Thai Smile announces first route: Bangkok – Macau

on February 3, 2012 in Asia

Thai Smile Airline, the up-coming budget wing of Thai Airways, has announced its first destination: Macau. Direct flights from Bangkok to Macau will begin on July 1, 2012. The initial schedule will see two flights per day and ticket sales will begin in April.

Thai Smile is expected to have a fleet of four aircraft by summer 2012. Planned routes for August 1 launch are Bangkok – Chiang Mai and Chiang Mai – Phuket and international routes from Bangkok to Jakarta, Kolkata and Phnom Penh. By fall 2012 Thai Smile will take over Thai Airway’s flights Surat Thani and to Gaya and Varanasi, India.

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airberlin to join OneWorld Alliance

on February 2, 2012 in Europe

Airberlin, the German budget airline, will become a full member of the Oneworld airline alliance with effect from March 20, 2012. Austrian budget airline NIKI, which is a member of the Airberlin group, will also join Oneworld as an affiliate member.

This means Airberlin will offer the full range of services, such as frequent flyer points, available to Oneworld members. The addition of Airberlin substantially expands the alliance’s network in Germany, Europe’s biggest economy, and throughout South and Central Europe. It will add almost 70 destinations to the alliance’s map, extending Oneworld’s global coverage to some 840 destinations in 150 countries.

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Tiger Airways returns to Cairns

on February 1, 2012 in Australia

Tiger Airways has announced it will be returning to Cairns, resuming its Melbourne – Cairns route starting April 25, 2012. This route has been suspended since July 2011 when Tiger Airways Australia was grounded due to safety breaches.

The initial schedule for Melbourne – Cairns flights will be once per day. The flight will depart Melbourne’s Tullamarine Airport at 8:50am. The flight from Cairns to Melbourne will depart at 12:45pm

Bookings for Melbourne – Cairns flights are already available with one-way fares from $99.95 AUD.

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Thai Smile to launch on July 1, 2012

on February 1, 2012 in Asia

Thai Smile, an upcoming budget airline, has announced plans to commence its first flight on July 1, 2012. This new budget airline will be based out of Bangkok’s Suvarnabhumi Airport and is wholly owned by Thai Airways.

Destinations have not yet been announced, but Thai Smile is expected to begin as a domestic airline then expand to being a regional carrier. Potential destinations include Kochi, Hyderabad, Luang Prabang, Yangon, Seoul, Shenzhen, Hong Kong, Macau, Danang, Phuket, Penang, Kuala Lumpur, and Singapore.

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AirAsia X Increasing Kuala Lumpur – Tokyo flights

on February 1, 2012 in Asia

AirAsia X, the long-haul wing of AirAsia, will be increasing flight frequency from Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia – Tokyo (Haneda), Japan. Starting March 23, 20120, flights will increase from 3 per week to 6 per week

Starting June 22, 2012, the number of flights will further increase to a daily service.

The increase in frequency is part of the airline’s realignment plan which will focus the core markets in Southeast Asia, Australasia, China, Taiwan, Japan, and Korea.

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Bangkok Airways increasing Samui – Hong Kong flights

on February 1, 2012 in Asia

Bangkok Airways has announced it will increase the number of Koh Samui – Hong Kong flights starting March 31, 2012. The frequency will increase from a daily flight to 10 per week.

New flights PG873 Koh Samui – Hong Kong (17:50 – 22:05) operate Tuesday/Thursday/Saturday and PG874 Hong Kong – Koh Samui (09:05 – 11:10) operate Wednesday/Friday/Sunday.

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Cebu Pacific will launch budget long-haul flights in 2013

on February 1, 2012 in Asia

Cebu Pacific, the Philippines based budget airline, has announced it will commence long-haul flights in the 3rd quarter of 2013. The airline will lease up to 8 Airbus A330-300 aircraft to serve new markets beyond the range of theircurrent fleet of Airbus A320 aircraft.

The Airbus A330 has a range of up to 11 hours which means Cebu Pacific could serve markets such as Australia, Middle East, parts of Europe and the US.

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Budget airlines to the rescue after Spanair collapse

on January 31, 2012 in Europe

Europe’s budget airlines have proven their reliability following the collapse of Spanair. To serve the 22,000 Spanair passengers were stranded by the sudden cancellation of their flights, EasyJet, Ryan and Vueling have responded with increased flights and special deals.

Spanair suddenly ceased all operations on Friday, January 27, 2012, and has filed for bankruptcy.

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Cebu Pacific is coming to Cambodia

on January 30, 2012 in Asia

Budget airline Cebu Pacific has announced it will begin direct flights from Manila, Philippines, to Siam Reap, Cambodia, starting in April 2012.

The new route will debut with three flights per week on Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Sundays. Flights will depart Manila at 7:50pm and arrive in Siam Reap at 9:30pm. The return flight will depart Siam Reap at 10:30pm and arrive in Manila at 12:10am.

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Jetstar to end Macau-Singapore route

on January 30, 2012 in Asia

Jetstar Airlines has announced it will cease direct flights between Singapore and Macau from February 6, 2012. The airline said it was for “commercial reasons”, likely due to a significant drop in the number of passengers on this route.

After Jetstar ends Singapore-Macau flight, there will be two other airlines service this route: Tiger Airways and Air Macau.

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