Hardeep P.

What about the 747-8? MH should order 8-10 of them like TG is ordering 8 of them soon. Mayb 773ER or the 747-8 should be in the list. The 747-8 can help the A380 fly twice daily to LHR, once daily to SYD and once daily to AMS while the A380 (assuming they still go with it) will fly once daily to LHR and SYD only for 7X a week. Sufficient to utilise 6 in the fleet. 747-8 can fly to South Africa (Cape Town, Johanesburg) and Argentina (Buenos Aires) as well as to USA (LAX). I think directly to LAX will be a possibility. 773ER can fly every where else- other European countries- Paris, Frankfurt as well as Rome and off course Stockholm and then to Newark. Might even fly Istanbul via Dubai. As for OCEANIA routes, Auckland and Melbourne is a possibility. For Oriental routes, perhaps HK, Tokyo, Seoul and off course Beijing and Shanghai. For India, Mumbai, Delhi. 772ER rest of the OCEANIA- Perth, Brisbane, Adelaide and other ORIENTAL and Middle Eastern routes. A330/A350- All routes to capitals of ASEAN and some domestic and also India and China. 738- All domestic routes and some ASEAN routes. So all win. 747-8, A380, 777s, A330/A350 and 738.

Does it mean that EK is not ordering the 747-8 I now? I heard rumors that EK was coining with the idea of ordering abt 20 747-8 I and the announcement will be made at the Dubai Air show. If so, another big loss to the 747-8 I project. Real pitty. Apart from LH, no other airliner is interested in it for their pax business. Wonder why? Apparently, EK wanted Boeing to reduce the length of 747-8 but fly further (8400nm at least so it can connect to the west coast of US- LAX, SFO etc) while Boeing rather have capacity then distance (467 pax in 3 class and 8000 nm). Now with Boeing loosing the 747-8 from BA and EK (I hope not), I see the future of the 747-8 Intercontinental dark. Mayb TG with 8 orders apparently, CI with a few more and CX and JAL?

Hi again, Perhaps one of the MAS pilots- Capt Nik, Capt Radzi, TK etc can assit in answering the question. How is the flight ops dept in MAS and other airliners divided? Does every fleet have a chief pilot and does every fleet have a fleet manager? Your help appreciated. Thanks.

