARGO>> Beijing-based Air China
and United Airlines (UAL) have agreed
China’s flag carrier will distribute UAL’s air
cargo at its Beijing Capital International
Airport facilities. Taiwan’s China Airlines
has abandoned its three-year attempt
to purchase a US$47 million share in
Shanghai-based China Eastern Airlines
Cargo unit. All Nippon Airways and
Japan Post have agreed to set up a new
joint venture cargo airline, to operate from
April 1, 2006, and an international express
courier company targeted at the Asian
market. The Japanese Government voted
to privatize Japan Post on October 14.
CODE-SHARES>> Cathay Pacific
Airways has commenced code-sharing
with Air China between Beijing and
Hong Kong. The Hong Kong home
carrier flies to Beijing 10 times a week
and Air China has three return services
a day between Beijing and the Special
Administrative Region of Hong Kong.
China Eastern Airlines and Thai
Airways International have commenced
code - share flights on the Bangkok-
Shanghai (Pudong) route. Korean Air
and Emirates are code-sharing between
Seoul and Dubai and allowing passengers
to accrue frequent flyer points from either
carrier. Emirates SkyCargo has added
two extra flights per week to Shanghai
using a B747-400F. Singapore Airlines
Cargo has increased its flights on the
Singapore-Delhi-Copenhagen-Chicago
route from five to seven services a week.
ENGINES>> IAE and new Indian lowcost
carrier, Indigo, have announced a
US$1.7 million deal to equip its fleet of
100 A320 airplanes with V2500 engines.
It is the largest order for the engine
received by IAE.
INFLIGHT>> LSG Sky Chefs has
opened its second inflight kitchen and
customer service centre in India, in
Hyderabad. Its first inflight catering centre
was established in Bangalore in 2001.
IT>> LCC Adam Air of Indonesia has
bought Lufthansa Systems’ Flight Management
System Navigation Data Base.
MROs>> Air New Zealand has announced
it will outsource the heavy maintenance of
its long haul fleet of B747s, B767s and its
new B777s. Hong Kong Aero Engine
Services Ltd (HAESL) and Singapore
Aero Engine Service Ltd (SAESL)
have signed a US$600 million contract to
service Rolls-Royce engines at Emirates
Airline. Lufthansa Technik Philippines
has undertaken its first Lufthansa German
Airlines A320-200 IL2 heavy maintenance
check (15-year cycle). The facility, which
has specialized in A330/A340 maintenance,
is now marketing its MRO services for
narrowbody aircraft.
ROUTES>> AirAsia is operating a daily
Kuala Lumpur-Chiang Mai service, the
fourth city in Thailand to be served by AirAsia
Air New Zealand: to outsource its heavy maintenance
from Kuala Lumpur. Air New Zealand has
suspended indefinitely its direct Auckland-
Taipei flights following the expiry of its codeshare
agreement with EVA Air. Taipei-based
China Airlines has launched a three times a
week service Taipei-Phnom Penh, resumed
its Taipei-Phuket flights and increased its
flights Taipei-Chiang Mai from three to five
times a week. Other upgraded routes are
Kaohsiung-Singapore (4 flights per week)
and Kaohsiung-Manila (six times a week) as
well as another Taipei-Hong Kong service
each Sunday. China Eastern Airlines has
inaugurated a Kunming-Johor Bahru charter
service to operate until December, Cathay
Pacific has increased its flights to Mumbai
and Delhi to daily from four times week from
December 1 to January 31, taking advantage
of India’s temporary removal of a flight cap
for foreign carriers during the peak holiday
season. The Hong Kong-based carrier also
has announced plans to increase its five
times a week service to Rome to daily
in 2006 as a result of a new air service
agreement recently signed between Hong
Kong and Italy and add a fifth daily service
Hong Kong-Seoul from January 27. EVA
Air is operating 130 new charter flights
to Japanese cities until December 31, as
well as increasing its flights by one per
week to Sydney (3), Brisbane (4), London
(6) and to Vienna from four to six flights
and Taipei-Jakarta from three to six times
a week respectively. Oasis Airlines, a
start-up low-cost carrier also plans to
offer services to Italy; from Hong Kong
to Milan. Singapore Airlines (SIA) has
launched its four times a week Singapore-
Hyderabad service, bringing the number
of cities in India served by SIA to eight.
Thai Airways International (THAI)
rationalized several of its international
services when it introduced its winter
schedule on November 1. Bangkok-
Islamabad service (twice a week) is a
new service as is Bangkok-Los Angeles
(three times a week). THAI will increase its
Bangkok-Sydney and Bangkok-Auckland
flights from three times a week to daily and
eliminate the Bangkok-Sydney-Auckland
route. From December 1, the Bangkok-
New York service is operating four times
a week and the Bangkok-Osaka-Los
Angeles flights were terminated. Lowcost
carrier, Tiger Airways, is operating
the first route between Macau and Clark
Airfield, 80 kms north of the Philippines’
capital Manila. Tiger Airways now flies to
Bangkok, Chiang Mai, Hat Yai, Phuket,
Krabi, Macau, Manila, Padang, Ho Chi
Minh City and Hanoi.
10 ORIENT AVIATION DECEMBER 2005-JANUARY 2006