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Cathay Pacific to fly three times daily to London
Cathay Pacific Airways announced that it will operate
three non-stop flights each day between Hong Kong and London Heathrow
starting in June, which they say is more than any other airline.
Three flights every day will provide customers with more
choice of afternoon and evening departure times to and from London and
easier connections in Hong Kong to more Cathay Pacific destinations in
Japan, Korea, Taiwan, Southeast Asia, New Zealand and Australia.
Cathay Pacific already operates 18 non-stop flights to
London each week. June’s three additional departures to London Heathrow
will depart Hong Kong in the afternoon.
Cathay Pacific director of Corporate Planning Augustus
Tang said, “Cathay Pacific’s upgrade to three flights every day
demonstrates our commitment to better serving our customers. More flights
will provide easier access to Hong Kong and our network beyond. The
completion in 2003 of our program to install our new Business Class in all
long-haul aircraft also means that more people will be able to enjoy our
award-winning service in even greater comfort.”
City night tours organized to welcome high-class tourists
Bangkok will organize city night tours to attract upper
class tourists, particularly those from foreign countries, according to
Deputy Prime Minister Korn Dabbarangsi.
Korn, who oversees tourism in metropolitan areas,
announced on January 8th that the city night tours will begin in front of
the Ananta Samakom Throne Hall and will end at the Saranrom Palace.
The initiative, aimed mainly to attract high-class
tourist arrivals interested in history and culture in order to generate more
tourism revenue, and will focus on historic, archaeological and cultural
sites and buildings in the city.
Korn said, “The new project will help generate more
revenue to the country with reasonable investment - just only VIP
double-decked tourist coaches, decorated light bulbs at the targeted sites
and buildings, and quality Thai restaurants in the Saranrom Palace.”
The project is expected to boost the number of foreign
tourist arrivals in the country to over 11 million this year which is the
target already set by the government. (TNA)
44 million passengers flew Lufthansa in 2002
The weak global economy and the aftermath of the
terrorist attacks continued to have an adverse effect on the traffic results
of the Lufthansa Group in 2002. However, by optimizing its route network,
the company succeeded in improving the capacity utilization of its aircraft
compared to the previous year.
From January to December the Lufthansa Group airlines
carried 44 million passengers, 3.8 percent fewer than in 2001. In the first
nine months of 2002 the passenger count declined by 7.7 percent. While
available capacity was 5.2 per cent below the prior-year level, sales were
only 2.0 per cent down.
As a result, the passenger load factor rose by 2.4
percent to a gratifying 73.9 percent, only marginally behind the seat
occupancy rate of 74.4 per cent achieved two years earlier, in 2000.
The weak economic climate hit Lufthansa’s cargo
business hardest in the fourth quarter. Last year Lufthansa Cargo
transported 1.9 percent less freight and mail, but at 66.6 percent the cargo
load factor outstripped the prior-year figure by 3.8 percentage points.
In 2002 the Lufthansa Group raised its overall load
factor (passenger and freight business) to 70.7 percent, which represents an
increase of 3.1 percentage points.
Airlines offer fare cuts to tempt customers
U.S. airlines, desperate for travelers and their money,
have launched 2003 with fare sales, leaving many to wonder just how an
industry begging for financial help can afford to sell tickets at a
discount.
United Airlines, wrestling with Chapter 11 bankruptcy
reorganization, United Airlines announced on January 2nd that it was
extending its winter sale of 40 percent off leisure fares through May 18,
matching the end date of the latest American Airlines discount program.
Southwest Airlines also is offering discounted fares, and
industry watchers said it appears to be only a matter of time before other
airlines bite the bullet and join the promotional parade.
Analysts say it is not unusual to see fare discounts this
early in the year in an industry desperate for passengers. Business
travelers once represented 40 percent of revenue for United Airlines. Now
that figure has dropped to 20 percent, said Darryl Jenkins, director of the
Aviation Institute at George Washington University in Washington, D.C.
“The first quarter is typically the lowest travel
season,” Jenkins said. “The airlines need to stimulate traffic.”
But it can be a precarious strategy. If airlines cut
prices, they sacrifice badly needed revenue. Sometimes price cutting only
tempts the summer traveler to take a trip earlier in the season.
Despite the new lower fares, consumers looking for a
travel bargain may still have to search hard. Discounts are rarely offered
on all plane seats. An airline, for example, could discount only a couple of
seats on one particular flight, and that number can change frequently.
Local Skål Club rabbits around at the January meeting
The monthly meeting of the international tourism and
hospitality organization, Skål, was held at the Rabbit Resort
overlooking Dongtan Beach.
Hosts
Deborah and Paisan Bundityanond presented Skål members (shown here
gathered for a group photo) with a traditional Thai buffet lunch in the
genuine antique Thai teakwood house and explained the evolution of the
Rabbit Resort.
In the absence of President Murray Hertz, Vice President
Peter Malhotra chaired the first meeting for the year, keeping the mood
light hearted and full of cordiality. The happiest Skalleagues were the
majority of the hoteliers in the group who were pleased to report good
occupancy figures for the Xmas-New Year period.
With Pattaya having won the right to host the World
Congress in 2006, this topic was one of the many discussed over lunch.
