flee

Apparently, AA and D7's priorities lie in the India market this year. So I am not sure if this route will be launched in time to spoil MH's plans. They are still exploring because this kind of routing just makes operations more complicated and costly!

Done some checking and the 772's are late 2004 aircraft while the B744's were delivered in 2006. Perhaps another reason why MH chose the A333 is that they may be considering adding the A332F to the fleet, after the 742's leave the fleet.

According to their website, these are A330 flights.

That would be for two 772s and 744s each. I am not sure how new the aircraft are but MH says that they would be the newest aircraft in the fleet. They are not buying the old junk. Also not disclosed is whether the deal includes spare engines and other spare parts. So it is not easy to value the deal! Maybe, in the interests of transparency, they should have an independent audit. Being a GLC, the MH shareholders are sleeping and won't be too bothered as it is in one hand, out the other. Well the WAU is one big con job as PNB (set up with taxpayers' money) was set up to buy aircraft from MH. As the taxpayers already own MH and all its assets, we are paying for it all over again.... And now they are asking the taxpayers to pay again as MH buys planes from PNB! How many times must the taxpayers pay for old planes???

Yes, D7 has been toying with the idea of one-stop flights to overcome their lack of a long range aircraft at the moment. Since D7 has increased its OOL frequency, there is some slack that can be filled. So flying on to CHC would increase the load factor. It would be interesting to see if the Aussies and NZlanders use the D7 flights. D7 is a favourite amongst Aussies to come to Asia and also to STN.

It is a novation of the S&P agreement with Airbus. MH will still need to pay the balance of the purchase price to Airbus.

An Ethiopian Airlines passenger plane with 92 people on board has crashed into the Mediterranean Sea shortly after take-off from Beirut airport. Not a lot of detail available yet but there is the BBC report in full: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/8478060.stm

After reading yesterday's piece on The Star, it would appear that the immediate strategy is to deploy the A333s on Asian and Middle East destinations, 772/744 on other long haul destinations and the A380 on the kangaroo runs. It should be interesting to see what MH orders to replace the 744/772 - this should be done in the next 2 or 3 years.

Frankly I do not see what benefits LCCs can derive out of a FFP unless they change the FFP model into something that is a win-win situation. If the current FFP model is used, then all it means is more cost to the airline. For the FF, I doubt if there is any excitement of being in the FFP programme if it is to be based on the present model. I think AK/D7 already has some sort of marketing tool other than FFP, e.g. their Facebook fan page, the AA Citibank card, etc. So a FFP should not really be a priority for them.

Yes, LAN is already a 767 operator and it makes sense to buy more 767's while waiting for the delayed 787. They might have gotten a good price for these aircraft too. They also managed to get earlier delivery slots for some 787s due to cancellations by others. So Boeing is giving priority to existing orders when delivery slots become vacant so as to minimise their compensation payments. The MH scenario is somewhat similar - it is already operating A330s and it might have gotten a good price for the new and improved A333s that it has ordered due to the compensation that Airbus is giving for the delayed A380s. The new A333s will be able to fill in while MH is waiting for B787/A350 delivery dates to become more definitive.

More info: LAN set to take early 787 slots

Maybe we can start a sticky "copyright infringement" thread...

I think that Boeing will probably offer any vacant B787 delivery slots to its existing customers first so that they can reduce the compensation settlements to them. New orders will just go to the back of the queue.

Airbus will begin a short flight-test programme of the A350's Rolls-Royce Trent XWB on the A380 development aircraft early next year, ahead of engine certification at the end of 2011. The new Trent engine, which is the only powerplant option offered on the A350, will be installed in one of the inboard positions on Airbus's Trent 900-powered A380 development aircraft (MSN001) later this year and begin flight-testing early in 2011. "We will fly a short flight-test programme of around 100h," says Airbus's flight-test chief Fernando Alonso. The tests will be focused on engine, nacelle and powerplant system integration. R-R says that ahead of the A380 flights, a Trent XWB will begin ground-testing in June. Full report here: http://www.flightglobal.com/articles/2010/01/19/337301/airbus-to-test-fly-a350s-trent-on-a380-next-year.html

This is OT. Perhaps you can check out the patent: Chevron exhaust nozzle for a gas turbine engine

Hehehehe, there is no real need for that lah! Whatever we say here is not going to affect what MH does. However, airlines will listen to their fare paying customers. A case in point is D7. Many pax conplained about their narrow and non reclining A333 seats and initially they said that this is the only way to make the economics work. But soon, you will see that most of the discussion about D7 centred around their seats. It has become such a liability that D7 has begun to retrofit new seats, starting with 9M-XXE. Now that is being responsive to customers' feedback. I am sure MH will take note of customer feedback. I think that the A333 replacement is really urgent as customers don't like the current product. MH might also follow SQ's example and make their A333 cabin and seats similar to that of the A380. So most pax will think that the A333 is just the same as the A380's. So lets see if MH's decision is right come 2011.

