Asian Wings Airways to launch new flights to Gaya from Yangon and Mandalay

Report by : Gan Yung Chyan
                  / KUCINTA SETIA
Distributed to All Travel Media & Travel Professionals

One of Myanmar's small regional airlines, Asian Wings Airways, plans to introduce new scheduled flights to Gaya, India, from Yangon and Mandalay by end of 2013.

In a pre-ITB Asia 2013 show visit to Yangon on 6 August to determine which Myanmar airline will exhibit in ITB Asia this year, Sayacinta - Airpost learnt from Ye Myat Min, the Research & Development Manager of Asian Wings Airways. that the airline is now concentrating on plans to fly direct to Gaya from Yangon and Mandalay in October 2013 since it has submitted its application to exhibit in ITB Asia 2013 after the deadline for exhibitor registration.

Preliminary flight schedules show that Asian Wings Airways flies to Gaya from Yangon on Sundays and to Gaya from Mandalay on Saturdays using its new Airbus A321-112 aircraft, flying to Gaya from Yangon at 5 am, arriving in Gaya at 5.55 am, before departing from Gaya at 7.25 am and touching down in Yangon at 10.20 am. Saturday flights from Mandalay depart at 7.55 am, touching down in Gaya at 8.40 am before departing from Gaya at 9.40 am and arriving in Mandalay at 12.25 pm. The outbound flight code from Myanmar is YJ 5511 while the inbound flight code from Gaya is YJ 5522.

Subsequently, the airline has withdrawn its late application to exhibit during ITB Asia 2013 in favour of a re-participation in ITB Asia 2014.

Ye Myat Min reveals to Sayacinta - Airpost that Singapore will be the third international destination that Asian Wings Airways plans to fly to within one to two years' time and a possible announcement will be made to the travel media during ITB Asia 2014.

Sayacinta - Airpost wishes Asian Wings Airways success in expanding its Asian route network.

Asian Wings Airways' first international destination is Chiang Mai, to which it began scheduled services to during the first week of August 2013.

Asian Wings Airways currently has no aircraft postcards among its products. However, inflight magazines, company profiles, aircraft key chains and aircraft stickers are available at its Head Office in Yangon.

Tigerair to launch daily flights to Yangon on 1 October 2013

Report by : Gan Yung Chyan
                 / KUCINTA SETIA
Distributed to All Press & Travel Professionals

Sayacinta - Airpost reported that Tigerair plans to launch flights to Yangon this year a week ago and now Tigerair has confirmed that it plans to start daily flights to the booming city of Yangon on 1 October 2013, subject to regulatory approval.

Tigerair has started to sell its Singapore-Yangon-Singapore tickets online. Raw fares start from 65 to 85 Singapore Dollars excluding taxes.

On 1 October 2013 (Tuesday), flight TR2826 departs for Yangon from Singapore at 5 pm, arriving in Yangon at 6.25 pm. About forty minutes later, flight TR2827 leaves Yangon at 7.05 pm for Singapore and touches down in Changi Airport Terminal 2 at 11.35 pm. This flight schedule will take place on Sundays, Mondays to Fridays.

On Saturdays, Tigerair flight TR2826 will fly to Yangon at 12 pm, arriving in Yangon at 1.30 pm before departing Yangon at 2.20 pm, touching down in Singapore-Changi at 6.45 pm under TR2827.

Tigerair is the third budget airline to launch flights between Singapore and Yangon after Jetstar Asia Airways and Golden Myanmar Airlines.

National Tourism Organisations expand presence at ITB Asia 2013

Press Release on ITB Asia 2013

With a significant increase in National Tourism Organisations (NTOs) participation, visitors can expect to experience a world of opportunities at ITB Asia 2013, the Trade Show for the Asian Travel Market, which will be held from 23-25 October at the Suntec Singapore Exhibition & Convention Centre.   

Organized by Messe Berlin (Singapore), ITB Asia reports an increased demand for exhibitor space and is completely sold out, four months ahead of the event. The sixth instalment of the annual trade show is welcoming back several exhibitors as well as a number of new participants.

NTOs in particular are increasing their presence significantly at the show, with many making a first time appearance including the Armenian National Tourism Organization, South Pacific Tourism Organisation, Greek National Tourism Organization, Beijing Office, Reunion Island Tourism Board and the Federal Agency for Tourism of the Russian Federation.

