Hari Raya open house on Saturday

Thursday October 23, 2008

KUANTAN: The Hari Raya Aidilfitri national-level open house will be held at Sungai Isap 2, here, from 10am to 4pm on Saturday.

Organised by Tourism Malaysia, it will feature performances by local artistes and dancers, as well as traditional dishes and other delicacies.

The performances will start at 10am, while food will be served from noon to 4pm.

The public is invited to join this kenduri (feast) which is expected to be attended by Tengku Mahkota Tengku Abdullah Sultan Ahmad Shah and Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak.

Source: The Star

Asia's top 10 budget airlines

1. AirAsia Berhad

October 23, 2008

The aviation sector is going through a very turbulent phase in India and abroad.

In India, domestic air traffic has plunged to a five-year low, as traffic crashed by 19 per cent in September 2008.

As airlines face mounting pressures of a recession, fall in traffic and huge operational costs, how are low cost airlines faring?

So here's a look at the best budget airlines in Asia. Smart Travel Asia, an online travel magazine, rates these airlines on the basis of cheap tickets, reliable schedules, decent service and route network and access. While Air Asia tops the list, Air Deccan and Spicejet also make it to the top 10 list.

1. AirAsia Berhad

Topping the list of low cost carriers is AirAsia. Asia's largest low budget airline is based in Kaula Lumpur and flies domestic & international flights. AirAsia was the first to introduce low cost travelling in Asia. The airline started operations on 18 November 1996.

It was founded by the government owned DRB-Hicom. However, the airline ran into rough weather and incurred huge losses. Former Time Warner executive Tony Fernandes took over the company and revived it. "Before a business can grow, it needs to have its costs under control. It must be cost-efficient and profitable, and it must create value," Fernandes believes.

The company under his leadership scaled new heights. AirAsia introduced its low fare, no frills concept in December 2001. AirAsia is also now a public listed company on the Malaysia Stock Exchange. The airline now flies to over 60 destinations. It has a fleet of 69 aircraft.

The AirAsia group, has carried over 35 million passengers. AirAsia also plans to start low-cost flights to India soon. According to Fernandes, the revenue for the quarter ended June 2008 increased by 41 per cent to RM608 million as the airline carried 20 per cent more passengers to 2.8 million with 16 per cent higher fares. 'Now everyone can fly' says AirAsia Berhad's tagline.

Source: Rediff

Airasia Confident Of Robust Growth Despite Global Crisis

October 23, 2008 17:46 PM

KUALA LUMPUR, Oct 23 (Bernama) -- Despite the challenging global financial crisis, low-cost carrier AirAsia is confident of continuing to experience robust growth, bolstered by a sustainable business model, its chief executive officer Datuk Seri Tony Fernandes said.

"We think that we are in a strong position. We will continue to invest in our brand and increase demand through quality products while expanding routes," he told reporters after a media briefing on AirAsia's latest 5-Star Enhancement here Thursday.

He however said nothing was guaranteed as it was not known what was around the corner.

According to Tony, AirAsia was ready to face this challenging period as he had earlier predicted the eventuality.

"All I can say is that we will maintain a consistent strategy and change our products. We are a low-cost carrier and will not pretend to be something else.

"But, we are a high-quality low-cost carrier," he said.

Tony said the way out of recession for AirAsia was growth.

He said some airlines would deal with the recession by contracting. "But I am not going to waste five years of hardwork by throwing away the routes and brand development.

"It is going to be a long recession. I have been predicting this for two years and we are ready for it.

"Although it is not going to be easy, we have to maintain demand by having the lowest fares and good products," he stated.

Being the largest low cost carrier in Asia, AirAsia is able to compete with other full service airlines by maintaining its low fares and adding yet another sparkle to its already 5-star service, by enhancing its On-Time Guarantee.

The On-Time performance of flights refers to the departure of flights within 15 minutes of their scheduled departure times.

AirAsia is the only airline in the world that provides its customers with an innovative protection like the On-Time Guarantee. It is an innovative protection provided by the airline for customers against flight delays.

Beginning Nov 1, 2008, the AirAsia On-Time Guarantee cut waiting time from three to two hours.Customers affected by flight delays of more than two hours are eligible to receive an e-gift voucher.

Each e-gift voucher is worth RM200 and may be used to buy a seat on another AirAsia flight or redeemed for any AirAsia product or service.

The enhanced On-Time Guarantee is a benefit passed on to AirAsia customers as a result of the airline's improved performance for flight departures across its entire network.

In just a matter of three months since the AirAsia On-Time Guarantee was launched in June this year, the number of AirAsia flights delayed by an hour or more dropped from three percent in July and four in August to just two percent in September.

