AirAsia's latest new route, KUL - CHC

[flee 5]

Impossible with A333 but their A343 could. But IF they want to do non-stop, where the chance is very slim.

Fuming the anger with MH eh?

Knowing how cheeky D7 can be, I would not be surprised if they had their technical stop in SYD - just to prove a point that the problem lies with the Malaysian govt. and not the Aussie govt.

[flee 5]

I have only been able to read KUL-CHC direct, nothing about it being non stop

Yes, the word direct is a very misleading one in the airline industry!

 

D7 has recently been cancelling flights to PER and MEL (they have two flights to these destinations on some days). Perhaps these second flights are ideal candidates for extension onto CHC. That way, CHC bound pax will help fill the planes up.

[c.lee 0]

Yes, the word direct is a very misleading one in the airline industry!

 

D7 has recently been cancelling flights to PER and MEL (they have two flights to these destinations on some days). Perhaps these second flights are ideal candidates for extension onto CHC. That way, CHC bound pax will help fill the planes up.

I see. In this case, instead of purposely having a technical stop at SYD to irk MH, I believe D7 will choose to stop at PER or MEL instead. This will increase the apparent flight frequency into PER/MEL too.

 

However, any news whether they have secured 5th freedom rights out of Australia?

[Josh T 0]

Actually, the A332 would be perfect for a non-stop flight from KUL to CHC. It has a longer range and smaller capacity. AK won't be able to compete with that!

[Mohd Suhaimi Fariz 2]

Magnanimous spirit of this order, you do not see very often !

 

Of course, it's easy to be magnanimous if you don't directly compete with the other party. The only route that will see some competition between the two airlines is the LHR route, but I doubt that D7 will make a big dent on Air New Zealand profits when their products are much superior in my opinion.

[Naim 6]

Tourism NZ and airport lure airline

 

ALAN WOOD - The Press

Last updated 05:00 02/11/2010

 

Tourism New Zealand and Christchurch International Airport banded together to offer the incentives necessary to get AirAsia X across the line in bringing new flights to Christchurch.

 

On Friday a team including Christchurch Mayor Bob Parker, airport chief executive Jim Boult and Tourism NZ chief executive Kevin Bowler finalised a deal with the Malaysian-based low-cost carrier.

 

The Tony Fernandes-backed AirAsia X will start four return services to Christchurch from Kuala Lumpur from about March. The airline will eventually ramp up to daily services if flights are full enough.

 

Both Mr Boult and Mr Bowler said incentives were used to help win commitment from the new airline for the city ahead of other destinations.

 

An industry analyst said such incentives were necessary when dealing with low budget airlines. These airlines wanted to keep landing charges as low as possible and get financial help to attract passengers to fill seats.

 

One airport outside Australasia had offered an airline five years of landing free of charges to entice it to launch services.

 

Mr Parker has said the city is seeking up to 70,000 more visitors a year, bringing in an estimated $70-$80 million more to the region.

 

http://www.stuff.co.nz/business/industries/4296689/Tourism-NZ-and-airport-lure-airline

[flee 5]

Does A333 have the range for the KUL-CHC mission?

After reading some comments on A.Net, I did some checking. Airbus website states that the range of the A333 (with max pax)is 10,800 km. Using a distance calculation tool (http://www.airrouting.com/content/TimeDistanceForm.aspx) KUL-CHC works out to be 8,688.57 km.

 

Now it makes me wonder what Airbus means by max pax (D7's max pax is different from SQ's). Assuming that max pax means around 295 pax (normal load for full service airlines), the A333 should be able to do this sector non stop with 2,000 km range to spare.

 

The question now would be, would D7 try to fly this route this non stop?

[Sandeep G 1]

I believe the aircraft is able to do it - BUT the problem is whether there is sufficient capacity for the alternate fuel. NZ being as isolated as it is, often a significant quantity of fuel is needed to be uplifted for legal reasons providing sufficient flying time to Australia. Payload then becomes restricted - and that's the money maker. I think that AirAsia X will opt for a tech stop in OOL or MEL. Hopefully they have some fifth freedom rights out of Australia to pick up and carry pax onwards to NZ.

[c.lee 0]

After reading some comments on A.Net, I did some checking. Airbus website states that the range of the A333 (with max pax)is 10,800 km. Using a distance calculation tool (http://www.airrouting.com/content/TimeDistanceForm.aspx) KUL-CHC works out to be 8,688.57 km.

 

Now it makes me wonder what Airbus means by max pax (D7's max pax is different from SQ's). Assuming that max pax means around 295 pax (normal load for full service airlines), the A333 should be able to do this sector non stop with 2,000 km range to spare.

 

The question now would be, would D7 try to fly this route this non stop?

