Report by : Gan Yung Chyan
/ KUCINTA SETIA
Hainan Airlines launches 787 Dreamliner flight from Chengdu to Chicago on 16 September 2019.
On 16 September 2019, Hainan Airlines flight HU705 departs from Chengdu for Chicago at 9 pm, touches down in Chicago at 10.10 pm US time before leaving Chicago for Chengdu at 12.10 am on 17 September 2019 and arriving in Chengdu at 4.50 am under flight HU706 on 18 September 2019.
Hainan Airlines flies to Chicago O'Hare International Airport on Mondays and Fridays.
For further flight information, visit Hainan Airlines web-site at www.hainanairlines.com.
Report by: Gan Yung Chyan
/ KUCINTA SETIA
AirAsia has announced that its Indonesia unit Indonesia AirAsia is launching flights from Kuala Lumpur International Airport (KLIA) to Pontianak on 1 October 2019 and to Tanjung Pandan on 2 October 2019 using its A320 aircraft.
On 1 October 2019, Indonesia AirAsia flight QZ280 departs from KLIA for Pontianak at 11.05 am, arrives in KLIA at 11.50 am before leaving Pontianak for KLIA at 12.15 pm and touching down in KLIA at 2.45 pm under flight QZ281.
On 2 October 2019, the same aircraft under flight QZ246 takes off from KLIA for Tanjung Pandan at 11.05 am, touches down in Tanjung Pandan at 11.45 am before departing from Tanjung Pandan for KLIA at 12.10 pm local time and arriving in KLIA at 2.45 pm under flight QZ247.
Indonesia AirAsia flies to Pontianak on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays while flight QZ246 arrives in Tanjung Pandan on Wednesdays, Fridays, Sundays and Mondays.
With the KLIA-Tanjung Pandan route launch, the airport of Tanjung Pandan on Belitung will once again introduce international flights. Garuda Indonesia suspended flights between Tanjung Pandan and Singapore in April 2019.
Report by : Gan Yung Chyan
/ KUCINTA SETIA
Citilink, the low-cost subsidiary of Garuda Indonesia, launches direct flight from Pekanbaru to Kuala Lumpur International Airport (KLIA) on 25 September 2019 using its Airbus A320 aircraft.
On 25 September 2019, Citilink flight QG5180 departs from Pekanbaru for KLIA at 9.55 am, touches down in KLIA at 12 pm before leaving KLIA for Pekanbaru at 1 pm and touching down in Pekanbaru at 1.05 pm under flight QG5181.
Citilink flies from Pekanbaru to KLIA on Wednesdays and Thursdays.
With the addition of Pekanbaru to its Malaysia route network, Citilink flies to KLIA from 4 Indonesian airports including Cengkareng, Surabaya and Banyuwangi.
Report by : Gan Yung Chyan
/ KUCINTA SETIA
Image courtesy : Airbus
According to Nie Guowei, spokesperson for STARLUX Airlines on 8 September 2019, the new Taiwan airline plans to launch its first three routes from Taoyuan on 23 January 2020. The three destinations on the inaugural flight day are Macau, Danang and Penang.
Plan to launch flight to Singapore Changi from Taoyuan has been shelved due to intensive competition on the route from China Airlines, EVA Air, Singapore Airlines and Scoot.
STARLUX Airlines will receive its first Airbus A321neo jet by late November 2019, its second A321neo in December 2019 and its third A321neo by mid-January 2020. The three A321neo aircraft will launch flights to Macau, Danang and Penang on 23 January 2020. These flights will operate daily.
STARLUX Airlines has a procurement order of 27 aircraft including 10 A321neo and 17 A350XWB long-haul aircraft. Subsequent A321neo aircraft will be received in 2020. It plans to start receiving its first A350XWB by 2021 and will own all 27 aircraft by 2024.
The Taiwan airline has secured landing slots in Macau, Danang and soon Penang.
In its next wave of expansion, STARLUX Airlines plans to launch scheduled flights from Taoyuan to Naha, Kansai, Fukuoka, Sendai, Sapporo Chitose, Nagoya Chubu and Narita, flights from Taoyuan to Cebu, Suvarnabhumi, Chiang Mai and Phuket while its charter flights will link Taichung with Narita and Kansai, all using A321neo.
STARLUX Airlines' founder Zhang Guowei will pilot one of the A321neo aircraft on the inaugural flight day.
Report by : Gan Yung Chyan
/ KUCINTA SETIA
In their gestures to stimulate air travel to some remote cities and towns in China using smaller aircraft, both China Express and Genghis Khan Airlines have advertised on their web-sites that their passengers do not need to pay airport taxes.
China Express indicates that passengers travelling on their CRJ900 aircraft do not need to pay airport taxes for domestic travel from their bases in Chongqing, Hohhot, Tianjin, Xi'an, Dalian and Guiyang etc. They are required to pay only baggage fees if the weight of the checked-in luggage exceeds 20 kg.
Passengers travelling with China Express on its A320 aircraft however need to pay airport tax of 50 RMB. Passengers flying to Phnom Penh and Don Mueang from Zhanjiang with China Express CRJ900 aircraft need to pay airport taxes if these arise at the time of booking.
Genghis Khan Airlines mentions the prices that passengers see on Trip, Ctrip and its web-site are the final ticketing prices. There is no need to pay airport taxes. Genghis Khan Airlines flies to Xilinhot and Ulanhot from Hohhot using ARJ21 aircraft.
Report by : Gan Yung Chyan
/ KUCINTA SETIA
Two ASEAN national airlines plan to launch flights to Beijing Daxing. These airlines are Malaysia Airlines and Royal Brunei Airlines.