As a result, AirAsia has seen its On-Time performance for flight departures improving from 89 percent in July and 85 percent in August to 90 percent in September.

Touching on the delivery of the new airbus aircraft, Tony said it would be used for flights to India, China, Thailand and other Southeast Asian countries as AirAsia had a problem at the Low Cost Carrier Terminal(LCCT)in Sepang.

"The problem is, I have got no place to park the plane.Every morning when I come in and ask my engineers what all the planes were doing in the hangar,their reply was that there was no other place to park them.

"So, we now have 33 bays and 36 aircraft. Until we get more bays, it is a real problem for us," he said.

Tony said that AirAsia would allow Malaysia Airports Bhd to finish its development first before bringing the airbus to Malaysia.

On whether AirAsia would reduce the fuel surcharge following the decline in global oil prices, he said the company would review the situation but only make a decision when there is some price stability.

"Let's see some consistency in pricing and the volatility out of the market.

Then, we will make a decision," he said.

On Malaysia Airlines, he said: "Our battle with the airline is over. All I wanted was to be treated fairly and to get our routes.We have got that.

"The focus now is on our branding and we want to get better. The competition is now within us and with no one else," he added.

Source: BERNAMA

AirAsia Among The Top 5 Most Recognised & Admired Airlines

October 22, 2008 11:55 AM

KUALA LUMPUR, Oct 22 (Bernama) -- AirAsia Bhd is among the top five most recognised and admired airlines in the Asia-Pacific region in a survey by market insight company, TNS.

In a statement here Tuesday, AirAsia said it was the only low-cost carrier to be listed among the 'Top 10 Asia-Pacific Airlines' category, which saw it coming ahead of other full-service, legacy carriers including Qantas and Malaysia Airlines.

It said the category formed part of the Asia-Pacific Top 1,000 Brands 2008 survey which was produced in cooperation with the Hong Kong-based Media magazine.

A total of 3,600 people were surveyed across 10 countries, covering 12 major product and service categories.

Group chief executive officer, Tony Fernandes, said to be the only low-cost carrier featured in the category was a great achievement for the airline.

He said AirAsia’s low-cost model was an attractive customer proposition which was strong enough to compete with premium airlines such as Singapore Airlines and Cathay Pacific.

"Over the last seven years AirAsia has quickly become a household name, and with flights operating from every Asean country, we are making air travel an affordable reality for everyone across Asia," he said.

Source: BERNAMA

Asia Upbeat Tourism Industry Will Grow Despite Economic Slowdown

October 22, 2008 16:52 PM

SINGAPORE, Oct 22 (Bernama) -- The tourism industry in Asia may have been affected by the current economic slowdown but the region is expected to rebound and grow in the medium term, said Singapores Trade and Industry Minister Lim Hng Kiang.

He said the industry's downturn in Asia would be cushioned by the continued increase of intra-regional travel with demand largely driven by travellers from China, India and South Korea.

"Other Asian source markets such as Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand and Vietnam would similarly grow and contribute to the rebound of the industry in the region," he said when opening the inaugural ITB Asia Convention at Suntec here today.

ITB Asia is the Asian edition of ITB Berlin, the worlds largest travel trade show in Europe, jointly organised by Messe Berlin and Singapore Tourism Board.

About 850 travel companies from 58 countries including Malaysia, and 5,000 travel representatives are taking part in the three-day show.

Exhibitors from Malaysia include Tourism Malaysia and Sabah and Sarawak tourism authorities.

Lim said destinations in Asia such as Macau and Dubai had also boosted their destination appeal to international visitors in recent years and this had resulted in rising interest in Asia as a travel destination.

He said the current turmoil in the global financial markets, combined with higher air travel costs and rising fuel prices had impacted consumer sentiment and discretionary spending in many tourism destinations around the world including Singapore.

He urged the local and international tourism players to work together, forge new partnerships, invest in the development and training of their workers, as well as commit to capability building in Asian markets.

According to the UN World Tourism Organisation, Asia would continue to be a well sought after destination with close to 400 million total visitor arrivals to the East Asia and Pacific region by 2020.

The Pacific Asia Travel Association had forecast that the Asia-Pacific region would see growth of seven to eight percent in international arrivals for 2008 to 2010 with the Asian region attracting 460 million visitors by 2010, up from some 350 million visitors in 2006.

Source: BERNAMA

AirAsia X Set To Take Delivery Of New Airbus A330

October 21, 2008 15:28 PM

By Salbiah Said

KUALA LUMPUR, Oct 21 (Bernama) - Friday, Oct 31 marks yet another significant milestone for AirAsia when its low-cost long-haul affiliate, AirAsia X takes delivery of the first brand new Airbus A330, which is expected to reduce the airlines fuel consumption and maintenance costs.

