Developments In The Aviation Industry

[LivinginKata]

Monday, November 2, 2009

OPINION: Good news at long last

With most of the good names already taken, what does the future hold for the aviation industry?

PHUKET CITY: Developments in the aviation industry bode well for Phuket and its tourism industry going into the high season.

The most important of these is Thai AirAsia’s decision to establish Phuket as a second ‘aviation hub’ for its growing operations in Southeast Asia.

Since entering the Phuket market in 2003, Thai AirAsia has been a consistent performer in an industry that has undergone some turbulent times: a tsunami, a major air crash disaster, a crippling takeover by anti-government protesters, health scares and a global economic downturn.

Through down cycles, most carriers serving the Phuket market have been quick to suspend flights as soon as load factors dip.

The problem is that most of them are slow to respond when demand increases. This leaves the island with a lack of direct flights from Bangkok, hardly a desirable situation for an island with almost 40,000 hotel rooms to keep full all year round.

Bangkok Airways new 'codesharing' agreement with Germany's second largest carrier Berlin Air will certainly help better tap into that country's lucrative market. And while Thai Airways recently announced more flights on the BKK-HKT route, AirAsia is going one better with its plan to permanently station as many as five aircraft in Phuket as part of its ‘second hub’ plan.

This will allow Phuket residents the chance to fly direct to destinations such as Jakarta, Bali, Ho Chi Minh City and Chiang Mai on scheduled flights for the first time.

This is the best news the local tourism industry has enjoyed for some time.

Another positive development is the entry of the newly established Happy Air, which launched direct services to Haad Yai and Langkawi over the weekend. This will be welcome news to visa runners, students, businesspeople and the considerable number of people from Songkhla and points further south who live and work in Phuket.

Some mystery remains about who is behind the fledgling carrier or how it was named, but the twice daily ‘reverse triangle route’ from Phuket-Haad Yai-Langkawi-Phuket seems a likely winner.

A number of airlines have tried and failed to operate the Haad Yai route using large jet aircraft, only to find load factors too low.

The only airline to successfully link Southern Thailand’s two large, international airports using turboprop planes was Phuket Air.

Unfortunately, a tarnished safety record seems to have forced the island’s namesake carrier out of the market for scheduled flights altogether.

At last report it was renting its aircraft out on charter flights for Muslim pilgrims going on the Hajj.

Let’s hope Happy Air focuses on offering consistent quality and safety, helping develop Phuket as a true air hub – and giving us all a reason to smile. – Stephen Fein

-- Phuket Gazette 2009-11-02

[LivinginKata]

This will allow Phuket residents the chance to fly direct to destinations such as Jakarta, Bali, Ho Chi Minh City and Chiang Mai on scheduled flights for the first time.

I was trying to book a flight from Phuket to Bali and back, but no availability shown even for December 2009. I wonder when this service will actually start.

[george]

Airline business booms in Phuket

PHUKET: -- Following the plan by public and private agencies to enlarge Phuket International Airport, Thailand’s second largest airport after Bangkok’s Suvarnabhumi, for passenger comfort and improved facilities, the airline business is showing every sign of going well, especially when a number of air carriers are moving forward with their proactive marketing strategies for the upcoming tourism season of the Andaman coastline.

Thai AirAsia, the Thai subsidiary of Malaysia-based low-cost carrier AirAsia, has designated Phuket as its second hub linking the new routes flying from and to the province, while it has launched additional charter flights servicing Phuket-Hong Kong, Phuket-Singapore, and Phuket-Indonesia’s Medan routes.

"We selected Phuket as another hub, as it is where (there is liveliness) even when the economy’s down, the number of tourists has almost never dropped. Also, it’s the destination through which most of our flights operate,” said Thai AirAsia chief executive, Tassapon Bijleveld. "We picked this location as a hub and we’re certain that there are many people in the region who want to fly directly to Phuket."

Thai Airways International (THAI) is another carrier recently introducing a Phuket-Hong Kong route.

"Flights flying to Phuket are expected to mainly generate revenues to the company. As you know, tourists flock here because of the province’s potential. And if we operate a direct Phuket-Hong Kong route, passengers will definitely be assured of their convenience,” said Chantouch Srinilta, THAI’s district sales manager for Phuket.

Apart from the two carriers, ‘Happy Air’, a local small airline, debuted with an introduction of short routes as continuations from Phuket to Hat Yai and Malaysia’s Langkawi. The routes are to enable tourists to travel to nearby tourist destination in short journeys or a one-day trip.

"We’re also planning to fly a Phuket-Medan route, as Medan is as well a tourism city in Indonesia. We’ll also be expanding (with) new destinations in several years if the market here goes well and if the feedback’s good.” said Patcharapol Sontipan, sales and marketing manager of Happy Air Travellers. “Our airline hopes to be Thailand’s top carrier for tourism within the next five years”.

The bright prospect of domestic airline business expansion may not only buck the trend of the current economic downturn, but it also reflects the potential of the tourism and travel industry in this Andaman coastal resort island which may help prop up the country’s economy in the future.

-- TNA 2009-11-05