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Mohd Azizul Ramli

MAS A380 - Fleet to be Retained

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And I read the paper the other day, they want to go from 2 to 4 daily eventually between KUL and LHR so MH1 to MH4 all on the 388 is going to be amazing.

Syok sendiri

As Tan Sri Dr Tony Fernandes would say, "Dare to Dream..." :drinks:

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If you bear in mind it's our beloved golden bumbling national carrier we're talking about, it does help to attenuate the sense of bewilderment ...... :)

 

I recall AI said they didn't pay anything for the slot... Dunno how could've they handed those slots for nothing...

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Malaysia Airlines (MAS) and Thai Airways are planning to increase capacity on European routes as they take delivery of the remaining A380s from their six-aircraft orders. Both carriers have opted against implementing original plans for deploying any of their initial A380s to Australia.

 

MAS took delivery of its first A380s in May-2012 and Thai in Sep-2012. MAS now operates one daily A380 flight to London Heathrow and will use additional A380s to introduce a second daily Kuala Lumpur-Heathrow frequency and a daily Kuala Lumpur-Paris flight. Thai so far has only operated regional routes with its A380 but will soon begin using the aircraft for Bangkok-Frankfurt, followed by Bangkok-Paris.

 

Thai at this point has no intention of following MAS in using the A380 for London. Thai Airways EVP commercial Pandit Chanapai told CAPA at the Association of Asia Pacific Airlines Assembly of Presidents in Kuala Lumpur on 09-Nov-2012 that placing the A380 on Bangkok-London would represent too big of a jump in capacity. He pointed out that the carrier currently serves the route with Airbus A340-600s, which Thai configures with only 267 seats, and that the carrier prefers to maintain two daily frequencies on the route with relatively small capacity aircraft.

 

Thai earlier this year unveiled plans to make Bangkok-Frankfurt its first long-haul A380 route, with daily service beginning 15-Dec-2012. Thai is currently only operating the A380 from Bangkok to Hong Kong and Singapore. The carrier just took delivery of its second A380, making it possible to begin long-haul operations.

 

 

Thai prepares for A380 services to Paris and Tokyo

Mr Chanapai says Thai aims to begin the second of its previously identified long-haul A380 routes, Bangkok-Paris, in Mar-2013, after the carrier receives its fourth A380. Thai also plans to begin Bangkok-Tokyo Narita A380 service on 16-Jan-2013, after taking its third A380. Mr Chanapai says Tokyo and possibly Hong Kong A380 services will continue after Paris commences but the Singapore A380 flight will not remain in Thai’s schedule.

 

MAS will join Thai in launching A380 services at Paris CDG in Mar-2013. MAS commercial director Hugh Dunleavy said during a press conference at the AAPA Assembly of Presidents that the carrier will upgrade its daily Kuala Lumpur-Paris flight after receiving its fifth A380 in early 2013. MAS plans to upgrade its second daily Heathrow flight on 24-Nov-2012, following delivery of the third aircraft.

 

Paris will be the only destination featuring A380s from three Southeast Asian carriers as Singapore Airlines already uses A380s for its only daily flight to Paris. Air France also operates the A380 on some of its Paris-Singapore flights. As a result, the decision by MAS and Thai to deploy the A380 to Paris could be seen partially as a competitive response in the broader Southeast Asia-France market.

 

In the larger Southeast Asia-UK market, MAS also will move up two spots, overtaking Qantas and British Airways, after it upgrades its second daily London flight to the A380. MAS is currently the fourth largest carrier in the Southeast Asia-UK market behind SIA, Qantas and British Airways.

 

 

MAS drawn by value of having standard product on flagship London route

Unlike Thai, MAS currently does not face any direct competition in the Kuala Lumpur-London market as Malaysian long-haul low-cost carrier AirAsia X dropped its Kuala Lumpur-London Gatwick service earlier this year. (But British Airways is reportedly mulling service to Kuala Lumpur.) Mr Dunleavy says the AirAsia X withdrawal did not factor in MAS’ A380 deployment decision, explaining that the Gatwick market is very different to the Heathrow market.

