Hongtu Airlines launched flights to Nanjing and Hohhot on 10 July 2017

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

Kunming-based low-cost airline Hongtu Airlines has launched inaugural flights to Nanjing and Hohhot from Kunming on 10 July 2017 using its Airbus A321-200 aircraft.

On 10 July 2017, Hongtu flight A6 7119 departed from Kunming for Nanjing at 9.05 am, arrived in Nanjing at 11.55 am before leaving Nanjing for Hohhot at 12.55 pm and touching down in Hohhot at 3.25 pm. The return flight A6 7120 left Hohhot for Nanjing at 6.45 pm, touched down in Nanjing at 9 pm before commencing the onward voyage for Kunming at 10 pm and arriving in Kunming at 1 am on 11 July 2017.

Flights are operated on a daily basis.

With the additions of Nanjing and Hohhot to its network, Hongtu Airlines currently flies to 10 cities in China from Kunming including Hefei, Zhengzhou, Nanchang, Changchun, Shenyang, Linyi, Taiyuan and Lanzhou.

OK Air launched direct flight to Danang from Tianjin on 8 July 2017

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

OK Air launched direct scheduled flight from Tianjin to Danang on 8 July 2017. Danang is OK Air's tenth overseas destination after Jeju, Daegu, Osaka, Hakodate, Tokyo-Haneda, Suvarnabhumi, Phuket, Krabi and Denpasar.

On 8 July 2017, flight BK3039 departed from Tianjin for Danang at 9.50 pm, arrived in Danang at 12.30 am before leaving Danang for Tianjin at 1.30 am and touching down in Tianjin at 6.55 am on 9 July 2017 under flight BK3040.

OK Air's B737-800 serves the Tianjin-Danang route every Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday while it leaves for Tianjin from Danang on Wednesdays, Fridays and Sundays.

Lao Airlines resumes thrice-weekly scheduled flights to Singapore on 29 October 2017

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

Lao Airlines is resuming thrice-weekly scheduled flights to Singapore from Vientiane with effect from 29 October 2017 using its Airbus A320 aircraft.

On 29 October 2017, Lao Airlines flight QV535 departs from Vientiane for Singapore at 9.30 am, arrives in Singapore at 1.25 pm before leaving Singapore Changi Airport Terminal 2 for Vientiane at 2.15 pm and touching down in Vientiane at 4.10 pm under flight QV536.

Passengers going to Luang Prabang with Lao Airlines may transit in Vientiane for the same aircraft onward flight to Luang Prabang. QV535 arrives in Luang Prabang at 5.45 pm while QV536 left Luang Prabang for Singapore via Vientiane at 7.40 am on 29 October 2017.

Flights are conducted on Sundays, Wednesdays and Fridays.

Lao Airlines is the only airline to operate a non-stop flight from Vientiane to Singapore. Its competitor SilkAir operates the circular route from Singapore to Luang Prabang via Vientiane before continuing the non-stop journey from Luang Prabang to Singapore.

For the recommencement of scheduled flights to Singapore from Luang Prabang and Vientiane, Lao Airlines has availed payment currencies in Lao Kip and Singapore Dollars, besides US Dollars, on Lao Airlines' web-site www.laoairlines.com. Round-trip air fare at the moment starts from 411 Singapore Dollars. This is reason for celebration as the US Dollar was used to be the only foreign currency acceptable on the web-site. 

Passengers travelling with Lao Airlines from Vientiane to the airline's other destinations including Guangzhou, Jinghong, Kunming, Suvarnabhumi, Busan and Seoul-Incheon can also pay in Lao Kip and Singapore Dollars on the web-site. Thai Baht, Chinese Renminbi and Korean Won are not available foreign currencies for on-line payments.

Sayacinta - Airpost wish Lao Airlines to operate the direct route from Vientiane to Singapore all year round for the benefit of tourists.

Yangtze River Airlines officially renamed as Suparna Airlines on 7 July 2017

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

Yangtze River Airlines, operating initially as Yangtze River Express Airlines the cargo airline in 2002 with headquarters in Shanghai and bases in Shanghai-Pudong and Shenzhen, has been renamed officially as Suparna Airlines on 7 July 2017. It has been operating domestic passenger flights from Shanghai-Pudong, Shenzhen, other Chinese cities and local together with international cargo flights from Shanghai-Pudong since 2015 and has plans to launch international passenger flights in the near future. 

