NEW product offerings by Singapore Airlines (SIA) are helping to keep the growth momentum in the Singapore-Manila route upbeat.

Carol Ong, general manager, Philippines, Guam and USTT (United States Trust Territories) at SIA said one of the reasons accounting for the growth are the first class seats, where SIA is the only carrier offering the product after reintroducing it in January.

The “fundamental demand” for first class come from Manila-bound travellers from Singapore and from Manila on connecting flights via Singapore to other destinations like Sydney and Europe, said Ong.

She added that last month’s launch of a SilverKris lounge at Manila’s Ninoy Aquino International Airport terminal three underscores the growing importance of the Philippine market.

The Manila lounge is also the only one in South-east Asia and the fourth in the world after those in London, Hong Kong and Sydney.

Ong said the debut of SIA’s premium economy class in August is expected to further boost travel to and from the Philippines. Although it won’t be available on shorthaul Singapore-Manila services, it will be available on flights to other SIA destinations via Singapore.

Like SIA, sister airline SilkAir is also enjoying brisk business connecting Singapore to secondary gateways in the Philippines, with Boracay and Cebu being added to its routes last year.

THE Malaysian Association of Tour and Travel Agents (MATTA) has called on the nation’s Transport Ministry to decree whether AirAsia must relocate its operations from Terminal 2 to the main terminal at Kota Kinabalu International Airport (KKIA).

Tan Kok Liang, vice president of MATTA said: “The continued feud between Malaysia Airports Holdings (MAH) and AirAsia with no solution in sight has caused discomfort to passengers using KKIA Terminal 2. We are using a terminal that is unable to sustain the carrying capacity, resulting in overcrowding and infrastructure strain.

“There are no goods and services tax (GST) counters for tax refund under the Tourists Refund Scheme, causing disappointment to tourists departing from KKIA Terminal 2. But more worrisome is that we are compromising our security by mixing international and domestic passengers at the terminal”, said Tan.

MATTA pointed out in a press release that Abdul Aziz Kaprawi, Malaysia’s deputy transport minister, had earlier disclosed that relocation was set for January 1 this year, but was delayed pending the outcome of several applications made by the budget carrier.

“Passengers are made to suffer under horrendous conditions at the old Terminal 2. To add insult to injury, a six per cent GST is charged for atrocious facilities,” added Tan.

“Malaysians, particularly Sabahans, are ashamed that tourists have to put up with the inconveniences at the dilapidated Terminal 2. We have waited patiently for some years for the Ministry of Transport and AirAsia to find a mutually acceptable solution but it appears that the ministry is indecisive.”

IN A bid to promote air connectivity with remote areas, India’s Ministry of Civil Aviation will develop five small airports at tier II and tier III cities across the country.

Hubli and Belgaum in Karnataka, Kishangarh in Rajasthan, Jharsuguda in Odisha and Tezu in Arunachal Pradesh were identified as locations for the airports. The estimated project cost is US$22.3 million for Hubli, US$22.3 million for Belgaum, US$25.2 million for Kishangarh, US$31.5 million for Jharsuguda and US$15.5 million for Tezu.

The above locations were identified based on the areas’ population, availability of land and potential for tourism and industry. Completion dates have yet to be announced.

According to Shobha Mani, managing director, North-East Shuttles, the Airport Authority of India has recently completed the construction of three hangars at Guwahati Airport to facilitate air connectivity in the north-east, and is now rolling out new policies to connect remote areas with smaller aircraft such as ATF and turboprops.

Himanshu Das, vice president, Travel Agents Association of Odisha, said: “The airport in Jharsuguda will only help the business tourists as the destination has lots of mining industries. The airport will not have major impact on the tourism business overall.

“For tourism to prosper in Odisha, we recommend establishing an airport in Koraput in South Odisha for promoting tribal and medical tourism services,” he added.

SRI SUTRA Travel has launched a B2C online travel booking portal consisting of about 500,000 travel products, allowing consumers to book flights and accommodation, express buses, car rentals, airport transfers and tours.

Sutra.my also features a travel auction function where users can bid to purchase tours. Currently, there are two auctions running, one to Seoul and another to Bandung.

Syed Mohd Razif Syed Mohd Yasin, group managing director of Sri Sutra Travel, said it took the company three years and RM3 million (US$767,800) to develop this portal.

He said: “Sutra.my is a one-stop travel booking portal where you can book more than just flights and accommodation. It offers convenience to Malaysians who can also contact the company to make amendments to their bookings.

“Being locally owned and developed, Sutra.my will help channel funds from around the world through our local gateway. This way, money flows through Malaysian banks because the automated online booking enables funds to be streamlined towards and processed by Malaysian banks.”

In the coming months, Sutra.my will also offer tickets to shows in Malaysia and the UK.

NEW airline regulations have taken effect in Vietnam, requiring carriers to offer greater compensation than before to passengers on domestic flights that are significantly delayed.

Airlines must now pay travellers between 200,000 and 400,000 Vietnamese dong (US$9 to US$18) for in-country flights that take off four or more hours behind schedule. International penalties remain at their previous amounts of US$25 to US$150, depending on the flight distance.

Vietnamese carriers have been under scrutiny recently for frequent delays. According to a report released last week by the Civil Aviation Administration of Vietnam (CAAV), more than 21 per cent of all departures in the country took off behind schedule in July, up nearly six per cent from June.

The report cited an inability to manage high-season passenger capacity. Most of the late departures were the result of a domino effect caused by late incoming aircraft, according to the CAAV.

Weather also contributed to the high number of delays, however. Heavy rains flooded parts of Vietnam last month. One of the two runways at Ho Chi Minh City’s Tan Son Nhat International Airport was closed for repairs for four days after it was struck by lightning.

Inclement weather is one of several circumstances under which airlines are exempt from the new rule. Other exemptions include delays due to security concerns and passenger medical emergencies.

Reporting by Dave Fox

WHILE Thailand’s plan to roll out multiple-entry visas for all visitors has been lauded as a positive initiative to boost arrival figures, the trade is not expecting the new regulation to be a game-changing move for a country that already offers visa exemptions to citizens of some 40-plus nations.

The Thai government last week announced the introduction of multiple-entry visa valid over a six-month period. The new visa is expected to be effective within 60 days after receiving approval from the cabinet last Tuesday.

“This (initiative) would be better for countries without visa-free entry, like Sri Lanka and India, (which are) possibly target markets for this policy to begin with,” said Willem Niemeijer, founder and CEO of Khiri Group, whose clients mainly hail from countries that have visa-free entry to Thailand. “India, for example, would be a good market for regular short-stay visitors.”

Pornthip Hirunkate, managing director of Destination Asia Thailand, commented: “This measure will encourage regional tourists from neighboring countries such as China and India to come to Thailand more frequently within the six-month period.

“This multiple entry visa will be great for corporate travellers who also come in and out of Thailand on a frequent basis, enabling them to save time and effort (instead of) applying for a visa for every visit,” she added.

However, the multiple-entry visa fee veers on the “high” side – 5,000 baht (US$142) compared with 1,000 baht for a single-entry, 30-day visa – although industry players expect the convenience offered by the new initiative to outweigh the cost.

Furthermore, there are areas that Thailand could still improve its visa processes, observed the DMC chiefs.

Pornthip opined that extending the six-month validity to one year “would be more beneficial”.

Niemeijer, on the other hand, urges the Thai authorities to make a distinction between arrivals at land borders and airports for travellers with visa exemptions. He said: “Currently, land-border arrivals will get only 15 days, why not make that 30 days as well?”