PUBLISHER Wilson Press Ltd VOL. 10 NO. 7 MAY 2003 GPO Box 11435 Hong Kong Tel: Editorial (852) 2893 3676 Fax: Editorial (852) 2892 2846 E-mail: [email protected] Web Site: www.orientaviation.com Chief Executive and Editor-in-Chief Barry Grindrod E-mail: [email protected] Publisher Christine McGee E-mail: [email protected] Chief Correspondent ... FOCUS ON THAILAND Tom Ballantyne COVER STORY Tel: (612) 9638 6895 Fax: (612) 9684 2776 E-mail: [email protected] THAI’S MR Page 14 China Melody Su Tel: (852) 2893 3676 TRANSPARENCY E-mail: [email protected] Japan and Korea President establishes Daniel Baron Tel: (813) 3406 4694 open door policy E-mail: [email protected] Photographers Also: PB Air establishes Patrick Dunne (chief photographer), a niche market Rob Finlayson, Andrew Hunt, Hiro Murai Photo: Patrick Dunne Design & Production ü Design + Production Colour Separations Twinstar Graphic Arts Co. Printing Hop Sze Printing Company Ltd ADVERTISING South East Asia and Pacific NEWS Tankayhui Media, Tan Kay Hui Tel: (65) 9790 6090 Proposed South Pacific alliance runs into trouble 6 Fax: (65) 6280 2823 Fraport writes down Manila airport investment 6 E-mail: [email protected] Express cargo operators face capacity shortage 6 The Americas/Canada Barnes Media Associates Big ANA order a boost for Boeing 8 Ray Barnes China business focus 9 Tel: (1) 434 927 5122 Fax: (1) 434 927 5101 E-mail: [email protected] MAIN STORY Europe Surviving SARS; virus crippling Asia’s airlines 10 REM International Stephane de Remusat Tel: (33 5) 34 27 01 30 FEATURES Fax: (33 5) 34 27 01 31 E-mail: [email protected] The air aces of Siam 19 New Media & Circulation Manager Vietnam Airlines prepare for the Major League 20 Leona Wong Wing Lam Tel: (852) 2865 1013 E-mail: [email protected] AIRPORTS Association of Asia Pacific Airlines Narita Airport refuses to discuss user charges 23 Secretariat Suite 9.01, 9/F, Kompleks Antarabangsa, SPECIAL REPORT – InformaTION TECHNOLOGY IN THE ASIA-PACIFIC Jalan Sultan Ismail, Sabre clinches major airline contracts 24 50250 Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Director General: Richard Stirland Airlines sharing IT on a global level 26 Commercial Director: Carlos Chua Technical Director: Leroy Keith Electronic mapping shows the way ahead 27 Tel: (603) 2145 5600 New ‘kid on the block’ making inroads 28 Fax: (603) 2145 7500 E-mail: [email protected] Published 10 times a year GENERAL AVIATION February, March, April, May, June, Breakthrough for private pilots in China 22 July/August, September, October, November and December/January. © All rights reserved REGULAR FEATURES Wilson Press Ltd, Hong Kong, 2003. Comment 5 The views expressed in this magazine are not necessarily those of the Association of Asia Pacific Airlines. Business Digest 29 May 2003, Orient Aviation 3 COMMENT PANIC TAKES ITS TOLL ong Kong is a city under siege as the Severe Acute tion of people are infected by it, but a large number of people Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) virus takes its and entire industries are hit by the panic that accompanies its course. Already having to contend with the fall out outbreak. from the Iraq War, Cathay Pacific Airways’ passen- It seems the whole world sees Asia as a veritable cesspit of ger traffic, to quote its chief executive, David Turn- disease – as airlines have found to their great cost. Now, that Hbull, has been “annihilated”. The city’s second carrier, Dragon- IS frightening, but it is also untrue. air, is going through the same trauma and the tourism industry In a leaked memo that appeared on a Hong Kong web site a has been ravaged. Cathay Pacific executive said a little known virus and a powerful Other airlines in other parts of the Asia-Pacific region have global media had brought “a healthy and proud airline to its been very badly affected, too, as our main story (Survivng knees”. In March, days before the news of the outbreak of the SARS, page 10) reveals, but Hong Kong, so close to the alleged virus, Cathay Pacific had announced a six-fold increase in profit. source of SARS in the southern Chinese province of Guang- On April 10 it issued a profit warning – the first in its history! dong, is at the virus’s geographical heart. But what can be done? In truth, little can be achieved in the At press time, more than 1,100 people in Hong Kong had short-term while new cases come to light. The industry can only been infected by SARS. Most are on the road to recovery ride out the storm, then roll up its sleeves and work hard to although, sadly, close to 65 people have died. But, which ever restore the confidence of the travelling public in its airlines. way you look at it, in a city of almost seven million people Asia performed this task spectacularly well after 9/11. The these figures are relatively small. And they are much smaller in difference now is the problem is on its own doorstep and that countries like Singapore, Malaysia, Vietnam and Taiwan, where could make recovery doubly difficult. SARS also has emerged