 

Offering a standard product on both London flights, particularly for premium passengers, was one of the main drivers in deciding to upgrade both frequencies to the A380. Mr Dunleavy also pointed out that Heathrow is a oneworld hub. MAS is slated to formally enter oneworld on 01-Feb-2013.

 

KLM is now MAS’ main European partner and MAS’ Kuala Lumpur-Amsterdam service had previously been considered for the A380. The decision to go with London indicates a potential closer partnership with BA on flights within Europe and potentially beyond.

 

MAS currently does not have any codeshares beyond Europe to North America and relies on interline agreements following its pull-down from North America (Newark was cut while Los Angeles was reduced). MAS would be interested in partnering with BA and its joint venture partner American on the trans-Atlantic. But it is unclear if there will be a mechanism for joining the existing BA-American partnership given that MAS does not operate on the trans-Atlantic. The existing tie-up between BA and American involves anti-trust immunity with metal neutrality.

 

MAS is now the fifth largest carrier in the Southeast Asia-France market but will become the third largest after it upgrades its Paris service to the A380. Air France is the largest carrier in the market, followed by Thai. Air France now operates 17 weekly flights to Southeast Asia, including three weekly A380 flights to Singapore, four weekly 777-300ERs flights to Singapore, five weekly 777-300ER flights to Bangkok and five weekly 777-200 flights to Ho Chi Minh. Three of Air France’s Paris-Ho Chi Minh flights continue onto Phnom Penh in Cambodia.

 

 

Australia still a possibility for Thai’s A380s but not for MAS

Thai will likely wait a few months to assess market conditions in Europe before selecting a third long-haul flight for its A380 fleet. Mr Chanapai says the carrier’s fifth and sixth A380 are now slated for delivery in Oct-2013. Thai could end up considering Australia for these aircraft although this is not a certainty.

 

Thai’s former CEO Piyasvasti Amranand told CAPA at last year’s AAPA Assembly of Presidents that the carrier would initially use its A380s to serve Frankfurt, London and Sydney. But with Paris instead selected in the end it is unclear which way Thai will end up going with its final batch of aircraft. London or Sydney will be reconsidered but Thai could also opt to upgrade its second daily Frankfurt flight or select another city altogether.

 

See related article: Frankfurt first destination for Thai Airways A380, which may provide excess capacity

 

MAS also originally planned to upgrade one of its Sydney and Melbourne flights to the A380. But Mr Dunleavy said MAS decided against this original plan partially because of limitations under the Australia-Malaysia bilateral.

 

He explains that there is no more room under the existing bilateral for seat capacity expansion. MAS could opt to reduce frequency and bring in the A380 but prefers to maintain its current double daily service on Melbourne and Sydney. Mr Dunleavy said there was an attempt by Malaysia to re-negotiate the bilateral but “that didn’t work out too well”. A re-negotiation seems inevitable given AirAsia X's significant expansion hopes for Australia.

 

See related article: AirAsia X, accelerating growth in response to Scoot, looks to capture Asian market once and for all

 

MAS currently serves Melbourne with two daily A330-300 flights while Sydney is served with one 777-200 flight and one 747-400 flight, according to Innovata data. MAS will need to reduce capacity slightly to Sydney in 2013 because the carrier plans to phase out its last 747-400 after it takes delivery of its last A380.

 

MAS is also now less likely to partner with Qantas on Australia-Malaysia flights, making higher capacity aircraft less attractive. Qantas is still sponsoring MAS entry into oneworld but discussions about a possible joint venture in the broader Asia-Pacific market, which would have covered Australia-Malaysia flights and regional Malaysia-Asia flights, fell through earlier this year. There have been no partnership talks in recent months between MAS and Qantas, signalling that the carriers at least for now have decided to go their separate ways.

 

MAS still has to decide on a market for its sixth and final A380 but unless there is a large change in the bilateral and market conditions, the aircraft will not be deployed to Australia. Mr Dunleavy said the carrier will receive its sixth and final A380 in 2Q2013 but MAS will only operate a fleet of five A380s for an extended period as the entire fleet will have to be returned to Airbus for wing repairs. He says MAS has over one year to decide on a deployment for the A380.

