Jessnor Arif

Favourite Airlines: I would say I am one of the Malaysia Airlines die hard fan. Favourite Aircraft: Boeing 777

Hmm and they improved the German site too. that's Great..

Seriously for what?? to leave it grounded on tarmac at KUL or to reduce Frequencies to London to once daily from twice daily? MH can't even fill two B747 to London. Let alone A380. The only way that going to work for MH with A380 is to lease them.. at least in this near future. For MH to have it, It would give the phrase "White Elephant" literal meaning don't they?

And mine.... Surprisingly for myself... I have flown 34 times till before my 25 birthday... I myself expecting lower from 30..

Probably what you mean is ... Spoiler... Spoiler is used to reduce lift... here's an article in Wikipedia..

What statement?

To end that... build a dedicated building or zone or a tower like i suggested. Complete with x-ray scan and metal detector with guards and charge a nominal fee huhuhu... How do we recognize the spotter huhu? Should we wear an ID? Maybe MW membership ID huhu..which make me thinking... is there such an organization for spotter registered with ROS?

Hmm I thought the case is about the korean guy ascending too fast from diving.... and then directly jump to the plane.... It has nothing to do with food poisoning... It about altitude change. At the end house ask the FA to inform pilot to maintain a certain altitude.. By the way isn't House now in the fourth season?

You know what should be a great addtion to KLIA..... A one-of-a-kind state-of-the-art Spotter Tower huhu

I think... it's OK for MH doing their own way... as long as the company remains profitable..have financial stability. True LHR, FRA, ZRH even DXB are lucrative routes for other airlines like SQ, EK. But it's not for MH. we have to deal with it. As for ZRH..Remember ZRH has survived 2 years since BTP is introduced. I think MH has tried everything to made it profitable for at least 2 years.. After two years it seems MH cant make it to be profitable. Apart from EZE and EWR which is a government interference, Doesn't that make sense for ZRH to face the axe? When comparing to EK and SQ for a routes...I think it's fair for us to consider the fleets too. EK with a whopping 112 wide bodies and SQ with 94 wide bodies. MH is a mere 42 wide bodies. And MH wont deploy their Airbuses to major cities that mean MH just have 28 wide bodies....(That mean EK have almost 6 times more fleet than MH and SQ almost 5 times) With just mere 28 bodies is it make sense to serve all major Europe cities and Australia 7 times weekly? If MH make it a 1 stop flight .... like maybe KUL-DXB-ZRH...then there's a question of 5th freedom. Since nowadays passengers prefer to fly non stop.... For me... To increase frequency/networks means to increase fleet...MH is in a no condition to increase fleets right now..thus they have to find way to live with current fleet... no matter how shody it is.... and to ensure profitability with the current fleets... For examples with 1 A330 we don't expect AKX to fly to 5 different routes intercontinentally. The same rules should apply to MH. my 2cents

As response to this... Indonesian minister tells airlines not to buy European planes: AFP Good news for Boeing.... but Its Ironic... since almost all air crash in Indonesia involves a Boeing..

