MAS TO ADD 3 ADDITIONAL ROUTES FROM KK

New Straits Times :  20 September 2012

KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia Airlines (MAS) has finalised plans to add three international routes from Kota Kinabalu effective December.

In a statement, the national carrier said it would also increase frequencies to an existing international route from the capital of Sabah.

Courtesy from Flickr : JediSavant

A total of seven weekly services for these four routes will be operated using the latest 160-seater B737-800 aircraft.

Group Chief Executive Officer Ahmad Jauhari Yahya said although four international routes from Kota Kinabalu were suspended in January and February, the airline has now finalised plans to introduce flights between the Kota Kinabalu and three cities in the region.

"We will announce details of this development in the near future once we have the clearance from the regulatory authorities," he was quoted as saying in the statement.

The additional routes and more flights to an existing international route are expected to improve inbound tourist arrivals to Sabah and increase Kota Kinabalu's significance as the national carrier's eastern hub of Malaysia.

Apart from MAS, its wholly-owned subsidiary, MASwings, also commenced international operations this year linking Kota Kinabalu to Brunei and also Tawau to Tarakan, Indonesia. -- BERNAMA

MASWINGS' SAFETY STANDARD IS WORLD STANDARD - COO

 Borneo Post Online : September 22, 2012, Saturday

 

KUCHING: MASwings’ safety system meets world’s standard and its procedures to face emergency situations, including the unlikely event of a crash, are in place.

MASwings chief operating officer Nasip Roslan added that all its planes are checked every six months to ensure their airworthiness.

“Yes, definitely. Our system and emergency procedures are of world class standard and approved by our regulatory body under the DCA, which follows world class standard,” Nasip told the media at MASwings’ emergency simulation exercise held its office at the Kuching International Airport here yesterday.

Currently, MASwings, which has some 1,400 staff, is servicing both the Sarawak and Sabah sectors with ten ATR 72 500 aircrafts and four Twin Otter-300 planes.

For safety purposes, each ATR is fitted with very high frequency radio system to track it while the Twin Otter plane is fitted with a GPS.

“The way the system is designed in all our planes is that when an unlikely event of certain emergency, such as when a plane is subject to a certain force or it crashes, it will emit an emergency frequency that will indicate its exact location,” Nasip pointed out.

He added that when such a scenario occurs, the signal will be transmitted to the Air Traffic Control (ATC) which would then alert the entire response teams.

“When such an unlikely event happens, the response would be almost immediate,” he said.

Nasip, who has been in the industry for over 30 years, pointed out that their rescue procedure policy is also one of the best in the aviation industry.

However, he admitted that MASwings, like other aviation organisations, do experience a staff shortage and delays in its response.

“That’s why we will continue to improve ourselves on how best we respond to any situation,” he stressed.

On another safety issue, Nasip assured its customers that should anything happen to any of its pilots while flying, the co-pilot could easily take over to ensure the safe landing of the aircraft and passengers’ safety.

On a related issue, Nasip said MASwings is using much smaller planes to service the people in Sarawak and Sabah, as it does not warrant the company to use much bigger jet planes.

“We are operating on passenger-demand and it’s much cheaper to operate these smaller aircrafts compared to the bigger jet planes,” said Nasip, adding that he could not comment whether or not his company is considering getting any jet plane in the near future.

On the Twin Otter planes, Nasip said they are used to service smaller towns and isolated destinations such as Ba Kelalan, Lawas, Bario and Mukah and Tanjong Manis.

Meanwhile, Nasip said MASwings is ever ready to charter its aircrafts to the Election Commission (EC) in the upcoming general election.

EASY ONLINE FLIGHT BOOKINGS AS MAS EXPANDS WITH EXPEDIA

The Star :  Saturday September 22, 2012

PETALING JAYA: Malaysia Airlines (MAS) has expanded its relationship with online travel company Expedia Inc to offer travellers in the country affordable air fares all year round.

