KK Lee

Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund is close to a deal for a large number of Boeing Co. commercial jets that will serve in the fleet of a new national airline, people familiar with the matter said. The Saudi sovereign-wealth fund is expected to announce the deal later Sunday amid the official launch of the airline, according to some of the people. Earlier in the day, the government announced the creation of the new carrier, Riyadh Air. Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman said the new airline will take advantage of Saudi Arabia’s geographic location between the three continents of Asia, Africa and Europe, “enabling Riyadh to become a gateway to the world and a global destination for transportation, trade, and tourism.” Tony Douglas, who ran Abu Dhabi’s state-backed carrier Etihad for five years, was named chief executive of Riyadh Air. The Boeing BA 0.91%increase; green up pointing triangle aircraft order is valued at $35 billion, some of the people said. People with knowledge of the agreement said the mix is expected to include wide-body jets often used in long-haul international flying. Deals for new aircraft can fall apart even in their later stages. A potential Saudi order has been expected to involve as many as 100 airplanes or more, according to people briefed on the competition. Aircraft deals can include a mix of confirmed orders and options to buy more later. https://www.wsj.com/articles/saudi-sovereign-wealth-fund-close-to-deal-for-boeing-jets-943c1377

Before downsized, mh was a major carrier on kangaroo route. if mh have enough good yield transit pax, o&d yield from kul is secondary. on kul-bkk, mh ticket price is generally more expensive than tg; tg serve 3 course meal and good range of alcohol. with limited network, poor service, etc, few pax are willing to pay premium price to travel mh.

FRA T1 allow separation of domestic, international arrival and international departure pax in a single terminal.

Talked to someone who is familiar with the klia aerotrain; it seems, different vendors have submitted a number of proposals to mahb in the last few years and mahb ignored them all. Believe or not; crossover switch between the existing tracks and the Operation, Maintenance and Storage Facility (OMSF) doesn't work. OMSF is practically useless and why aerotrain maintenance is carry out at the satellite station. Not that current rolling stock from bombardier couldn't be repaired. It is just purely mahb mismanagement and incompetency.

KUALA LUMPUR (Oct 11): The government remains committed to brand Malaysia as a top destination for tourism, with the Visit Malaysia 2020 (VMY2020) campaign targeting to achieve 30 million tourist arrivals. To support efforts in making VMY2020 a success, the government said it will continue to allocate 50% of tourism tax to the respective state governments. The government is also allocating RM1.1 billion to the ministry of tourism, arts and culture, including an allocation of RM960 million to drive awareness, promotions and programmes of the VMY2020 campaign. https://www.theedgemarkets.com/article/govt-sets-aside-rm11b-tourism-ministry-drive-visit-malaysia-2020-campaign The government today proposed an allocation of RM2 billion in 2018 Budget as tourism fund to provide loans for operators next year. Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak said the fund to assist the small and medium-scale enterprises would provide loans at subsidised interest rate of two per cent. “Of the amount, RM1 billion will be allocated for Tourism Infrastructure Development Fund as soft loans,” he said. Najib said RM500 million would be used for development and promotion activities through improved tourism facilities, homestay and eco-tourism programmes. https://www.nst.com.my/news/nation/2017/10/295750/2018-budget-rm2b-improve-tourism-industry Mean substantial amount of federal funding was siphoned off.

Everyone in mab knows no matter how much losses mab incurred, gomen will bail it out. The only possibility to turn around mab is to replace entire bod and top 3 level of management, contract a management team from me3. similarly for mahb.

Mean mas has given up on business turnaround plan, is lacking strategic plan and will remain at current status for foreseeable future.

Without a realistic strategic business plan, mh is neither here nor there, wanted to compete with lcc but opex is too high, wanted to be a fsc but service level and product is like lcc, is lost in the wilderness, become irrelevant.

mh or kul couldn't add much value to qr network, doubt Akbar Al Baker would even consider.

QR does advised kul-doh sector is operate by mh. MOT and PMO is not known to be business savvy; to follow their directive is almost certain to end in losses. type of aircraft deployed is operational, for mot to get involved could only end with bad result, also means mab management is spineless. Aircraft delivery take a few years. without a feasible strategic plan, mh couldn't ensure long term survival.. heard from a few friends; it seems mh has been cancelling low load flight and combined pax to improve load, also means mh is not dependable. those pax with tight schedule is not advisable and unlikely to book with mh.

History proved, D7 business model is unprofitable, make sense to hide under AK. To improve yield, it make sense to mix a321xlr with a330.

Believe most pax on these flights would be on qr ticket, to allow qr to reassign their aircraft to other routes.

It seems mab is still largely dictated by the government, don't have strategic plan or realistic business model.

Sound like, smell like, look like money game

Granted aoc is probably the easiest and least costly task. many under estimated amount of cash needed to sustain the operation before cash flow positive.

Believe mas incurred less losses in the last two years than before.

Almost anyone with cable and deep pocket could obtain aoc in cambodia. those chinese funded or controlled cambodian airlines was intended to bring gamblers and investors from prc to sihanoukville. it may be relatively easy to obtain aoc but operating environment is a different story.

d7 current business model of operating a333 only is not feasible. for d7 to sustain, a change of business model is essential.

Without sharing network planning, it is difficult to judge whether 'cash flow positive in october 2023' is realistic or not. if previous attitude remain, mas will need ltbt x.0. rm3.6 billion is sufficient to start a new airlines and have a better chance to success.

Either plan a or b, creditors will loss and the management remain unchanged. old wine in new bottle.

😨I have substantial credit with BA.

China’s aviation regulator is recommending cabin crew on charter flights to high-risk Covid-19 destinations wear disposable diapers and avoid using the bathroom to reduce the risk of infection. The advice comes in a 38-page list of guidelines for airlines to prevent the spread of coronavirus. The sixth edition echoes similar instructions in previous, less lengthy versions. The Civil Aviation Administration of China said the recommendation applies for charter flights to and from countries and regions where infections exceed 500 in every one million people. The diaper advice is in a section on personal protective equipment, which also recommends the following for cabin crew: Medical protective masks Double-layer disposable medical rubber gloves Goggles Disposable caps Disposable protective clothing Disposable shoe covers Flight crew should wear masks and goggles, but they don’t need diapers. https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2020-12-10/cabin-crew-told-to-wear-diapers-on-risky-covid-flights

Saudi airlines will face same weight limit.

744, 77w and a380 could refuel at sin or kul.

As haj umrah is seasonal, wet lease 773, 744, A380 is an option.