Flying high once more The Star Malaysia Airlines has finally pulled itself out of a long tailspin of loss and mismanagement, in time to celebrate the 60th anniversary of its beginnings as Malayan Airways Limited. By ANDREW SIA From the “winged tiger” of Malayan Airways Limited (MAL) in 1947 through to the soaring Kelantanese wau kite emblem of today, it has been a momentous 60-year journey for Malaysia Airlines (MAS). And it has endured, for better or worse, as a national symbol through its triumphs and tragedies. Bernard Thomazios recalls how MAS used to reduce costs by making its own nasi lemak. After the break-up with Singapore in 1972, MAS had to rebuild virtually from scratch. By 1994, it had established itself as a respected and profitable international airline. And then it was privatised to tycoon Tan Sri Tajudin Ramli. The airline incurred massive losses and six years later, the Government had to renation- alise it. Even then, tales of mismanagement continued until MAS was on the brink of collapse in 2005 with losses of RM1.3 bil. It was then that Datuk Seri Idris Jala was appointed as the CEO. And what a difference two years have made – the airline posted its highest ever profits of RM610mil this year. How was the rabbit pulled out of the hat? But it was no sleight of hand, just a solid demonstration of what Malaysians can achieve with proper leadership, hard work and thrift. What a ride, or rather flight, MAS has been. Lee Shu Poh says, “We developed a culture of thriftiness.” The early years Malayan Airways began modestly in 1947 with propeller planes such as 21-seater DC3's with flights from Singapore to Kuala Lumpur, Jakarta, Medan and Saigon. By the early 1960s, jets such as the Comets were added. Two name changes followed, first to Malaysian Airways Ltd in 1963, and then to Malaysia-Singapore Airlines (MSA) in 1967. The latter was equally owned by both countries and was highly profitable, with destinations including London, Rome, Bombay, Taipei and Perth. Yet, the two countries had different priorities. “Singapore was an island and wanted to promote itself through international flights while Malaysia was more interested in domestic services,” Bernard Thomazios, 65, explains in an interview. He was seconded from the Transport Ministry to MAS in 1971 and retired 21 years later as its deputy managing director. The differences became so bad that the directors were quarrelling like “cats and dogs”, recounts one-time MSA chairman, Robert Kuok in Airborne, the MAS 45th anniversary book published in 1992. Finally, Malaysia and Singapore agreed to split the airline. According to Airborne, Malaysian Airline System (MAS) inherited 12 smaller aircraft while the five larger Boeing 707s went to Singapore Airlines (SIA). More crucially, Singapore inherited the rights from MSA to fly international routes. In later years, this division was criticised, by former Prime Minister Datuk Seri Dr Mahathir Mohamad and others, as a raw deal from Singapore. Hassan Ahmad was the first Malay civil aviation captain. “We only took the 50-seater Fokkers,” says Thomazios. “As for the larger planes, we told Singapore we didn’t want them. We did not have the traffic and were not sure we could translate the planes into profits.” Captain Hassan Ahmad remembers how, just before the split, the Government sent people to persuade Malaysian staff of MSA (based in Singapore) to return to KL. “In their briefings, it was clear they (the government officials) were more interested in domestic flights. They didn’t even talk of regional routes. It was a mindset. I realised it was no way to plan a national airline but we were just employees,” says Hassan, 71, the first Malay civil aviation captain who retired as director of flight operations in 1992. “We even lost the KL to Bangkok route,” recalls Thomazios. “The Thais stopped us from flying because they said it was a Singapore to KL to Bangkok route (belonging to SIA).” Take off So were we simply outmanoeuvred due to inexperience and lack of know-how? “The head office as well as the management, engineering and financial people were all in Singapore,” reflects Lee Shu Poh, 77. He joined MAL in 1949 as clerical staff and worked all the way up to become MAS operations manager (1982-88). “In 1972, I was the most senior Malaysian at MSA in Singapore. I was also at the Mandarin Hotel briefings to persuade other Malaysians to return. But most chose to remain in Singapore (as they felt they had better prospects).” Malayan Airways crew of the 1960s. Despite the handicaps, MAS soldiered on, investing in engineering facilities and six new Boeing 737s. The board of directors was made up mostly of civil servants and, as Airborne recalls, “few believed that this motley team ... could actually create and run a viable commercial airline.” “We had to buy tables and chairs for our first office,” recounts Thomazios, which comprised two rented floors of the Police Co-op building with two telephone lines. Airborne quotes Tan Sri Saw Huat Lye, the first chief operating officer (1972–1982):“We were the underdogs.... We had to do everything ourselves, design our logo, decide on toothpicks, learn to create a flight kitchen ... our families did not see us for almost two years. Our home was our office. Every Sunday, every holiday, we worked.” The slogging paid off. With help from Qantas experts, MAS took off three months ahead of schedule. On Oct 1, 1972, the pre-dawn darkness of Subang Airport’s rubber tree-lined road was lit up by many, many cars and buses carrying VIPs and ordinary citizens eager to watch history unfold. The airfield became a spectacular stage featuring the new aircraft. At 5.30am, to the beat of rebana drums and rapturous applause, Deputy Prime Minister, Tun Dr Ismail, launched the first MAS flight to Singapore. Tan Sri Abdul Aziz Abdul Rahman, the then company secretary, says in Airborne, “There were teething problems, delays, etc. It was to be expected.... But it was not long before Malaysians were able to acquire the necessary skills to operate the airline smoothly.” However, MAS had to negotiate all its international routes afresh and Singapore’s head start as an international aviation hub was a hampering factor. MAS crew of the 1970s For instance, on the lucrative “kangaroo route” from Australia to London via South-East Asia, both SIA and MAS were fighting for market share. Thomazios, who spent “half his life” negotiating flight rights, explains: “Qantas was only operating two KL-Sydney flights a week, so the rules said we were limited to two as well. Why should Qantas fly more when they were already making money from their seven Sydney-Singapore flights (and on to London)?” “To get two extra flights to Sydney for MAS, I even had to offer Qantas half of the flight revenues. But it was okay because we could take (extra) passengers from Sydney and fly them on the more lucrative KL to London route.” Making money MAS managed to be profitable in all its first 20 years, except for 1981. It could even overcome the oil “price shock” (when it quadrupled!) of 1973. “We watched every cost. Growth had to be planned and steady,” explains Thomazios. “You can’t say, 'Oh SIA is so profitable because they have 747s'. Doesn’t mean we go and order 10 747s also. Planes have to fit passenger demand. Otherwise, you