Aviation in a ‘purple patch’ amid new plane crunch, AirAsia says

Malaysia-based AirAsia founder Tony Fernandes remains bullish on air travel. MUST CREDIT: Richard Humphries/Bloomberg

The aviation industry is experiencing a “purple patch” with demand for seats far outstripping capacity amid a long wait for new aircraft and a shortage of pilots further discouraging any fresh competition, Tony Fernandes, the founder of low-cost carrier AirAsia, said. Malaysia-based AirAsia for its part is set to witness its “best ever period” with most of the carrier’s 240 planes back in the sky and “airfares at their best,” Fernandes said during an interview near Kuala Lumpur’s international airport on Monday. “I’ve never been this bullish before,” Fernandes, who started AirAsia 23 years ago, said. “Southeast Asia is going through a renaissance period of sensible economics, and that’s a good thing.” On the back of that, AirAsia plans to raise as much as $600 million in coming months, Fernandes said, as he tries to pull off a merger between his two aviation businesses – long-haul carrier AirAsia X Bhd. and short-haul airline AirAsia, which is currently a unit under Fernandes’ more diversified company Capital A Bhd. Following the merger, which is expected to conclude mid-year, the new entity will look to raise up to $400 million via selling equity, Fernandes said. Citigroup Inc. and US advisory bank Evercore Inc. have been appointed to lead the capital raising. A $200 million revenue bond, securitized against revenue from new routes, is also expected to be finalized soon, he said. Fernandes said the merger of the two airlines will create a new firm called AirAsia Group that will subsequently take over AirAsia X’s listing on Bursa Malaysia. The company may also do away with its AirAsia X branding as the aviation businesses consolidate. AirAsia has ambitions to expand its footprint from a predominately Asian airline to a global low-cost carrier with a more extensive network. It plans to start flying to Kazakhstan, its first route in Central Asia, later this year. Fernandes, who has previously spoken about succession at the company he founded, said Monday that he would retain an advisory role at AirAsia Group following the merger. He’ll remain chief executive of Capital A, his other listed company that will ultimately hold all the non-aviation businesses he’s started. Those include Teleport, a logistics company, and Move, an online travel agency that also operates a ride-hailing business. Move is finalizing a $30 million capital raising while Teleport has raised $35 million in debt, he said. The company’s aircraft-maintenance arm, Asia Digital Engineering, has also managed to raise $100 million, Fernandes said. The Financial Times reported in October that Capital A is seeking to raise more than $1 billion in debt and equity and list some of its businesses through a blank-check company in New York. The company said in November that it will seek a Nasdaq listing via a special purpose acquisition company merger with Aetherium Acquisition Corp.“2024 will be a very good year. 2025 will be an amazing year,” Fernandes said. “There’s a lot of growth for us. Aviation in a ‘purple patch’ amid new plane crunch, AirAsia says

Read More........ → March 22, 2024

Boeing staff confused on safety reporting: US study

WASHINGTON - Boeing employees are confused and distrustful of changes to safety reporting systems implemented by the aerospace giant after fatal plane crashes in 2018 and 2019, according to a US report released Monday.

The report pointed to a "disconnect" between senior company management and other Boeing employees and skepticism that safety complaints by workers would not result in retaliation, according to an expert panel appointed by the US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA).

"The procedures and training are complex and in a constant state of change, creating employee confusion especially among different work sites and employee groups," said an executive summary.

The analysis comes as Boeing faces intensified scrutiny following a January 5 Alaska Airlines emergency landing that led to a temporary grounding of some Boeing 737 MAX aircraft.

The US Congress ordered the analysis in a 2020 law after fatal Lion Air and Ethiopian Airline crashes on 737 MAX planes. The report's scope did not include the Alaska Airlines incident, although the summary alluded to "serious quality issues" that surfaced during the report that "amplified" the panel's concerns.

The analysis identified 27 points of concern and offered 53 recommendations, including steps to standardize safety training, enhance transparency in the handling of employee complaints and improve systems to grant pilots more influence on safety and training matters.

The FAA plans to "immediately" undertake a review to determine next steps, the agency said.

"We will continue to hold Boeing to the highest standard of safety and will work to ensure the company comprehensively addresses these recommendations," the FAA said.

Boeing thanked the panel and said it will "carefully review the panel's assessment and learn from their findings," according to a company statement."We've taken important steps to foster a safety culture that empowers and encourages all employees to share their voice," Boeing said. " But there is more work to do." Boeing staff confused on safety reporting: US study

Read More........ → March 01, 2024

Indians advised against travel to Saudi Arabia, Kuwait via UAE

The Embassy of India in Abu Dhabi has advised Indian citizens against travelling to Saudi Arabia and Kuwait via the United Arab Emirates due to "Covid-related restrictions on incoming passengers" imposed in the two countries.

Issued on Monday, an embassy advisory advised the Indian nationals to "ascertain the latest Covid related travel guidelines of their final destination country before embarking on an outward journey from India".

The citizens were also suggested to carry sufficient "personal provisions and funds to cater to any emergent requirements".

The Embassy further advised the Indian nationals who were already in the UAE en route to the two countries, to consider returning home and make their travel plans only when the ongoing restrictions were ease.

The advisory comes after the Consulate General of India in Dubai informed the Embassy that several Indians travelling to Saudi Arabia and Kuwait were still stranded in the UAE.

Since December 2020, at least 600 Indians, who wanted to travel to Saudi Arabia, have been stranded in the UAE, a Consulate official told Khaleej Times.

"Due to the fast-evolving international travel protocols, the missions strongly advise all travellers to avoid going to Saudi Arabia and Kuwait using transit routes to avoid the inconvenience of being stranded in the UAE," the official said.

Earlier, these passengers were provided special travel arrangements by the missions with assistance from the Kerala Muslim Cultural Centre (KMCC) and other social organisations.

The official confirmed that such facilities will no longer be provided. Source: https://southasiamonitor.org/index.php/

Read More........ → February 10, 2021