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Yangon on PG’s radar
Bangkok Airways (PG) has inaugurated its first-ever
scheduled service to the Myanmar capital, Yangon, on April l30 using a
Boeing 717 aircraft configured with 120 seats.
The launch is something of a breakthrough for PG which
has been trying for years to get into Myanmar but was held back either by
lack of aircraft, lack of manpower or because of political problems.
PG’s flight times are likely to find favor among
business and leisure travelers. The outbound flight number PG701 departs
Bangkok daily at 11.35. The return flight PG702 departs Yangon at 12.50.
Between now and the end of September there will be a
promotional roundtrip fare of 6,600 baht (US$165) but the regular fare
thereafter will be 4,200 baht one-way and 8,200 baht return.
Other carriers on the route include Thai Airways International with 14
flights weekly and Myanmar Airways with 10 flights weekly. Competition is
tough in the summer season but agents report a shortage of seats in the high
season which starts in November. (TTG Asia)
Indonesia campaign goes down well with Thais
Indonesia’s new campaign, ‘Indonesia – Ultimate in
Diversity’, is getting a good response and will continue to be used for at
least three or four years, culture and tourism deputy minister for
marketing, Udin Saifuddin said.
He told buyers at a road show in Bangkok the slogan had
been well-received at ITB and was now being applauded in Asia. “We needed
something new because we have just entered a new phase. We are ready again
for tourism; we really do have a new situation now that the monetary and
economic crisis is over. Agents like the slogan,” Saifuddin said.
Saifuddin was in Bangkok for the second leg of a three part road show that
will be concluded in Kuala Lumpur today.
Holiday World Intertrade general manager, Kenny Worachet, who specializes
in tours to Indonesia, said the new slogan would definitely boost interest
in the destination because it implied variety, something Thais particularly
like. But he urged Indonesia to spend much more on promotion. “If they
spent even just a fraction of what Malaysia spends they would get a much
better response,” Worachet said. (TTG Asia)
Samui connection for AirAsia
A daily flight from Bangkok to Surat Thani with a bus
shuttle to the ferry to Samui Island is next on the list of domestic
services to be operated by AirAsia in Thailand. Spokesman Luc Citrinot said
details had not been finalized but he was confident the service would be
inaugurated in a matter of weeks to give the carrier its eighth domestic
destination since starting operations in Thailand in January.
Meanwhile, AirAsia has increased frequencies on its services from Bangkok
to Phuket and Udon Thani as a result of higher than expected cabin factors
on both routes. The extra flights to Phuket and Udon Thani bring to 84 the
total number of domestic flights being operated by AirAsia in Thailand. (TTG
Asia)
EVA agrees to purchase eight B777s
Starting next year and continuing through 2009, EVA Airways
is adding a total of 15 brand-new Boeing B777s to its fleet. The Taiwan-based
airline has exercised and option for eight of the aircraft that was part of a
firm June 2000 purchase contract for seven B777s. The order is valued at US$1.49
billion.
The airline formalized its action with a signing ceremony in
Taipei that was hosted by Steve Lin, President, EVA Air and featured Michael J.
Cave, Senior Vice President, Airplane Programs, Boeing Commercial Airplanes, and
roger Seager, Vice President, Sales, GE Aircraft Engines.
“Breakthrough technological in the B777-300ER will equip
EVA to serve transpacific routes with twin-engine aircraft and mark the
beginning of a new era,” said Lin. “This aircraft advances the industry in
flight safety, operating efficiencies, and cabin comforts. And it meets EVA’ s
strict requirements”
The initial order was for the purchase of three super-long-range B777-200LRs
and four B777-300ERs. All eight of the aircraft being acquired under the
exercised option are B777-300ERs. The B777-300ER is ideal for service between
Taipei-London, Taipei-Paris, and Taipei-Newark with large maximum take-off
weight of 759,600 pounds.
Accor signs agreement for Novotel Ha Long Bay
Vietnam’s international tourism reputation is set to grow
even further with the development of the first international hotel in the
country’s premier tourism destination – Ha Long Bay.
Long-established Vietnamese company Qunimex will develop the
Novotel Ha Long Bay, and it will be managed by Vietnam’s most prolific
international hotel company, Accor. It will be Accor’s ninth hotel in Vietnam,
joining renowned hotels such as the century-old Sofitel Metropole in Hanoi and
the historic Sofitel Dalat Palace. Construction of the hotel will start this
year with completion scheduled for 2006.
The site of the Novotel is located in the heart of Ha Long
Bay, and the198 room hotel will have superb views across the legendary waters of
Ha Long Bay. Ha Long Bay is 165 km from Hanoi in the Gulf of Tonkin and is one
of the world’s most spectacular destinations. The area offers a series of more
than 3,000 islands with many beaches and grottos.
Developers of the hotel, Qunimex, (Quang Ninh Investment and
Import-Export Company) is a well-established Hanoi-based company that has been
operating since 1964 in the industrial, manufacturing, property, commercial and
services sectors. The company has been involved in the tourism sector for a
number of years with interests in travel agencies and hotels
Accor is the worldwide leader in hotels, tourism and
corporate services, employing 150,000 people in 140 countries, with two major
international activities. For further information: Tom Racette, Manager PR and
Communications – Asia, Tel: (662) 659 4535, Fax: (662) 237-1308/632-8844,
e-mail: mailto: [email protected] RACETTE_Tom @accor-hotels.com
SIA, Lufthansa extend code-share
Singapore Airlines will increase code-share services with
Lufthansa to eight new destinations from May 1, a 30 percent increase on the
total number of existing services operated by the two airlines.
The new code-share services will originate in Frankfurt and fly to
Frederichshafen, Paderborn and Munster in Germany and Copenhagen, Gothenburg,
Helsinki, Oslo and Stockholm in Scandinavia. Both carriers now operate
code-share services to 29 destinations worldwide.
Teething problems for Air Andaman as aircraft fail to show up
Bangkok-based Air Andaman has postponed its inaugural
Singapore-Bangkok and the Singapore-Phuket flights due to a delay in the
delivery of its aircraft.
The flight to Bangkok was meant to have left last week and
the flight to Phuket was scheduled for Sunday. The aircraft were supposed to
have arrived in Bangkok in time for both flights, which were to have taken off
with a full load of passengers including members of the media and trade, who
were invited to try the airline’s product and services.
The airline is now contemplating suing the aircraft broker
company for breach of promise, loss of business and reputation and compensation
for losses incurred.
Air Andaman’s country manager, Singapore, Christina Leong,
said, “We have put those who want to carry on with their holidays, on Thai
Airways, Singapore Airlines and SilkAir. Those who wanted to cancel their trips
to Phuket because of the recent unrest in southern Thailand did so without
penalty. Or if passengers wanted to postpone their trips, they were not charged
extra and we even offered them another free trip.”
The aircraft are now expected to arrive in mid-May and the inaugural flights
to both Phuket and Bangkok will take off on June 1. (TTG Asia)
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