The first low-cost airline connection from Asia to the US will take off in June, with the promise of ultra-cheap tickets between the two regions eventually being available to and from some of America’s biggest cities.

But AirAsia X, the long-haul arm of South-East Asia’s biggest budget carrier is being ultra-cautious about expansion to Europe and America.

The carrier’s four weekly 377-seat A330-300 flights linking Kuala Lumpur and Honolulu, Hawaii, via Osaka, Japan, take to the air on June 28, 2017, with the prospect that they will quickly be ramped up to daily because of strong interest from Japanese travel agents.

“We think about 80 per cent of the traffic will be Japanese,”  AirAsia X chief executive Ben Ismail told AirlineRatings.com. “Hawaii is the No.1 destination for Japan. 

“Talking to (Japanese) agents, there is far more demand than supply at the moment. For Asians in ASEAN (the South-East Asian group of nations), it’s something that we’ll continue to push because it’s good for the brand.  We can increase that (four weekly flights) anytime we want to.”

AirAsia X normally concentrates on non-stop point-to-point services of seven to nine hours flight duration, which fits the profile of the new Honolulu service, except that, from Kuala Lumpur, it’s two sectors instead of one.

It’s the airline’s second one-stop destination after it inaugurated one-stop A330 flights from Kuala Lumpur to Auckland, New Zealand, via Australia’s Gold Coast, last year.

According to Ismail, that has been an outstanding success with passenger loads between Auckland and the Gold Coast averaging 85 per cent, opening up a new daily market for New Zealanders in search of cheap beach holidays in Queensland.

Now that the airline has secured approvals to operate to the US via Japan from both safety and international government air-rights regulators, Ismail says it will be simply a matter of announcing new services as soon as the necessary aircraft become available.

However, Ismail says operating to the US east coast – to New York, for example – would be “too much of a stretch” for the airline’s A330s.

“I think the nearest for us would Los Angeles or San Francisco,” he says. “They’re very Asian-dominated markets. “Maybe Las Vegas is something we will also explore. But it will not be in the next two years or so.”

Alas, with the current generation of airliners – even the long-range A350, which AirAsia X has ordered – the prospect of operating non-stop to the US from Kuala Lumpur is unlikely because the economics of ultra-long-range flight don’t stack up for a low-cost carrier. “Long-haul non-stop to the US would be a stretch for us,” Ismail says, “but we’ll never rule anything out.”

Ismail has also put a dampener on plans – touted enthusiastically by AirAsia founder Tony Fernandes in the past two years – to return to London. The last time AirAsia X operated services to London and Paris, before they were axed in 2012, the airline lost money and the airline is being careful not to repeat that experience.

“We’re still running the numbers,” he says. “We’re looking at the right aircraft to do this.” That refers to the fact that the airline has ordered both the longer-range A330-300neo (“new engine option”) and the new-generation fuel-efficient A350.

“We’re doing some analysis on the yields going into London, but we haven’t concluded yet whether we’re doing it or not,” Ismail says. “We will know in the next few months. If the numbers make sense, we will announce it very quickly (this year), but if they don’t, we put it on the backburner for a while.”

The first low-cost long-haul service linking South-east Asia and southern Europe starts in June 2017 when Singapore Airlines subsidiary, Scoot, begins flying from Singapore to Athens four times a week using Boeing Dreamliner 787-8s.

According to the Irish Independent Nadeem Mulhammed (43) was arrested by police on suspicion of terrorism after “batteries wrapped in brown tape” was found in his bag.

He was boarding a Ryanair flight to Bergamo when he was held under the UK’s terrorism act at security.

However, after allegedly telling officers the device had been planted by someone else, he was released on bail and allowed to travel.

The man flew to Italy but in the meantime, tests revealed it was a “viable device” containing sufficient explosives to cause “serious damage and loss of life” on a plane, the court heard.

Upon his return back to the UK, Mr Mulhammed was arrested at Manchester Airport on Sunday and charged with being in possession of an explosive substance.

The device found consisted of a “small pipe, like a large market pen’ and was filled with “smokeless propellant often found in ammunition.”

Mr Muhammed was remanded in custody and is due to appear in court in March.

More on Ryanair.

The American Eagle CRJ-700 was headed to Gulfport-Biloxi International Airport, in Mississippi, with 44 passengers and four crew members on board when the aircraft hit a deer during its takeoff roll. The flight crew declared an emergency and then did a flyover so personnel on the ground could inspect it for damage prior to attempting a landing.

Picture: https://twitter.com/airlivenet 

Air traffic control alerted the pilot to a vapour trail from the right wing and TV stations also showed damage to one of the right front wing flaps of the CRJ700 jet. Emergency personnel met the aircraft upon landing and sprayed foam on the aircraft as a precaution. All passengers were evacuated safely and taken back to the terminal on buses.