The Chinese characters for Suparna Airlines are 金鹏航空 (Jin Peng Hang Kong).

Yangtze River Express Airlines was first renamed as Yangtze River Airlines in 2015 when it started domestic passenger flights from Shanghai-Pudong to Guilin, Sanya and Guiyang on 15 December 2015 with a B737-800 aircraft leased from Hainan Airlines.

Yangtze River Airlines first applied to rename the company from Yangtze River Airlines Company Limited to Suparna Airlines Company Limited with the China Trade Mark Registry on 27 April 2017 before exhibiting for the first time at ITB China 2017 in May.  The current commercial name is Suparna Airlines.

Suparna means Garuda in Hindu and Buddhist mythology. 

Suparna Airlines aims to provide outstanding passenger and cargo flight services. It will rebrand all its products and entire fleet livery in the coming months through 2018.

Following the renaming, online Chinese messages comment that although Suparna Airlines is an international airline, the Chinese Characters may lead a passenger to regard it as a subsidiary of Shenzhen Airlines as the logo of Shenzhen Airlines is also a garuda.  

Suparna Airlines honours tickets that have been issued in the name of Yangtze River Airlines. Its abbreviation code Y8 and commercial motto "Fly For Fun" remain unchanged.

On the domestic front, Suparna Airlines operates a fleet of 6 B737-800 passenger aircraft in China on routes from Zhengzhou to Zhuhai, Ningbo, Dalian, Shanghai-Pudong to Guilin, Guiyang, Sanya, Lianyungang, Harbin, Wenzhou, Shenzhen, and onward routes from Shenzhen to Xichang, Mianyang and other Chinese cities. 

Suparna Airlines has been granted CAAC permission to operate passenger flights to Hong Kong, Macau, Taipei and Kaohsiung.

Suparna Airlines' international cargo flights using its fleet of 11 B737-300F, 3 B737-400F and 3 B747-400BDSF freighter aircraft link Shanghai-Pudong with Hong Kong, Changzhou, Hangzhou, Qingdao, Tianjin, Zhengzhou, Prague, Luxembourg, Munich and Novosibirsk. It has plans to launch cargo flights to Los Angeles and Dallas-Fort Worth.

SriLankan Airlines launches non-stop flight between Hong Kong and Colombo on 15 July 2017

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

SriLankan Airlines is launching non-stop flight between Hong Kong and Colombo on 15 July 2017. On this day, the Airbus A330-200 aircraft of SriLankan Airlines arrives in Hong Kong at 5.10 pm under flight UL892 which left Colombo for Hong Kong at 9.05 am. It departs from Hong Kong for Colombo at 6.15 pm and touches down in Colombo at 9.05 pm under flight UL893.

On 17 July 2017, SriLankan Airlines utilizes an Airbus A321 aircraft to operate on the return flight to Hong Kong.

Following from 19 July 2017 onwards, the A321 aircraft of SriLankan Airlines is scheduled to leave Colombo for Hong Kong at 1.55 pm, arrive in Hong Kong at 10 pm under flight UL896 before commencing the voyage back to Colombo at 2 am on 20 July 2017 under flight UL897 and touching down in Colombo at 4.50 am.

SriLankan Airlines operates on the direct route to Hong Kong from Colombo on Saturdays, Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays and from 20 July 2017 onwards the flight to Colombo is on Thursdays, Saturdays, Sundays and Tuesdays. The service will face direct competition from Cathay Pacific. 

ICAO impressed by Vietjet Air's superb performance

Press Release by : Media Services on behalf of Vietjet Air
Edited and Distributed to Everyone

The superb performance of Vietjet Air in its operations, services and management has gained the appreciation of the Council of the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO).  The ICAO delegation, led by President Dr. Olumuyiwa Benard Aliu and ICAO APAC Deputy Regional Director Manjit Singh Seva Singh, visited the Vietjet office during its trip to Vietnam from 5 to 10 July 2017.

Speaking at the meeting with the Vietjet management board members on the first day of their visit, Dr. Olumuyiwa Benard Aliu said he highly appreciated the airline’s efforts and achievements in its operations, services and management activities. He also stressed on its comprehensive investment in building up human resources and training highly skilled experts that meet the internationally standardized safety requirements for operation and management, which greatly contributed to not only the airline’s success but also the growth of the aviation industry in Vietnam and the region.