  

 

The partnership, which began on Thursday, enables the national carrier's full schedule of domestic and international routes and fares, including its wholly-owned subsidiary MASwings, to be available to customers who book flights on Expedia's newly-launched local website, www.expedia.com.my.

“This partnership provides Malaysian customers a simple and easy-to-use online travel booking channel for them to view, select, transact and finalise their air travel needs from the comfort of their homes and work places.

MAS sales and distribution head Duncan Bureau said the airline wanted to expand its online distribution channels and was pleased to partner up with Expedia to enable its customers to receive the best of deals and enjoy full service hospitality during their air travels.

Expedia global tour and transport senior vice-president Greg Schulze said the company was pleased to strengthen its relationship with MAS to provide customers with an extensive selection of the airline's content on its full-service travel site.

“It's an exciting opportunity and one that will improve the entire travel booking experience for customers throughout Malaysia.”

AIRASIA HOPES FOR MORE DCA ALLOCATION IN BUDGET

Hello,

This is from Bernama.com

By Prem Kumar Panjamothy [September 18, 2012, 13:10 pm]

KUALA LUMPUR, Sept 18 (Bernama) -- In line with the government's aim of brainstorming Malaysia into a tourism hub in the Asean region, budget carrier AirAsia Bhd feels that the government should allocate more funds to the Department of Civil Aviation Malaysia (DCA Malaysia) in the upcoming Budget 2013.

Chief Executive Officer of AirAsia, Aireen Omar, said with air travel becoming a very crucial driver of the country's tourism, more funds for DCA Malaysia would boost the department's capabilities in handling Malaysia's growing air traffic.

"Airlines from Malaysia, among them AirAsia, bring a lot of traffic to the region and Malaysia," she told Bernama in an interview.

Prime Minister cum Finance Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak is scheduled to table Budget 2013 in Parliament on Sept 28.

Aireen said AirAsia's pilots are having difficulties with air traffic control at Malaysian airports, and the issue becomes more persistent with the ever increasing flight movements at the airports during peak periods.

She added that the government should consider introducing a system to monitor the landing period of planes according to airlines to prevent delays, like what is happening in Singapore, Indonesia and the Philippines.

"We do not want the same to happen in Malaysia, and maybe through the system, we can ensure a smooth and efficient aviation industry," she said.

Malaysia registered 24.7 million tourist arrivals last year with about RM58.3 billion in receipts.

For the first six months of 2012, a total of 11.6 million tourists visited Malaysia, a growth of 2.4 per cent over the same period last year.

Total tourism receipts for the first half of this year also rose, generating RM26.8 billion in revenue, up four per cent over the same period in 2011.

MHS AVIATION BERHAD AIDIL FITRI OPEN HOUSE 2012

Hello again,

Sabah Air Aviation Sdn Bhd recently hosted a Hari Raya Open House at Best Western Hotel Sandakan for all Sandakan aviation communities. More than 30 representives attended the event  which was held in recognition of their continued support.

The guests were entertained by karaeoke session as they tucked away at a wide array of local delicacies.

Attached are photos taken during the open house.

Captain Rosland from MHS Aviation Sdn Bhd
Welcoming speech ~
DCA and MAB staff ~ Cant wait to enjoy the foods.
Movers and shakers from MAB.

Yummy ~
NIce and spicy



SABAH AIR AVIATION AIDIL FITRI OPEN HOUSE 2012

Hello everyone,

Malaysia certainly has many colors which make it appear lively and vibrant, each time you take a look. Perhaps it is the only place in the world with numerous religious holidays on its calendar. 

For the maximum religious festivals, it observes an open-door policy in which people invite friends and relatives regardless of their faith. The multi-ethnic and multi-religious facets of the country are best seen in the celebration of various festivals that are observed with whole-hearted festivities. 

And here, we in Sandakan are enjoying every moment and cherish everything. Recently, Sabah Air Aviation (www.sabahair.com.my) organized Aidil Fitri Open House 2012 at English Tea Garden and Restaurant (www.englishteahouse.org). 