“This year we will definitely be seeing more destinations being featured. Following past successes at ITB Asia, a number of NTOs are increasing the size of their pavilions while other exhibitors which have previously shared a stand are committing to having their own booth to enjoy more exposure at the show,” said Nino Gruettke, Executive Director of ITB Asia.

“Exhibitor demand from Europe, Asia and North America have been particularly strong this year as the tourism industries continue to focus their attention on the Asia travel market. ITB Asia is really the most effective business platform for travel professionals to meet the world at one place,” Gruettke added.

ITB represents the full spectrum of tourism at all levels including the hospitality sector, aviation companies, tour operators or travel agencies, National Tourism Organisations, travel technology firms, MICE (meetings, incentives, conventions and exhibitions) and corporate travel representatives.

A number of exhibitors have also increased their booth space bookings significantly compared to last year. For example, the Chinese and Japanese exhibitors have more than tripled their exhibition space. The US contingent has doubled its presence from the previous year, and Russia has increased by over 70% in the search for more ASEAN travel dollars.

Other new exhibitors at this year’s show include Visit Finland, Kenya Tourism Board and The USA Brand USA Pavilion - Discovery America among others.

Last year, the show attracted close to 8500 attendees, representing over 90 countries. ITB Asia is also a partner event of TravelRave, a mega travel and tourism festival week organised by the Singapore Tourism Board.

Source : Messe Berlin (Singapore)

Golden Myanmar Airlines opens Singapore town office on 1 July 2013

Report : Gan Yung Chyan
             / KUCINTA SETIA
Distributed to All Press & Travel Professionals

Golden Myanmar Airlines has opened its first foreign town office in Singapore since 1 July 2013. The address is as follows:-

111 North Bridge Road
#04-05, Peninsula Plaza
Singapore 179098
Tel : 63339980, 63339080
Fax : 63339280
Opening Hours : 10 am - 6.30 pm (Mon-Fri), 10 am - 2 pm (Sat)

Tickets sold at the foreign town office of Golden Myanmar Airlines and on-line are at the same prices. However, booking experiences show that on-line itineraries of Golden Myanmar Airlines in pdf format cannot be received via email from the airline's Head Office in Yangon. Only email slips from Globespan are received. Besides, it is impossible to book seats and onboard refreshments online as there are no options to indicate payments for seats and onboard refreshments.

The next step is opening a town office in Bangkok.

For further information on Golden Myanmar Airlines' flights and services, please visit www.gmairlines.com.

Sayacinta - Airpost plans to review a Golden Myanmar Airlines' return flight on 6 August and 8 August.

Tigerair aims to enhance relations with business travellers, ends unprofitable routes

Report by : Gan Yung Chyan
                 / KUCINTA SETIA
Distributed to All Press & Travel Professionals

Tigerair aims to enhance relations with business travellers and ends unprofitable routes after the official launch of its new look on 3 July 2013. Sayacinta - Airpost learns about these Tigerair's plans after a short media trip to Tigerair's Station in Kuala Lumpur International Airport-Low-Cost Carrier Terminal (KLIA-LCCT) on 6 July.

In an endeavour to focus on building its image as an airline passionate towards excellent, warm customer service and in addition to the early sale and raw fares on its web-site, Tigerair plans to introduce "combo" and "combo plus" fares.

The "combo" fares take into account of the selected inclusion of key products like a hot meal, selections of a preferred seat and an SMS itinerary.

The "combo plus" fare is designed to meet the needs of Small and Medium Enterprise (SME) business travellers and customers who travel to a destination and return the same day. In addition to the free meal and free preferred seat selection, it includes a change-fee waiver, a BoardMeFirst fee of 6 Singapore Dollars and the option to fly back on an earlier or a later flight, which is subject to availability when checking-in for these flights starts.

In order to provide variety of destination choices to all travellers, Tigerair continues to hunt for new and exciting destinations.

Besides launching new direct flights to Boracay (Kalibo), Yogyakarta and Bandung, Tigerair plans to begin new flights to other Indonesian cities like Pontianak, Makassar and Manado itself or through its Indonesian unit Tigerair Mandala. It has plans to begin flights to Ipoh, Kuala Terrenganu, Yangon, and even Mandalay in Myanmar. Options are open.

Tigerair aims to launch flights to further eight new destinations by December 2013. However, with the new flights and limited Airbus A320 aircraft, it has ended unprofitable routes or stopped services to destinations that have shown lower passenger loads such as Kota Kinabalu, Padang (Mandala's Padang-Singapore route suspended in June) and Kuching.