Charlotte Douglas spokeswoman Lee Davis said the airport will evaluate how the deer got on the runway as part of its wildlife management plan. Surrounded by over 19 miles of barbed wire-topped perimeter fencing, Charlotte Douglas is also ringed by thousands of acres of wooded land conducive to deer.

Trump’s executive order prohibits travel from seven predominately Muslim countries to the U.S. Citizens of Iraq, Syria, Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan and Yemen are covered.

Today the Ninth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in California ruled against the Trump Administration’s efforts to impose the ban.

The appellate courts’ move may pave the way for the ultimate issue to be decided by the U.S. Supreme Court. Bottom line: for now, at least, the ban is stayed. It’s been at least temporarily lifted.

Nonetheless, travel executives remain cautious. Shortly after it was imposed late last week GBTA Executive Director and COO Michael W. McCormick said, “With 30 percent of companies expected to reduce travel, the economy will certainly take a hit.” 

The GBTA chief says there could be short, mid- and long term consequences. In a prepared release, GBTA concludes, “Thirty-one percent of travel professionals expect the ban to cause a reduction in their company’s business travel in the immediate ensuing three months.

Similarly, nearly three in ten also expect the ban to impact to impact their company’s business in travel in both the short-term (29 percent), over the next three to six months and the long-term (28 percent) over the next six to twelve months and beyond.”

By the numbers, here are the specifics behind travel professionals’ worries: 
–    Sixty-three percent say they’re concerned as to just how other countries will respond to the ban, perhaps making it more difficult for U.S. citizens to travel abroad;
–    Fifty-six percent say they’re concerned about complications in travel to the U.S.;
–    Fifty-four percent take the long view and express worries about the lasting impact of the travel ban.

That’s how a select slice of pros believe travel will be hit. But what do they think about the ban itself? The answers reflect the growing political gaps between ideologies in today’s USA. 

GBTA says its survey found “Half of the travel professionals surveyed strongly or somewhat strongly oppose [Trump’s] action, while nearly four in ten (38 percent) strongly or somewhat support it.”

Ironically, based on United States Department of Commerce data, the U.S. Travel Association says international travel to the U.S. has just now returned to pre-9/11 levels. 

The U.S. lost a significant amount of ground in the international marketplace in the years after 9/11.” USTA President and CEO Roger Drew labels that period “the Lost Decade.”

A final note: USTA says the U.S. is the single largest destination for global long-haul travel and the second-largest destination for overall global travel.

How long it remains so might well lie in the hands of the courts.

Australia tends to cast New Zealand a kindly but condescending glance. The way Sydneysiders think of Perth. Or Northern America looks up to but down on Canada. Sure, they’re quaint and cute and friendly, and it’s a fine old spot for a jaunt or a bit of money laundering but c’mon, they’re just not in our league.

Air New Zealand is quaint and cute and friendly. And it is a particularly fine way to get to a particularly fine spot. They have those cool safety videos and groovy argyle socks and flight attendants who give you an affectionate handshake after touchdown and thank you for flying with them — and mean it. It’s also completely out its league.

There’s a reason — nay, a multitude of reasons — why AirlineRatings.com recently named Air New Zealand the world’s best airline. Like the good folk of New Zealand and their beautiful country, Air New Zealand manages to maintain that charming insouciance and warmth while absolutely belting it out the park in terms of quality, hospitality and dazzling world-class excellence.

A trip to must-visit Queenstown on NZ176 aboard one of Air NZ’s sharp new Dreamliners is a special experience.

Step aboard this shiny, whisper-quiet shuttle with its ingeniously-designed business Premier-class cabin. Feel genuinely, warmly welcomed in a way you’ve rarely experienced on an aircraft (by cabin crew wearing the coolest uniforms in the sky). Names are exchanged, hands are shaken. You’re mates right away, but only if you want to be. You feel like you could sit down and play a hand of euchre with the flight attendant while swapping Spotify playlists. You could also only speak to them when you want another Portuguese port and they’d also get your vibe and respect your space.

The cabin is configured to maximize both space and comfort. While not as spacious as some business-class seats, these lie-flat babies are as comfy as any in the sky. Converting them into a bed is a slightly complicated affair, but your cabin crew mates are right there to talk first-timers through it or just do it all for you.

French champagne arrives minutes after I take my seat and pop on the aforementioned turquoise and magenta argyle socks. It’s Charles Heidsieck if you don’t mind. There is also Deutz, a magnificent local NZ sparkling wine.

The menu, designed by celebrated chefs Michael Meredith and Peter Gordon, make for exciting reading. For lunch I had a luxurious smoked snapper brandade with poached prawns preserved citron salsa verde and pine nuts. The garlic bread of your carb-and-garlic loaded dreams. The best in-flight dish I’ve ever eaten: blackened salmon with citrus labneh, saffron mash, edamame and steamed spinach. It would have been sublime at sea level let alone at cruising altitude.

