PAN Pacific Hotels Group is adding extra resources into the China market with the opening of a new global sales office in Beijing, its second in the country after Shanghai.

Leading the new office is Charles Cheng, who will take up the role of director, global sales, Beijing. He will be responsible for managing key clients in Northern China and expanding the market through bookings for all the group’s properties.

Cheng brings close to 20 years of industry sales experience in China and was most recently director, global sales, Northern China at Langham Hospitality Group.

The new Beijing office will support the group’s growing portfolio in China that saw the addition of four Pan Pacific hotels over the past year – Pan Pacific Xiamen, Pan Pacific Suzhou, Pan Pacific Ningbo and Pan Pacific Serviced Suites Ningbo.

Pan Pacific Hotel and Serviced Suite Tianjin will debut with 319 rooms later this year. Chengdu and Zhuhai properties are also in the pipeline.

Kevin Croley, senior vice president, marketing & sales, Pan Pacific Hotels Group, said: “The opening of our new global sales office in Beijing and Charles’s appointment mark the latest in the group’s recent chain of developments in China, made in strategic response to the global importance and vast potential of the country’s domestic and outbound travel market.

“As a top Chinese city, Beijing is central to China’s tourism developments and represents a key source market for the group’s properties within and outside of the country. Our new Beijing global sales office, helmed by an experienced and capable Chinese sales veteran, will put the group in a more advantageous position to expand our customer reach and strengthen our foothold in this critical growth market,” he added.

THE tragic end to Malaysia Airlines (MAS) flight MH17 after it went down in Ukrainian airspace has shocked the world, and authorities are scrambling to ascertain if and who had shot down the aircraft as it flew the ICAO-approved route.

MH17 departed Amsterdam at 12.15 local time and the Boeing 777-operated flight was to arrive in Kuala Lumpur at 06.10 this morning, but MAS was notified by Ukrainian Air Traffic Control that the latter had lost contact with the aircraft at 14.15 GMT time, when the flight was approximately 50km from the Russia-Ukraine border.

The smouldering remains of the aircraft were found near the settlement of Grabovo in the Donetsk region of Ukraine, say international media reports. There are no known survivors.

Onboard were 298 people, including three infants and 15 crew members. The nationalities of 41 passengers remain unverified as of this morning. Confirmed on board were 154 Dutch passengers, 43 Malaysians including the crew of 15, 27 Australians, 12 Indonesians, nine from the UK, four Germans, four Belgians, three Filipinos and a Canadian.

In a release early this morning, MAS confirmed that the aircraft did not send a distress call, and ICAO had declared the route taken by MH17 as safe for travel. IATA had also stated that the airspace in question was not subject to restrictions.

MAS has since announced that all its European flights will be diverted to alternative routes.

The Malaysian flag carrier said it is “in the process of notifying the next-of-kin of the passengers and crew” and that “our focus now is to work with the emergency responders and authorities and mobilise its full support to provide all possible care to the next-of-kin”.

Said Malaysian prime minister Najib Abdul Razak in a statement today: “At this early stage, however, Malaysia is unable to verify the cause of this tragedy. But we must – and we will – find out precisely what happened to this flight. No stone can be left unturned. If it transpires that the plane was indeed shot down, we insist that the perpetrators must swiftly be brought to justice.”

Ukrainian authorities and pro-Russian separatists are trading blame for the tragic incident. Ukraine’s president Petro Poroshenko has pledged a thorough and independent investigation in collaboration with Malaysian officials and will negotiated with the pro-Russian rebels to establish a humanitarian corridor to the crash site.

The International Business Times reports that the separatist rebels have agreed to a three-day ceasefire.

The catastrophe cements 2014 as an unfortunate year for MAS, coming four months after MAS flight MH370 went missing on its way from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing (TTG Asia e-Daily, March 10, 2014).

TTG Asia Media continues to convert glittering journalistic prose to gold as it celebrates its 40^th year in the travel and tourism industry, winning for the fourth time the PATA Gold Award for Travel Journalism – Industry Business Article.

Earning the accolade is Team on board, the TTGmice cover story for November 2013 that looks at the rise of Asian meetings on cruise ships and investigates cruise operators’ claims that teambuilding and networking are more effective at sea than on land.

The article was written by TTG’s senior editor Raini Hamdi with inputs from Paige Lee Pei Qi, S Puvaneswary, Mimi Hudoyo, Shekhar Niyogi, Rosa Ocampo and Prudence Lui.

This is the fourth time TTGmice has been conferred the Gold Award for Travel Journalism – Industry Business Article, having also won in 2009, 2011 and 2013.