According to Tigerair, it will also stop direct flights of Tigerair Philippines (or SEAIR South East Asian Airlines) to Clark on 16 July 2013 so that a new domestic flight from Clark to Kalibo will be introduced on 17 July 2013 and direct flights to Kalibo from Singapore begin on 18 July 2013.

Tigerair Philippines' last flight from Clark to Singapore is on 15 July 2013. At 7.25 am, the last flight DG7792 leaves Clark for Singapore, touches down in Singapore at 10.55 am before departing for Clark at 11.25 am and arriving in Clark at 2.55 pm under DG7793.

On 17 July, DG7402 departs from Clark for Kalibo at 3.40 pm, arrives in Kalibo at 4.55 pm under DG7402 before embarking on its return journey to Clark at 5.25 pm and touching down in Clark at 6.40 pm.

The Tigerair flight from Clark to Singapore will thus transit in Kalibo from 17 July, according to Tigerair.

The roll-out of the new Tigerair corporate logo and name starts from its inflight magazines Tiger Tales and Tiger Shop since 1 July 2013 and the process of continuous change is taking place in phases systematically and smoothly across the Tigerair-branded airlines in Singapore, Australia, Indonesia and the Philippines. Feedback will be gathered from passengers after their booking, flight and call-centre interactions with Tigerair.

Tiger Tales has a bilingual English-Bahasa Indonesia edition for Tigerair Mandala, named Tiger Tales Indonesia.

Nok Air launches Mae Sot's first international flight to Myanmar in September 2013

Report by : Gan Yung Chyan
                 / KUCINTA SETIA
Distributed to All Press & Travel Professionals

Nok Air, Thai Airways International's low-cost airline subsidiary, is launching Mae Sot's first international flight link to a city in southeast Myanmar in September 2013 and its second flight link to Yangon in October 2013.

On 1 September 2013, Nok Air launches Mae Sot's first flight to Mawlamyine in southeast Myanmar at 9.45 am and arrives in Mae Sot at 9.40 am Myanmar time under flight code DD4212. Then at 10.05 am flight DD4213 ascends to the sky for Mae Sot from Mawlamyine and touches down in Mae Sot at 11.05 am. Nok Air will fly between Mae Sot and Mawlamyine daily.

On 1 October 2013, Nok Air opens daily flights to Yangon from Mae Sot at 11.35 am and arrives in Yangon at 12 pm under DD4226 before departing for Mae Sot at 12.30 pm and touches down in Mae Sot at 1.55 pm under DD4227.

The Nok Air flights from Mae Sot also end Mawlamyine's lack of  international flight services, enabling the Myanmar city to become the third city to serve international flights after Yangon and Mandalay.

Mawlamyine, formerly Moulmein, is the first capital of British Burma, the fourth largest city of Myanmar, capital and largest city of Mon State, Myanmar and southeast Myanmar's main trading centre and harbour. It is famous for its pomeloes, durians and other fruits for export from Myanmar.

Mae Sot shares Thai border with Myanmar to the west. It is a hub for gems and teak trading and the main land gateway between Thailand and Myanmar. Nok Mini, Nok Air's domestic partner operated by SGA Airlines currently flies from Chiang Mai to Mae Sot.

Tiger Airways is now Tigerair

An Extract of Tiger Airways' Media Release edited by Gan Yung Chyan.
More to reveal after Sayacinta - Airpost's visit to Tigerair Kuala Lumpur station on 6 July 2013. 

Travellers in Asia can now look forward to a brand new Tigerair, as Tiger Airways, Singapore's leading
group of budget carriers unveiled its new identity at a press conference held at Changi Airport’s Terminal 2 on 3 July 2013.

Sharing his vision at the press event this morning, Koay Peng Yen, Group CEO of Tiger Airways Holdings, said, “Leisure travel is all about accumulating great experiences and memories. We hope that the new Tigerair can represent relaxation, joy and adventure in the hearts on our customers.”

The new face of Tigerair has a fresh and upbeat look that embodies its brand personality — warm, passionate and genuine. The leaping tiger that used to be the main element of Tigerair’s logo has made way for a contemporary grey rounded font typography, with blushing orange accents.