I politely decline dessert but am even more politely ordered to order the ginger nut ice-cream with dark chocolate sauce and ginger wafer. Thank goodness I did.

The intuitive in-flight entertainment system is the best curated selection of music ever found on a plane. Likewise the movies, tv shows and documentaries, all of which can be enjoyed in your little cocoon with fancy headphones.

Despite the myriad new released on offer, I watched Tom Cruise (back when he was hot) in Cocktail while drinking Sherwood Pinot Gris from the Waipara Valley.
Dinner included a hot-smoked Tasmanian salad in a kind of Nicoise style and handmade Italian meatballs (a textural, tasty combination of pork and veal mince) app soft polenta, a deeply-flavored tomato ragu and plenty of proper parmesan. Once again, I was unsuccessful in my attempts to rebuff dessert advances. Sure, I’ll have a decadent cheese platter. And a glass of sticky? Why not.

I like to think could have slept standing up after that gluttony but let’s be honest: the Dreamliner flat beds come pretty easily after all of that, though the deluxe memory-foam mattress, plush doona and two full-size pillows really helped.

The return trip to Perth is just as delicious, both culinarily and generally. The lounge at Auckland airport is one of the sexiest we’ve seen, with both a full-service bar and DIY area.

Air New Zealand epitomises its Kia Ora catch cry.  A tip for the flag-waving Australian traveller: Don’t be fooled into thinking we’re better or that our national airline is best. Those New Zealanders sure are sweet, but they’re not so innocent after all.

Amanda Keenen was NOT a guest of Air New Zealand.
 

Flight diversions due to inflight medical emergencies make up a tiny portion of the millions of flights operated annually, but it is costly for airlines. With more people traveling by air, the actual number of inflight medical events has been gradually increasing over the years.

Emirates, the largest airline by international traffic, operated over 3,500 departures a week, or more than 194,000 flights in 2016. In those 12 months, the airline handled more than 60 flight diversions due to medical emergencies. 

A single flight diversion can cost Emirates anything from US$50,000 to over US$600,000, depending on the nature of the diversion which includes fuel, flight catering, landing and ground handling fees, air navigation cost, passenger rebooking costs and onward connection, as well as other associated costs to care for crew and passengers.

Adel Al Redha, Emirates’ Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer, said: “We can never hope to recover the costs of a flight diversion, but the wellbeing of our customers is always our number one priority. Airlines handle medical emergencies differently, as there are no international regulations on this front. If there is a medical emergency on board, our crew have the training and equipment to help them assess the situation, and deliver the best possible outcome for the affected passengers.”

Crew training and equipment

In 2016, Emirates delivered nearly 23,000 hours of medical training for cabin crew and pilots, ensuring they are ready to assist passengers on board.

All Emirates cabin crew go through a comprehensive initial training programme which is required by the UAE General Civil Aviation Authority, recurrent training to keep their skills up to date, as well as additional specific training for the use of on board medical equipment.

The medical training that Emirates cabin crew undertake includes both theory and practical aspects. It prepares them to recognise and deal with common situations, but more importantly handle rare but life-threatening events when time is of essence.

Topics covered include basic life support (CPR); medical conditions including asthma, heart disorders, seizures and allergic reactions; trauma related topics and even emergency childbirth amongst others. Pilots also attend training sessions covering topics such as Hypoxia, Malaria, Dengue, Trauma, CPR and choking and occupational health issues.

Emirates has also invested more than US$7 million in the installation of its medical equipment on board, with annual maintenance costs being a further US$1.7 million. Equipment on every Emirates aircraft include: emergency medical kits, oxygen bottles, resuscitators, a defibrillator, a telemedicine unit, and a 24/7, satellite medical advisory service that connects crew to specialist aviation medical consultants who can help assess the passenger’s situation in real time.

Making the right call

On average, Emirates’ crew make about 20 calls to the medical advisory service per 100,000 passengers flown. Most calls do not result in a diversion, but the professional consultation helps the operating crew to make better decisions and offer the right support to the affected passengers, particularly when there are no volunteer medical professionals on the flight.

Emirates’ in-house team of aviation medical specialists, flight planners and operations controllers, all work closely to conduct detailed scenario planning and regular updates to diversion protocols – in keeping with the airline’s growing global network, as well as advances in medical thinking, inflight medical technologies, and training techniques.

Mr Al Redha said: “If we have to divert a flight, our aim is to get medical attention for the afflicted passenger as soon as possible. Via our medical advisory consultants and Emirates’ own operations control team, we identify the best location where the passenger may receive appropriate care, and where the airport can adequately support the passengers and aircraft.

“The diversion location selected may be someplace where medical costs are expensive and travellers should consider procuring the appropriate insurance before they travel.”