The handing over ceremony comes more than three weeks after AirAsia bade farewell to the final Boeing 737-300 aircraft on its Malaysian operations. The low-cost short-haul airline, has now switched to Airbus A320 fleet, which is expected to help the airline save through fuel efficiency.

A group of Malaysian journalists who are on this assignment, will return to Kuala Lumpur on this ferry flight (inaugural flight) on board the new A330-300 on the same day, after the official hand-over in Toulouse, France.

Toulouse, dubbed Ville Rose ("Pink City") because of its distinctive pink buildings, is the aircraft manufacturers headquarters.

AirAsia X, whose shareholders include the Virgin Group of U.K., is helmed by its 36-year old Chief Executive Officer Azran Osman-Rani, previously Senior Director of Business Development at private satellite TV operator Astro, with key team members, comprising young, driven and dynamic individuals, having a wealth of experience in the aviation industry.

"The new A330 will enable AirAsia X to dramatically reduce operation costs. With the new aircraft, we can reduce costs from 4.0 cents per available seat kilometre (ASK) to 3.5 cents per ASK, which is significantly lower than the cost of 7.5 to 8.0 cents per ASK on traditional carriers," Azran told a media briefing last week.

He said AirAsia X's A330 is tailor-made for its low-cost long-haul service. The aircraft features specifications "never before used on an aircraft of any other airline before. It features a pioneering global design that will lead to a whole new category of aircraft."

Its brand new A330 will feature leather seats onboard, with optional XL seats for extra comfort and luxury; set meals for dining at 30,000 feet in the air; comfort kits; and an advance seat request option, together with an all-new inflight entertainment system.

"An all-new aircraft fleet gives us a strong differentiation against airlines that operate aged aircraft. The new aircraft will lower our fuel consumption and maintenance costs and enable us to raise our efficiency level by up to 30 percent. The new aircraft is the main factor in changing the global aviation industry," said Azran.

AirAsia X, which complements AirAsia's current extensive route network, covers destinations between four and eight hours in flight duration from Kuala Lumpur.

The first Airbus A330 will be the first of a batch of new fleet of 25 aircraft AirAsia X has ordered from Airbus.

Both AirAsia and AirAsia X, are no frills carriers. AirAsia's Airbus A320 has a 180-seat capacity while the Airbus A330 has more than 330 seats. The long haul affiliate provides both economy and XL seats while AirAsia operates a single seater.

During the trip, the media will visit the final assembly line of the A330 aircraft in Toulouse.

France is home to four Airbus manufacturing sites, along with three final assembly lines and the company's headquarters. The manufacturing sites form the Centres of Excellence for aircraft nose sections, centre fuselages and engine pylons and nacelles.

Nearly 11,500 people are employed at sites in Toulouse, where the final assembly of all Airbus aircraft takes place except for the A318, A319 and A321 (which is performed in Germany).

A new final assembly line has been built especially for the A380. One of the largest construction jobs of its kind in the world, it is named after the late Jean-Luc Lagardere, who was co-chairman of Airbus' main shareholder, the European Aeronautic Defence and Space Company (EADS).

Final assembly of Airbus aircraft includes joining the forward, centre and aft fuselage sections, mating the wings to the fuselage, which is followed by the installation of the horizontal tail plane, fin, engine pylons, landing gear and engines.

Integration of the systems in the cockpit, plus system tests, also are carried out, including avionics, electrical, hydraulic, flight control, air conditioning, fuel tank pressurisation and landing gear.

Cabin furnishing for the wide body A330/A340 is carried out in Toulouse prior to final delivery.

At the Saint-Eloi area of Toulouse, engine pylons are manufactured, while at Blagnac, electrical assemblies are built, along with the repair, modification and preparation of spares for in-service aircraft.

As part of the Airbus Centre for Excellence for aircraft cabin and cargo customisation, Toulouse is responsible for the customer definition of cabins, design and painting. A mock-up centre is included in the resources at Toulouse.

Toulouse activities also include flight and ground testing of aircraft, as well as research, design and development.

One of the three major Airbus training centres is also based at Toulouse.

The other three are in Miami, Hamburg and Beijing.

Nearly 4,500 people are employed at Airbus' central entity in Toulouse, situated close to Toulouse-Blagnac International Airport.

Airbus has 16 sites in France, Germany, Spain and the UK, and fully owned subsidiaries in the US, China, Japan and the Middle East. Spare parts centres are located in Hamburg, Frankfurt, Washington, Beijing and Singapore.

Source: BERNAMA