Airlines, Airplanes, and Airports

[Skyblade]

Originally Posted by David-80

Skyblade, what will happen with their 757s?

I'm sure they'll be sticking around for quite a while. They seem to be doing a good job with 5J and I'm sure the new Airbuses will do good as well in complimenting the 752s in domestic and international routes.

[David-80]

Its a little bit risky for 5J to use airbus A319/A320 IMO, hopefully they are doing quite well !

ps: does the A319/A320 also fit with IFE and PTV?

cheers

[kiretoce]

Manila seeks Airbus operations transfer from Singapore

MANILA - The Philippine government will provide incentives to Airbus Industrie if it transfers some of its maintenance operations in Singapore to the Philippines, Clark International Airport Corp president Adelberto Yap said on Sunday.

Manila is courting the European aircraft maker to set up a regional maintenance site for Asia at Clark, the former regional headquarters of the United States Air Force.

"Given that Airbus is launching a new wide-bodied, double-decker aircraft in the next three years, it is looking at sites where it could do some repair and maintenance work aside from Singapore," Mr Yap said.

He did not discuss the offer in detail.

Mr Yap said Clark's strategic location - less than 100 kilometres north of Manila - could be a plus factor.

It has two parallel, 3.2km runways which can accommodate large aircraft and a passenger terminal building which can serve 500 passengers an hour or 1.5 million a year.

Airbus is building the world's biggest commercial aircraft, dubbed the A380.

The double-decker plane will be launched in 2006 with Singapore Airlines as the launch customer. - AFP

[Skyblade]

Originally Posted by David-80

ps: does the A319/A320 also fit with IFE and PTV?

I believe the A32X can be fitted but I dunno if 5J would opt for it.

[Skyblade]

PAL plane narrowly misses runway mishap
Posted: 6:42 AM (Manila Time) | Jun. 28, 2004
By Joe Galvez, Contributor
INQ7.net

A PHILIPPINE Air Lines Airbus A320 bound for Manila from Cagayan de Oro City narrowly missed a fatal mishap with two US Air Force C-130s slowly taxiing on the runway of the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) at 5:15 p.m. (Manila time), Sunday.

PAL Flight 186, piloted by Capt. Daryl de Ocampo, was landing his aircraft after circling the airport six times when the NAIA air control tower alerted him of the two C-130's still on the runway.



De Ocampo immediately retracted the PAL plane's landing gears and put the plane on full throttle, averting what could have been a disastrous end to its 146 passengers and eight crewmembers.

"Ladies and gentleman, we have just been informed by air control that there are two U.S. military C-130 planes on the runway which they had not noticed," said De Ocampo over the intercom. "We have just re-ascended to make another final approach. Please bear with us."

To the relief of the passengers and crew, PAL Flight 186 landed safely at 5:40 p.m., after nearly 30 minutes of circling the airport.

[absent-minded]

whoa! close call...!! how close was he to touching down?? that would've been freaky... I remembered the China Airlines plane a few years ago when the co-pilot or something touched down and then for some reason pulled up again. then the whole thing just flipped over...

@skyblade - are you a pilot for US Airways? =)

[SunKing]

I guess that's in part due to the skill of PR pilots. Thank God it was able to land safely!

[absent-minded]

Originally Posted by SunKing

I guess that's in part due to the skill of PR pilots. Thank God it was able to land safely!

yup...!! PAL pilots are some of the world's ultimate best... this has actually been discussed a few pages back in this thread... haha...! smoothest landings as well...! hardly even felt... and they're all pinoys trained by PAL...

[pau_p1]

wow... yeah.. thank God they are well trained...

at least we haven't had any major airborne mishaps here in the runways unlike in another country where a descending Air France i think collided with another departing plane...

[David-80]

Its ATC fault i think, hows the visibility and forecast at that moment? because ADM Fargo from US pacific commander was in the Manila at that moment.


cheers

[Skyblade]

Originally Posted by absent-minded

@skyblade - are you a pilot for US Airways? =)

In my wildest dreams maybe.

