News From Asia 亚洲新闻

Richard Maslen March 03, 2011

WINGS AIR INCREASES ITS DOMESTIC OPTIONS

Indonesian carrier Wings Air, a subsidiary of Lion Air, will add a further 15 ATR 72-500s to its fleet to expand its domestic network. The airline has converted options taken in 2009 when it placed a previous order for 15 of the Franco-Italian turboprops. Wings Air has already taken delivery of ten of these aircraft and is using them to develop a strong regional network across the country, offering connectivity from small and remote communities to major cities and providing feed to the wider network of parent Lion Air. Speaking about the deal, Rusdi Kirana, Chairman of Wings Air and President Director of Lion Air, said: “Our increasing fleet of modern ATR aircraft is making a strong contribution to the growth of our national economy. We are proud to expand and develop transportation capabilities across Indonesia [and our] aircraft are becoming very popular in Indonesia as they play a key role in the development of business and tourism, as well as interconnecting the Indonesia archipelago.”

SICHUAN AIRLINES LAUNCHES VIETNAM SERVICES

Sichuan Airlines is to expand its network into Vietnam from March 6 with the launch of a twice weekly Chongqing – Hanoi route. Later the same month, on March 17, the carrier will also inaugurate a Chengdu – Nanning – Ho Chi Minh service, also on a twice weekly frequency. In 2010 more than 835,000 O&D passengers travelled between China and Vietnam but Sichuan Airlines currently offers no direct services into the country. Chongqing is its second largest base after Chengdu and it currently offers almost 300 weekly frequencies to 30 domestic destinations, as well as links to Taipei Songshan, providing strong feed to its new international route. No operator currently serves the Chongqing – Hanoi route with any O&D passengers required to connect with China Southern Airlines via Guangzhou Baiyun. Likewise, Ho Chi Minh is not currently served from either Chengdu or Nanning, although last year Air China offered a seasonal link from Nanning, a flight which was suspended in October last year in favour of boosting capacity to the Vietnamese city from Shenzhen.

VIRGIN BLUE INTRODUCES BUSINESS CLASS IN DOMESTIC MARKET

Virgin Blue Airlines is to start offering a Business Class product in the domestic Australian market following the arrival of the first of two Airbus A330-200 it is leasing from BOC Aviation in May. The former Emirates Airline aircraft will be reconfigured with a modern cabin designed to offer passengers a seat that “feels as though they are driving a luxury sports car,” according to the carrier’s Creative Director, Hans Hulsbosch. The seat will provide a 62in (157.5cm) pitch. “The seating and experience of this aircraft has been designed to say contemporary quality, with luxury leather padded seating,” added Hans Hulsbosch. Virgin Blue will utilise the A330s on its Sydney – Perth route from June, offering a three-times daily service with the type. A further two A330-200s are due to join the carrier from Aircastle and CIT Aerospace over the coming year, while a Business Class offering will also be introduced on its Boeing 737-800 fleet before the end of the year. Virgin Blue competes with national carrier Qantas and its low-cost off-shoot Jetstar Airways between Perth and Sydney, holding a 26 per cent share of a 1.18 million passenger O&D market. It believes its ‘upgraded’ service will enable it to better target corporate customers, while also improving the experiences for its Economy clientele.

SPICEJET EXPANDS IN INDIA AND NEPAL

Indian low-cost carrier SpiceJet is to boost frequencies on a number of its domestic routes this summer as well opening a new Ahmedabad - Goa service and more than doubling capacity on its Delhi - Kathmandu link. The changes from March 28 mainly cover flights from Delhi, with fourth weekly frequencies to Ahmedabad and Goa and second weekly services to Bagdogra, Jammu, Guwahti, Varanasi and on the Ahmedabad - Hyderabad route. SpiceJet is currently the sixth largest operator in India with its 1,137 weekly services offering 134,166 seats to domestic travellers. In April, Spicejet’s expansion in Nepal will take place with frequencies on the Delhi - Kathmandu route increasing from six to 13 a week from April 7. The airline competes with Air India, Kingfisher Airlines, Jet Airways - and its low-cost division JetLite - as well as Nepal Airlines. It currently has just a four per cent share of the approximately 480,000 passenger O&D market.

THAI AIRWAYS INTERNATIONAL BOOSTS FREQUENCIES TO HONG KONG

Thai Airways International is to boost its schedules to Hong Kong this summer with additional services from Bangkok and Phuket. From May 18 it will increase flights on the Bangkok - Hong Kong route from 30 to 32 a week, growing to 35 a week from July 1. Meanwhile, on the Phuket - Hong Kong route, Thai will offer a daily schedule. Thai is currently the second largest carrier on both routes accounting for 28 per cent of the O&D market to Hong Kong from Bangkok and 26 per cent from Phuket, but its expanded scheduled could mean it over takes Cathay Pacific Airways and Dragonair on the two routes, respectively. Cathay Pacific currently has 32 weekly frequencies on the Bangkok – Hong Kong link using a mix of Airbus A340, Boeing 747 and 777 aircraft.

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