From the A333 payload-range graphs found on Airbus technical data website (http://www.airbus.com/fileadmin/media_gallery/files/tech_data/AC/AC_A330_Jan2010v2.pdf), the max range of the A333 depends on 2 factors: payload and engine type.

 

Here we shall refer to the graph of RR Trent 700 (almost all D7 A333 are using RR Trent 700; engines of 9M-XAA are GE CF6). The max range of the A333 varies from about 7,000km to 12,000km, depending on the payload. The problem is, we do not have the payload figure on a D7 A333 (anyone who has the data, care to share?). For the "max pax range" of 10,800km, the payload should be around 15 tonnes.

 

I believe if the passanger load on this route is healthy, D7 will definitely try to fly non-stop. Operating it as a tag-on will reduce the effective number of pax between KUL and CHC.

 

I believe the aircraft is able to do it - BUT the problem is whether there is sufficient capacity for the alternate fuel. NZ being as isolated as it is, often a significant quantity of fuel is needed to be uplifted for legal reasons providing sufficient flying time to Australia. Payload then becomes restricted - and that's the money maker. I think that AirAsia X will opt for a tech stop in OOL or MEL. Hopefully they have some fifth freedom rights out of Australia to pick up and carry pax onwards to NZ.

The nearest alternative airport for CHC would be AKL, which is only 745km away. A 2,000 km spare, as mentioned by flee, should be sufficient. However, if one were to include holding fuel, unavailability of AKL as an alternative due to bad weather etc, it seems like flying non-stop from KUL to CHC is indeed pushing the A333 to its limits.

[JingKai Seah 0]

Hi All,

 

AirAsia's facebook's latest post is about a competition on AirAsia's newest route.. Yes, KUL - CHC.. New Zealand~ And it's a direct flight too.. Looks like Malaysians can get cheap tickets to get a taste of New Zealand's beatiful landscape (Part of lord of the rings was filmed there right?)

 

Link to the blogpost: http://blog.airasia.com/index.php/hunt-your-way-to-new-zealand-challenge

[Naim 6]

RT: @azranosmanrani: Announcing direct flights to Christchurch, for NZ$99, RM199. Sale starts friday, 4x weekly flights from 1 April. No joke."

 

---

 

Heading for NZ? See our stories first: http://m.naim.my/?cat=21

[flee 5]

AirAsia X from 01APR11 is launching 4 weekly Kuala Lumpur – Christchurch service on board 383-seater Airbus A330-300 aircraft. Service operate as NONSTOP in both directions.

Schedule as follows:

 

D72754 KUL0855 – 2310CHC 333 57

D72756 KUL2340 – 1355+1CHC 333 13

D72755 CHC0125 – 0745KUL 333 16

D72757 CHC1510 – 2230KUL 333 24

 

Source: http://airlineroute.net/2010/12/01/d7-chc-s11/

 

KUALA LUMPUR, Dec 1 (Bernama)-- AirAsia X, the Malaysian-based long-haul low-fare airline expects to carry 89,000 passengers in the first 12 months of its operations between Kuala Lumpur-Christchurch, New Zealand.

 

AirAsia X Founder and Air Asia Group Chief Executive Datuk Seri Dr Tony Fernandes said the company was targeting a load factor of approximately 85 per cent.

 

Its latest route will be the fifteenth destination for the airline after destinations in Australia, India, Taiwan, China, UK, Korea, Japan, Tehran and soon France, he said.

 

Currently he said, more than 60,000 people from New Zealand has visited the country.

 

"We anticipate this new route will be able to tap first-time travellers to and from Christchurch which will significantly contribute to tourism growth both in New Zealand and Malaysia," he told reporters at the launch of its latest route between Kuala Lumpur and Christchurch on Wednesday.

 

Also present were New Zealand High Commissioner to Malaysia David Kersey and Tourism New Zealand General Manager Asian Markets Mark Frood.

 

Tony said the airline would operate four non-stop weekly services between Kuala Lumpur and Christchurch from April 1, 2011.

 

AirAsia X's direct connection would be able to stimulate new travel demands and further tap the markets of young working adults and families to travel to Malaysia and thereafter use Kuala Lumpur as a gateway to over 139 routes in South East Asia, he said.

 

"Christchurch will be the tourism gateway to New Zealand's South Island and Kuala Lumpur will be the tourism gateway to South East Asia and beyond," said Tony.

 

The carrier would also open up routes and connectivity to New Zealand not just from Malaysia but from India, Thailand, Singapore, Indonesia, China and London via AirAsia X's Kuala Lumpur hub.

 

Meanwhile, Frood said in the last 12 months until October 2010, New Zealand welcomed 20,784 Malaysian visitors, 30,839 Singaporean visitors, 28,421 Indian visitors and 21,052 Thai visitors.