Dr. Nguyen Thanh Hung, Vice chairman of Vietjet Board of Directors, Mr. Luu Duc Khanh, Managing Director and other management members of Vietjet warmly welcomed the ICAO delegation. Mr. Luu Duc Khanh said: “Safety is our top priority not only in operations but also in the entire airline’s activities. Safety requirements conformity has been the guideline for us in all operations and policy decision we have made. We are happy that our technical reliability rate stood at 99.59% in the first quarter of the year and flight operation, ground operation and engineering safety indicators were also listed in the group of highest quality airlines in the Asia Pacific region”.

Following their working agenda in Vietnam, the ICAO delegation today met with high-ranking officials of the Vietnamese Government, the Ministry of Transport, and Civil Aviation Authority of  Vietnam (CAAV) followed by their granting of the Council President Certificate to the representatives of CAAV in Hanoi. The certificate recognizes Vietnam’s significant progress in resolving safety oversight deficiencies and improving the effective implementation of ICAO Standards and Recommended Practices

Vietjet Air is the first airline in Vietnam to operate as a new-age airline with low-cost and diversified services to meet customers’ demands. It provides not only transport services but also uses the latest e-commerce technologies to offer various products and services for consumers. Vietjet is a member of the International Air Transport Association (IATA) with the IATA Operational Safety Audit (IOSA) certificate. The airline was also named as one of the Top 500 Brands in Asia 2016 by global marketing research company Nielsen and “Best Asian Low Cost Carrier” at the TTG Travel Awards 2015, which compiles votes from travelers, travel agencies and tour operators in throughout Asia. The airline was also rated as one of the top three fastest growing airline brands on Facebook in the world by Socialbakers.

Currently, the airline boasts a fleet of 45 aircraft, including A320s and A321s, and operates 350 flights each day. It has already opened 63 routes in Vietnam and across the region to international destinations such as Thailand, Singapore, South Korea, Taiwan, Malaysia, China, Hong Kong, Myanmar and Cambodia. It has carried nearly 40 million passengers to date.

Looking ahead, the airline plans to expand its network across the Asia Pacific region. To prepare for this plan, Vietjet has signed agreements with the world’s leading aircraft manufacturers to purchase more brand-new and modern aircraft.

Solomon Airlines launches scheduled flight to Tarawa via Honiara on 30 August 2017

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

Solomon Airlines launches scheduled flights from Brisbane to Tarawa with a stopover in Honiara in partnership with Air Kiribati, the world's smallest international airline, on 30 August 2017 using its Airbus A320 aircraft based in Brisbane.

On 30 August 2017, Solomon Airlines flight IE701 departs from Brisbane for Honiara at 11 am,  and arrives in Honiara at 3.15 pm where it will change code to flight IE720 for departure for Tarawa at 4.15 pm and touching down in Tarawa at 8 pm. It will park at Tarawa's Bonriki International Airport overnight.

On 31 August 2017, Tarawa airport's first international flight to Honiara under flight IE721 takes off for the sky at 10 am, arrives in Honiara at 11.45 am where it will change code to IE700 for onward departure for Brisbane at 1 pm and landing in Brisbane at 3.15 pm.

Flights from Brisbane to Tarawa via Honiara are on Wednesdays while flights from Tarawa to Honiara and Brisbane are on Thursdays.

Air Kiribati (IATA code IK assigned in late February 2017), which has been operating extensive domestic flight network since 2016 in Kiribati, hopes eventually to operate its own aircraft from Tarawa to Brisbane. It recently signed an agreement to purchase a Dash 8 aircraft for intra-island operations.

Kiribati is a Central Pacific country which has international flight links with Nadi (by Fiji Airways), Majuro (by Air Marshall Islands and Nauru Airlines), Pohnpei and Nauru (by Nauru Airlines) to date. 

Passengers from Singapore, Adelaide, Brisbane, Melbourne, Sydney, Los Angeles, Honolulu, Port Vila, Auckland, Christchurch, Wellington, Apia, Tuvalu, Tonga and Hong Kong can fly to Nadi for onward departures for Tarawa with Fiji Airways as well.