[ryanr]

Originally Posted by absent-minded

yup...!! PAL pilots are some of the world's ultimate best... this has actually been discussed a few pages back in this thread... haha...! smoothest landings as well...! hardly even felt... and they're all pinoys trained by PAL...

I agree...On my arrival in Manila a few weeks ago, the approach was really rough because it was a cloudy day. But somehow, the PAL pilot landed the plane so smoothly that i didnt realise we had already landed...

[Taipei101]

I travelled Philipine Airlines to Bangkok, it was very good and the service was exceptional for the interpred traveller, it was 5 stars.

[absent-minded]

Originally Posted by GreyX

I agree...On my arrival in Manila a few weeks ago, the approach was really rough because it was a cloudy day. But somehow, the PAL pilot landed the plane so smoothly that i didnt realise we had already landed...

hahaha...! sweet! that's what my mom said about her flight to YVR as well...

Originally Posted by Taipei101

I travelled Philipine Airlines to Bangkok, it was very good and the service was exceptional for the interpred traveller, it was 5 stars.

wow! we took Thai to BKK, so... too bad. but for me, PAL's economy is really good. just lacks PTVs...

[kiretoce]

Air Philippines sets flights to China
Posted: 8:08 PM | Jul. 04, 2004

Clarissa S. Batino
Inquirer News Service

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AIR Philippines Corp., another airline controlled by taipan Lucio Tan, said it would mount chartered flights to China in its bid to expand regional operations.

Air Philippines said it piloted twice-weekly chartered flights to Guangzhou, China, last Friday in partnership with Hong Kong-based True Ease Travel Ltd.


The country's third-largest airline said it would soon fly to Chengdu, China, by the middle of the month. The carrier recently mounted flights to Kwangju, Korea.

"Using the new Boeing 737-200 aircraft with a 118 seating capacity, the flight will operate from the Centennial Terminal 2 and will service both passenger and cargo," it said.

Air Philippines' aggressive operations followed the renewal of its certificate of authority to operate from the Civil Aeronautics Board for another five years. The carrier's five-year permit from the CAB was to expire this month.

In its petition with the CAB, the Lucio Tan company said that it was running on a huge deficit and would need government approval so it could continue servicing its routes.

Sister firm Philippine Airlines also posted P661 million in losses in its previous fiscal year ending March 2004. But first two months of operations in the current fiscal year were promising, according to officials, as net profit reached almost P1 billion in April and May.

A year ago, Air Philippines was able to convince Congress to amend its 25-year franchise so it could enjoy the same tax privileges being enjoyed by PAL and Cebu Air Pacific.

Air Philippines is 70-percent owned by Tan while the the remaining 30 percent belongs to William Gatchalian and his Wellex Industries. The tobacco taipan acquired a majority stake in the airline in 1999.

The airline serves 18 domestic routes through more than 60 flights daily. It flies to Manila, Cebu, Iloilo, Cagayan de Oro, Zamboanga, General Santos, Bacolod, Cotabato and Baguio while also offering chartered services to local and nearby foreign destinations.

It operates a fleet of 10 Boeing 737s. It has a permit to fly to Hong Kong, Japan, South Korea, Taiwan, and the United States. It briefly flew to Indonesia and Brunei but eventually stopped because of losses. Its remaining active overseas destination is Hong Kong.

Last year, the two Tan-owned airlines made plans to merge and introduce a low-cost brand that would compete with the Gokongwei-owned Cebu Air Pacific.

The planned introduction of Fiesta Air, a low-budget brand of both PAL and Air Philippines, was meant to ensure the survival especially of the smaller airline firm amid last year's continuing slump in the aviation industry. But merger plans failed to materialize.

[kiretoce]

Northwest vows RP market leadership


By EDU H. LOPEZ


MINNEAPOLIS—Northwest Airlines would introduce more technology-related services such as electronic ticketing, self-service kiosks and innovations to maintain its leadership in the Philippine market.


E-ticketing is a platform that would allow Northwest to offer other enhanced services such as self-service check-in through kiosks and the Internet.

