TIGERAIR and Cebu Pacific Air (CEB) today announced both airlines would enter a strategic alliance, which will see CEB try to tame the losses of Tigerair Philippines.

Tigerair yesterday sold its 40 per cent stake in Tigerair Philippines to CEB, who is set to acquire the remaining 60 per cent owned by local investors.

Lance Gokongwei, CEO of CEB, said CEB and Tigerair Philippines would be kept as separate entities and the Tigerair Philippines brand would be retained for the first year.

Meanwhile, Tigerair and CEB will collaborate on operational and marketing fronts, as well as cross-sell domestic and international routes, creating the largest LCC network in the region, said Gokongwei.

Travel consultants TTG Asia e-Daily spoke to were unmoved by the development. Tony Morales, sales manager at Caravan Travel & Tours, pointed out that the alliance would be a disadvantage to travel agencies, who would lose even more business to online.

John Paul Cabalza, president, Philippine Travel Agencies Association, agreed. “We have no margin, no commission – we just charge a service fee,” he said.

He added that Tigerair would bring in a lot of potential inbound travellers, while CEB had good B2B and B2C platforms. “The end result is that consumers have more choices; there’ll be more product offerings”.

In the meantime, Gokongwei said that CEB will pursue expansion into high traffic regions such as the Middle East, Australia and India.

But Jingle Mendoza, operations manager at Diamond Wings Travel & Tourism, which focuses on leisure business from the Middle East, noted: “CEB tickets can cost up to 18,000 pesos (US$402), and some people have experienced delays of several hours on their route…We have tried, but we also have a hard time getting seats (from CEB).”

MYANMAR began allowing Philippine nationals to enter the country visa-free for up to 14 days on January 4, although pricing and supply challenges remain.

Simon Ang, managing director-operations at Celebrate Life TLC, said: “Yes, it’s an advantage not to have to apply for a visa. The only problem is there are still no direct flights.”

With flights mostly transiting in Singapore or Bangkok, Ang does not foresee dramatic growth in travellers to Myanmar anytime soon.

Furthermore, accommodation demand still outpaces supply. Ang commented: “Hotels are really booked. Four-, five-star properties have to be reserved two to three months ahead.”

However, Filipinos tend to plan their travels within a shorter timeframe, he said.

Ang, who has three groups going to Myanmar between now and end-February, said that his business remains primarily leisure-based but he has handled several trade missions recently. “The chambers of commerce, top businessmen are also going,” Ang remarked.

Patricia Escobal, operations manager for tours at FCM Travel Solutions Philippines, said pricing tours to Myanmar remains a challenge as inbound operators quote high prices.

Tour programmes to Myanmar focus on Mandalay, Yangon, and Bago, thus making domestic flights necessary. “This makes the packages as expensive as going to Australia, New Zealand, or Europe,” Escobal said.

Myanmar and Cambodia last month also agreed to a mutual visa exemption for ordinary passport holders, reported Xinhua news agency.

AIR France will launch a new service between Jakarta and Paris’ Charles de Gaulle via Singapore starting March 30, in line with the French government’s growing interest in Indonesia.

The service, which returns after a 10-year hiatus, will be operated by a Boeing 777-300 with 303 seats in four classes.

Duncan Rutgers, country manager for Air France-KLM Indonesia, said: “Jakarta as Air France’s new route fits perfectly into our strategy where we are focusing on the (rich) potential of the South-east Asian region.

“We believe among Indonesians, Paris is a very attractive destination, not only for holidaymakers but also for business travellers.”

The new flight will complement the existing Jakarta-Kuala Lumpur-Amsterdam and Denpasar-Singapore-Amsterdam routes, both operated daily by KLM. “Jointly, there will be 21 flights per week from Indonesia to Europe as of summer 2014,” he noted.

Rutgers highlighted that the reintroduction of the Jakarta-Paris service is in line with the French government’s sharpening focus on Indonesia.

“There are many French companies coming into Indonesia. There are currently around 250 companies operating in the country. Our foreign minister has also encouraged Indonesians to study in France,” he said, adding that he was confident that Indonesia is an emerging market for the airline.

The resurrected service is also part of Air France’s adjustment to aircraft deployment, which saw the Airbus 380 formerly serving Paris-Singapore moved to Paris-Shanghai and the Singapore route given over to the B777-300 to enable the latter continue on to Jakarta.

On the competition posed by Middle Eastern airlines, which have good route network in Europe, Rutgers said: “With the size of the Indonesian middle class, available capacity in the market is still not enough. There is a natural demand for growth we can fulfill.”

HERTZ is going green with the launch of a range of fuel-efficient vehicles in Singapore today, the first time the Green Traveler Collection is offered in Asia.

In an exclusive partnership with Peugeot vehicle distributor AutoFrance, Hertz’s Green Traveler Collection has kicked off with three diesel-powered models.

The chosen models produce less than or about 140g of carbon dioxide per kilometre travelled, exceeding the Neutral Band of the new Carbon Emissions-Based Vehicle Scheme set by the Land Transport Authority of Singapore.

Eddie Ho, general manager of Hertz Singapore, commented: “Being the only major car rental company to offer a dedicated fleet of reservable lower emission cars further demonstrates Hertz’s dedication to helping our customers save on fuel costs and reduce their travel carbon footprint.”

The reservable Green Traveler Collection vehicles will soon be joined by the luxury Prestige Collection and Family Collection vehicles. These can be reserved by make and model at airport and downtown locations.