Hi guys, I feel this is a very good place to voice my oipnion for improvement. I dont intend to take over the role of the MAS CEO, CFO or COO ( the 3 main top corporate figures) as I have enough at the moment but merely to give suggestions both short term, medium term and long term. Basically Short term: (LESS THAN 1 YR) 1.do away with the non-money making routes. Agree with some that there are just too many european routes served by MAS at the moment, 2. Cancel the A380 and look for alternatives+ compensation by sourcing more A330s or possibly the A350s but this again is against standardisation of single fleet. So, maybe more A330s. As already KLIA is the airbus rich airport, i see this as not a problem. In fact MAS + AIRBUS can even form a JV with a regional maintenance centre for ASEAN for these airbuses. 3. Paint more Hibsicus-Bunga RAYA (RED) + freedom (Blue). 3 aint enough. I think good source is Azuddin and i remember sometime back he had some creative colors for further expansion. 4. Maintain 777-200ER as the main long haul work horse instead of having 4 at the moment. (744, 777,A333, A322) 5. Improve onboard services 6. Improve ground services as ground staff are d ambassadors of MAS. 7. Look at CARGO, and develop it as another Main bussiness group 8. and others like CATERING and ENGINEERING & MAINTENANCE Work-pure supportive. 9. Bring in more experienced with AIRLINERS like KLM-AF, SAS, SQ, QF, BA as well as from different industries- SHELL, Banking, Petronas 10. Undertake a 5 yr, 10 yr, 15 yr, 20 yr and 25 yrs masterplan and long term business studies by engaging with top business consultancy group. Have a max of 10 people doing it. 11. STOP COMPARING with AIR ASIA and look at others best in industry practises. 12. Develop FIREFLY and MWings as separate entities of MAS. 13. Order the B737-800s and B737-900 asap and do away with the 737-400s 14. pERFORMANCE Based pay and other iniatives to boost the morale of staff Medium Term: (MORE THAN 1 YR- LESS THAN 5 YRS) 1. Look at fleet rationalisation after business masterplan review study by reducing or selling some of the 744s and replacing it with both 747-8 and 777-200ER, 777300ER. I still feel 747-8 is needed for large hubs like London, Sydney, Tokyo, LAX Amsterdam as A380s have been cancelled from (2). 2. The 777300ERs can be used for long distance markets like Paris, Frankfurt as well as Tokyo, Hong Kong, Bangkok, Dubai, Beinjing, Shanghai, South Africa and Argentina etc. 3. 777-200ERs used for PERTH, ADELAIDE, BRISBANE and AUCKLAND as well INDIAN and ORIENTAL flights except HK which will be served by the 7773ER. 4. A330-200 and A330-300 serving Singapore, Bangkok, Indian routes, China routes & Middle Eastern routes as well a local routes like Penang, KK, Kuching to KL. 5. Improve SERVICES 6. OPEN TO COMMENTS. 7. Selecting and grooming the top 5 people to lead MAS. Long TERM: (MORE THAN 5 YRS) 1. Improve services 2. Standardise fleet by having just 777s (all varieties), A330s, 737-800/900 AND 747-8. 3. Create a MAS University for exchanging and lerning/training other airliners like in ASEAN (Hopefully by that time, MAS would have learnt something and be doing well). 4. Creating a european hub- Lhr, Ams, a Oriental Hub- HK, Tokyo, Beiijng, a Indian Hib- Delhi, Mumbai or Chennai, Middle Eastern Hub- Dubai and Australian Hub- SYD, Melbourne. 5. Selecting and grooming the top 5 people to lead MAS. Open to comments and criticism from all MalaysianWINGers. Thanks. Regards H

Also, looks like it was sent quite fast. What was the response time from IJ?Time email was sent to time taken for email reply was not more than 4-5hrs. Thanks Wong. But he could have replied to your questions on collectibles and service.Yes, he sure could have replied the collectibles and the services.I was hoping tp get a longer email from him but guess this is sufficient. He must be a bz man and especially when i received the email reply, it was like 6am/7am Malaysia TIME. Wonder whether he is at office so early.But the MAS fleet renewal, i dont buy that. What difference does it make if they order 777-300ER or A350s or the 787 for their current route network.