The Singapore-born and bred budget carrier has also been creating synergies with its affliates in Australia, Indonesia and the Philippines by allowing customers to book connecting flights from any of these carriers. The Australian unit of Tigerair is Tigerair Australia (formerly Tiger Airways Australia). The Indonesian partner is Tigerair Mandala (previously Mandala) while the Philippines affiliate is Tigerair Philippines (also known as Tiger Airways Philippines and previously SEAIR South East Asian Airlines). Passengers can connect flights seamlessly in Singapore without clearing immigration or transferring their own luggage.

Tigerair plans to enable mobile and web check-in for all customers, allowing customers without check-in baggage to head straight to the departure lounge upon arrival at the airport. Customers can also look forward to more capabilities on offer via Tigerair’s mobile application, which currently contains many functions, including searching and booking flights, and selecting seats. The mobile app is available on
Android, Apple, and Blackberry platforms.

Ethiopian Airlines links East Africa with Singapore for the first time from 3 September 2013

Report by : Gan Yung Chyan
                 / KUCINTA SETIA
Distributed to All Press & Travel Professionals

Changi Airport will mark a significant milestone in its operations history when Ethiopian Airlines, the largest African mainland airline launches scheduled flights from Addis Ababa, capital of Ethiopia in East Africa, to Singapore via Bangkok Suvarnabhumi International Airport on 3 September 2013.

On 3 September, Ethiopian Airlines departs from Addis Ababa at 12.40 am, stops in Suvarnabhumi for refueling before flying onward to Singapore at 2.45 pm and arrives in Singapore at 6.30 pm under flight code ET626. Four hours later, ET627 leaves Singapore for Addis Ababa via Suvarnabhumi at 10.55 pm and touches down in Addis Ababa at 6.20 am on 4 September.

Ethiopian Airlines has no local traffic rights on the Bangkok-Singapore route, meaning that no passengers will board the Ethiopian flight to Singapore in Suvarnabhumi.

It is understood that Ethiopian Airlines has regarded Singapore as an important destination in Asia but has yet to launch any scheduled flight to Singapore for many years as it prefers Bangkok as its Asian hub for onward flights to China and Hong Kong. At the same time, Changi Airport has been working very hard to attract Ethiopian Airlines and other East African airlines to introduce direct flights to Singapore as there is no African mainland carrier operating flights to Singapore hitherto since South African Airways stopped flying from Africa (Johannesburg) to Singapore ten years ago.

Ethiopian Airlines has cancelled plans to launch flights to Ho Chi Minh City and Manila via Bangkok in favour for a flight extension to Singapore via Bangkok. The African airline will continue to monitor the market demand for direct East African flights before introducing any direct flight linking Addis Ababa and Singapore in the years ahead.

Ethiopian Airlines currently has code-sharing flight arrangements with Singapore Airlines on the Dubai-Addis Ababa-Dubai routes and has a sales office in Chinatown Point, Singapore.

Hunnu Air started direct weekly flight to Bangkok on 23 June 2013

Report by : Gan Yung Chyan
                 / KUCINTA SETIA
Distributed to All Press & Travel Professionals

Hunnu Air, Mongolia's second international and domestic airline, has begun direct weekly flights from Ulaanbaatar to Bangkok Don Mueang. It started its first scheduled flight to Bangkok on 23 June 2013, two months ahead of its original flight date and it will operate once-a-week between the two destinations every Sunday.

Hunnu Air hopes to attract Southeast Asian tourists to visit Mongolia via Bangkok and it hopes to fly to Singapore in the next two years. The airline has excellent domestic flight connections in Ulaanbaatar.

For further information, please visit Hunnu Air's web-site at www.hunnuair.com

The oldest church premises of Hong Kong

Report by : Gan Yung Chyan
                  / KUCINTA SETIA
Distributed to All Readers

There are very few churches in Hong Kong Island. The oldest church found in Hong Kong is located in the Happy Valley district, accessible by taxi from Exit A of Causeway Bay MTR Station in Hong Kong Island.

The English-speaking congregation worship at Hong Kong Adventist International Church which is located in the former premises of Hong Kong San Yu High School. Most of the members are Filipino workers. Brother Peter Chow from Singapore Chinese SDA Church has been worshiping at this church for ten years.

The Chinese-speaking congregation worship at the oldest building named Pioneer Adventist Church. There are worship services on Sabbath (Friday nights, Saturdays) and even  gatherings on Sundays.

Hong Kong Tourism Board should consider adding the church premises to its list of cultural architectural relics in Hong Kong.

For further information, please visit the web-site of Hong Kong Adventist International Church at www.adventists.hk.