The awards luncheon and presentation will take place at Diamond Island City Hall, Phnom Penh on September 19 during the PATA Travel Mart and PATA Executive Board and Board Meeting.

Martin J Craigs, CEO of PATA, said: “On behalf of PATA, I would like to extend our warmest congratulations to all 2014 Grand and Gold Award winners. We are pleased to recognise their achievements at the PATA Gold Awards Luncheon and Presentation, and look forward to celebrating their accomplishments at the PATA Travel Mart in Phnom Penh.”

TYPHOON Rammasun sped through Manila for three hours yesterday, stripping the capital city of power and tragically taking 20 lives, while shutting down flight operations for the morning.

Airlines took quickly to social media platforms on Tuesday and Wednesday to announce flight cancellations.

Cebu Pacific Air cancelled international flights to Kuala Lumpur, Hong Kong, Seoul, Singapore, Shanghai, Bangkok and Osaka, as well as a host of domestic flights.

Likewise Philippine Airlines announced on Tuesday that it was scrapping international flights to destinations including Riyadh, Fukuoka, Bangkok, Seoul, Los Angeles, Toronto, among others, and many domestic services.

According to Inquirer.net, the news website of the Philippines’ most-read daily The Philippine Daily Inquirer, airport operations at Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) were grounded between 07.00 to 10.40 yesterday while the typhoon passed.

The eye of the typhoon locally known as Glenda passed through the south of the city, bringing winds at up to 120kph and gusts of up to 165kph, said the Inquirer.net article.

Aircraft parked at NAIA were not spared either. A Singapore Airlines aircraft hit an air bridge, breaking its left wing, while a Malaysian Airlines airplane’s right fuselage was damaged when it rammed into service stairs at the terminal, blown by strong typhoon winds.

YTL Hotels has announced the first property under its new brand that promises luxurious yet authentic experiences: Kasara Niseko Village Townhouse in Hokkaido.

Kasara will also expand its portfolio to include properties in Koh Samui, Thailand and Pulau Tiga, Borneo, where it weaves local influences, cultures and traditions with luxury amenities.

Luke Hurford, vice president of sales and marketing, YTL Hotels, commented on the new brand: “It is with great excitement that we now reveal Kasara. The privilege of early morning access to hidden powder stashes guided by a local Niseko Village expert, native fishermen in long-tailed boats serving up a sumptuous seafood feast in Koh Samui, holistic immersion into natural mud baths in Borneo and free-diving into the aquamarine waters of the Coral Triangle – these are some of the authentic experiences which await the Kasara guest, alongside stunning properties in exotic locations.”

Kasara Niseko Village Townhouse is located at the foot of Mount Niseko Annupuri in Hokkaido, within the group’s ski resort Niseko Village. It will open its doors to guests on December 1.

The property offers access to its famous powder snow in December each year, views of Mount Yotei, accommodation with ski-in and ski-out facilities, onsens, dining and après ski options.

Rates begin at US$2,000 for a three-bedroom townhouse.

TWO industry veterans have combined forces to launch boutique DMC Stream Events Asia in Thailand, placing an emphasis on “personal touch” and “relationship management”.

Established in January, Stream Events Asia is led by CEO Nong Maneesub, who used to head Pacific World Thailand as regional managing director, and managing director Kristanee Srisatin, formerly general manager of Destination Asia Thailand.

In addition to its core focus on incentives and meeting planning, Stream Events Asia will also provide luxury FIT services and special interest programmes spanning culinary, culture and wellness.

Despite starting up amid Thailand’s recent political instability, a lean staff of five full-timers and fewer overhead costs offered an opportunity for the new outfit to train its sights on building brand awareness and getting its systems and products ready within its first year of operation, Kristanee shared.

Besides seeking business from regional corporates in Hong Kong and Singapore, the founding duo will also leverage their vast network of industry connections to expand in key markets like Australia, New Zealand, the US, the UK and South Africa.

“We are also interested in Eastern Europe, Scandinavia and Latin America as these markets have growing spending power and corporate meeting demand. We will also join Tourism Authority of Thailand’s roadshows to enter these new markets,” Kristanee added.

Having made their mark in Thailand’s MICE business industry over the past two decades, the desire to provide more intimate services in an industry that is increasingly driven by revenue and numbers was what inspired the boutique DMC, shared Kristanee.

“We find that more and more incentive and meeting planners prefer to work with a small company who can provide personalised services with personal attention rather than a big company with the lack of management involvement or care for their business,” she said.

While some MICE planners have brought their searches online, there still exist clients who favour working with smaller firms for their human touch and flexibility, she opined. “Although incentive group sizes and budgets are generally smaller and the elements are less elaborate than before, we will still tailormake each programme to be like mini incentives.”