Tickets to Tarawa, Honiara and Brisbane are on sale at Solomon Airlines' web-site www.flysolomons.com and all authorized sales offices of Solomon Airlines and Air Kiribati in Tarawa.

Ahsan Manzil : The Pink House of Dhaka Riverfront Memories

Heritage Report : Gan Yung Chyan
                            / KUCINTA SETIA
Distributed to Everyone

When in Dhaka the Rickshaw Capital of the World, do as what the Bangladeshis do. Bangladeshis not only recommend tourists to travel around in their CNG tuk tuk and rickshaws at least once, they will recommend tourists to visit Ahsan Manzil, the symbolic landmark building of Dhaka and National Museum located along Dhaka Riverfront in remembrance of Khwaja Alimullah, Nawab Abdul Ghani and Nawab Ahsanullah. Due to time constraints, my new Bengal friends Jisan Zidni and his uncle Kazi Anwar Hossain Badal accompanied me to Ahsan Manzil by car in March 2016.

Ahsan Manzil known popularly as the Pink House is originally not a palace of the reknown Nawab Family of Dhaka. The Pink House was built by French traders as a factory.  The building itself is as old as Singapore. However, nobody knows what the factory produced and exported. It was purchased by Khwaja Alimullah from the French traders in 1835 later to be the home of the Khwaja family.

At Ahsan Manzil, Khwaja Alimullah encouraged his family to learn English. They forged social ties with Englishmen. He and his family contributed to the Dhaka Municipality and developed social welfare activities with British assistance and set up the Ramna Race Course. 

Khwaja Allimulah died in 1854 and was succeeded by Khwaja Abdul Ghani who controlled land in the districts of Dhaka and other then-Northeast Indian cities.  Abdul Ghani conferred himself the title of Nawab in 1875 and the word Nawab was made hereditary in 1877. Abdul Ghani and the Muslims of East Bengal (Bangladesh) stood firmly by the Raj during the Indian Mutiny and due to his courage, Khwaja Abdul Ghani was renamed Nawab Abdul Ghani.

Nawab Abdul Ghani is remembered by posterity as the person who establishes the water works system in Dhaka by supplying filtered water to the people of Dhaka. He established schools, madrasahs and donated funds for Mitford Hospital in Dhaka, Kolkata Medical College and Aligarh College. Education in Dhaka flourishes to this date as a result.

Nawab Abdul Ghani handed over Ahsan Manzil to his eldest son Nawab Ahsanullah in September 1868 and passed away on 24 August 1896.

Nawab Ahsanullah known initially as Khwaja Ahsanullah was a famous Urdu poet who donated generously to establish Dhaka's first Engineering Institute, the Ahsanullah School of Engineering. He improved water supply system in Dhaka and built the many mosques and public institutions in Dhaka. Dhaka first had electricity supply in 1901 under Nawab Ahsanullah's rule before he died in December 1901 from heart failure.

Ahsan Manzil stands today as Bangladesh's National Museum in remembrance of the above pioneers in the utilities and education history of Dhaka. It witnesses Dhaka's remarkable economy development and self-reliance. Snap pictures of the Pink House but refrain from indoor photography on the Nawab Family artefacts.

The Dhaka tourism and heritage authorities may consider riverfront activities in front of or along side of Ahsan Manzil in remembrance of the contributions of Khwaja Alimullah, Nawab Abdul Ghani and Nawab Ahsanullah to Bangladesh including poetry readings, night shows and Earth Day activities to attract Bangladeshis and tourists. 

Consider renovating the museum's interior and organizing daily audio-visual shows to introduce the pioneers and their heritage, Dhaka Riverfront heritage etc. Finding ways to expand Ahsan Manzil to show the utilities history of Dhaka and selling unique souvenirs and street snacks and refreshments of Bangladesh and Dhaka Riverfront will surely attract more tourists and residents. Take cue from Hong Kong's Noah's Ark and the National Museum of Singapore.

It was an enjoyable visit to Ahsan Manzil and Dhaka Riverfront with my friends.

Changi Airport Terminal 4 Open House - Access and free air tickets to be won

Press Release by : Changi Airport Group

Picture and Open House Details by : Gan Yung Chyan

Distributed to Everyone

Changi Airport Group (CAG) today extended an invitation to Singapore residents to visit Terminal 4 (T4) even before operations begin. An Open House will be held from 7 to 20 August 2017 to give the public a glimpse of what to expect at the new terminal.

