szesyn

I have been noticing Flightradar showing MH752 operating KCH-HAN on Wednesdays departing at 0910. Do we really have a flight to Vietnam? Equipment operating is an A330-300.

Seems like there are more wide-body operations these days whenever MH does the KUL-KCH run. Otherwise, it is so quiet at KCH during the RMCO.

V8-OAS looks like the Sultan's Dreamliner. Flypass means no landing or touch down and immediate take off?

Thanks for this picture. Great to see A321-Neo in KCH. Hope she will be making periodic trips back to KCH especially during the peak travel seasons.

Thanks for the cover Prestley. No water canon? Or is this reserved only for inaugural flights?

Passed by the end of runway 07 today and noticed that the authorities have added runway approach lights to the existing lights (the concrete wall structure). They cleared the vacated army camp land next to the runway and added new approach lights atop tall yellow two prong poles. Does this mean that the Instrument Landing System (ILS) at runway 07 is finally ready and that we can expect more landings at 07? It could save up to 10 minutes flight time if compared to the current practice that planes have to circle the city and land at runway 25.

Yes indeed. The thing though about XD is that it offers something that AK and IW do not - onboard stretcher services - the one thing that contributes to the medical tourism between PNK and KCH. But then, I found out that some of the private hospitals here started offering trans-border ambulance services. That I suppose spells the death knell for XD since their passenger fares were not cheap - something like RM400+ one way from KCH to JOG via PNK.

Seems like Xpress Air has stopped/suspended services to KCH from PNK. If so, then I am not surprised. With high fares, old equipment and stiff competition, one is bound to give out.

Yep, time for this baby to take a bath. I always enjoyed an A330 landing; usually smooth and slow like any gentle giant. Thanks for the pictures Prestley

Sigh,. thanks for the information. Okay, at least one equipment upgrade.

This CNY season, any news of equipment upgrade to 330 or 350? We used to have Chinese charters at this time operated by CZ or MU.

Righto. IW must have good reasons for doing so considering the additional cost of parking, crew accommodation etc. I expect the commercial load factor for the 7 am flight must be good. I recalled years before when BI used to nightstop their A319 in KCH for an early morning departure to BWN.

Thanks for the great pics; well covered. Noticed that this IW aircraft has Lion Air's logo on its tail. I have seen IW in Indonesia spotting another logo - a pair of wings sans the lion head. Anyway, all part of the Lion family. Now, looking at the departure timing ex KCH, am I right to assume that IW makes a nightstop in KCH given that the second flight of the day pulls in at around 7.30 pm and leaves at 7.00 am the next morning?

Great to hear that. IW's ATR will presumably be parked between Gate 8 and 9, a spot which MasWings used to occupy when they did the PNK run. While waiting to board AK1771 yesterday, I just noticed (probably been there for some time) that there is a passenger marked walkway on the tarmac leading from Gate 8. Looking forward to your pictures, water canon and all.

Lion Air's Wings Air (IW) seems set to join in the PNK-KCH vv battle for passengers come 24 January 2017. With 2 daily flights, competition is going to get nasty: http://www.harnas.co/2018/01/04/wings-air-buka-rute-pontianak-kuching

Any idea if A350 Jalur Gemilang making a trip to Kuching anytime soon?

Thanks for the pictures guys. Great stuff. Just sharing my nostalgia - I finally found this 1970-ish Malay film online - which was shot mostly in Kuching. The movie plot is nothing to shout about but opening scene, you will see a cabin shot of Malaysia Airlines System's classic B737-200 first class. Fast forward to 17:40 and you will see Kuching airport when it was still operating at what is now RMAF https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SNqtFqBTw1U

Maswings fares are exhorbitant (even for the so called subsidized RAS routes served by the Twin Otters and the people traveling these routes are precisely those who cannot afford to pay commercial rates). For a return trip from Kuching to Bario via Miri, I can go to Perth!

Additional KCH-SIN from 27 Dec onwards making it a total of 16 x weekly; 3 flights on Friday and Sunday; with MH and TR, 5 flights to SIN on these days. I think AK is going into head on competition with TR.

Additional daily KCH-SIN effective 27 Dec 2017 - AK1773 / KCH-SIN/ 0730; returning as AK1774 / SIN-KCH/1415

AK is launching BTU-SIN from 27 Dec 2017. Wow, didn't see that one coming. Sibu folks must be fuming. Press release also said KCH-SIN increased to 16x weekly. That means an additional daily flight to the current 9 x weekly.

I find it odd that TR flights are all in the evenings except on Tuesday morning. What gives? Or are they maintaining the landing slot on Tue morning that MI previously had? Then again, it is not as if KCH is that crowded that landing slots are that precious. No media coverage on the last MI flight out of KCH on 27 Oct too. After more than 10 years in operations. Then again, MI wasn't promoting itself much and its service to SIN from KCH is just so so. Meal service is a single curry puff and no duty free shopping . Anyways, here's to the SZX flight; may it lasts longer than HX. I am still hoping for KCH-TPE to materialise soon. There's definitely commercial load there.

Woo hoo; Zhongguo Nanfang Hangkong's baby bus. Wish this can be a scheduled flight. But when it took off yesterday, it was just shortly before strong winds hit Kuching like a mini typhoon.

Oh wow. How long was the flight on ground in KCH? Was the routing CAN-BKI?