 

Full CAPA Analysis here: http://centreforaviation.com/analysis/malaysia-airlines-and-thai-airways-focus-on-europe-rather-than-australia-with-a380s-88384

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3rd brand new Malaysia Airlines A380 aircraft arrives at KLIA

 

Malaysia Airlines’ third and brand new Airbus A380 aircraft arrived in KL International Airport (KLIA) at 9.35am today (15 November).

 

The aircraft, which was ferried from Toulouse, France, will undergo final preparations in KLIA for commercial flight operations. The fourth A380 will also be received by 22 November 2012.

We will use these two 494-seater aircraft to commence day-time flights from KLIA to London Heathrow effective 24 November 2012.

 

Flight MH4 will depart KLIA at 10.45am daily to arrive in London Heathrow the same day at 4.15pm. The return flight MH1 departs London daily at 10.00pm and will arrive in KLIA the next day at 6.20pm.

This day service will complement our current daily A380 night service to the UK capital, where MH 2 departs KLIA at 11.40pm and arrives in London at 5.50am the following day with the return flight MH3 departing London at 12.00 noon and arriving KLIA at 7.25am the next day.

 

With the introduction of the double daily A380 services effective 24 November 2012, Malaysia Airlines will cease the 359-seater B747-400 flight operations between KLIA and London.

The double daily A380 operations by Malaysia Airlines, the only full service carrier to offer direct services between Malaysia and the UK, will also improve weekly seat capacity by 37% in both directions of the KLIA-London Heathrow route.

 

The A380 services will offer 6,916 seats weekly compared to 5,026 seats offered through the earlier double daily B747-400 operations, allowing more passengers to travel on the latest super jumbo aircraft.

Malaysia Airlines is the eighth operator of this new aircraft and will receive the remaining two A380 by the first quarter of 2013.

Edited by Radzi

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KUALA LUMPUR 15 Nov. - Pesawat ketiga Airbus A380 Malaysia Airlines (MAS) selamat tiba di Lapangan Terbang Antarabangsa Kuala Lumpur (KLIA), Sepang pada pukul 9.35 pagi hari ini.

Difahamkan, pesawat ketiga MAS yang dibawa dengan feri dari Toulouse, Perancis itu akan menjalani persediaan terakhir di KLIA untuk operasi penerbangan komersial.

Pegawai Perhubungan Awam MAS, Adlina Azharuddin berkata, syarikat penerbangan negara itu akan menerima pesawat Airbus A380 keempatnya pada akhir minggu ini.

"MAS akan menggunakan kedua-dua pesawat yang dilengkapi 494 tempat duduk ini untuk memulakan penerbangan siang dari KLIA ke London Heathrow berkuatkuasa 24 November.

"Penerbangan MH4 akan berlepas dari KLIA pada pukul 10.45 pagi setiap hari dan tiba di London Heathrow hari sama pada pukul 4.15 petang. Penerbangan balik MH1 berlepas London setiap hari pada pukul 10.00 pagi dan tiba di KLIA keesokan harinya pada pukul 6.20 petang," katanya dalam satu kenyataan di sini hari ini.

 

told by a friend on this.. :crazy:

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Hahaha :-D

Let us not generalise journalists as the whole.

Just say specifically the Editor-in-Chief. For a paper that were sued and mostly won by many, if only MAS were to sue, surely will win ;-) But of course, not the case. B-)

 

I am still laughing :-)

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Fantastic journalism. What next? Pesawat Airbus terkini ini tidak dilengkapi dengan roda steering kerana Malaysia Airlines enggan memasangnya diatas alasan kos?

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Want to see how the A380 got transported by ferry? :D

 

30367_4831476515533_1531827071_n.jpg

 

:rofl: :rofl: :rofl:

 

Utusan has never been noted for quality journalism. They only know how to spin...

 

It was so easy - they could have just used the Bernama feed:

 

KUALA LUMPUR, 15 Nov (Bernama) -- Pesawat ketiga Airbus A380 Malaysia Airlines tiba di Lapangan Terbang Antarabangsa KL (KLIA) pada pukul 9.35 pagi hari Khamis.

 

Pesawat itu, yang diterbangkan dari Toulouse, Perancis akan menjalani persediaan akhir di KLIA untuk operasi penerbangan komersil.

 

Syarikat penerbangan negara itu juga akan menerima A380 keempatnya pada hujung minggu ini, katanya dalam satu kenyataan di sini hari ini.