Hi MWings friends, here is an email from MAS-MD, Idris Jala. Enjoy!! Hi Hardeep, Many thanks for your email and the suggestions. We are in the midst of working through our fleet plan. A rather complex activity, we have to develop a clear view of our network in the next 20 years - destinations, routes and frequencies. Only when that is made can one then go into aircraft choice and bidding. We should finalise this work sometime next year latest. Our business turnaround plan (47 page word document) is available to the public in our web-site and it is self explanatory in terms of business direction, strategy, competition, financials, etc. This should deal with the questions you have on MAS, such as those in your email. Again thanks for showing so much interest in Malaysia Airlines. Idris ----- Original Message ----- From: HARDEEP HUNDAL <hardeephundal@yahoo.com> To: Idris Jala Sent: Thu Nov 01 00:47:29 2007 Subject: MAS FLEET Renewal Dear Dato Seri Idris, Greetings from Ireland. Hope you are well. Dont know whether you still are able to recall me. I contacted you once or twice whilst you were the SMDS (M) Managing Director & VP- Gas & power, SHELL MALAYSIA abt the SMDS plant. Really glad you are now the MD of MAS and I am looking forward to meeting with you in the not to distant future. I remember meeting you once while you were still MKRC- Retail Area Manager-Central when my late father Harbhajan Singh was the Operations Manager for Shell Malaysia then. I have a deep passion in both SHELL and MAS. Although I have been away from Malaysia for the last 14 yrs now, I still feel for MAS. I am also an avid collector of aeroplane models and after having studied both medicine and obtained my postgraduate degree in chemical engineering continue to do so. Although i dont see much connection in both at the moment. Anyways, just like to know the fleet renewal plan for MAS. Your neighbours like SIA and TG have all replenished their wide body and narrow body and i feel strongly that MAS should do same as soon as possible. These are my humble views. On what fleet MAS should procure, I feel storngly for the 747-8, 777-300ER for the wide body selection and 737-800 for the narrow body selection. As for the medium body- think A330s are still usable and good for regional/trunk routes like in ASIA. I compare the fleet standardisation to SHELL's own company road transport fleet standardisation back in the late 80s and early to mid 90s when at one point, they had SCANIA tankers as well as VOLVO Tankers and they decided to standardise all their tankers to VOLVO. So, same can be done. Imagine how much savings can MAS make from all these standadisation. As for the A380s, feel MAS should cancel all the orders and get compensation and buy more A330s instead. Some of the A330s can further be leased out to AIR ASIA and other regional airlines. I think I must speak for my fellow collectors and myself about aircraft model collection. MAS should re-introduce certain 1:400 scale models in the GOLDEN BOUTIQUE such as the 777-200ER (VMY 2007) and 747-400 (VMY 2007). I dont see any being done at the moment. Also, a GB store should be opened at KLIA. I am a MWings member and I have noticed that MAS services have gone down and are appalling since 2006. I think MAS should reevaluate their strategy and approach of being a 5star airline with low cost. Like in SHELL "MORE UPSTREAM with profitable Downstream, MAS should do same. Mas should stop competiing with AIR ASIA but look into comparing with the best airliners in the world. Namely BA, QF KLM-AF, SIA, CX, JAL for that matter. I have been to all of these airliners both as an economy class and business class passenger so I know whats good and not so good. Thanks for reading my email. My apologies for troubling you. Hope to hear from you soon. Kind Regards HARDEEP S HUNDAL

Hi, Welcome to MWings Afiq. Thanks for the input. Will MAS be investigating the incident?? STrange to have both A330-300 and 777-200ER in MAS FLEET having technical probs in the same week.

Why cant QF fly direct to Sydney or Melbourne instead of stopping over in Singapore? Why cant they fly to Brisbane or Perth from KL? Why cant it use their extra services for the kangaroo route flying London-Kuala Lumpur-Melbourne or Sydney like they do at Bangkok, Singapore and now Hong Kong?

Hi, Any one knows whats the future holds for the 747-8? Will Lufthansa be the only ones operating the 747-8I? Heard Emirates and Thai were interested but nothing solid. Pitty BA decided to go for the A380 instead. What abt JAL, Cathay, China Airlines? What abt MAS? Does the future look bleak for the 747-8 now with the A380 as the new JUMBO. Comments appreciated!!

The B747-8I is definately a superb plane. Its a real pity that not many airliners (apart from Lufthansa) are interested in purchasing them. I see the move might EMIRATES a good one. Perhaps other airliners like BA, JAL, KLM, SIA, Qantas, ANZ, CAL, PIA, Air India following EK foot steps. Even MAS should consider ordering a mix of 747-8I, 747-8F and 777-300ER.

Thanks Pieter for the information regarding KLM. I would like to ask, if KLM considers KLIA or KL their ASIAN Hub why bother with AMST-SINGAPORE or AMS-MNL direct when you can fly daily or twice daily into KLIA and continue onwards to Manila or Singapore like what they are doing now witj AMS-KUL-CGK? I am aware that KLM flies to Bangkok too but it would not be fair to fly to KL first before Bangkok? Will KLM ever order the B747-8 I? I was hoping so coz they have been long customers for Boeing and they have not ordered the A380? Really looking forward to the 773 and will the 744 be replaced? Regards H

The order of 20 747-8I is fantastic. What about the B777-300ER? I think they will not order the A320 and A350. Is the info correct?

