AIR Mantra, a new scheduled regional airline funded by India’s Religare Group, commenced its maiden services between Chandigarh and Amritsar on July 23.

Currently operating with two 17-seater Beechcraft 1900D aircraft, the airline intends to carve out a niche in the heartlands of India, where there are few airlines serving smaller cities. Jammu and Dharamshala are reportedly being targeted for expansion.

“Air Mantra aims to put untapped cities on the map, and boost air travel and connectivity by inter-connecting cities off the radar of most other airlines,” the carrier said in a statement.

V. V. Giri, director, Flyer Tours & Travels Tirupur, said: “Airlines (such as Air Mantra) contribute to the growth of tourism and should be encouraged. Their lower operating costs will keep fares low and connect many smaller cities that contribute a large segment of travellers.”

Vengadesan D., executive, Cox & Kings Chennai, said: “Smaller airlines that can connect small cities with a network of regular flights are the answer to many tour operators’ prayers. We are currently losing inbound business because of the lack of connectivity by larger carriers, who are concentrating on metro cities with their available aircraft.”

UBM Live has decided to switch the venue for its upcoming Cruise Shipping Asia-Pacific 2012 conference and tradeshow to the brand new Marina Bay Cruise Centre Singapore (MBCCS).

Originally scheduled to take place at the Sands Expo and Convention Center (TTG Asia e-Daily, December 12, 2011), the event will now be held from September 17-18 at the 28,000m² MBCCS, which is operated by SATS-Creuers Cruise Services and offers approximately 11,500m² of event space on non-cruise days.

“The opportunity to have Cruise Shipping Asia-Pacific in one of the world’s newest and largest terminals is thrilling,” said Daniel Read, portfolio director of Cruise Shipping, UBM Live.

“The cruise market is dynamic and agile, and we know that our audience is constantly evolving and developing their offerings. Having a unique perspective of one of Asia’s largest cruise terminals while discussing key pressure points and opportunities for the industry is certainly going to produce a groundbreaking event,” he added.

Melvin Vu, CEO of SATS-Creuers Cruise Services, said: “We are very pleased to have Cruise Shipping Asia-Pacific 2012 at our terminal this year. I am sure that delegates, exhibitors and visitors will find our venue conducive for networking and sharing knowledge and information.”

“The collaboration between UBM and MBCCS demonstrates how stakeholders can find synergies and work together to grow Asia’s cruise industry, while positioning Singapore as the region’s leading cruise destination,” he added.

THAI AirAsia bookings to/from Bangkok will temporarily suspended from July 27-29, as the carrier prepares for its impending shift from Suvarnabhumi Airport to Don Mueang International Airport, effective October 1 (TTG Asia e-Daily, June 26, 2012).

In preparation for the move, Thai AirAsia will be performing an airport code switch from Suvarnabhumi International Airport (BKK) to Bangkok Don Mueang International Airport (DMK) from 22.00 on July 27 till 22.00 on July 29, Thailand time (GMT +7).

During this period, Thai AirAsia customers will be unable to make any new bookings online, through travel consultants, airport sales offices or travel service centres, for flights to/from Bangkok scheduled to depart from October 1, 2012 onwards. Guests on all Thai AirAsia Bangkok flights scheduled to depart from October 1, 2012 will also be unable to use the Manage My Booking or web check-in services.

Customers whose travel dates are before October 1, 2012, or who intend to make travel arrangements between other destinations that are not via Bangkok, remain unaffected. Guests who wish to make a booking/changes to flights in/out of Bangkok and departing from October 1, 2012 onwards are advised to do so before 22.00 on July 27 or after 23.00 on July 30.

After the airport code change has been implemented, guests who are travelling to/from Bangkok from October 1, 2012 onwards will receive an updated travel itinerary with the new airport code (DMK). Those who have already checked in for their flights to/from Bangkok with a travel period of October 1, 2012 onwards will be required to check in again.

DNATA has opened a brand new premium passenger lounge at Singapore Changi International Airport.

Located at Terminal 3 and offering full airside views, the 400m2 private lounge offers a range of facilities including showers, business centre workstations with WiFi connectivity, and two snack counters. The lounge can cater for up to 85 passengers at any one time.

Built at a cost of S$1 million (US$790,000), the new lounge is dnata’s second premium passenger lounge at the airport.

Dnata’s Singapore operation currently provides ground handling, cargo and catering operations to 53 scheduled airlines.

HAINAN Airlines has received approval from US regulatory authorities to launch Beijing-Chicago services.

Scheduled to take off next year as the first-ever direct flights between Beijing and Chicago, the service will be Hainan Airlines’ second non-stop American flight after Seattle.

