Cathay Pacific launches passenger flight from Qingdao to Hong Kong on 13 August 2021

 Report by : Gan Yung Chyan, KUCINTA SETIA

According to Cathay Pacific, it begins its first commercial flight from Qingdao to Hong Kong on 13 August 2021 with its A321neo aircraft.

According to schedule, Cathay Pacific passenger flight CX951 leaves Qingdao for Hong Kong at 2.50 pm and arrives in Hong Kong at 6.45 pm.

CX950 flight on the Hong Kong - Qingdao route is solely for cargo transportation.

China Southern launches Shenzhen - Lanzhou - Kashi flight on 29 July 2021

 Report by : Gan Yung Chyan, KUCINTA SETIA / Image courtesy : China Southern

China Southern launches Shenzhen - Lanzhou - Kashi flight on 29 July 2021 with its B737-800 aircraft.

On 29 July 2021, China Southern flight CZ8691 departs from Shenzhen for Kashi via Lanzhou at 7.30 am, transits in Lanzhou at 10.40 am before taking off for Kashi at 11.45 am and arriving in Kashi at 3.35 pm.

At 4.35 pm, the outbound flight for Shenzhen, CZ8692, leaves Kashi, transits in Lanzhou at 8.15 pm before departing from Lanzhou for Shenzhen at 9.15 pm and touching down in Shenzhen at 10.25 pm.

China Southern operates thrice-weekly flights to Kashi, on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays.

Greater Bay Airlines unveils its aircraft livery

 Report by : Gan Yung Chyan, KUCINTA SETIA / Image : Weibo @飞来飞去的方小鱼

Greater Bay Airlines has unveiled its official livery on its first aircraft, the B737-800 registered D-AAGB. The livery shows the airline initials GBA in white on sky blue tail.

Greater Bay Airlines is the proposed low-cost airline headquartered in Hong Kong, the low-cost subsidiary of Donghai Airlines for the Hong Kong market.

Greater Bay Area Airlines Co., Ltd., founded by Huang Chubiao, chairman of Shenzhen-headquartered Donghai Airlines, has applied to the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Air Transport Licensing Bureau to operate air routes between Hong Kong and 104 destinations. According to the gazette, the starting point of the route is Hong Kong International Airport. Among the 104 destinations, 48 ​​destinations are inland cities, 4 destinations are in Taiwan, and the remaining destinations are mainly cities in the Asia-Pacific region such as Tokyo, Seoul and Bangkok.

According to the information from the Hong Kong Companies Registry, Greater Bay Area Airlines was incorporated as early as 24 May 2010, and has been renamed several times since then. The original registered name was Donghai Airlines, and it was renamed Donghai Airlines (HK) on 17 January 2019. It was renamed Hong Kong Bauhinia Airlines again in December 2019, and finally renamed "Greater Bay Airlines" on 8 July 2020.

Huang Chubiao is known as "Shenzhen Li Ka-shing". In 1985, he established Donghai Group in Shenzhen to engage in real estate and hotel business. In 2006, he established Donghai Airlines to operate civil aviation and logistics transportation.

Greater Bay Airlines currently has 9 directors. In addition to Huang Chubiao, the founder of the company and the chairman of Shenzhen Donghai Group, the newly added 6 people include Wang Wei, founder and chairman of SF Holdings, and Li Guozhang, vice chairman of the Board of Directors of the Bank of East Asia. Li Shaoguang, former director of the Hong Kong Security Bureau, Liang Junyan, chairman of the Hong Kong Legislative Council, and Xu Hanzhong, former chief executive of the Airport Authority. On 4 January 2021, Qiu Yinghua, the former CEO of Cathay Dragon, became the CEO of Greater Bay Area Airlines and was appointed as the company's director.

HK Express launches direct flights to Taoyuan and Kaohsiung in late August 2021

 Reports by : Gan Yung Chyan, KUCINTA SETIA

News (1)

HK Express launches flight to Taoyuan on 23 August 2021

According to HK Express' latest flight schedules, the budget airline subsidiary of Cathay Pacific is launching non-stop scheduled flight to Taoyuan on 23 August 2021.

On 23 August 2021, HK Express flight UO110 departs from Hong Kong for Taoyuan at 3.55 pm, arrives in Taoyuan at 5.55 pm before leaving Taoyuan for Hong Kong at 6.50 pm and touching down in Hong Kong at 8.50 pm under flight UO111.