Malaysia Airlines has announced plan to relocate its Beijing flight operations from Beijing Capital to Beijing Daxing. Its first flight to Daxing from Kuala Lumpur International Airport (KLIA) departs on 1 January 2020 under flight MH364 at 6 pm, arrives in Daxing at 12.20 am before leaving Daxing for KLIA at 1.30 am on 2 January 2020 and touching down in KLIA at 8 am under flight MH365.
Malaysia Airlines flies daily to Beijing.
Royal Brunei Airlines has secured landing slot in Daxing but has yet to finalize its flight schedules for its first flight to Daxing from Bandar Seri Begawan in October 2019.
Royal Brunei Airlines is the first airline from Southeast Asia to launch flight to Daxing, which is the largest airport of China after it opens for commercial flights on 30 September 2019.
Daxing will be Royal Brunei Airlines' sixth airport destination in China after Pudong, Nanning, Hangzhou, Haikou and Changsha.
Report by : Gan Yung Chyan
/ KUCINTA SETIA
Ruili Airlines has announced on 4 September 2019 that it is launching non-stop daily scheduled flight to Haiphong from Kunming on 30 September 2019 using its Boeing B737-800 aircraft.
On 30 September 2019, Ruili Airlines flight DR5027 departs from Kunming for Haiphong at 8.25 pm, touches down in Haiphong at 8.50 pm local time before leaving Haiphong for Kunming at 9.50 pm and arriving in Kunming at 12.30 am on 1 October 2019 under flight DR5028.
Haiphong is located near Hanoi in northern Vietnam and of proximity to Van Don, another airport near Hanoi, and Halong Bay.
As of 1 October 2019, Ruili Airlines operates daily 108 flights on 61 domestic routes and 10 international routes to 39 cities in China, Cambodia, Thailand, Myanmar and Vietnam using its fleet of 7 B737-700 and 12 B737-800 jets.
Ruili Airlines first launches its first commercial flight in China, from Kunming to Dehong Mangshi, on 18 May 2014.
Report by : Gan Yung Chyan
/ KUCINTA SETIA
Kuwait Airways has taken delivery of its first of 15 A320neo aircraft in the last week from Airbus. This is a milestone in the 65 years of Kuwait Airways' history.
The Airbus A320neo will be the main aircraft of the Kuwait Airways single-aisle fleet. Currently there are seven A320ceo aircraft in the fleet, and the pilot, crew and technical team will be able to make a smooth transition.
As the world's most advanced and fuel-efficient single-aisle aircraft, the A320neo will enhance Kuwait Airways' profitability.
Kuwait Airways' new A320neo is equipped with CFM International's LEAP-1A engine and features a spacious two-cabin layout with 12 business class and 122 economy class. The A320neo offers the widest single-lane cabin on the market with unparalleled comfort and the latest in-flight entertainment technology.
In 2014, Kuwait Airways signed the procurement agreement with Airbus for 15 A320neo jets.
Report by : Gan Yung Chyan
/ KUCINTA SETIA
All Nippon Airways (ANA) has lately announced new Dreamliner flights from Narita to Perth and Chennai. While the first Narita - Perth flight was launched on 1 September 2019, the first non-stop flight between Narita and Chennai takes off on 27 October 2019.
On 1 September 2019, ANA flight NH881 departs from Narita for Perth at 11.15 am, touches down in Perth at 8.15 pm before leaving Perth for Narita at 9.45 pm and touching down in Narita at 8.25 am on 2 September 2019 under flight NH882.
The Perth flights are operated daily by ANA's 787-8 Dreamliner with a seat configuration of 184 seats, comprising 32 Business Class, 14 Premium Economy and 138 Economy Class seats.
On 27 October 2019, flight NH825 takes off from Narita for Chennai at 11.10 am, arrives in Chennai at 5.45 pm before leaving Chennai for Narita at 8.30 pm and touching down in Narita at 7.25 am on 28 October 2019 under flight NH826.
On subsequent days until 30 November 2019, NH625 departs from Narita for Chennai at 11.40 am, arrives in Chennai at 6.15 pm before NH626 leaves Chennai for Narita at 9 pm and arriving in Narita at 7.55 am on the next day.
From 1 March to 28 March 2019, NH625 leaves Narita for Chennai at 11.20 am, arrives in Chennai at 5.55 pm before NH626 takes off from Chennai for Narita at 8.40 pm and touching down in Narita at 7.35 am on the following days.
ANA flies to Chennai on Wednesdays, Fridays and Sundays using another 787-8 Dreamliner with a seat configuration of 169 seats that include 46 Business Class, 21 Premium Economy and 102 Economy Class seats.
Report by : Gan Yung Chyan
/ KUCINTA SETIA
GX Airlines, short for Guangxi Beibu Gulf Airlines, has announced that it is launching international flights from Nanning and Luoyang to Hanoi using its Embraer E190 aircraft on 16 October 2019.
On 16 October 2019, GX Airlines flight GX8955 departs from Nanning for Hanoi at 8.40 am, touches down in Hanoi at 9.55 am before leaving Hanoi for Luoyang at 10.55 am under flight GX8918 and arriving in Luoyang at 1.50 pm.
At 2.40 pm on 16 October 2019, flight GX8917 leaves Luoyang for Hanoi, arrives in Hanoi at 5.35 pm to pick up Nanning-bound passengers before it departs for Nanning at 6.35 pm and touches down in Nanning at 7.45 pm under flight GX8956.
GX Airlines flies to Hanoi from Nanning and Luoyang on Sundays, Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays. The E190 flight from Nanning to Hanoi is the Vietnam airport's first E190 flight.