Construction of T4 started in early 2013 and was completed in December 2016. The 195,000 square-metre, double-storey terminal can handle 16 million passengers a year – this is about 70% of the handling capacity of Terminal 3 (T3) although T4 is just half the size of T3. Designed with a boutique interior décor approach, T4 is set to redefine the way passengers travel, through the creative design of the terminal’s layout, streamlined clearance processes as well as the way it leverages technology and innovation for convenient passenger processes and improved staff productivity.

“The public has been eagerly waiting to see how the new T4 will be different from Changi’s other terminals. At the Open House, we will showcase T4’s latest innovations in enhancing operational efficiencies and productivity, in addition to the terminal’s many unique features.The Open House visitors will be among the first to learn about and experience the innovations and ‘wow’ features at T4 – facial recognition technology, integrated duty-free shopping, kinetic art displays, a Heritage Zone, and specially curated sculptures, among many others,” said Ms Poh Li San, Vice President, T4 Programme Management Office.

The T4 Open House is a ticketed event, but is free of charge for the public to participate in. Registration will start online at T4OpenHouse.com on 5 July 2017 at 12.01 am. Each person who signs up can register for up to six participants. A total of 200,000 tickets are available throughout the entire two-week Open House period.

During the Open House, which will run from 9 am to 6 pm daily, visitors will be able to explore the various T4 points of interest via a specially created T4 Open House app. The tour route is expected to take about 90 minutes to two hours.

At the various zones along the Open House route, they will be invited to play location-based in-app games where they can win e-vouchers for use at Changi Airport’s retail and F&B outlets. Visitors can also take part in the Photo of the Day competition to win attractive prizes. To top it off, a lucky draw will be conducted at the close of each day, with airline tickets from T4 airlines (Cathay Pacific, AirAsia Group, Vietnam Airlines, Korean Air, Cebu Pacific Air and Spring Airlines) to be won.

These free air tickets to be won include 3 pairs of free tickets to Seoul-Incheon, 5 pairs of free Vietnam Airlines tickets to Hanoi, 3 pairs of free Cathay Pacific tickets to Hong Kong and Suvarnabhumi, 2 pairs of free Philippines AirAsia tickets to Cebu, 1 pair of free Indonesia AirAsia tickets to Bandung, 1 pair of free AirAsia Berhad tickets to Langkawi, 1 pair of free Thai AirAsia tickets to Phuket, 1 pair of free Cebu Pacific tickets each to Cebu, Clark, Davao, Iloilo, Manila and 5 pairs of free Spring Airlines tickets to Shanghai-Pudong. 

To facilitate access to and from T4, new roadways linking to T4 have been constructed.Visitors can access T4 via the two major expressways – the East Coast Parkway (ECP) and Pan Island Expressway (PIE). In addition to driving, pre-registered visitors going to the Open House can also take a taxi or board the complimentary shuttle bus service at Terminal 3 Coach Stand (Arrival Hall) next to McDonald's from 8.15 am onwards after presenting a printed or electronic copy of the confirmation email of a successful pre-registration. These visitors should arrive at least 45 minutes prior to the selected time slot.

Batik Air launches scheduled flight to Kuala Lumpur on 10 July 2017

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

Batik Air launches scheduled flight to Kuala Lumpur International Airport from Jakarta Soekarno-Hatta International Airport (fondly known as Cengkareng) on 10 July 2017 on code-sharing basis with Malindo Air using Batik Air A320-200 aircraft. The code-sharing arrangement will end once Malindo Air rebrands as Batik Air Malaysia later this year.

On 10 July 2017, Batik Air flight ID7163/ Malindo Air flight OD9110 departs from Cengkareng for Kuala Lumpur at 2.35 pm, arrives in Kuala Lumpur at 5.35 pm before leaving Kuala Lumpur at 7.20 pm and touching down in Cengkareng at 8.20 pm under flight ID7162/OD9111.

Kuala Lumpur is the second Southeast Asian city destination of Batik Air outside Indonesia after Singapore.

Batik Air launched weekly scheduled flight from Denpasar to Perth on 21 June 2017 and plans to launch scheduled flights later from Cengkareng to Delhi and Mumbai later this year.