According to a spokesperson from Hainan Airlines’ Beijing office, the carrier plans to operate four-weekly services on the Chicago route, using Boeing 787 Dreamliner aircraft.

Meanwhile, Hainan Airlines will resume its services from Shenzhen to Sydney on October 29, with the introduction of thrice-weekly flights from Shenzhen Bao’an International Airport to Sydney International Airport.

The carrier operated Shenzhen-Sydney flights in 2011, but suspended them soon after due to lower-than-expected load factors.

The Shenzhen-Sydney flights will be operated using Airbus A330-300 aircraft, with a configuration of 30 premium-flatbed and 254 economy seats.

Reporting by Hong Xu

GARUDA Indonesia’s Singapore-Makassar service will operate via Balikpapan, effective July 27, 2012.

The extended service will operate four times a week from Changi Airport Terminal 3, departing at 14.00 and arriving in Balikpapan at 16.25. The same aircraft will then continue on to Makassar at 17.15, arriving at 18.20.

The return flight from Makassar will leave Sultan Hasanuddin International Airport at 8.55 the next day, arriving at Balikpapan’s Sepinggan International Airport at 10.05. It then takes off for Singapore at 10.55 and touches down at Changi Airport at 13.10.

The Singapore-Balikpapan-Makassar route will operate using the Boeing 737-500 aircraft, which can accommodate 12 passengers in its executive class, and 84 in its economy class.

“We are constantly looking to improve our flight offerings to provide Singapore travellers with better connectivity to Indonesia,” said Nicodemus Lampe, vice president, Area Asia, Garuda Indonesia.

“Balikpapan is a seaport city, well positioned as a business hub with a variety of offerings for both corporate and leisure travellers. It has remarkable growth potential and we’ve been seeing a significant rise in domestic demand for air travel between Makassar and Balikpapan,” he added.

With the addition of the Balikpapan route, Garuda will operate close to 70 weekly flights from Singapore to four Indonesian destinations including Bali, Jakarta and Makassar.

JAPAN Holidays has included Tohoku – one of the areas affected by the earthquake and ensuing tsunami on March 11, 2011 – in its latest Japan itinerary, a 7D/5N package to Tohoku, Nikko and Tokyo.

Japan Holidays’ business development director, Cathy Wong, explained that the highlight of the tour was the prospect of seeing ‘snow monsters’ (snow-covered trees that take the shape of creatures) at Aizu Kogen in Fukushima Prefecture.

“We are promoting Tohoku because of its extraordinary winter scenery,” she said.

According to Wong, Japan Holidays was promoting the package to Malaysian consumers through the state chapters of MATTA Fair, and had registered good response at the recent MATTA Fair Sabah from July 6 – 8, garnering 80 confirmed bookings for departure in February 2013.

Subsequent participation at MATTA Fair Johor in mid-July also resulted in “a lot of enquiries”, added Wong.

The Japan itinerary is set to be promoted at the upcoming MATTA Fair Kuala Lumpur from September 7-9.

ASEAN NTOs and tour operators were busy courting outbound leisure and MICE clients from South India during the recent India International Travel Mart in Chennai.

Hung Tran, managing director of Viking Travel Ho Chi Minh City, said: “So far this year, we have handled three incentive groups from Chennai on an eight-night itinerary. I am (at the mart) to make my presence felt in the market, as I see tourists from this region increasing manifold to Vietnam in the near future.”

Yaoza K. Shimray, information officer, Tourism Authority of Thailand Mumbai office, said: “The whole of India is an important market for us. We are making special promotional efforts in Chennai in order to connect with the trade.”

Malan Salma of Tourism Malaysia said: “We are seeing double-digit growth from Chennai to Kuala Lumpur, Langkawi and Penang, mostly for leisure travel.”

Sarinya Tiyaphorn, assistant managing director, Pimalai Resort & Spa, Krabi said: “Krabi is becoming very popular with Indian travellers, so it is judicious to establish our presence in this market.”

Shreyash Shah, deputy director of sales, Royal Cliff Beach Hotel, Pattaya, said: “Chennai is a metro city and is connected to Bangkok, which ensures a steady flow of tourist traffic. We are here to make a quantum leap and increase numbers.”

KAYAK.com’s long-awaited initial public offering (IPO) raised some US$91 million for the online travel metasearch company last week, according to a report by Agence France-Presse.

Started in 2004 by the cofounders of Expedia, Travelocity and Orbitz, Kayak first revealed its intention to go public in 2010, but delayed the IPO due to worries over Google’s purchase of ITA Software, a travel industry software company specialising in airfare search and pricing systems (TTG Asia e-Daily, June 1, 2011).

According to its prospectus, Kayak said one of the risks to its outlook was Google’s new flight search tool, which would enable consumers to find comparable flight information on the Internet without using its services.