 

Malaysia Airlines akan menggunakan kedua-dua pesawat 494 tempat duduk ini untuk memulakan penerbangan siang dari KLIA ke London Heathrow, berkuat kuasa 24 November, 2012.

 

Penerbangan MH4 akan berlepas dari KLIA pada pukul 10.45 pagi setiap hari dan tiba di Heathrow London pada hari yang sama pukul 4.15 petang.

 

Penerbangan kembali MH1 akan berlepas dari London setiap hari dan tiba di KLIA hari berikutnya pada pukul 6.20 petang.

 

Perkhidmatan siang ini akan melengkapkan perkhidmatan malam A380 Malaysia Airlines' setiap hari pada masa ini ke UK, di mana MH 2 berlepas dari KLIA pada pukul 11.40 malam dan tiba di London pada pukul 5.50 pagi hari berikutnya dengan penerbangan pulang MH3 berlepas dari London pada pukul 12.00 tengah hari dan tiba di KLIA pada pukul 7.25 pagi hari berikutnya.

 

Dengan pengenalan perkhidmatan harian dua kali A380, berkuat kuasa 24 Nov, 2012, Malaysia Airlines akan menghentikan operasi penerbangan B747-400 359 tempat duduk antara KLIA dan London.

 

Operasi harian dua kali A380 ini oleh Malaysia Airlines, satu-satunya syarikat penerbangan sepenuhnya yang menawarkan perkhidmatan terus antara Malaysia dan UK, akan turut meningkatkan kapasiti tempat duduk mingguannya sebanyak 37 peratus di kedua-dua hala laluan KLIA-London Heathrow, kata syarikat itu.

 

Malaysia Airlines ialah pengendali kelapan pesawat baharu ini dan akan menerima baki dua lagi A380 menjelang suku pertama 2013.

 

Online version: http://www.utusan.com.my/utusan/Korporat/20121116/ko_01/Pesawat-A380-ketiga-MAS-selamat-tiba

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Want to see how the A380 got transported by ferry? :

 

Thanks for this .... This should take some top prize for wit ....not that it was hard to figure out ! .....perked me up after a horrid day !

 

 

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Fantastic journalism. What next? Pesawat Airbus terkini ini tidak dilengkapi dengan roda steering kerana Malaysia Airlines enggan memasangnya diatas alasan kos?

I understand Airbus doesn't fit "roda steering" to any of their machines anymore - they the pilots are supposed to make do with little joysticks instead

Hence it's understandable MH refused their installation based on cost issues - can you imagine what Airbus would charge for the modification/certification works required ?! :p

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And have a look at the flight information too....

 

The A380 takes more than 20 hours to arrive KUL....departs at 10 in the morning, and arrives at 5 in the evening?

 

Knowing journalists it'll be because the plane needs to pick up coal and water for fuel on the way, stopping in constantinople, bombay and rangoon.

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Knowing journalists it'll be because the plane needs to pick up coal and water for fuel on the way, stopping in constantinople, bombay and rangoon.

 

Constantinople..

I feel like wearing kain kembang and carrying lace umbrella.....so ancient!

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And have a look at the flight information too....

 

The A380 takes more than 20 hours to arrive KUL....departs at 10 in the morning, and arrives at 5 in the evening?

 

Again. Someone just does not know the difference between am and pm.

 

I feel like wearing kain kembang and carrying lace umbrella.....so ancient!

 

I know a great place to purchase a laced umbrella. It's a stall near the Rialto Bridge in Venice. Been there 4 times this year.

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Again. Someone just does not know the difference between am and pm.

 

I know a great place to purchase a laced umbrella. It's a stall near the Rialto Bridge in Venice. Been there 4 times this year.

 

Wahlaooo....so banyak duit to travel multiple times to venice eh!

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Want to see how the A380 got transported by ferry? :D

 

30367_4831476515533_1531827071_n.jpg

 

Very nicely done.....someone should send this to Utusan to help the reader better visualize the news article........

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Dont send it to Utusan, they'll probably get excited and publish it tomorrow, and then send you a thank you note for capturing a picture for them. This page of the topic really got me rolling with laughter. Well done guys

 

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