leave them on the ground and you lose money every day.” Lee adds, “It’s no point running a Rolls Royce when passengers will only pay Proton taxi fares. Advertisement announcing the birth of MAS in 1972. “We developed a culture of thriftiness. Buy what you need, not what you want.” He continues to live by that culture. He shows me his RM45 Casio digital watch and 20-year-old leather shoes. “They work fine. Why should we show off? Does the watch say who I am?” Thomazios recalls that MAS kept costs down by doing everything in-house. “We could make nasi lemak for only 10 or 20 sen per pax. And we sold it to other airlines for RM1 each!” But other considerations also came into play that overturned good business practice: “The Los Angeles route was glamorous but we were losing our pants. We tried to anticipate growth but sometimes, because of diplomatic relations, we had to do 'national service’ and set up new flights.” These breezy sarong kebaya uniforms appeared in the 1980s and, with slight modifications, are still worn today. What about long standing complaints (especially from Sabah and Sarawak) that MAS should have had cheaper air fares to fulfil its objectives of “promoting national integration” and boosting tourism? “Well, we did offer cheaper flights at night and for groups,” he says. However, one much appreciated part of MAS was the (government-subsidised) Rural Air Service using small Twin Otter 12-seater aircraft that provided a critical link to isolated villages such as Bario, Long Semado and Ba Kelalan deep in the interior of Sabah and Sarawak. “Everybody will be waiting for the plane next to the airstrip, as if the ice cream man was coming,” recalls Lee. In fact, one of those who waited for the plane at Bario was a boy named Idris Jala. Growth and decay MAS continued to grow in strength from year to year in terms of routes, aircraft and staff. There were hiccups such as the 1977 crash (all 100 on board were killed) at Tanjung Kupang, Johor, (the hijacker shot the pilots) and the big strike of 1979 (which ended after 18 people were arrested under the ISA). Nevertheless, by 1985 MAS was so self-assured that it could go for a stock exchange listing. Aziz, who was CEO from 1982–1991, proudly pointed out that 90% of flights departed on time (the rest were 15 minutes late) while profits had soared to RM132mil. The shares, offered at RM1.80 each, shot up way past RM5 upon listing, a resounding public vote of confidence in the company. The additional funds were invested in expansion plans and by 1990, profits rose to RM224mil. The company had grown from 900 people in 1972 to 19,000 in 1992, serving over 9 million passengers. The then chairman, Tan Sri Zain Azraai, said, “We can take pride that no major allegation of financial wrong-doing has ever been made. (Besides that) I also mean intellectual honesty. Officers in MAS, in submitting their views, should not tailor them to what they think their seniors want.” Zain’s words unwittingly forewarned of what was to come. In 1994, the Government privatised its controlling stake in MAS to tycoon Tajudin Ramli. By 2000, the airline was tottering under the weight of RM9.5bil in debt after a fourth straight year of losses. The culture of thrift of the early years had been replaced by a spending spree. The MAS Executive Staff Association (Mesa) told the press in 2002, that third parties with “personal links” to certain corporate people were given lucrative contracts to handle services like air cargo, catering, insurance underwriting, a yacht business, off-shore aircraft leasing and IT. Mesa claimed that the MASKargo scandal was just the “tip of the iceberg”. The Government renationalised the airline in a highly controversial purchase of Tajudin’s MAS shares at RM8 each, though the market price was just RM3.62. Tan Sri Azizan Zainul Abidin, the new chairman, frankly disclosed then that MAS’ culture had “fostered abuse, the plunder of the company for personal gains, high cost and inefficiency.” He promised new procedures to plug the “rampant leakages and stop the haemorrhage to protect it from predators.” In 2002, the burdens of aircraft depreciation, various debts and unprofitable domestic routes were transferred to Penerbangan Malaysia Bhd, the Government’s airline holding company. MAS even lodged a police report against Tajudin for improprieties in MASKargo which had caused the airline to lose some RM1bil. Even then the haemorrhage continued, and Dewan Negara senators queried the purchase of Botero paintings and asked why a foreign “consultant” was being paid RM7,525 a day.In the first nine months of 2005 alone, the losses were RM1.3bil. So what was to be done? New helmsman Enter Idris Jala, then a senior executive with Shell Malaysia, as CEO in December 2005. Relatively unknown, his appointment was somewhat of a surprise and he faced a monumental task: an overstaffed and demoralised MAS that was close to running on empty with the majority of its routes making losses. Undaunted, he got to work. (See The Idris Jala way on SM6). When a local business magazine asked him last year how “MAS culture” had changed, he answered, “You change culture by doing.” But some things may not be perfect yet. In mid-2007, there were rumours of employee sabotage apparently over alleged favouritism in giving out incentives, resulting in many missed and delayed flights (even Transport Minister Datuk Seri Chan Kong Choy was affected). Idris' solution to tackling such residual problems was to have an open door policy and be transparent. “There is no accountability without transparency,” explains Idris. And it has gone down well. Says MAS staff trainer Faridah Abdul Rahman; “It’s fantastic. The CEO is online. He gives out his email address and staff can write to him directly. And he replies!” “It’s the first time it has happened in the company,” testifies Alice Nazareth, a marketing executive, who joined MAS as a stewardess back in 1973. Another factor is the CEO’s humility. Mazlan Mokty, a senior steward, says, “When we see him, he doesn’t like us to call him Datuk. He prefers just plain Idris.” Idris's upbringing must surely play a part. He grew up in the Bario Highlands of Sarawak’s interior, the home of the staunchly Christian Kelabit people. There were (and still are) no roads and it took more than a week to reach Miri by jungle trail and riverboat. “My father was a teacher and I followed him on jungle treks for days sometimes. Because of these hardships, we did not take things lightly. As a student I knew that if I wanted to see the world beyond our hills, I had to study hard. “When the MAS Rural Air Service started flying to Bario, it was like a gift from heaven. If people were not working or at church, they would go to the little airstrip to wait for the plane. I grew up totally loyal to MAS.” That steadfast belief in the organisation and its people has been rewarded. When Idris announced the turnaround plan in 2005, the business community was not convinced. Now just two years on, MAS has earned the highest profits in its history. From a morass of low morale and abysmal losses, MAS' makeover – based on accountability, transparency, hard work and thrift –has been nothing short of magical. The celebration of its 60th Anniversary has shown how Malaysians can aspire to greatness.