 

AirAsia X is offering a promotional all-in fare from as low as RM199 one way to Kuala Lumpur to Christchurch for the booking period between Dec 3 and Dec 5, 2010.

 

Passengers flying on this new route will have the chance to experience the new comfortable "Premium FlatBed seats" on the brand new A330 aircraft.

[Andi C 0]

Some insights on its schedules:

http://www.airasia.com/iwov-resources/my/common/pdf/AirAsia/flightschedule/connectingFlights.jsp

[kelvin L 1]

Read all the post in here, and I have book the tickets direct to CHC today. So is it confirm they should have a tech stop along the way but the ticket is showing direct flight.

Edited December 3, 2010 by kelvin L

[Naim 6]

Read all the post in here, and I have book the tickets direct to CHC today. So is it confirm they should have a tech stop along the way but the ticket is showing direct flight.

 

don't think there's a tech stop, because D72754's flight time KUL-CHC is 1hr shorter than MH131's flight time for KUL-AKL.

[c.lee 0]

don't think there's a tech stop, because D72754's flight time KUL-CHC is 1hr shorter than MH131's flight time for KUL-AKL.

D72756 KUL-CHC flight length is 10hrs15mins, whereas MH131 KUL-AKL is exactly 10hrs.

 

D72755 CHC-KUL 11hrs15mins, MH130 AKL-KUL is 11hrs25mins.

 

Will a stronger than expected headwind enroute CHC-KUL force the A333 to stop somewhere for fuel?

[flee 5]

Travellers snap up cheap Asian fares

 

Travel agents had to extend their opening hours as travellers rushed to snap up super-cheap fares to Southeast Asia after budget airline AirAsia X opened for bookings.

 

AirAsia X revealed its fares for the first time when it began taking bookings at noon yesterday for its new flights from Christchurch to Kuala Lumpur and beyond, four times a week, starting on April 1.

 

A base return fare to Kuala Lumpur costs just $423.

 

But if you want to take luggage, buy food and a comfort pack and choose your own seat, the price rises by more than $100 to $527.

 

Fares to London, including the add-ons, cost $1190 return.

That compares with special fares of $2989 on Air New Zealand on the same days of travel in April.

 

House of Travel retail director Brent Thomas said other airlines had immediately responded to AirAsia X.

 

Full report: http://www.stuff.co.nz/travel/new-zealand/4422528/Travellers-snap-up-cheap-Asian-fares

Edited December 3, 2010 by flee

[Lock SH 0]

Does A333 have the range for the KUL-CHC mission?

 

 

Some technical info WRT A333 HGW

 

A/C Basic Operating Weight - 123-125 tons (depending on operators config)

 

Max Take Off Weight - 233 tons

 

Max fuel (without center tank) - 75 tons

*with center tank which is similar to an A332, additional of 30 tons fuel is available.

 

Max Endurance based on 6 tons/hr fuel consumptions of 75 tons max fuel - 12.5 hrs

 

 

You could figure it out how much load you could carry and whether or not you could reach CHC.

 

It is not how far an A333 could reach but how long could it stays aloft in the sky because distance is subjected to environmental factors.

[KK Lee 5]

A333 burn less fuel than 772, MH to deploy A333 to AKL soon?

 

[flee 5]

Don't think that there is much of a difference with their old A333's. But with the new A333s that will be delivered next year, that will be a prospect. Perhaps D7 will fit centre fuel tanks to their A333s to be delivered next year. That will give the the aircraft some additional safety margins.

[Josh T 0]

Have there been any media releases from D7 about their flights to CHC? They're supposed to start flying there from April 1. Christchurch is in a really bad state currently and I know a lot of people are still quite scared of going there. I don't blame them. I was actually there when the earthquake hit. I'm very glad (and lucky) to have been unhurt and to get out of the place as soon as possible. I'm sure a lot of poeple will be wanting to delay or even cancel their flights to CHC. Is D7 playing nice about this?

[KK Lee 5]

Glad you escaped the quake unhurt. It must be an experience of a life time.

 

After recovery work is completed, believe CHC will welcome visitors and need all the spending money.

[Mohd Azizul Ramli 2]

24 hours countdown before D7's inaugural flight into its 15th destination - CHC. The cheapest one way KUL-CHC is available at MYR 389 all inclusive for travel in late February 2012.

[Naim 6]

24 hours countdown before D7's inaugural flight into its 15th destination - CHC. The cheapest one way KUL-CHC is available at MYR 389 all inclusive for travel in late February 2012.

 

GO! GO! GO!

 

But read this first: http://m.naim.my/pictorials-of-new-zealand-trip-aug-2008/

 

[Josh T 0]

I wonder if there've been many cancellations (on the AK flights) as a result of the earthquake. Not only that, where are people going to stay? Pretty much all the city hotels are closed for the next 5-6 months!