HK Express flies to Taoyuan on Mondays and Saturdays

News (2)

HK Express launches flight to Kaohsiung on 26 August 2021

Besides Taoyuan, HK Express launches scheduled flight from Hong Kong for Kaohsiung on 26 August 2021.

On 23 August 2021, HK Express flight UO130 departs from Hong Kong for Kaohsiung at 10.50 am, arrives in Kaohsiung at 12.20 pm before leaving Koahsiung for Hong Kong at 1.15 pm and landing in Hong Kong at 2.40 pm under flight UO131.

HK Express flies to  Kaohsiung on Thursdays and Sundays.

Bangkok Airways resumes commercial flight to Singapore on 22 August 2021

Report by : Gan Yung Chyan, KUCINTA SETIA

On 27 July 2021, Bangkok Airways announces that it is resuming commercial flight from Samui to Singapore on 1 August 2021 with its A319 aircraft. However, the resumption flight has been postponed to 22 August 2021.

According to schedules, Bangkok Airways flight PG961 departs from Samui for Singapore at 3.05 pm, touches down in Singapore at 6 pm before leaving Singapore Changi Airport Terminal 1 for Samui at 7.30 pm and arriving in Samui at 8.35 pm under flight PG962.

Flights are operated on Sundays, Mondays and Thursdays.

The flights from 1 August 2021 until 19 August 2021 were cancelled.

The Samui-Singapore route is the first international route operated by a Thai airline under Koh Samui's "Samui Plus Model Project" to reopen Thailand's borders to foreign tourists who have been vaccinated.

According to Bangkok Airways, passengers entering Thailand are required to follow guidelines issued by the Centre for COVID-19 Situation Administration (CCSA) directive No. 7/2564 on 24 June B.E. 2564 (2021) which requires that each passenger entering the country must possess the complete set of the relevant documents. The documents include the Certificate of Entry (COE), Medical Certificate with a laboratory result indicating that COVID-19 is not detected (done by RT-PCR technique and issued no more than 72 hours before traveling), Vaccine Certificate or proof of vaccination. Additionally all passengers must undergo required covi tests (RT-PCR method) during their stay in Thailand. 

Travelers with a certificate of vaccination and a negative covi test are exempt from compulsory quarantine if travelling to the following islands: Koh Samui, Koh Pha Ngan and Koh Tao. They must stay on the island for at least 14 days before travelling to other regions in Thailand.

Air Austral has received its first A220-300 aircraft

 Report by : Gan Yung Chyan, KUCINTA SETIA / Image : Aircraft Spotting Blog

Air Austral's first A220-300 aircraft is F-OLAV (cn 55106) and wears the carrier’s distinctive livery showing the wildlife of La Reunion Island. The aircraft has 12 Business Class and 120 Economy Class seats. 

The airline has two other A220 jets on order.

Air Austral will fly its A220s on routes from La Réunion Island to Johannesburg, Madagascar (various destinations), Mahe (Seychelles), Mauritius and Mayotte. 

Ref: https://www.airportspotting.com/first-a220-for-air-austral-delivered/

Drukair Royal Bhutan Airlines launches direct cargo flight to Singapore on 13 August 2021

 Report by : Gan Yung Chyan, KUCINTA SETIA

On 27 July 2021, Drukair Royal Bhutan Airlines announces on Facebook that it launches direct cargo flight from Paro to Singapore. There are two monthly cargo flights to Singapore from Paro from August to October 2021.

According to schedules, Drukair flight KB500 departs from Paro on 13 August 2021 (Friday) at 6.30 am, touches down in Singapore at 1.15 pm before leaving Singapore for Paro at 2.15 pm and arriving in Paro at 5 pm under flight KB501.

The above timings are valid for the flights on 13 August, 27 August (Friday), 4 September (Saturday) and 24 September (Friday).

The flight from Singapore to Paro on 4 September is also a relief fight.

On 6 and 20 October 2021 (Wednesdays), KB500 leaves Paro for Singapore at 6.15 am, arrives in Singapore at 1 pm before taking off from Singapore for Paro at 2 pm and landing in Paro at 4.45 pm under flight KB501.

Flights are operated using  A319 aircraft.

Drukair said initially passengers were not allowed on the cargo flights and the flights are subject to cancellations based on the amount of cargo load. Later on 31 July, the airline invites Bhutanese customers interested to board the cargo flight to register before 2 August 2021.