Spiegel Online Frankfurt Airport Expansion Enrages Residents The Frankfurt airport, one of the world's biggest hubs, has received the go-ahead to build a new terminal and runway. The regional government says the €4 billion expansion will create 40,000 jobs. But residents and environmental groups are furious at a decision to allow night flights, and plan a wave of lawsuits. The Hesse regional government has approved Frankfurt airport's plans to build a new terminal and runway. Environmental groups, city councils and residents near Frankfurt Airport -- Europe's third busiest, behind London's Heathrow and Paris' Charles de Gaulle -- are planning lawsuits after Tuesday's decision by the regional government to allow construction of a fourth runway and a third terminal. Horst Schneider, mayor of the Frankfurt-area city of Offenbach, said the increased noise of aircraft landing and taking off will hit his community especially hard. "We will use all legal means, right up to the EU level if necessary," he said. Schneider said some 150,000 people will be negatively affected by the expansion. Unlike protected animal species, people couldn't simply be moved elsewhere, he said. He's not alone. Environmental groups and local authorities around the airport are planning legal action and are especially angry that the Hesse regional government broke its promise to ban night flights as part of the airport expansion. "Residents have been misled for years," said Brigitte Martin, spokeswoman for environmental group BUND. The government had "thrown down the gauntlet" to the local population, she said. The opposition Social Democrats in the Hesse state parliament said they were also considering legal action. Hesse's Economy Ministry announced on Tuesday that it had given Fraport, the airport operator, the green light for the €4 billion expansion to ease capacity bottlenecks. "Only through this will Frankfurt remain one of the eight most important air transport hubs in the world," said Hesse's Economy Minister, Alois Rhiel. In giving approval to the project, the Hesse government said it would allow 17 flights between 11 p.m. and 5 a.m. each night, giving priority to cargo flights. Airlines had asked for more, and holiday airline Condor said the total ban on passenger services between 1 a.m. and 4 a.m. was a "bitter pill" for the company. German national carrier Deutsche Lufthansa, which owns almost 10 percent of Fraport, had called for permission for 41 flights a night. Rhiel said the expansion would create 40,000 jobs by 2020. He said night flights had to be allowed because of Frankfurt's importance as an international cargo and passenger hub. Besides, a ban would probably not have been legally enforcable following court rulings allowing them at the airports of Munich and Leipzig. The project will entail removing 282 hectares of forest and resettling a variety of protected animals. Hesse Prime Minister Roland Koch, who faces a tough regional election on Jan. 27, said failure to expand Frankfurt would have been "a disaster for the region." Frankfurt Airport is expected to handle some 54 million passengers this year, but says it needs more capacity to cope with an expected 88 million passengers in 2020 as passenger numbers grow some 3.5 percent annually. Demand for aircraft take-offs and landings is likely to rise to about 700,000 by 2020 from 489,000 in 2006, Fraport has said. Cargo and mail tonnage carried is also expected to increase more than 70 percent, to 3.16 million metric tonnes in 2020. The German state of Hesse owns 31.6 percent of Fraport, while the city of Frankfurt holds 20 percent of the stock. Fraport Chief Executive Wilhelm Bender said he was confident the airport will win upcoming court cases brought by opponents of the expansion. The new runway to the northwest of Frankfurt Airport is due to come into operation by 2011. The third terminal to the south of the airport, which will raise the airport's current capacity of 56 million passengers annually by 25 million, is expected to be completed around 2013/14.

