Cheng Long

East Malaysia is important to both BN and PR.. That's why PR is also enticing them with 20% oil royalty..

Air Asia beats MAS to it... They have 1Malaysia livery first..

I thought they have made a small profit last quarter..

But ATR doesn't land in KLIA..

Flight to darwin will be good.. There is not a lot competition on that route..

Another ground work is their new passport showing the disputed areas as being theirs. Vietnam refuses to stamp new Chinese passports over map Vietnamese officials are refusing to stamp new Chinese passports bearing a map that lays claim to disputed areas. Border authorities have instead been issuing visas on separate pieces of paper and stamping those issued previously as invalid. Vietnam, the Philippines and Taiwan have objected to the map because it shows disputed islands in the South China Sea to be a part of China.

Last time MH's new Australian website was done for a long period of time as it did not comply with Australian standard. I guess the potential loss of income would be more than A$200,000.

I know for Perth route, MH is usually just over half full whereas D7 is usually like completely full. As passenger I don't really mind though. For twice in a row, I had 4 seats for myself. I had 4 TV screens. Full 'flat bed'. Better than business class except for food.

Will the FAs wear the retro uniforms too?

Looks like the news is still hot. Here's another article. Apparently the enforcement officers took some videos as well. I am not sure whether it's their operating protocol or not to take videos as evidence, but if it is, then they will have a huge collection of 'racy videos' over the years. PAS: We have video of indecent duo KOTA BARU: The two men in the car were given summonses for indecent behaviour, says PAS which insists it has video evidence. State Local Government, Culture and Tourism committee chairman Datuk Takiyuddin Hassan said the state government would defend the Kota Baru Municipal Council (MPKB) enforcement officers who issued the summonses to the men caught near the Sultan Ismail Petra Airport last month. “MPKB has video footage to prove what they were doing in the car and I have seen it myself,” he said after attending the executive council meeting chaired by Mentri Besar Datuk Nik Abdul Aziz Nik Mat at Kota Datul Naim yesterday. http://thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2012/12/13/nation/12452562&sec=nation

It will be very uncomfortable in those tight seats for a flight that long. I really hope MH will increase the legroom a bit, even just 2 inches. Otherwise, I doubt the route will be successful. Almost everything in Perth is expensive now.

http://thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2012/12/10/nation/12437971&sec=nation There is a photo of the summon issued. If you have good eyesight, you can actually read what was written.

Looks a bit like Boeing now..

I suspect they probably appeared to be physically very close to each other. Both of them were probably looking at their 'catch of the day' from the small LCD screen behind their camera and having a jovial time. So their heads would be pretty close to each other if both were looking at the same camera. For people looking from outside their car, it may look suspicious.

I once heard Kelantan is so business friendly because the officers there don't go around harassing people for money. Anyway, I suspect what happened was that the officers were looking for quick buck from the spotters and an unfortunate couple in the park. It does make life because man and woman too close cannot. Now man and man also cannot. The definition of being 'too close' also varies from individual to individual. This incident was first brought out by National PAS Supporters Congress president Hu Pang Chaw. It was then picked up by The Star and other medias. So it was a true incident. There is a commentary on The Star today regarding this incident. I'll just copy and paste part of it since most of you won't read it otherwise. Non-Muslims feeling the heatWe are merely kidding ourselves if we think the rules by PAS only apply to Muslims. THERE they go again. The PAS-­controlled Kelantan state government, which has yet to resolve the controversy over the gender segregation ruling on hair salons run by non-Muslims, has now found itself in another explosive issue. Four non-Muslims – two men on a plane-spotting outing and a couple in a park – have been issued with summonses for khalwat. The summonses were for “indecent behaviour” but the four have denied any wrongdoing, insisting that the municipal council enforcement officers were “merely abusing their position”. The first case involved two men in their 30s who were in a car parked beside the Sultan Ismail Petra Airport. They claimed they were watching planes land in the night when they were issued with the summonses by these Taliban-style officers. This writer can only deduce that Kota Baru must be so boring – the result of a ban on entertainment outlets – that the two young men have to watch planes landing at the airport for entertainment. How these officers can consider their action an offence is mind-boggling. But we know that the PAS politicians have a great sense of imagination and can conjure up fantasies out of seemingly ordinary situations. They think that getting a haircut from a person of the opposite sex can lead to moral decay and watching concerts can lead to hedonism or excessive pleasure, whatever that means. Malaysians know that these cranky politician-theologians also frown upon the mixed company of males and females, but two non-Muslim men being punished for being in a car together, that’s a new one. Are they telling us now that two men together can lead to immoral activities or that watching planes at the airport can be sexually arousing? Even if they had committed a “gay act”, does the council have any jurisdiction over non-Muslims? The other case involved a 17-year-old boy and a girl aged 15. They were together at the Tengku Anis Park in the town centre, in broad daylight, when they were arrested. They were approached by the enforcement officers and issued summonses on the spot for purported indecent behaviour. Nothing seems to be safe any more for non-Muslims in Kota Baru. You get fined for having a hair cut by a hairstylist of a different sex, you get fined for being in love and sharing private moments in a park in broad daylight, and you also get summoned for being in a wrong queue in a supermarket check-out. Before anyone accuses this writer of filing another PAS-bashing piece, it is important to point out that the protest over the latest controversies was started by the National PAS Supporters Congress president Hu Pang Chaw, who is known for his apologist stand for the Islamist party. Interestingly enough, Hu has also revealed that the male victims had complained to him that the officers had even sought RM500 “to settle the matter”, which means that these holier-than-thou officers were open to corruption. Hu added that “as far as I know, the council has no right to issue summonses to non-Muslims for close contact with their girlfriends in the dark or out in the open”. But Hu shouldn’t plead ignorance now because the PAS rules have always infringed upon non-Muslims. This is not the first time and it won’t be the last.

In China, I like KFC shrimp burger.

Dr M's son is just one of the many directors no? Plus the agreement is just for A380 isn't it? They initially gave free fuel also.

Sibu is very different from Mukah though.. It's the Foochow capital of Sarawak in contrast to Melanau. BTW, another Melanau's favourite is eating sago products and sago worms. You can easily find them in the market.

It was reported that they are expecting a small profit this quarter. So we will see whether the turnaround plan works or not. Sometimes getting those Bangladesh and Nepal labors to do menial jobs is not a bad idea especially if they are much cheaper. Given half a chance Qantas would like to do the same too.

Sea... Plenty of local fishermen go out to the sea. Apparently it's their Melanau lifestyle. Their town "mascot" is actually a fish. Their fresh catch is made into umai or Mukah sashimi. Having said that, if you are looking for those high end seafood cooking, you won't find it there. It's just some simple local seafood fare. Yea as a gateway to Mulu, plus Niah cave, some recently discovered diving sites and even Brunei. In the town itself, nothing much to do la, there is kraft market, pasar tamu but if you are from Sabah, then it's pretty much the same.

Mukah beach has always been brown as long as I can remember, but it's dirtier now with rubbish and many many debris. The seafood is still pretty fresh though. If you are tourist, the place I recommend in Sarawak will be Miri and Mulu. You can also drive to Brunei as a short excursion.

Yea, that's why there are not many flights.. When I was little, I've been to Sibu quite a couple of times to visit relatives. I think they will be hard pressed to build tourism industry there.

I think it's more the people there to holiday elsewhere.

Unlike most businessmen who prefer to keep low profile and hedge their bets on both sides of politics, TF went further. I remember him campaigning for Sharizat and praising Najib often.

TF is very pro BN but a different camp from that MP.