Roger Harris, managing director for the Pacific revenue management, said that the Philippines is an important market for Northwest.

The airline would be closely working with its partner airlines particularly Cebu Pacific in the Philippines in marketing and promotion.

In the medium term, Northwest would focus on its product improvements, airport terminal and facilities, and the introduction of new aircraft like the Airbus A330, said Harris.

He stressed that Northwest’s strategy is to partner with airlines to address the requirements of the difference markets worldwide.

Although the airline posted a net loss of $230 million in the first quarter of 2004, it has managed its operations by controlling non-fuel unit costs.

But Northwest’s challenge is to bring down its operating costs against the revenue it generates.

Northwest’s revenues in the first quarter of 2004 rose by 9.6 percent from $2.6 billion in 2003. Passenger revenue per available seat increased by 12.5 percent. Operating expenses increased by 0.4 percent during the quarter from $2.7 billion a year ago.

The Asia Pacific region contributes about 10 to 15 percent of the company’s total revenue worldwide.

Harris noted that the airline has not fully recovered in terms of revenues to the level before the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attacks. Northwest flies 14 times a week using the bigger Boeing 747-400 aircraft between Manila and the US via Japan.

Following the recent signing of an bilateral air agreement between the US and China, Northwest is set to add seven more flights from the existing 14 flights a week.

The airline has continued to build its network worldwide. It has opened a number of international and domestic markets such as the non-stop daily service between Tokyo and Portland, Oregon that would give its customers eight US-Japan gateways and four West Coast connections to Tokyo.

Northwest started new regular services to eight destinations from its WorldGateway at Detroit, 11 destinations from Minneapolis/St. Pual and seven cities from Memphis.

New cities were added to the airline’s network including Newburg in New York, Kitchener/Waterloo, Ontario in Canada and Asheville in North Carolina, all served from Detroit hub.

[kiretoce]

Wednesday, July 7, 2004

Aerospace Notebook: 717 left hanging as Philippine airline reportedly favors Airbus

By JAMES WALLACE
SEATTLE POST-INTELLIGENCER REPORTER

A report that Manila-based Cebu Air may favor Airbus for its first airplane order since it started doing business a decade ago would be a serious blow to The Boeing Co.'s slow-selling 717.

Boeing needs an airline -- more than one, actually -- to throw a lifeline to the 717 program, and Cebu, the second-biggest airline in the Philippines, has been weighing the 717 as a replacement for its fleet of old DC-9s.

But Danilo Mojica, Cebu's chief operating officer, was quoted by Bloomberg News Monday as saying the airline probably will choose Airbus over Boeing.

An announcement is expected within a couple of weeks.

Boeing has made a fresh offer to Cebu regarding the 717, according to a person familiar with the competition. It is not unheard of for an airline executive, during the heat of an order campaign, to publicly suggest through the media that the airline probably will go with one manufacturer to extract a better, last-minute offer from a rival manufacturer.

Cebu has said before that it is looking at the Airbus A319 as well as the 717. An order likely would be for about a dozen jets.

At current rates, a dozen planes would represent more than a year's production for the 717, which is assembled in Long Beach, Calif.

Developed by McDonnell Douglas as a DC-9 replacement, the 717 has suffered from poor sales. Of the 167 planes that have been ordered, Boeing had a backlog of only 37 left to build at the end of May.

Boeing's only 717 orders this year came from AirTran, the launch customer for the 717, when it was known as the MD-95. But AirTran is not expected to order more 717s, because it is acquiring the bigger Boeing 737 for newer routes.

[absent-minded]

what??? I thought they already went with airbus? hopefully, they'll stick to their original plans. I just want airbus plaens for some reason. hehe...

[Skyblade]

I thought they went with Airbus as well! Oy before you know it they'll want to revive the Fokker 100 production line...

Anyways Air Philippines operating flights out of NAIA 2? That would be a sight when you have that 737-200 surrounded by a homologous batch of PAL a/c.

[renell]

kinda off topic but, anyone tried SIA's business class spacebeds? they are awesome in long haul flights, makes you feel like first class, in business class