Another MRO ties... now with QANTAS.. Australia's Qantas in aircraft maintenance tie-up with Malaysia Airlines 12.19.07, 2:51 AM ET SYDNEY (Thomson Financial) - Australian flag carrier Qantas Airways announced Wednesday an aircraft maintenance joint venture with Malaysia Airlines subsidiary MAS Aerospace Engineering (MAE). Qantas said the joint venture, scheduled to begin operations in Malaysia next year, will target the Asia-Pacific aircraft maintenance, repair and overhaul market, which is forecast to be worth 15 billion US dollars by 2016. Qantas chief executive Geoff Dixon said the venture built on the investment of 300 million Australian dollars Qantas previously announced for its Australian engineering operations.'It also reflects the Qantas Group's objectives of growing our aviation-related businesses into growth markets in Asia and the Pacific,' he said. Malaysia Airlines chief Idris Jala said the joint venture will provide a world-class facility in the Malaysian capital. 'Our priority will be to develop Kuala Lumpur as a maintenance, repair and overhaul hub for the Asia-Pacific region for services,' he said.(1 US dollar = 1.16 Australian dollars) Forbes

LANGKAWI, Dec 5 (Bernama) -- Malaysia Airlines (MAS) expects to achieve RM1 billion in annual revenue from the maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO) business by 2010, its senior general manager for engineering and maintenance (MRO), Mohd Roslan Ismail, said Wednesday.For this year, it has targeted RM300 million in revenue from MRO and is already in talks with several potential clients both local and overseas to grow this business, he told reporters after MAS signed memorandums of understanding with three international airlines at the Langkawi International Maritime & Aerospace (LIMA) 2007 exhibition here.One MoU, with Saudi Arabian Airlines, is for the two airlines to support each other in aircraft maintenance, ground handling, components repair & overhaul and training.Another is for MAS to set up a joint venture engineering and maintenance facility in Indonesia with PT Eka Sari Lorena Airlines of the Lorena Transport group of companies.MAS also signed an engineering services contract with Lorena Air to provide MRO services.Under the third MoU, MAS will provide Air Atlanta Icelandic's fleet with long term maintenance,MAS Engineering & Maintenance has advanced heavy maintenance facilities and six fully equipped hangars at Kuala Lumpur International Airport and Sultan Abdul Aziz Shah Airport at Subang.-- BERNAMA