Present at the recent open house were Sabah Air Aviation Chairman Datuk Yusof Kasim, Sabah Air Aviation CEO Manu Sasidharan, DCA Sandakan Acting Manager Herman Malanjun, Sandakan Malaysia Airports Berhad manager Awang Mali Awang Anak, pilots from MHS Aviations, representatives from Sabah Forestry Department, representatives from Duchess of Kent Hospital and representatives from Sandakan Airport Immigration Department.





DCA Sandakan staff were greeted by warmth welcome.
Deejays. U rock ~
Capturing and glimpse of old memories || So comfy ||
Sabah Air Aviation Chairman Datuk Yusof Kasim.
Welcoming speech by Datuk Yusof Kasim.
VIP table. All the movers and shakers in aviation industry.
MAB Sandakan Engineering Unit.
Checking out buffet counter ~ Lovely foods you have.
More and more foods.
Down memory lane || Picture of old filter water.
From left : Sandakan SATCO Mr Herman, Haji Yassin, Mr Nazlee, Mr Shafri.
Reps from Sandakan Airport Immigration Department.
Antiques and impressive though.
VIP table.
Man of the night, Mr Thomas Chang from Sabah Air Aviation.
English Tea House does really good job ~ Good foods ~
Old telephone and iron set at the cashier counter. Wish we could have one of those as well.
Satay (beef skewer with peanut sauce) is a must. Yummy ~
It's eating fever. Speechless.
Capt Francis Leong and his collegues from Sabah Air Aviation.
Hasnor Rizwan : The first one to break the karaoke ice by singing Kekasih Awal Dan Akhir (Jamal Abdillah) ~ Didnt know you could sing well.
Keabadian Cinta by Sandakan Malaysia Airports Manager ~ You sound like Anuar Zain.
Ratuku by Sabah Air Aviation CEO, Mr Manu Sasidharan ~ You beat Awie to the max.
Shafri sang Betterman (Robbie William).
Indra from Engineering Unit, MAB Sandakan.
Herman sang blues that night ~ We were feeling blues too.
Entrance at English Tea House and Restaurant, Sandakan.
Hasnor Rizwan again ~ And again ~

Till then, see ya ~ And happy eating guys ~ Again ~

AIDIL FITRI NIGHT 2012 - SANDAKAN AIR TRAFFIC CONTROL TOWER

Hello again,

It is Aidil Fitri Night 2012 again.

Ok, as promised, we'll blog about Aidil Fitri Night 2012 at DCA Sandakan. Not gonna write too much though. Just pictures and captions, captions and pictures again. 

As early as about 5pm, the staff started to get ready by preparing the tables and chairs (as usual). Well, the dinner started around 8:00pm and attached are photos taken during the evening.

Mr Mohd Yassin
The party that night started with the introduction by the Emcee.
Lines of buffets across the table. Tell you, it was really kicking.
A welcome note by Mr Mohd Shafri Bin Yusoff.
DCA Sandakan admin staff.
Reps from Electric 1 (Malaysia Airport Berhad)
Mr Herman Malanjun (ATC Sandakan) and Mr Isa Amat Shah (ATC Miri).
From left : MHS Aviation Pilot, Mr Mohd Shafri and Mr Herman.
In such a Raya celebration, chicken rendang is A-MUST! Yummy~
Soon, the FEAST begins!!! See all the specially prepared Raya dinner food~ *drooling*
Man of the day. Mr Shamsudin is becoming fruitarian.
Little one, Rayyan and his mother.
Hajah Juita and her daughter.
Aqil and his father, Mr Yazid Hilmi.
DCA Sandakan has lined up host of activities for its staff.
When we were filling our stomachs, we got to enjoy the ketupat weaving contest.
DCA Limbang Manager, Mr George Ng Kui Ming also participated in the contest.
Smile.
Pocket money for those who won the contest.
There you go.
And of course to all adorable kids who came.
DCA Sandakan Manager, Mr Lai Kok Diing is giving out duit raya.

RM 5 anyone?

Till then, see ya ~