Unfortunately these guys don't really want to hear this - they want MH to order the B787 now and nothing else. I have been telling them throughout this thread that the A333 is MH's best option under current circumstances but they refuse to accept the rationale. They refuse to accept that the A333 that MH ordered is different and much improved from those that are currently in the fleet. They refuse to accept to leasing is not an option as MH will have difficulty finding newish A333's or B767s to lease in such numbers. They refuse to accept that there are other factors that MH has to consider, e.g. maintenance and training costs of a new type of aircraft such as the B787. They refused to look at the big picture and that MH could be ordering those new tech aircraft later on, after some real life operational experience has been gained. They refuse to accept that the B787/A350 has the possibility of further lengthy delays as the aircraft has a lot of new and unproven technonolgy. They refuse to accept that MH's priorities are different from their own! That is why I gave up trying to explain... running an airline is more than just choosing aircraft types based on fuel burn and new technology.

I think that currently there are queues for planes taking off in the mornings and evenings. So it is slightly congested (maybe 10-20 mins waiting time for takeoffs) during those times. For an LCC like AirAsia, that is precious fuel burnt up sitting in the queue. So this extra runway will save some taxi and waiting time for aircraft operating from the LCCT.

I wonder what the situation would be like once the new LCCT construction is complete? Will we be able to find somewhere strategic to get our shots? With two parallel runways the prospect of interesting shots (like those that come out of some other similar airports around the world) is quite exciting, isn't it? That is provided the bulis don't spoil the party!

There is no need to shout! As you should know, aircraft purchasing contracts are seldom (if ever) disclosed to the public. So only China Eastern can tell us why they can get their planes in 2014 and why MH or D7 can't. Many factors are involved, so your guess is as good as mine! I know you anti A333 guys are itching for MH to get onboard new tech aircraft. However, you should really be looking at how MH is run. History has shown us that MH is seldom on the leading edge. When Malaysia-Singapore Airlines split up MH took over the F-27, Twin Otters, B737s etc. while SQ took the B707s. So you can see that MH is operating to the Malaysian govt. agenda and is run like a civil service. As someone has said, we cannot live in denial all the time. Like it or not, MH is not in the Top 10 world airlines list unless a fully professional management is in charge, free from govt. interference. Currently it is not capable of making decisions that have long lead times for results. They are doing crisis management, not long term strategic management!

Unfortunately, MH is paying for the mistakes of the past. The present management has to make decisions based on current facts and the current business environment. Even well run airlines like SQ faced severe challenges last year and their financial position is not as good as before. Most taxpayers would not like to see MH in the red again as they (via the govt.) will have to bail them out again. In terms of risk, the tried and tested A333 will do for now. This aircraft will definitely be superior to the old fleet. When the B787/A350 has some real world operational numbers and more definite delivery slots, it would be easier for MH to evaluate the aircraft. By then the MH management will also be able to see what they need for their future plans.

Looks like the AK's 9M-AFx series of planes (being the oldest A322s) are progressively getting a new coat of paint.

And when will MH get these paper aeroplanes if they ordered them now? D7 ordered the A350 last year and first deliveries will only commence in 2016, assuming that there are no delays to the project schedule. Similarly, the B787 may also experience further delivery delays. These new tech aircraft are the first of their kind - so we are threading in the dark here and there may still be unforeseen problems coming up. Lets see what the B787 certification testing show up... As for leasing A333s from the market, it is not as easy as you guys think. There is a shortage of aircraft and lease rates are high. Besides, leasing is now no longer part of the MH policy. That is why many of us here are of the opinion that based on the current info and MH's requirements, the A333 order is the correct decision. A bird in hand is worth two in the bush. No doubt, MH will need to order more new wide bodies in the near future - their fleet renewal plans are by no means complete at the moment.

I believe that some compensation from Airbus for the A380 delays is involved - so this A333 deal could have saved MH a ton of money. That will be good for the bottom line!

I agree, MH is only looking at stuff that have reached "emergency" status! They cannot possible postpone the A330 fleet renewal order any more. It is fortunate that Airbus had some delivery slots for 2011 available for them! I think that for the B772 renewal they have already started by buying the newest aircraft from PNB. They now have to decide on what mix of A380/B772/B787/A350 they need. Lets hope that they will make more orders this year and not wait till those old planes fall apart!