Hosts Paisan and Deborah Bundityanond, themselves Skål
members, presented the members with a traditional Thai buffet lunch in the
genuine antique Thai teakwood house in the grounds of the resort. Paisan
reminisced about how this resort came to be. “ More than 30 years ago, our
father purchased the 10 Rai (4 Acres) of ocean front land near Pattaya,
Thailand, Where Rabbit Resort now sits. As owners, we had a choice to build
a high-rise structure or charming Thai-style beach holiday homes where our
guests could stay and relax in style and comfort.
We chose to build a quaint Thai Village Resort with only
26 resort suites; after all, Bangkok is little more than an hour away!
Extensive emphasis was placed upon the lush flowering gardens incorporating
two stunning, free form Rabbit Pools. No expense was spared throughout the
resort in order to offer the best environmentally conscious development. We
are proud to offer you our unique and distinctive luxury accommodation in
Pattaya, several paces off Dongtan Beach in Jomtien. Whether you are looking
for a honeymoon or hideaway resort, plan to have a wedding or conference, or
want to stay forever, this is the place” Everyone nodded their heads in
agreement.
New ventures amongst members were also highlighted, and
with Jo Stetten’s Art Cafe in Naklua being the host for next month’s
regular lunch meeting, many members were interested to hear of the future
plans for this venue.
Skål is a professional organisation of tourism leaders around the
world, promoting global tourism and friendship. It is the only international
group uniting all branches of the travel and tourism industry. Its members,
the industry’s managers and executives, meet at local, national, regional
and international levels to discuss and pursue topics of common interest. In
Pattaya the regular meetings are held on the third Thursday of each month.
Interested in joining Skål? Information can be obtained by contacting
the secretary, Andrew Wood, email [email protected]
Emirates seeks top qualified Thai cabin crew
Emirates, a major international carrier, is looking for
30 Thai cabin crew who are pleasant, confident and service oriented to join
its rapidly expanding network. The airline offers a competitive package of
benefits with Emirates’ excellent working conditions.
With its rapid growth in both fleet size and network,
Emirates is now on the lookout for exceptional people to build their careers
with the airline. Emirates’ manager for Thailand, Soonthorn Suree, said,
“Emirates’ in-flight service is renowned all over the world. Many
passengers prefer Thai cabin crew, as they posses a uniquely pleasant style
together with excellent service skills. Emirates currently has 70 Thai cabin
crew staff. We are now looking for another 30 to join our team to serve the
increasing demand.”
“We offer a competitive US$1,000 per month tax free
salary, shared furnished accommodations, 30 days annual leave, medical care,
duty transport, industry personnel travel facilities and end of service
gratuity,” Soonthorn added.
All new cabin crew will be provided with comprehensive
training at the state-of-the-art training college in Dubai.
To qualify for this great opportunity, applicants need to
be single, 21-30 years old, hold an undergraduate degree, have a good
complexion, weight in proportion to height, have good eyesight without
glasses (contact lenses are acceptable), and have fluency in written and
spoken English and Thai (another language is an asset). The height
requirement for females is between 157.5 and 178 cm and for males is between
168 and 188 cm. Applicants will also need to have the natural ability to
provide excellent service within a team environment.
Applications in English, with full details of experience
and qualifications, should include recent full-length, and passport sized
photographs in color, contact numbers, and a complete address. They should
be sent to Emirates Airline, 2nd floor, B.B. Building, 54 Asoke Road,
Sukhumvit 21, Bangkok 10110 or Overseas Placement Service Section,
Department of Employment, Mitmaitree Road, Dindaeng, Bangkok 10400.
Applications can also be submitted through Emirates’
website at www.emirates groupcareers.com. In this case, scanned photos will
be needed. All applications must be needed by January 31st 2003, quoting the
reference code ‘CC/’.
Emirates is an employee-focused company committed to
providing staff with competitive salaries, attractive benefits and excellent
working conditions. The airline’s cabin crew is acknowledged to be among
the best, as voted by 40,000 readers of the UK-based Executive Travel
Magazine. The airline takes top applicants from all over the globe and gives
them first-rate training, backed by leading facilities and equipment.
The airline currently employs people of over 85
nationalities to cater for its truly multicultural clientele on its network
of over 62 destinations. With its belief that people are the heart and soul
of the Emirates Group, the airline gives ongoing training to build a
professional spirit and continually raise levels of performance. Recruiting
and training high-caliber people is one of the core values of its business.
Since its inception in 1985, Emirates has won over 200
international awards for excellence and become the world’s fastest growing
major airline. The carrier possesses the youngest ultra modern fleet of
Boeing and Airbus aircraft with an average age of less than three years to
64 cities in 45 countries across Europe, the Middle East, Africa, Indian Sub
Continent and Asia-Pacific Rim.
Currently, Emirates flies 10 regular flights a week on
its Dubai-Bangkok route and plans to increase to 14 by April this year for a
total of 28 incoming and outgoing flights a week. It also operates daily
flights on its Bangkok-Hong Kong route.
The airline also has ambitious plans for continued growth
by expanding its routes to North America early this year and will start
services to Lagos on March 31st, Moscow on July 1st and Shanghai on August
2nd.
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