OTT Airlines launches its first scheduled flight to Nanchang on 20 July 2021

 Report by : Gan Yung Chyan, KUCINTA SETIA / Image : CARNOC

OTT Airlines launches its daily scheduled flight to Nanchang from Pudong on 20 July 2021 with its ARJ21-700 aircraft.

On 20 July 2021, OTT flight MU9065 departs from Nanchang for Pudong at 6.40 am, lands in Nanchang at 8.25 am before leaving Nanchang for Pudong at 9.15 am and arriving in Pudong at 10.55 am under flight MU9066.

With OTT Airlines' new flights, China Eastern Group operates six round-trip flights daily between Pudong and Nanchang.

China Eastern receives its first A350

 Report by : Gan Yung Chyan, KUCINTA SETIA

                              

Airbus delivered the first Airbus A350 aircraft completely assembled in China at its Airbus Tianjin Widebody Aircraft Completion and Delivery Center in Tianjin, China, demonstrating that it will further promote the company’s internationalization and strengthen its long-term strategic partnership with China determination.

The delivery is an Airbus A350-900 aircraft, which is received and operated by China Eastern Airlines, which ranks second in the world in terms of Airbus fleet size and number one in Asia. As of the end of June 2021, China Eastern has operated a total of 413 Airbus aircraft, including 349 A320 series aircraft, 55 A330 aircraft and 9 A350 aircraft.

Delta Airlines avoids mentioning the virus "Delta", Delta is the name of an American town

Research : Gan Yung Chyan, KUCINTA SETIA

News (1)

Delta Airlines avoids mentioning the virus "Delta"

The covid pandemic has severely hit the civil aviation industry for a year. Major airlines are trying their best to survive this difficult period but Delta Airlines is suffering from the same name. Delta Airlines, that started as Delta Air Lines, has unfortunately collided with the covi variant Delta. The airline avoids mentioning "Delta". It prefers to call it "variant virus" and avoids mentioning the pun of Delta.

News (2)

Stop calling the virus "Delta", Delta is the name of an American town

News translation site StayGate has advocated that the covi variant should not be named "Delta" as it shares the same name as the airline Delta. It is later discovered that Delta also refers to a town in the United States. People should not be impressed that the virus originated from Delta.

According to US media reports, the novel coronavirus (covi) has caused heavy losses to major airlines. Now countries are gradually unblocking and relaxing travel restrictions but they are facing a crisis of rapid spread of Delta. Many people poked fun at the virus' relationship with the original Delta, specifically Delta Air Lines. It is especially unfortunate and embarrassing to Delta for the covi variant to strike the same name as the airline.

The Delta variant is scientifically called the B.1.617.2 variant virus, which is more infectious than other variant viruses and is resistant to some vaccines. This strain was first discovered in India in October 2020 and was named Delta by the World Health Organization (WHO) in May 2021, so that various strains can be easily identified and the discrimination of referring to viruses by geographical names can be avoided. At present, Delta has become the main virus-causing strain in the United States.

StayGate renames the Delta variant "Covi72" after "Coronavirus" and the last two digits of "B.1.617.2".

News (3)

Delta does not want the virus Delta to cause confusion with the airline

Delta Air Lines stated that it does not want the virus name Delta to cause confusion with the company. The company was named because it started as an agricultural aviation company in Delta, Mississippi. Naming the covi variant Delta is also misleading as Americans may even associate the virus with the American town of Delta

The source said that although Delta Air Lines executives are uncomfortable with the virus name, the name did not affect ticket sales. Many passengers and crew members have been vaccinated.

News (4)

Delta calls Delta "B.1.617.2 variant virus"

Delta Air Lines CEO Ed Bastian said in an interview, "We simply call it a variant virus." He also said, "The variant has not affected the number of passengers."

Delta’s chief health officer Henry Ting tweeted in June, “We prefer to call it the B.1.617.2 variant virus, which is simple and easy to remember.”

News (5)

Delta ridiculed by United Airlines

The Washington DC Economic Club's online conference recently took place in Washington. United Airlines CEO Scott Kirby did not forget to ridicule Ed Bastian's sad face, but comforted him that Delta's situation would improve with the emergence of other variant viruses.

Hunnu Air Head Office in Ulaanbaatar

 Pictures by : Gan Yung Chyan, KUCINTA SETIA

Cathay Pacific's first A321neo scheduled flight on 4 August 2021

 Report by : Gan Yung Chyan, KUCINTA SETIA / Image courtesy : Cathay Pacific Airways

Cathay Pacific’s new and most advanced A321neo aircraft will enter service on 4 August 2021, with its maiden flight from Hong Kong to Pudong. It plans to deploy flights from Hong Kong to Guangzhou, Hangzhou, Nanjing, Qingdao, Kaohsiung and Taoyuan in August 2021.