yet the airlines of these countries also have seen traffic evaporate before their eyes. Orient Aviation and its staff are based in Hong Kong. We still walk in the city’s streets, eat in its restaurants, drink in its bars and, yes, fly on our carriers’ aeroplanes. But we are careful. We wear our masks and pay particular attention to personal hygiene. We heed the advice of the medical authorities. But what we have refused to do is panic, because, quite simply, there is no need to do so. BARRY GRINDROD The problem with a high profile disease is that a tiny propor- Chief Executive and Editor-in-Chief THE ASSocIatIon OF ASIA PacIFIC AIRLIneS memBERS anD contact LIST: Air New Zealand Dragonair Philippine Airlines Chief Executive, Mr Ralph Norris Chief Executive Officer, Mr Stanley Hui President, Mr Avelino Zapanta VP Public Affairs and Group Corporate Communication Manager, VP Corporate Communications, Communications, Mr Glen Sowry Mrs Laura Crampton Mr Rolando Estabilio Tel: (632) 817 1234 Fax: (632) 817 8689 Tel: (64 9) 336 2770 Fax: (64 9) 336 2759 Tel: (852) 3193 3193 Fax: (852) 3193 3194 Qantas Airways All Nippon Airways EVA Air Managing Director and CEO, President and CEO, Mr Yoji Ohashi President, Mr Steve Lin Mr Geoff Dixon Senior VP, Public Relations, Mr Koji Ohno Senior Vice President, Group General Manager Public Affairs, Tel: (81 3) 5756 5675 Fax: (81 3) 5756 5679 Mr K. W. Nieh Mr Michael Sharp Tel: (8862) 8500 2585 Fax: (8862) 2501 7599 Tel: (612) 9691 3760 Fax: (612) 9691 4187 Asiana Airlines President & Chief Executive, Garuda Indonesia Royal Brunei Airlines Acting Chairman, Mr Park Chan-bup President, Mr Indra Setiawan Dato Paduka Haji Hazair Managing Director, PR, VP Corporate Affairs, Mr Pujobroto Chief Executive, Mr Peter Foster Mr Hong Lae Kim Tel: (6221) 380 0592 Fax: (6221) 368 031 Tel: (673 2) 229 799 Fax: (673 2) 221 230 Tel: (822) 758 8161 Fax: (822) 758 8008 Japan Airlines Singapore Airlines Cathay Pacific Airways President, Mr Isao Kaneko Deputy Chairman and CEO, Chief Executive Officer, Mr David Turnbull Director, Public Relations, Dr Cheong Choong Kong Corporate Communications General Mr Geoffrey Tudor VP Public Affairs, Mr Rick Clements Manager, Mr Alan Wong Tel: (813) 5460 3109 Fax: (813) 5460 5910 Tel: (65) 6541 5880 Fax: (65) 6545 6083 Tel: (852) 2747 8868 Fax: (852) 2810 6563 Thai Airways International Korean Air President, Mr Kanok Abhiradee China Airlines Chairman and CEO, Mr Yang Ho Cho Director, PR, President, Mr Philip Hsing-Hsiung Wei Managing VP, Corporate Communications, Mrs Sunathee Isvarphornchai VP, Corp Comms, Mr Roger Han Mr Jun Jip Choi Tel: (662) 513 3364 Fax: (662) 545 3891 Tel: (8862) 2514 5750 Fax: (8862) 2514 5754 Tel: (822) 656 7065 Fax: (822) 656 7288/89 Vietnam Airlines Malaysia Airlines President and CEO, Chairman, Tan Sri Azizan Zainul Abidin Mr Nguyen Xuan Hien Dep Director, Corp Affairs, Tel: (603) 2165 5154 Fax: (603) 2163 3178 Mr Nguyen Huy Hieu Tel: (84-4) 873 0928 Fax: (84-4) 827 2291 May 2003, Orient Aviation 5 NEWS REGIONAL ROUND-UP SOUTH PACIFIC pensated for its investment ALLIANCE IN in the facility, which did not SERIOUS DOUBT open as planned last Decem- antas Airways and ber because the private joint Air New Zealand venture partners ran out of Q (AirNZ) are preparing money after Fraport withdrew to make further concessions its financial backing from the to persuade competition au- project. Bender said: “Accord- thorities in Canberra and ing to an independent expert Wellington to reverse a draft opinion, the terminal’s value decision that threatens to clearly exceeds its construc- unhinge their proposed trans- tion costs. We will take legal Tasman alliance, writes Tom action to assert our claims Ballantyne. consistently.” Fraport added In April, Australia’s Com- it is preparing an application petition and Consumer for arbitration proceedings at Commission (ACCC) and the World Bank against the the New Zealand Com- Philippine Government in its merce Commission (NZCC) quest for compensation. separately ruled against the planned partnership, labelling EXPREss CARGO it anti-competitive and saying CAPACITY FEARS the move would give the two Air New Zealand: may be reduced to domestic services only if Express freight operators carriers a virtual monopoly proposed alliance is rejected are facing a serious capacity on air routes between the two problem in Asian markets as countries. support of airlines (Air NZ hearings proceeded as the airlines reduce flights because ACCC chairman, Allan is currently majority owned Civil Aviation Adminis- of Severe Acute Respiratory Fels, said the alliance would by the New Zealand govern- tration of China (CAAC) Syndrome (SARS), according mean higher airfares and Qan- ment), a practice that has only prepares regulations that will to the chief executive South tas and AirNZ would domi- compounded problems in the allow its carriers to establish Pacific of DHL Danzas Air nate the market, even if low- aviation industry.” their own airfares by mid & Ocean, Tony Boll.