Hi Leo, The pic u have, is from which airport? Rgds H

Many thanks. What happened to the daily Austrian B772 on the KANGAROO route? Does KLM B744 fly daily to KLIA and does it fly to Jakarta or Manila after wards? So is it safe to say that KLIA is KLM Asian hub? Does the Lufthansa fly directly to Frankfurt or via another destination? Is Malaysian Airports trying to woo more EUROPEAN Airlines into KLIA- i.e. BA, AF, Alitalia etc? Have they failed? Rgds H

Dear Ladies & Gents, Recently I was in KLIA for a couple of hours, and found the airport to be rather busy. It was just after noon and at the International Terminal there was a Thai A330, Cathay A330, SIA B777-200, Sri Lankan A330, Kuwait Air A340, Emirates B777-300ER and many MH aircrafts. It just show that KLIA is slowly becoming extremely busy in my opinion. Can you tell me, when, type of aircaft, how many and frequency of EUROPEAN based airliners stop over in KLIA? Many thanks. Rgds H

Hi Folks, Agree with everyone!! MAS should cancel the A380 and get some 773ER and 747-8. I think thats the best option for their turnaround and in the long term, slowly phase out the A330s and operate an all Boeing airliner like some other Asian careers. Not only will they be able to standardise materials, they will be able to reduce cost and improve on trainning. What do you guys think?

Thanks Seth K, Think MAS will cancel the A380 eventually. I call it the white flying elephant. What happened to the order then?? I see 777-300ER ideal for MH futute strategy as well as 747-8i! What do you think?

Can anyone tell me or share with me the current fuel farm capabilities and capacities in various Malaysian Airpots- KLIA, PEN, KCH, BKI and whether all are hydrant fed rite into the terminals? I know aviation fuel tank farms where Jet Fuel are stored are only supportive facilities, but it become CORE like the recent Buncefield Oil Terminal Disaster in UK 2 yrs ago. Did you know, that terminal supplied almost 70% of London Airports and Jet fuel supply were scarse then and long haul flights had to pick up fuel elsewhere in Europe?Some snap shots of each airport fuel farm facilities will be very helpful and useful. I am just curious!! From my understanding, the fuel supply from KLIA comes via a pipeline and its directly supplied from PD and Melaka where Petronas, Esso and Shell have their own refineries. Then, the rest of the fuel (non-jet Fuel) get delivered to this Oil Terminal in Dengkil. KLIA will some day achieve and hit its design limit if many main airlines decide to come back here. Lufthansa was the first!! I hope BA, AF, Qantas, Northwest will all return in a year or two. In order to do so, MAB have to woo them as well as understand their needs. None of the European airlines have hubs in KLIA while many do have in Bangkok and Singapore!! BA should think hard in re-instating flights back to KLIA en-route to destinations like Jakarta and Manila. Whats the schedule like for KLM? Do they still operate daily and stop over in Jakarta? Perhaps They should re-introduce flights to Manila via KLIA instead of flying direct. I also heard Austrian Airlines will stop plying to KLIA (Kangaroo route) soon. Is this true? I think Penang airport, KK Airport should be developed further. It still looks shabby. Any idea, whats up with the new Kuching Airport?? ANy pics?

Any idea when MAS (MH) will announce their new fleet replenishment?? Like 773s or 787s or 747-8Is? I am guessing some 777-300ERs for long hauls/international and 737-800s for short hauls/domestic? What about 787s or even 747-8Is?? If you take the current age of the 747-400s operated by MH, its almost 18yrs now. I remember the first few were combis and then MH got all their pax version. So, high time they renew it with 747-8 I s? I think apart from Lufthansa, no other airline has committed on the Intercontiental version for the new 747-8, so hope after BA, JAL, CAL, MH will also committ. What happened to the 737-800s leased from Czech? I remember in 2004/2005, MH had 3 leased from Czech?