Cathay Pacific has received four A321neo aircraft so far, and will receive another two in the second half of the year. At the end of 2023, its fleet will have 16 A321neo airliners. Cathay Pacific’s A321neo aircraft has a total of 202 seats, including 12 business seats and 190 economy seats.

Hunnu Air launches relief flight to Nur-Sultan on 15 July 2021

Report by : Gan Yung Chyan, KUCINTA SETIA

On 15 July 2021, Hunnu Air  launches its first relief flight to Nur-Sultan (formerly Astana) from Ulaanbaatar. On this day, Hunnu Air outbound flight departs from Ulaanbaatar for Nur-Sultan at 11.30 am, touches down in Nur-Sultan at 1.40 pm before leaving Nur-Sultan for Ulaanbaatar at 3 pm and arriving in Ulaanbaatar at 8.40 pm.

Hunnu Air operates international charter flights to Budapest, Almaty and Nur-Sultan.

Scoot enters A321neo jet service on 28 June 2021

Report by : Gan Yung Chyan, KUCINTA SETIA / Image courtesy : Airbus

Scoot on 28 June 2021 welcomes its new single-aisle Airbus A321neo aircraft entry service as it made its inaugural flight from Singapore to Suvarnabhumi as TR610. 

Flight TR610 departed from Changi Airport Terminal 1 at 3.24 pm on 28 June 2021 and is scheduled to arrive in Suvarnabhumi at 4.55 pm local time. The return flight TR611 departs from Suvarnabhumi at 5.40 pm and arrives in Singapore at 9 pm the same day. 

Subsequently in August, Scoot will deploy the A321neo on its Singapore-Cebu and Singapore-Ho Chi Minh City routes. 

Scoot currently has three A321neo jets in its fleet and is acquiring another 10 A321neos under lease agreements with BOC Aviation. Three further A321neos will be delivered between later this year and 2022.

Each Scoot’s A321neo aircraft features 236 seats in a single-class, 3-3 configuration. Benefits of the A321neo has a range of up to 2,620 nautical miles (nm), or 4,852 km, approximately 270nm farther than the A320neo. This allows Scoot to deploy the A321neo aircraft on short to medium-haul routes with up to six hours of flight time compared to the older-generation A320 aircraft’s four-to-five hours, thereby opening up more options for new destinations. 

With a larger passenger capacity of 236 seats, 50 more than the A320neo, and more fuel-efficient engines, the single-class A321neo will allow Scoot to improve its operating economics and unit costs. It will also enable Scoot to optimise its fleet utilisation to better match capacity to demand. For instance, it can be deployed in place of the A320 during popular seasons, days of week or flight tranches, or substitute Scoot’s larger Boeing 787 aircraft in pockets of softer demand. It can also be deployed to complement some Boeing 787 routes to enable higher and more customer-convenient frequency. 

The new A321neo aircraft also underscore Scoot’s commitment to offering customers a more comfortable and improved travel experience, through features such as premium black leather seats, amply-sized overhead compartment bins, ambient lighting technologies that reduce jetlag, improved air quality, and reduced noise emissions. In the long term, the A321neo will enable Scoot to achieve more sustainable operations and reduce carbon emissions with its enhanced sharklets and fuel-efficient Pratt & Whitney PW1100G-JM engines. 

Spring Airlines Japan becomes Japan Airlines' LCC subsidiary

Report by : Gan Yung Chyan, KUCINTA SETIA

Japan Airlines added two-thirds of its capital to Spring Airlines Japan and Spring Airlines Japan became a subsidiary of Japan Airlines on 29 June 2021. Known also in short as Spring Japan, Spring Airlines Japan is a Japanese low-cost airline. It was established in Narita, Chiba Prefecture, Japan in October 2012. The Chinese low-cost airline Spring Airlines previously held a majority stake.

On 30 June 2021, Japan Airlines held a press conference at Narita Airport in Chiba Prefecture to clarify its LCC strategy based in Narita.

Spring Airlines Japan's base is Narita Airport, which operates flights to Hokkaido, Hiroshima and Saga airports, as well as flights to Chinese cities such as Tianjin and Harbin.