The irony of this... One can't find all the 500 destinations MH flies in their hompage.

So will MH setup another subsidiary? or this is just rhetorical?

I don't think it's uneven surface... We should see MH, MASwings, Firefly, AK, AKX as a separate entity....not as daughter company of MH, or as daughter company of AK... as examples MI is separate entity from SQ. Then we can see it is actually an even playing fields... What I don't understand why AK really really wants to compete with FY? If FY is like MASwings.. I don't think he don't even want to consider it..... What i find wrong with Malaysian aviation now... MH competing with AK instead of TG, SQ, EK, CX. AK competing with FY instead of Jetstar, MI.

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The Independence An excerpt

for 7 times daily I think 4 is enough...3 if you push it...

Hmm How many aircraft actually do you need to run 14 times weekly KUL-LHR? Just out of the blue... When A380 comes around probably MH reduce frequencies to LHR to 7 times daily... just to fill up the capacity.... hehe... if A380 comes around..The demise of MH 744 seems certain.

Will all the runways have the same 4km length like the current 2? If it will be... how big is KLIA going to be? 4++ km wide and more than 8km long? It probably big enough so that we dont need Subang anymore huhuhu.... let demolish Subang to the dust bit by bit... hehehe

Probably because at the proposed 2nd satellites site, one has to dig out a tunnel all the way from MTB, Taxiway, and probably runway too. Unless the LCC (read: AK) want to use the MTB for check-in counters an then used the aerotrain to 2nd satellites building.

Can we expect a new routes announcement? From KUL at least. with introduction of new generation of airplanes...like A350, B787, A380, B777 worldliner...